Snow tires: Michelin X-Ice Xi3 vs Good Year Ultra Grip Ice WRT

I have done a lot of research and I am tied between these 2 tires for a dedicated winter set.

I do a lot of highway driving and long trips for work (300 miles in a day) 1500 a month in the Long Island, NY and CT area.

75-90% of these miles are on dry, plowed/cleared roads, so I still want a tire that will handle well on dry roads and last with a long life. The snow/slush/ice is for the other 10-25% of the time, during storms, etc.

These will be on 205/60/16 WRX wheels that I got a good deal on.

 

Any thoughts?

thanks

I have Xi3s and I'm pretty happy with them. It's hard to break them loose on dry pavement and I have over 100 more crank HP than you. Solid grip on snow-covered roads. With the Subaru AWD, completely snow-covered hills are no problem, even when starting from a dead-stop (I live at the top of a giant hill on a quiet street - I've tested this).

 

The only thing I'd suggest is to make sure you get a road-hazard warranty with the tires. There's a lot of ongoing construction in my area as they lay down infrastructure for city sewer to neighboring neighborhoods. As a result of some of the harsh roads, one of my tires developed a bulge on the sidewall of where the outer rubber separated from the inner structure. I was unable to get a road-hazard warranty, so I'll have to replace the tire at full cost.

I can't comment on either of those tires, but I have used Dunlop SP Winter Sport 3D's many times in the past, and absolutely love them. They handle just like a traditional all season tire, and also have excellent snow traction. When it comes time for me to buy snow tires again, I plan to buy them again. I decided to try traditional snow tires (continental extremewintercontact), and hate them and their sloppy handling.

 

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires.jsp?tireMake=Dunlop&tireModel=SP+Winter+Sport+3D&partnum=06HR6WS3DV2&vehicleSearch=false&fromCompare1=yes

Try Xi3 H rated. They does not seem to be much different from 3D in the wet or dry and much better in snow.

 

Krzys

I have the Goodyear Ultra Grip Ice WRT in 225-45-R18. My town just had the snowiest winter in over 100 years, and my Legacy was unstoppable with these fitted. The downside is that (at least in this size!) they made a lot of road noise at highway speed; almost like they were hitting a natural frequency and "singing" right at 69-71 mph. If you are using these mostly as a winter highway commute tire on primarily dry pavement, I would recommend against them. In terms of performance in the crud, they absolutely blow away the Blizzak LM60s which they replaced.

Hakka r2 hands down the best. Even the winter tire shoot outs don't include this tire and at end of shoutout they tell you if u want best u can get without going studded get r2. Google or if I find that article I'll post it.

I have Xi3s and I'm pretty happy with them. It's hard to break them loose on dry pavement and I have over 100 more crank HP than you. Solid grip on snow-covered roads. With the Subaru AWD, completely snow-covered hills are no problem, even when starting from a dead-stop (I live at the top of a giant hill on a quiet street - I've tested this).

 

The only thing I'd suggest is to make sure you get a road-hazard warranty with the tires. There's a lot of ongoing construction in my area as they lay down infrastructure for city sewer to neighboring neighborhoods. As a result of some of the harsh roads, one of my tires developed a bulge on the sidewall of where the outer rubber separated from the inner structure. I was unable to get a road-hazard warranty, so I'll have to replace the tire at full cost.

 

I don't know about your area, but in NJ the tire dealer STS won't write hazard insurance on awd cars. STS must realize that they'd be on the spot to replace 4 tires if one fails with enough treadwear to put a new tire out of spec with the remaining 3.

Hakka r2 hands down the best. Even the winter tire shoot outs don't include this tire and at end of shoutout they tell you if u want best u can get without going studded get r2. Google or if I find that article I'll post it.

 

Check Consumer Report they include Nokian tires in their tests and they do place high but not necessarily top 1st.

 

Price wise Nokians are super premuim in the USA, unless one finds them on sale that happens from time to time (vianor.us).

 

If you want the best studless tires and do not care about dry or wet then R2 or Xice xi3 are the best (unless Blizzak WS80 beats them) .

 

If dry perforamnce is high on your list you may consider Dunlop 4D, Pilot Alpin PA3

 

Krzys

I don't know about your area, but in NJ the tire dealer STS won't write hazard insurance on awd cars. STS must realize that they'd be on the spot to replace 4 tires if one fails with enough treadwear to put a new tire out of spec with the remaining 3.

 

You can avoid that by having the new tire shaved down to match the wear of the remaining 3 tires. Besides, any sort of warranty/insurance would only focus on the tire that was damaged. If that's really what some tire shop is claiming, then they're simply trying to save/make a few more dollars at their AWD customer's expense.

 

In my case, I simply had bad timing at the place I bought them as the tires now come with a road-hazard warranty.

I was surprised to find that the Goodyear Ultra Grip Ice WRT tire was the #1 rated studless winter tire on Tire Rack. I'm kind of skeptical of many of the reviews because mounting a fresh set of winter tires is always going to deliver increased control and grip in winter conditions as compared to worn winter tires or all-season tires. Tire Rack's own reviews put them at the bottom in a comparison between the Michelin Xi3, Continental EWC, and Bridgestone WS70.

 

So, for those who have used this tire AND other sets of winter tires, what are your opinions of this tire? I'm interested specifically in snow, slush, and ice performance as compared to well-regarded 'standards', such as Bridgestone WS70, General Altimax Arctic, Michelin Xi3, etc.

if you guys can pick an all weather tire to use on mild snow....which one would you guys recommend?

 

Sorry if i'm jacking the thread...i can repost if i need to.

 

Thanks!

If money is of no concern, and they make them in your size.. Nokian WR G2 or WR G3. There may be a cheaper all season options since you say mild snow, but the nokians will be able to handle any kind of snowy weather you drive in. I have no experience with the newer WR G3, but the WR G2's are amazing in all conditions.

 

https://www.tiresavings.com/tireShop.php?action=findMan2&manufacturer=Nokian&tirename=WRG2+AW&season=Regular

 

https://www.tiresavings.com/tireShop.php?action=findMan2&manufacturer=Nokian&tirename=WRG3+AW&season=Regular

What is "mild snow"?

 

You can get by with a decent all-season with good tread depth. In this case, people seem to like the Continental DWS.

What is "mild snow"?

 

You can get by with a decent all-season with good tread depth. In this case, people seem to like the Continental DWS.

 

 

That would be snow conditions here in the socal mountains in winter time. "Mild" since it is in comparison to the winter for most of you guys.

 

nice...thanks for the info!

We ran General Altimax Artic tires for three winters and a entire summer between one of the winters - excellent traction and super wear - we get tons of snow & slush

I was comparing the Ultra Grip Ice WRTs to the Blizzak LM60s which I had previously. The Ultras are a Studless Ice and Snow and the Blizzaks are a Winter Performance Tire, so I supposed it's not apples to apples. I'm just saying that in terms of snow and ice traction, the Ultra Grips were amazing. If you're concerned about general performance on dry pavement in the cold, maybe look into a Winter Performance Tire.

 

A friend of mine has the General Altimax Artic tires on his STI and says they're great. I was interested in them because a lot of the Impreza crowd runs them and they're a great price, but I don't think they make them in 18"

I'm not actually concerned about performance driving in the winter/cold temps.

 

I'm concerned primarily with snow and slush performance. I've gone through two sets of Altimax Arctics and one set of WS60s and they are quite good. For this coming season, I need to pick a tire and I want to try something different. I was surprised to see the Goodyears at the top of the Tire Rack survey results. They were not known for their excellent winter tires in the past.

I've used the Xi3s and blizzak studless winter tires. I felt like the blizzaks were just too soft and a bit noisy on bare roads. It's honestly hard to compare the two since they pretty much will do the same thing for you but I would say the drive is better overall in the xi3s so I would recommend them. Since your subbie won't have trouble with either, the better performance on dry roads with the xi3s give them the edge.

I noticed there is a new Bridgestone winter tire, the WS80. At this point, I think I'll go with either the Xi3s or the WS80s.

go with Xi3's.

 

I live in a bad winter spot as well, and I have been more then pleased with them.

Also, they are quiet on dry pavement!

In case anyone wants to pick up a set, the Michelin Xi3s comes with a $70 gift card if you order from tire rack. I think that ends in September sometime -- so it's not a bad time to buy.

 

I'm most likely going to go with a 215/55-17 unless someone can show me that a 215/60-17 will fit with a certain tire...

I have a 2014 legacy and used 4 Michelin Xi3's last winter. They drove great in snow, ice and slush. They performed better than most snow tires on dry road. I would definitely recommend them. I bought dedicated wheels and tires to downsize the wheel.

I wish I could downsize to a 16" rim! More sidewall for those winter potholes would make me feel a lot better. Cheaper tires don't hurt, either.

 

As it stands, the smallest wheel size for me is 17" and the tallest sidewall profile I can confirm is 215/55.

If money is of no concern, and they make them in your size.. Nokian WR G2 or WR G3. There may be a cheaper all season options since you say mild snow, but the nokians will be able to handle any kind of snowy weather you drive in. I have no experience with the newer WR G3, but the WR G2's are amazing in all conditions.

 

https://www.tiresavings.com/tireShop.php?action=findMan2&manufacturer=Nokian&tirename=WRG2+AW&season=Regular

 

https://www.tiresavings.com/tireShop.php?action=findMan2&manufacturer=Nokian&tirename=WRG3+AW&season=Regular

 

....replaced Conti DWS's with WR G3's on my Subie 2.5GT this past winter....was very pleasantly surprised by the better overall performance ( and especially impressed by the ability to handle wintery conditions and gob-smacked by how quiet the WR G3 is....one would think that an aggressive thread pattern required to deal effectively with snow should be somewhat noisy but that is not the case with this tire...strange but true..)...

 

....highly highly recommended...

 

Cheers

Nokians all day