2012 Sport Auto Winter Sports Tire Test

8 Ultra High Performance Winter tires tested in 225/40 R18 | Published February 25th, 2013 by Jonathan Benson

The 2012 Sport Auto winter tire test was the first tire test to include both the new Michelin Pilot Alpin 4 and the new Goodyear UltraGrip 8 Performance.

Somewhat surprisingly, the winner of the test was neither of the new tires, but the Continental Winter Contact TS830P which took the top spot thanks to its near perfect snow performance. Worth noting that for the UK climate at least, the Michelin Pilot Alpin 4 is the best all round tire as it matched the Continentals wet performance, and the small deficit in snow performance is worth the trade in higher dry stability and grip.

The Results

Click here to view Results as a single table and adjust the score weighting based on your own driving needs!

1st: Continental WinterContact TS 830 P
225/40 R18 3PMSF: no	Total: 249 Dry: 59 Wet: 91 Snow: 99 Very balanced tires, excellent traction on snow and wet surfaces, short braking distances in all conditions Relatively sluggish and inaccurate steering response in the dry Read Reviews
2nd: Goodyear UltraGrip 8 Performance
225/40 R18 3PMSF: no	Total: 242 Dry: 59 Wet: 91 Snow: 92 High grip and good handling on wet roads, high lateral grip and short braking distances on snow Average dry handling and braking Read Reviews Buy from £192.99
3rd: Michelin Pilot Alpin 4
225/40 R18 3PMSF: no	Total: 242 Dry: 66 Wet: 91 Snow: 85 High grip and short braking distance on wet roads, very precise reaction to steering the dry Read Reviews
4th: Nokian WR A3
225/40 R18 3PMSF: no	Total: 238 Dry: 67 Wet: 78 Snow: 93 High grip and short braking distances on snow, good handling on dry surfaces Relatively weak resistance to aquaplaning, relatively long braking distance on wet roads Read Reviews
5th: Dunlop SP WinterSport 4D
225/40 R18 3PMSF: no	Total: 235 Dry: 59 Wet: 91 Snow: 85 Good resistance to aquaplaning, good handling on dry surfaces Relatively poor traction and long braking distances on snow Read Reviews
6th: Pirelli Sottozero Serie II
225/40 R18 3PMSF: no	Total: 222 Dry: 53 Wet: 76 Snow: 93 High traction on snow The tendency to shift from understeer to oversteer. Relatively long braking distances on dry and wet surfaces, poor resistance to aquaplaning Read Reviews
7th: Toyo Snowprox S953
225/40 R18 3PMSF: no	Total: 213 Dry: 55 Wet: 69 Snow: 89 High grip, balanced behaviour and excellent traction on snow Relatively long stopping distances on dry, poor handling and long braking distance on wet roads Read Reviews
8th: Hankook Winter i cept evo
225/40 R18 3PMSF: no	Total: 212 Dry: 67 Wet: 79 Snow: 66 Good handling on dry surfaces Weak performance in the wet, very weak grip and poor handling in the snow Read Reviews