Nokian Hakkapeliitta R5 SUV

The Nokian Hakkapeliitta R5 SUV has been criticized in previous tests for weak wet grip, and now comes the R5 with an update and new rubber compound intended to improve wet characteristics - but perhaps Nokian pulled its focus on wet roads a bit too far. The stopping distance on wet asphalt is by far the best in the test with a good margin. However, Nokian has lost some of its sharpness on ice, especially the cornering behavior on winter road surfaces. The grip is still good, but with eager steering responses on snow and ice, the tyre can lose grip more suddenly than before and becomes harder to balance at the grip limit. As a whole, Nokian has improved the balance between wet grip and winter characteristics, which is appreciated. The tyre performs well with decent grip levels on ice and snow and is more agile than the understeering Continental in tight corners, though it has lower ice grip and worse steering feel on asphalt than the best. In the tough competition, it settles for fourth place.

Best grip on ice, driving characteristics on all surfaces, rolling resistance.

Braking distance wet road, aquaplaning.

This year's big news in the segment is the Hakkapeliitta R5, which replaces the R3. Then newcomer immediately becomes the new yardstick for winter grip. The Nokian takes home all the available points in both snow and ice conditions. The cornering grip is most impressive on ice and the Nokian is the only friction tire that maintains good controllability on the wrong side of the grip limit.
The biggest improvement over the predecessor is on dry roads, mainly the noise level which is no longer affected by troublesome frequencies. The steering is slightly sharper and in the evasive maneuver tests the R5 reacts quickly with maintained stability. The rolling resistance is the lowest of the bunch. One the minus side we find braking on wet roads and low aquaplaning characteristics.
In total, the tests best winter grip gives the Nokian a clear victory.