| Test Summary | |
| Wet Braking | Michelin CrossClimate SUV |
| Dry Braking | Goodyear Vector 4 Seasons Gen 2 SUV |
| Wet Handling | Goodyear Vector 4 Seasons Gen 2 SUV Nokian WeatherProof SUV |
| Rolling Resistance | Michelin CrossClimate SUV |
| Noise | Goodyear Vector 4 Seasons Gen 2 SUV Vredestein Quatrac 5 SUV Hankook Kinergy 4S |
| Snow Handling | Goodyear Vector 4 Seasons Gen 2 SUV Mastersteel ALL WEATHER M Yokohama Geolandar AT G015 General Grabber AT3 |
Not only do they test six all season tyres in the SUV / 4x4 size of 235/60 R18 and include reference summer and winter tyres, but they also include two all terrain (AT) off-road tyres. These AT tyres aren't specifically designed to work in snow and ice like the all season tyres have been, instead they have a more off-road bias to their performance bend. Even with this added off-road performance, they still qualify as legal all season tyres thanks to them being marked with the "three peaks mountain and snowflake" symbol.
As a result, the AT tyres have a very different performance blend to the all season tyres on test, and while their snow performance was surprisingly OK, this test shows how badly they perform on-road, specifically in the wet.
Read on for the full details! For reference, the two AT tyres are the Yokohama Geolander AT G015, and the General Grabber AT3.
Dry
In the dry the results are fairly close other than the reference summer tyre and summer-bias all season Michelin having a significant advantage during the dry braking tests. The winter tyre manages to beat two of the all season tyres, and the AT tyres struggle to make any impact.
During dry handling the Summer and Michelin CrossClimate again lead the pack, with the Vredestein Quatrac 5 SUV having another excellent result. Once more, the General Grabber AT3 struggles in the dry and finishes in last place, buy a significant margin.
Wet
While the AT tyres were weak in the dry, the wet testing shows an even bigger issue for the off-road tyres. During wet braking the Michelin CrossClimate SUV and Vredestein Quatrac 5 SUV once again provided to be the class of the pack, beating even the summer tyre when stopping the SUV. Both AT tyres finished in last places, with the General Grabber AT3 taking a huge 19.5 meters longer to stop the test vehicle than the best tyre on test.
While the wet handling test slightly altered the result of the best tyres on test, it made no difference to the worse, with both AT tyres once again finishing last.
The straight aquaplaning tests also favoured the all season tyres.
Snow
The snow handling tests were slightly better for the AT tyres than the wet testing, with the more off-road bias tyres vastly out performing the summer tyres, and in the mix with the all seasons, albeit towards the back of the group in both snow handling and snow braking.
Environment
Unsurprisingly, the AT tyres had the highest rolling resistance on test, but surprisingly were both the quietest tyres, not something we expected to see.
Results
The full results and testers comments can be found below. It's worth remembering that while the AT tyres performed poorly in the wet compared to summer and all season tyres, they're also designed to work off-road, in mud, sand, over rocks and on grass. In these conditions they would vastly outperform the summer tyre, and would likely have an advantage over the all season tyres too. That said, the wet performance of both the AT tyres are significantly worse than normal summer and all season tyres, so if your vehicle spends the majority of its life on-road, it's worth keeping this performance penalty in mind.
1st: Goodyear Vector 4 Seasons Gen 2 SUV | |
| A good balanced performance, excellent in the snow and the wet with a high resistance to aquaplaning. Low noise level. High Price. Test winner. Read Reviews |
2nd: Michelin CrossClimate SUV | |
| Best in the dry, almost matching the summer tyre, good in the wet, low fuel use. Long braking distances in the snow (but still many times better than a summer tyre) Highly Recommended. Read Reviews Buy from £144.64 |
3rd: Nokian WeatherProof SUV | |
| Short braking distances in the snow, good in the wet, high resistance to aquaplaning. Long braking distances in the dry, low lateral stability in the snow. Recommended. Read Reviews |
3rd: Vredestein Quatrac 5 SUV | |
| Very high grip and short braking distances in the wet, a good performance on snow. Lower comfort, average aquaplaning resistance. Recommended. Read Reviews |
5th: Hankook Kinergy 4S | |
| High resistance to aquaplaning, well priced. Higher noise levels, long braking distances on snow and dry roads. Recommended. Read Reviews |
6th: Mastersteel ALL WEATHER M | |
| Good snow traction, low price, low noise. Long braking distances in the dry and wet, an understeer balance in the snow and on dry roads. Conditionally recommended. Read Reviews |
7th: Yokohama Geolandar AT G015 | |
| Good lateral stability in snow, good in the dry, low noise. Long braking distances in the wet and snow, high rolling resistance, low ride comfort. Read Reviews Buy from £196.15 |
8th: General Grabber AT3 | |
| Low noise level. Very poor wet grip, high risk of aquaplaning, long stability and long braking distances in the snow. Not recommended. Read Reviews Buy from £181.68 |
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