Falken WinterPeak
Don't overlook the Falken brand, spun off from Japanese giant Sumitomo. Its F-Ice 1, Winter Peak and Euro Winter tires are also interesting (and, above all, quiet) products, albeit less well known...
Nexen
The Korean brand Nexen is entirely independent and offers quality tires. Its winter products, the Winguard Sport 2 and Winspike 3, are worth considering, both in rubber-on-ice and studded versions.
Laufenn
Laufenn is a brand belonging to the Hankook group. Its I-Fit Ice winter products are becoming increasingly popular in both regular and studded versions.
Kumho Wintercraft
The Korean brand Kumho is now owned by Chinese conglomerate Doublestar. Its Wintercraft tires have always enjoyed a good reputation, but they are less often mentioned in tire discussions.
GT Radial
GT Radial hails from Singapore and operates several factories around the world, including one in South Carolina. Its Champiro IcePro and Winter Pro tires have been sold in Canada for some time now, and so far, feedback has been relatively good. Can you tell us more?
Chinese brands
Once again, we must be wary of brands that suddenly appear on the market without us knowing where they come from. In many cases, most of them come from China, but there are a few who want to distinguish themselves by adapting their products to our needs.
The most remarkable of these is Sailun. Its latest summer products have impressed us, but testing of its winter tires is rare. However, the brand is working to position itself in the mid-range.
WestLake is another Chinese brand making progress, but here again, data is lacking.
Tires for electric vehicles
With the arrival of electric vehicles, new tires have appeared on the market, supposedly adapted to the requirements of these vehicles. According to the information disclosed by their manufacturers, these tires have a more “solid” construction to better react to the higher torque forces generated by electric motors. What's more, they are designed to support the greater weight of new vehicles fitted with heavy batteries.
Other advantages include a quieter ride, especially with the application of Styrofoam belts added to the inside of the carcasses (which, according to one technician, adds an extra difficulty when it comes to repairing a leak caused by a puncture). Finally, more than one manufacturer boasts of reduced rolling resistance.
Otherwise, several major manufacturers offer winter tires that are rather “adapted” to electric vehicles. These include Nokian's Hakkapeliitta 10 EV, while Michelin claims that its X-Ice Snow is already designed for electric vehicles.
Yokohama offers the BluEarth V905, while South Korean manufacturer Hankook offers the Ion I-Cept IW0, a winter tire designed specifically for electric vehicles.
On the other hand, most major manufacturers claim that their best winter tires are also valid for electric vehicles, while others identify these tires with the addition of the EV acronym.
Winter-approved all-season tires
Launched a few years ago, these all-season or “homologated” tires, are growing in popularity. These are tires designed - and certified - for use in both winter and summer.
Auto123 put some of these tires to the test, including the two most important players in this niche, the Michelin Cross-Climate 2 and the Nokian WRG4 (now WRG5). We fitted the former to my own Lincoln MKZ and the latter to a Mercedes C300, two vehicles with similar characteristics (weight, power, etc.).
After two years of use, the results are just as satisfactory in winter as in summer. Of course, these winter-approved all-season tires are not designed for deep or wet snow, but they still manage very well.
Among the other winter-approved tires we tried were Hankook Kinergy 4S H740s, mounted on a Suzuki SX4. For us, they were a real discovery, because of their quiet ride and efficiency in snow, and especially on ice. These tires are ideal for city-dwellers who aren't necessarily looking for a tire to cope with heavy snowfalls, but rather a tire for all seasons that won't need changing every six months.
Incidentally, if you're interested in such a tire, make sure it has the mountain silhouette symbol with a snowflake in the centre, indicating that it's approved for winter use.
Here are some interesting brands of winter-approved all-season tires:
- Sailun Atrezzo
- Michelin CrossClimate2
- Bridgestone WeatherPeak
- Goodyear Assurance WeatherReady
- Firestone WeatherGrip
- Nokian WRG5
- Nordman Solstice 4
- Yokohama Geolander CV4S
- General Altimax 365AW
- Hankook Kinergy 4S2
- Falcon Aklimate
- Toyo Celsius II
- Pirelli WeatherActive Line
- Vredestein Quatrac
Tomorrow: Les meilleurs pneus d’hiver pour camionnettes et gros VUS en 2024-2025
Although most of the opinions are the author's, some information comes from the manufacturers. Thanks to the folks at Pneus Premier Choix de Laval (including Jonathan and Étienne) for their information.
