Moottori: Winter Studded Tire Test R16 2021

Moottori: Winter Studded Tire Test R16

In the new test conducted by Finland’s Mottori, three out of eight tires are newcomers of the season. Recently, Goodyear presented its new UltraGrip Arctic 2 model, and, according to experts, the first-generation tire (UltraGrip Ice Arctic), released nine years ago, has been waiting to be replaced because it could no longer score high positions in tire tests. Right about that time, Nokian presented Hakkapeliitta 10, even though the Nine still remains the leader of independent tests. We also add that the Finns have already tested the version of this new model designed for the domestic market; there is also a dedicated version for Russia, called Hakkapeliitta 10p, equipped with extra-long spikes.

The third newcomer was Nordman 8, again, from Nokian. Compared to Nordman 7, the number of studs was raised from 130 to 190 (in size 205/55 R16, which was the size picked for the tests), which must potentially boost ice grip. With the Hakkapeliitta model, the number of studs also grew — from 190 to 220 — and now, by this parameter, Nokian has almost caught up with the Michelin X–Ice North 4 (featuring 250 studs per tire), which was also included in the test.

The test also involved the Continental IceContact 3, which earlier showed very good results in the Finnish tests, as well as three tires from subsidiary brands of major market players — BFGoodrich G-Force Stud from Michelin, Gislaved Nord*Frost 200 from Continental, and Sava Eskimo Stud from Goodyear. The Gislaved and Sava tires feature 130 studs each, and the BFGoodrich model, released more than 10 years ago, has only 114 of them.

  1. Nokian Hakkapeliitta 10 - Winner Recommended
    Nokian Hakkapeliitta 10
    94 58
    · Winter · 2021 · Passenger - Studdable Winter / Snow · Studded · For Nordic Winter x
    Verdict:

    Excellent grip and very good handling response on snow and ice. High level of safety during emergency maneuvers on asphalt. Logical behavior on dry and wet pavement.

    Snow Handling (Subjective)   Acceleration on Snow   Snow Handling   Acceleration on Ice   Ice Handling   Ice Handling (Subjective)   Dry Handling (Subjective)  
    North America North America · Europe Europe
    Test Score:
    9.2
  2. Michelin X-Ice North 4
    Michelin X-Ice North 4
    92 50
    · Winter · 2018 · Passenger - Studdable Winter / Snow · Studded · For Nordic Winter x
    Verdict:

    Excellent grip and very good handling response on snow and ice. Weak lateral grip and a long braking distance on wet pavement. High noise emission.

    Snow Handling (Subjective)   Ice Handling (Subjective)   Dry Handling (Subjective)   Snow Handling   Comfort / Noise   Wet Handling  
    Canada Canada · Europe Europe · Russia+ Russia+
    Test Score:
    9
  3. Goodyear UltraGrip Arctic 2
    Goodyear UltraGrip Arctic 2
    88 53
    · Winter · 2021 · Passenger - Studdable Winter / Snow · Studded · For Nordic Winter x
    Verdict:

    Short braking distance on ice. Great snow traction. Excellent lateral grip and a very short wet braking distance. Not entirely stable behavior on snow and ice.

    Wet Braking   Ice Braking   Snow Traction   Lateral Grip  
    Europe Europe · Russia+ Russia+
    Test Score:
    8.9
  4. Nokian Nordman 8
    Nokian Nordman 8
    80 34
    · Winter · 2021 · Passenger - Studdable Winter / Snow · Studded · For Nordic Winter x
    Verdict:

    Strong straight traction on snow and ice. Good lateral grip on dry pavement. Prone to oversteer on snow and ice. Weak grip on wet pavement.

    Ice Traction   Snow Traction   Lateral Grip   Wet Braking  
    Europe Europe · Russia+ Russia+
    Test Score:
    8.6
  5. Continental IceContact 3
    Continental IceContact 3
    86 49
    · Winter · 2019 · Passenger - Studdable Winter / Snow · Studded · For Nordic Winter x
    Verdict:

    Short braking distance and good handling response on snow. Very strong lateral grip on wet pavement. Average performance on ice. Very long braking distance on dry pavement. The tires have problems tackling emergency maneuvers on asphalt.

    Snow Braking   Snow Handling   Lateral Grip   Dry Braking  
    Europe Europe · Russia+ Russia+
    Test Score:
    8.4
  6. Gislaved Nord*Frost 200
    Gislaved Nord*Frost 200
    81 40
    · Winter · 2016 · Passenger - Studdable Winter / Snow · Studded · For Nordic Winter x
    Verdict:

    Very good lateral grip on wet pavement. Good straight grip on dry pavement. Average longitudinal traction on ice. Prone to understeer on snow and ice (but the overall behavior is very logical). Weak grip on wet pavement.

    Dry Traction   Lateral Grip  
    Europe Europe · Russia+ Russia+
    Test Score:
    8.3
  7. BFGoodrich g-Force Stud
    BFGoodrich g-Force Stud
    73 13
    · Winter · 2007 · Passenger - Studdable Winter / Snow · Studded · For Nordic Winter x
    Verdict:

    Short braking distance on snow. Good lateral grip on ice. Logical behavior on wet pavement. Short braking distance on dry pavement. Low noise emission. Weak longitudinal traction on ice.

    Comfort / Noise   Snow Braking   Dry Braking   Ice Braking  
    Europe Europe · Russia+ Russia+
    Test Score:
    8.2
  8. Sava Eskimo Stud
    Sava Eskimo Stud
    N/A 14
    · Winter · 2012 · Passenger - Studdable Winter / Snow · Studded · For Nordic Winter x
    Verdict:

    Short braking distance on wet and dry pavement. Poor grip (the grip threshold is abruptly reached) and prone to understeer on ice and snow. Prone to skidding in corners and on wet pavement.

    Wet Braking   Dry Braking   Acceleration on Snow   Acceleration on Ice   Snow Handling (Subjective)   Wet Braking (Subjective)   Ice Handling (Subjective)   Snow Braking   Ice Handling   Snow Handling  
    USA+ USA+ · Europe Europe · Russia+ Russia+
    Test Score:
    7.5
Year
2021
Max Score, points
10
Tire Size
205/55R16
Season
Winter
Auto Type
Passenger
List Type
Professional Tire Test
Region
Europe, Russia+
Date added
Aug 26, 2021
Date updated
Oct 23, 2021

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