Even within a segment that is not hugely popular in the UK, WhatTyre’s comprehensive database shows a broad range of winter tyres are available, and this year’s awards show the strong competition among the best tyres to tackle wet, icy and snow-dusted roads in sub-zero temperatures
With another season of cold weather tyre testing and further development of WhatTyre’s proprietary Tyrescore, there are some changes at the top of WhatTyre’s annual recommendations for the top winter tyres in 2024. Winter tyres remain a very small part of the UK tyre market. All-season tyres, the best of which can happily be fitted all year to guarantee four-season mobility, continue to make full winter tyres a more niche purchase for most UK motorists. However, if you want to guarantee traction in the most extreme cold weather – perhaps those taking trips to the mountainous regions of the UK or the continent – they remain the best tool for the job. WhatTyre’s Winter Tyre of the Year 2024 shortlist offers 12 fantastic options for an optimal cold weather driving experience. The selected tyres represent the best the winter tyre market has to offer, according to both the latest seasons of the best independent European tyre tests and our Tyrescore algorithm results, based on the most recent available data.
The latest iteration of our dynamic tyre rating gives an indicative mark out of 10 to every tyre available in the UK market. Its special formula takes into account tyre labelling grades for safety, fuel economy and noise, and more than 8,000 independent tyre test results. The 2.0 version of the algorithm added credit for tyre models that are chosen by car manufacturers for factory fitment or approval. Version 2.1 also considered the provenance of the tyre, with additional credit available for tyre makers who could demonstrate their environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG) responsibility via independent accreditation – an increasingly important consideration for consumers. In the current 2.2 iteration, we have also developed a new way to include data relating to tyre manufacturers’ sustainability credentials, crediting product makers for lower environmental impact and more ethical production.
(Photo: Bridgestone)
What are winter tyres?
Winter tyres are manufactured to operate specifically at low temperatures – generally quoted at under 7 degrees Celsius, though in reality they come into their own in freezing conditions and on snow and ice. These products will ensure your car will stay mobile in the harshest possible cold weather conditions. In a temperate climate like the UK’s these tyres are usually found in very hilly or mountainous regions, or on vehicles that must guarantee the ability to get around even with a thick covering of snow and ice, like the ambulance service. While the UK maintains steady tyre sales throughout the year, many continental European countries have a seasonal market, due to legislation requiring tyres certified for winter use. This is indicated by the Three Peak Mountain Snowflake (3PMSF) symbol on the sidewall – found on any true winter tyre sold in the European market.
In practice, the latest generations of all-season tyres developed for Europe also carry the certification, overcoming the inconvenience of changing tyres by offering winter performance that will generally suit most drivers commuting or doing the school run on major or busy roads.
If you want the best possible safety performance on ice and snow though, WhatTyre’s 2024 list of the best winter tyres guides you towards a selection of the top performers in this market segment, including options suitable for higher performance vehicles and one special product that delivers extended mobility even in the case of puncture.
WhatTyre Winter Tyre of the Year 2024
Continental WinterContact TS 870 P (Photo: Continental)
The 2023/24 winter testing season showed that competition among winter tyres remains fierce, especially at the top, where five excellent tyres from the current generation gave extremely good reasons for claiming the top award. Our winner in this category for the past three years, Bridgestone’s Blizzzak LM-005, remains Highly Recommended. But a combination of WhatTyre’s shift in focus towards winter tyres suitable for fitment on higher-performance cars allowed three more tyres to shine as brightly, with Continental’s WinterContact TS 870 P taking the win this time.
With sizes ranging all the way up to 22” fitments and rated for higher speeds, the tyre impressed testers across the board, offering balanced high performance levels, stable driving behaviour in all weather conditions, short wet braking distances, quiet pass-by noise, and even fuel-saving rolling resistance. While the Bridgestone Blizzak LM-005, which is available in a highly extended size range between 14 and 22-inches, remains a generational benchmark product in the winter tyre segment, WhatTyre felt that the Continental ultra-high performance winter tyre’s more specialised tweaks for performance cars and SUVs give it an edge in certain cases, as well as slight improvements in rolling resistance. This fuel efficiency, alongside its availability in larger sizes and Continental’s assurance that its tyres in the relevant sizes are suitable for electric vehicles, also makes the tyre the one we would pick for range-conscious EV drivers looking for a full winter fitment. The only notable weakness of the tyre is its high selling price.
WhatTyre’s Highly Recommended winter tyres 2024
With three WhatTyre Winter Tyre of the Year awards secured, the Bridgestone Blizzak LM-005 continues to impress testers. The tyre secured plaudits from every major tester, placing it among the best available tyres in snow and ice braking and wet grip. It also removes water effectively, which leads to its excellent wet-weather performance. The tyre has been recommended repeatedly by leading independent testers, and it has regularly compared well against our winner this year and its more mass-market variant (see below). Its tyre labelling results also help set it apart from the crowd, with A-grade wet grip a key indicator of its appeal. This is especially true in the UK; what our winters lack in sustained periods of snow, they most certainly make up for in wet weather.
Bridgestone Blizzak LM-005 Driveguard (Photo: Bridgestone)
Two variations of our leading tyres in 2024, the Continental WinterContact TS 870 and the Bridgestone Blizzak LM-005 Driveguard are also Highly Recommended. The first offers performance characteristics more suited to everyday driving and touring in family cars with a range of sizes and speed-ratings commensurate with a product that maintains extremely high levels of winter safety. It remains a favourite for the UK’s Auto Express, underlining its particular suitability for cold weather roads in our home market. The tyre integrates sustainable credentials with the “Cool Chili” polymer compound, with optimised crosslink density – the increases in links between the elements of the compound – helping the tyre to be more flexible. This improves the quality of the contact between tyre and road, reduces abrasion, increases the tyre’s mileage, and reduces its rolling resistance, meaning a lower total cost of ownership across the life of the tyre.
The Driveguard variant of the LM-005 extends the tyre’s enviable winter performance to a replacement tyre option with runflat capabilities, meaning that the tyre can still operate at a lower speed for a reasonable distance, designed to help motorists continue their journey far enough to get a replacement without the need for a breakdown service in the case of a puncture.
Michelin Pilot Alpin 5 (Photo: Michelin)
Two more new entries in WhatTyre’s Winter Tyre of the Year list, which also benefit from increased interest in the ultra-high performance end of the winter tyre market, have also achieved Highly Recommended status: the Michelin Pilot Alpin 5 and the Hankook Winter i*cept evo 3. The Pilot Alpin 5 offers a directional tread pattern to support better UHP winter performance in the dry, wet and snow, and the tyre certainly impressed UK tester Tyre Reviews, for whom it offered class-leading comfort and snow performance. Underlining its performance credentials are performance looks; the tyre features a velvet effect on the external sidewall for added flair.
The Hankook Winter i*cept evo 3 is no slouch when it comes to winter performance driving, mixing it with better established premium brands in such tests as Auto Bild Sportscars’ 2023 winter tyre test. The brand from South Korea is regularly challenging, and bettering, the premium performance of brands such as Michelin and Pirelli. The tyre offers class-leading resistance to aquaplaning as well as all-round performance in winter conditions. While other comparable tyres receive commendations, WhatTyre considered this product particularly worthy of the Highly Recommended grading because it adds a generally more moderate purchase price to its extremely solid characteristics, making it a tyre that can hold its own on performance cars in the winter while also extending the accessibility of this performance to more motorists.
6 Commended winter tyres
Demonstrating the strength of the current generation of winter tyres, WhatTyre’s six Commended products combine more test-topping pedigree all of which offer very high quality cold-weather specialist performance.
Goodyear was very close to making the list of Highly Recommended winter tyres with its UltraGrip Performance 3, after an extremely consistent showing in the 2023/24 round of tyre tests, even taking the top step in the Auto Bild and Auto Bild Sportscars tests. The tyre is certainly worth considering, especially coming it at a generally slightly lower price than our Highly Recommended products, as it offers very solid all-round characteristics, albeit at the cost of slightly elevated rolling resistance marks. Goodyear products also sell at comparatively low prices to its premium brand rivals, which was enough for Auto Bild to call the tyre its “EcoMeister” champion.
The Michelin Alpin 6 continued to challenge in tests, with ADAC and Auto Express including the tyre among their recommendations on touring car sizes. Tests noted the tyre’s good wear properties, making it particularly good value, despite maintaining relatively high purchase prices, across the tyre’s life; Michelin targets performance when worn in the development of its tyres. The winter tyre features Michelin’s Evergrip technology, which helps optimise control and safety on snow, even when the tyres have worn down considerably from new. This certainly makes the tyre more than worth a look, especially for motorists making lengthy car journeys to European skiing destinations.
The Pirelli Cinturato Winter 2 continued to perform solidly, if not spectacularly, in tests from the past 12 months, but was particularly praised for its strength in the snow, a strength also shown in 2022 tests, with Tyre Reviews noting how good the tyre was to drive in the snow. It is also also a quiet tyre, making it great for comfort. However, its rolling resistance has been described as “elevated”, meaning its fuel economy may not match the benefits offered by other tyres.
The final tyres are somewhat showing their age at this stage, with performance a step down from their Highly Recommended rivals, yet both have continued to demonstrate worthy winter performance, and remain great options. Vredestein’s Wintrac Pro continues the brand’s reputation for making quality winter-oriented products that achieve excellent results on tyre tests. With the regular Wintrac aimed at cars with smaller tyre dimensions, the Wintrac Pro offers winter performance to larger, more powerful vehicles. The tyre has been particularly highly rated for its dry performance, and is no slouch in normal wet conditions, though it couldn’t keep up with the other models for its more average snow performance.
The Dunlop SP Winter Sport 5 was launched in 2015, a fifth-generation product built to continue the success of the line of previous Winter Sports, but the tyre is still able to gain grades in the upper reaches of tests, including “good” ratings from ADAC and Auto Bild in 2023. Based on quality independent test performances, the tyre continues to be an easy one to recommend. Designed to help drivers navigate unforeseen winter roads and conditions, including black ice, slush, icy patches, melting snow and puddles, the tyre has an increased number of tyre blocks for enhanced snow performance and angled centre sipes, which provide more lateral grip on slippery surfaces.
Finally, the Finish inventor of the winter tyre, Nokian Tyres’ WR Snowproof gains a Commended rating largely on the back of its efficiency. While not among the highest achievers in performance on winter roads, the tyre was noted for its long life and low rolling resistance when tested again by ADAC in 2023. This continued its history of offering excellent efficiency and low overall cost of ownership – still somewhat rare features in a tyre developed for winter specialism. That said,.it is worth noting Auto Express’ reservation about this when it tested the tyre in 2020 – “Remarkable fuel economy deserves credit, but is this what drivers want when buying a winter tyre primarily for superior performance in poor conditions?”
Should I buy winter tyres?
There are great reasons to fit winter tyres between around October and March. In tests they clearly demonstrate significantly better performance than all-season tyres on snow and ice. Specialist winter tyres contain “sipes”, small slits in the tread blocks, which bite into snow and ice. They are also made with rubber compounds offering better performance under 7°C, the average temperature in commuting hours for up to half the year in the UK. Fitted and maintained in conjunction with quality summer tyres, drivers can expect the best possible performance and maximum longevity year-round.
How about if your car has 4-wheel drive? If the postcard-sized tyre contact patches cannot generate grip, four-wheel drive is not much more helpful than two. Braking distances are decreased greatly on the slipperiest winter surfaces with winter tyres. At only 30mph, a car on summer tyres will take around two more car lengths to come to a halt versus one on quality winter tyres.
Overall, if guaranteed mobility in harsh cold conditions is essential, winter tyres are the best possible option.
