The BEST Tires for Snow & Ice Tested! Nokian vs Michelin vs Continental vs Yokohama vs Cooper + more

This is a test of the best winter tires in snow and ice, please share and subscribe!

These tires are called different things in different parts of the world. In North America / USA, they're generally just called winter tires, but in Europe they're called nordic winter tyres, soft compound winter tyres, extreme winter tyres, studless winter tyres.

Whatever you call them, they have the same design goal, to be as good as possible in the snow and ice, without using studs.

So, which is best? To find out I have taken ten of the most popular winter tyres on the market, and will be testing them in the snow, dry and wet, noise, comfort and rolling resistance!

The tyre size I'm testing is massively popular 205/55 R16, and to highlight the differences between this category of winter tire, I have included a central european winter tire and a studded winter tire!

In this winter tire test we have:

Continental ContiVikingContact 7
Cooper Weathermaster S100
Federal Himalaya ICEO
Michelin X-Ice Snow
Nokian Hakkapeliitta R5
Pirelli Ice Zero FR
Yokohama Iceguard IG53

Continental WinterContact TS870 (Central European winter tire)
Nokian Hakkapeliitta 10 (Studded winter tire)

The full article with all the data can be found on the Tire Reviews website here:

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00:00 Introduction
00:35 The Winter Tires on Test
01:35 Ice Handling
04:45 Ice Traction / Braking
05:07 Snow Handling
07:13 Snow Traction / Braking
07:38 Wet Grip
09:14 Aquaplaning / Hydroplaning
11:06 Dry Grip
11:51 Noise and Comfort
12:13 Fuel Use
12:30 Final Results

[tyrereviews]

Thanks for watching, go review your tires over at www.tire-reviews.com ❤ Just FYI the Bridgestone Blizzak WS90 should be in this test, but I couldn't get them over to Europe in time (the rest of the tires are sold in both Europe and North America)

[anthonyc]

This guy is the benchmark of tire testing on two sides of the Atlantic.

[roccosperanza]

I love how much data you put in your tests! It might not be obvious, but I'm certain your tests will save lives. It only takes one person purchasing a better set of tires to prevent an accident. Thanks for the thorough testing!

[DavidTheScientist]

Went to northern Finland in February, with temps ranging from -5c to -29c. Our rental car (Merc A-class FWD) had a new set of Hakkapellitta 10s fitted. It was only my 2nd time driving in snow, but the Nokkians quickly helped me feel confident. In northern Finland roads are only plowed, not treated, it was so nice being able to drive 8 hours without having to wipe the windscreen once due to salty muck like you get in other places.

It also made me realise how incredibly varied winter conditions can be, with seemingly an endless amount of variation in traction conditions. Generally, the road was covered in a thin packed snow layer, with tyre tracks exposing the asphalt on the driving line; these tracks seemed to have a thin layer of icy frost. The Nokkians were very impressive; I'm not sure if the studs helped with traction much, but braking action was generally excellent. Same in hardpack snow, I was shocked that I could drive at (almost) normal speeds down a country lane with little kick-in of the ABS/TCS/ESC. When a couple cm of fresh powder fell over the hardpack, it did become much slippier, presumably as the treads no longer penetrated the hardpack. I almost put the car into a snowbank on a tight corner before I'd got used to the different traction levels. All the same, very impressive, and the car still felt safe and predictable providing speed was dropped and you slowed enough for the corners.

In fact, I even did what is generally advised against: driving down an unplowed country road after 3-5cm of powder had fallen over the hardpack. I couldn't resist trying, as the road cut 30+ mins off the journey. After the first km, I kept going, as I was confident with the traction levels, and it did indeed give us a good time saving over the main highway. Seeing the snow cloud behind me in the rear-view was quite satisfying...

Only thing that surprised me was that sometimes on the main road, where the asphalt was visible but frosty, the tyres would really spin up easily when accelerating away from a junction... I kind of expected them to grip better in this scenario, but I guess it was icier than it looked. Again, thankfully braking on the same surfaces was more assured.

Overall, a really interesting experience, and fun to see what the best winter tyres out there can and can't do in the harshest winter conditions...
As a fun aside, I also cycled 40km on the snowy (but plowed) cycle paths of Oulu in -25c. Even the bike tyres are studded, and they were also really impressive, giving much better grip than walking, even vs wearing snow boots.

[Alanvictoryoung]

I’m in BC, Canada and I went with Michelin X-ice Snow as we have cold wet conditions most of the time but I live high enough on the mountain to get a snow. Plus trips to the ski mountains and tournaments around the province, the tire was a great choice. I watch you videos before every tire purchase and I appreciate the safety and confidence I get reviewing your data and experience for my family driving needs. Thank you.

[davetravels]

Colorado here, I have the Michelin X-ice snows and the Continental Viking Contact 7s on our two cars. I have had them for one year and had them installed 2 weeks ago for the winter. Some thoughts after putting them on: The Michelins drive so nice no matter the conditions, they have almost no effect on fuel economy, but they are much noisier. I immediately noticed how loud they are after putting them on this year. The Continentals are much quieter and grippier, but when they go, they go. 😂 I decided not to get the Nokians because we have lots of dry days in Colorado and they spray lots of chemicals on the roads making them wet when it snows, but not enough to cause hydro planning. Ultimately, I have the Michelins on my wife’s small hatchback that mostly stays in the city and they have enabled her to get home when trucks with A/T tires were sliding off the road. I have the Continentals on my Subaru Outback and we take it to the family cabin all winter, which includes 7 miles of unpaved, snow packed roads. The Continentals have been an absolute life-safer, getting us out of the cabin with up to 10 inches on the road, while other trucks and Subarus were getting stuck or sliding off the road, the Continentals just kept gripping. What’s more is that they are so good in the other weather we have in Colorado the rest of the winter. Like you said, all three are excellent and it really depends on your use case. For the Rockies, the Continentals are king, the Michelins are good, but not quite up to the mountain weather here and the Nokians are too focused on extreme winter weather to be good the other 80% of the time here.

[Someoneonthisplanet]

I am living in Alberta Canada in the rockies and just had the Nokians R5 mounted under my SUV. They are absolutely amazing to drive with. The car feels like a tank in the snow, so much grip.

[anthonyepp]

These reviews helped me select my preferred winter tire, I purchased the continental VikingContact 7 two years ago. I love them! I will never go back to all seasons in the winter.

Thanks for the videos!

[marlinnotfish]

I just endured my first snow storm after installing continental vikingcontact 7’s and I am blown away. I’ve never had snow tires before and I moved to a region that is more or less freezing for 4 months out of the year wirh roads that don’t get plowed much. I don’t know how I ever lived without snow tires.

[Boxsterb]

I just purchased a set of X-Ice Snow on sale over Labor Day, so this makes me extremely happy with that choice. I'm out in Eastern Canada and it sounds like this will be a huge upgrade over the old Uniroyal winter tires I'm replacing. Wasn't happy with those last winter and with a second kid on the way, I'm trying to do my best to keep the family safe out there on the roads. Appreciate you taking the time to be so thorough in your testing!

[Radio_]

I went with the Michelin X-Ice Snow (I'm in Sweden). Very happy with the grip in snow, grip on ice, grip in the wet, quietness, and how comfortable the ride is.

[firstandlastname]

The best winter tire review! I am so happy to see an independent testing, especially for the Nokian R5 as it was not tested yet. I wanted to buy this tire but my concern was how good it would be in snow. I am glad to know the good result. I have a feeling that this tire will not be the best in slush, deep snow and aquaplaning so it is good to be aware of that when driving.

[tl]

Watched your reviews a year ago, selected the Michelin Xice snow, great results. Ram promaster city work van, FWD. I was able to navigate steep hills up and down, stop predictably, and get going up hill from a stop. They build confidence in exteme conditions and helped us stay working during inclement weather. Worth the price, hoping to get 4+ seasons out of them. Thank you, Tyler from Seattle, WA USA

[MarathonAuto]

GREAT REVIEW! As a Nokian tire dealer since 1980 and selling winter tires since 1973 I can appreciate the time and effort it took to do this review. Very educational as most people (including most tire stores) do no take regional needs in consideration when choosing or recommending tires, or reading test and reviews. Bravo! I will be recommending this to our customers.

[AlexStyvon]

WOW!! Finally an unbiased sponsored review did for Extreme winter tire!!! Especially usefull for north american market! It only miss the Brigestone WS-90 to have THE perfect test!!
It's a real delight to see somebody else say; "Your best winter tires depend on your location!". Your CE winter tires REALLY give the comparaison!!

[dc]

As a Californian who has literally driven in zero snow, we moved up to Oregon. For winter I bought Viking 7s and my son has CrossClimate2s, both on FWD Toyota Camrys.

We drove in some pretty heavy snow (for us) driving through peaks and valleys for about 3hrs straight. There were many cars and SUVs stranded at the sides of the road during our trip.

My son and I are novice snow drivers. We high-fived thankful we made it home in a very uneventful manner without incident. I can't say enough about investing in 3peak winter tires, they'll get you home and may even save your life.

[NoahBB]

As someone who lives in western Canada and experiences a ton of snow and ice, I really appreciate your thorough testing!

I've used the Michelin X-Ice3 (predecessor to X-Ice Snow), Continental VikingContact 7, Bridgestone Blizzak WS80 and WS90 and your data closely matches my subjective impressions of these tires. The Conti VikingContact 7 is unbelievably capable, especially on rough ice and in deep snow, but very "pointy" and it lacks directional stability compared to the Blizzaks or Michelins. The Michelins are probably the best overall when you factor in how easy they are to drive, but they come at a significant premium to the Vikings. The Blizzaks are very capable but have had their crown stolen by Continental and Michelin, they're also the worst in the dry.

I think the Blizzaks would be a great addition to your next Nordic tire test, as they're the OEM winter tire on a handful of vehicles in Canada.
You may be interested in reading tests from the site: "Saskatchewan Studded Tire Club" as they're probably the best "deep snow" tire testers in Canada.

Cheers mate!

[finnishfatman]

I bought Hakkapeliitta 10's last winter and holy heck are they just damn fine. We get a lot of snow and ice during the winter and late winter, when things start to melt (and freeze again) all the roads are covered in mirror ice, but those Hakkapeliitta's just work like no other. I've driven on icy conditions for few decades (and been passenger a bit longer, as a child 😅) and I gotta say, if you want something that works amazingly on ice and snow, Hakkapeliitta 10 is the one.

[marcvalme]

Thank you for including tires available in North America! You keep saying that people don't want long videos! Who are these people! Release the 45 minute directors cut!

[danbraun]

Nice catch on the poor aquaplaning resistance of Nokians. I've been driving R3's for the past three years and twice I almost went off the road or into the oncoming lane going through deep water. Never experienced anything like it. Otherwise they were great and I just bought a new set of R5's this afternoon. Thanks to your test I know I'll still have to slow down during sudden torrential rain.