What wheel and tyre combination is going to give you the best winter performance? A narrow high sidewall of a 205/55 R16, a wide sporty 225/40 R18, or a compromise of the two sizes, at 225/45 R17? To test this theory we've used three versions of the excellent Goodyear UltraGrip Performance Gen-1 winter tyre, and have carried out full dry, wet and snow testing using a VW Golf.
Watch the video below for the full details, or continue reading the article to find some of the key points!
The biggest difference between the tyres is the fact the 16 inch size is only 205mm wide, whereas the 17 and 18 inch sizes are both 225mm wide.
When looking at different winter tyre sizes, one of the biggest theories is narrow is better, as it gives the tyre a greater ability to cut through the snow to the surface below. The counter argument for this is the fact wider tyres have more edges thanks to more sipes, which allows them more grip.
Snow
In theory, the biggest difference will come from snow performance, but in practice the objective timed differences were tiny!
Subjectively there was a slightly bigger gap between the three winter tyre sizes, but again it was very close. The 17 inch wheel and tyre combination proved to have the best overall balance, giving you a predictable and stable car, whereas the 16" seemed to be a little quicker on the front axle which resulted in oversteer at the rear, and the 18" gave you less communication at the limit which resulted in surprise understeer at points.
Wet
During wet testing the situation changed in favour of the wider tyres, but again the gaps were tiny.
The narrower 16" tyre was always going to win the aquaplaning testing, and it even managed to split the 17" and 18" tyres during wet braking, but it was half a second off the 17" and 18" tyres during wet handling.
Subjectively the tyres were slightly further apart than in the snow, with the 17" and 18" tyres feeling broadly similar, and the 16" tyre struggling more with slow steering and understeer at the limit.
Dry
In the dry, the wider tyres definitely had a performance advantage.
The wider 17" and 18" tyres had a clear advantage during dry braking, which directly carried over to dry handling. The 18" was the sharpest feeling tyre on test, and definitely the tyre you'd want fitted to and sort of sports car.
The 16" tyre had a huge advantage in noise and comfort levels, crashing far less over road imperfections and potholes, something that's important to consider for the UK's winters. The noise levels between the 17" and 18" tyres sounded fairly similar, but were different tones so registered differently on the dB meter.
Conclusion
It's fair to say that the differences between a good winter tyre and a bad winter tyre are far greater than the differences between a 16", 17" and 18" winter wheel and tyre combination.
If you're driving a sportier car and want to retain some level of driving enjoyment over the winter, the wider, lower profile tyres are better.
If you'd prefer ultimate comfort and low noise levels for your winter motoring, fit a wheel and tyre combination that maximizes the tyre sidewall you can fit, as this will give you the highest levels of NVH.
Ultimately, the most important thing to consider is not what winter tyre size you pick, but what winter tyre you pick in any size, so be sure to check out all the reviews and tests on Tyre Reviews to help you make the best winter tyre choice for your vehicle.
Talkin' about comfort differences, were the load rating the same across all tire sizes? Even with tires of the same size, say 205/55 R16, it's 94 rating harder than 91, in a 1400kg car? The 225/45 R17 loses only 1 cm of sidewall height, in the 205/55 R16 the sidewall height is about 11 cm. It would be valuable to know how the load ratigs affects the confort or is a matter of sidewall height only. I must to decide beetwin 16 or 17 in my Lancia (Chrisler) Delta Twinturbo 1.9, I ride her in the south Italy bad roads. With 17" wheels the car looks so sharp and sporty!
Were the speed ratings of all tyres the same? This can surely affect the grip, especially in cold conditions.
I believe we matched them where we could, it doesn't make a huge amount of difference anymore, sometimes they're actually the same tyre
That's surprising. I'd imagine that low-speed tyres could afford to be a lot softer/grippier on ice.
I have watched many videos on youtube but I found that the most comprehensive, trusted AND FUN TO WATCH were yours. Please excuse brevity and my bad English, I wouldn't dare to write to you but you have mentioned that we can send emails bcoz u like to talk about tyres.
I would much appreciate your prompt reply in order to amend my orders on tyres.
So I present my case below:
Kormoran 215/65 R16 102 H XL
These tyres were suggested for my (new) Nissan Qashqai 1.6Dci 4x4 Premier Limited Edition and I am a normal (slightly on the aggressive side driver, who, however, never drives faster than 140-150km/hr at max, but is always in a hurry and drives fast in slow corners and in places I admit i should not do, so good Grip is essential for me)
The suggested tyres, Kormoran 215/65 R16 102 H XL will be mainly driven in wet and cold months of the year like December through March (in Greece) only for 5k-7k km/annum.
I had to prebook the tyres that will arrive next month actually.
####Have I done wrong? Should I go and ask for a change? See my questions####
The shop I bought them is well trusted and offered me the Michelin PilotSport 4 (S??? I am no so sure of**) tyres for my 225/45/R19 summer set at a great price. You have mentioned that these are the best summer tyres so I don't think the shop wanted to rip me off.
(I am loyal customer to them as I always buy tyres from the same shop. I bought for my wife's Micra the Continental ContiPremium6 that u said were great and i have to thank you as I agree with you 100%, and on my OLD Nissan Qashqai Techna 2.0L (J10) 4x4 where the shop fitted the Michelin Primacy3 for my 215/60/R17 which were also great overall tyres, as u mentioned too)
The shop told me that Kormoran are in the same group as Michelin and Kleber, also being available at the shop (the last one were ranked at you video as good winter tyres, although I had never heard of them in the past, and I have never asked for a quote).*
*I used some Maxxis on the same rims before and they were OKish but actually they got old 5-6 years so they need to be replaced, although I did cover any great millage over them.
Hence, my questions are the following:
1) Kormoran 215/65 R16 102 H XL. Do I ask to change to Kleber ??? (the tyres will be worn only few months as I drive in rather warm climate of Greece and I buying 8 sets of wheel is a bit o pain in my wallet.
2) 225/45 R19 Michelin PilotSport 4 or 4S (is there any difference for my driving style as my diesel car has only 131bhp and it is far alike to a Cayenn Porche :-)
It is factory fitted with Dunlop SportMaxx RT which I find ok in dry and Excellent in Wet conditions and really nice in rolling feel.
(I was offered 740€ for the Mich PS4, 780€ Mich PS4S 790€ Dunlop SM RT
790€ Cont ContiSport)
(Question) Therefore according to your saying MY BEST BUY WOULD BE Mich PS4 or 4S, CORRECT?
2a) IF UR ANSWER IS YES Which of the two do you think that could be appropriate for me as I don't know if my car can get warm the tyres before I arrive to my destination.
2b) IF NOT WHICH ONE SHOULD I GO FOR (if i can amend my order)
Please, it would mean alot to me to have your professional advise on those 3 questions
(i have already FWed ur videos to my friends and they have found them great help too)
(please if u dont have the time send me an negative answer that you don't have the time and this will also much respected as you have already help alot with your videos)
Hi, would the tyre depths be the same for different diameter tyres? I suppose this question applies to all tyres not just winter? Many thanks
Yes the starting tread depth would be the same. Different manufacturers start with different tread depths, so you would have to check per manufacturer.
One thing in favour of the smaller diameter 16in tyres over the other is that they (and their wheels, esepcially for steel wheels) have higher sidewalls and thus are less susceptible to damage from potholes, speedhumps, raised islands and the like.
This is especially true when it's snowed, but now enough to protect the wheel and tyre from damage should the car be driven over them, especially if the driver doesn't realise they are there at all.
Absolutely, it's noted in the video and a very important thing to keep in mind :)
Could you compare 16 inch UG Performance GEN-1 with another premium tyres in that dimension. Is it worth to pay higher price because 205/55 R16 Performance GEN-1 is not available in H speed index.
Have you seen: http://www.tyrereviews.co.u...
Interesting test and results. Would it be reasonable to assume that the relative performance between 16", 17" and 18" all-season tyres would also be rather narrow?
It depends also on the tyre model, as broader tyre models sometimes have (slightly) different patterns and number of groves for example.
As above, tyre patterns can change as they get wider but yes I would expect similar results in all season tyres too. We've done it in summers with similar results.