Passenger Car Winter Premium Touring Tyres

Perfect winter tyres with very low wear. Perfect on snow and ice. Perfect on summer as well

I have used this tyre on my Mazda 3 in the German winter. In my opinion this is the best budget winter tyre you can buy. I have driven this tyre for one season covering 4000miles. The tyre is very noisy in general and washy over 75mph. My review is based on driving this tyre in a semi worn, 3 year old state, only!<br />
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Hankook winter I cept RS 3<br />
Size: 205/60R16 92H, DOT23<br />
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+ cheap<br />
+ good enough for average drivers<br />
+ acceptable wear and snow performance<br />
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- noisy<br />
- bad handling at high speeds (Autobahn)

Compared to the previous tire (Michelin Alpin 6), the Pirelli Cinturato Winter 3 offers more grip on snow.<br />
I haven’t yet reached the limit in dry or wet conditions to provide an objective evaluation in those scenarios, but I notice that as lateral forces increase, the steering loses precision, accompanied by a clearly noticeable noise, typical of a winter tire “working”.<br />
I believe this is due to the relatively narrow tread blocks. The car has also become more sensitive to crosswinds, as well as to road camber.<br />
It is a safe tire, but not a particularly fun or precise one.

In the last 2 months of the 4th season, wet grip significantly decreased. I expect it to be a combination of different factors: the temperature was higher than usual for February and March, I had some fast highway driving at higher temperature (170 kmph at approximately 17 degrees C), and of course, the tyre age. Maybe if it were driven in perfect conditions (temp always below 7, less hard push on highway), I suppose it could last one more year. But who knows? So I throw them away after 4 full winters (in my country, every year it is mandatory to have winter tyres from 15.11. to 15.4.) and just 21.500 km on them.<br />
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Would I buy it again? Maybe.<br />
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If I look for a tyre that will be safe for 3-4 years, I think the RS3 is really a winner. The feeling was great in all conditions for the first 3 and a half years, and the tyre was perfect in any way. In my country, the price is significantly lower than the premium. In my size (185/65/R15), UGP3 is 87 euros, TS870 is 92 euros, and RS3 is 64 euros.<br />
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I think I will try UGP3 next just to see how many years it can survive. If it can be safe for 6 years, then it can be cheaper than Hankook per year... Also, I think it is important to mention I don't do many km, so I always need to change tyres just because of their age and not because they are finished.

I’ve put many miles on them but only in 2 seasons… i run staggered, 245 40 18 amd 265 35 18 on a E400. On the front they were amazing but on back they had a lot of wear… Buut, i would definitely buy them again, they are very good.

Edit: In the last 2 months of the 4th season, wet grip significantly decreased. I expect it to be a combination of different factors: the temperature was higher than usual for February and March, I had some fast highway driving at higher temperature (170 kmph at approximately 17 degrees C), and of course, the tyre age. Maybe if it were driven in perfect conditions (temp always below 7, less hard push on highway), I suppose it could last one more year. But who knows? So I throw them away after 4 full winters (in my country, every year it is mandatory to have winter tyres from 15.11. to 15.4.) and just 21.500 km on them.<br />
<br />
Would I buy it again? Maybe. <br />
<br />
If I look for a tyre that will be safe for 3-4 years, I think the RS3 is really a winner. The feeling was great in all conditions for the first 3 and a half years, and the tyre was perfect in any way. In my country, the price is significantly lower than the premium. In my size (185/65/R15), UGP3 is 87 euros, TS870 is 92 euros, and RS3 is 64 euros.<br />
<br />
I think I will try UGP3 next just to see how many years it can survive. If it can be safe for 6 years, then it can be cheaper than Hankook per year... Also, I think it is important to mention I don't do many km, so I always need to change tyres just because of their age and not because they are finished.

My first winter driving, so I can't compare the snow/ice performance. I don't understand what good or bad handling would mean. What I can confidently say is that the tyres are very quiet, way quieter than my (nearing end of life) michelin primacy 3 and vredestein ultrac+. The difference is immediate and obvious to my non-car interested girlfriend. They are also good at absorbing bumps and rough asphalt. Efficiency is as expected for a winter tire. My most efficient driving is ~15-17 kWh/100km, under 90km/s with little to no AC. Nowhere close to my summer set, which gets me 11-13 kWh/100km

Phenomenal tire in deep snow. It'll go through just about any snow as long as it's not over the bumper. Also has done very well in a wide range of winter conditions, slush, ice, packed snow. I can cruise by cars that can barely stay on the road on their "all season" tires (dumb name for tires that really shouldn't be used in snow). My only reservation is they seem to be getting noisier on dry pavement as they wear. Though they haven't seen much dry pavement this year and it's almost time to switch to warmer weather tires anyway. I also uploaded a photo so you can see what kind of conditions this tire does well in. They've been in even worse than that but I wasn't taking any photos then. Too busy trying to find the road!

I bought these new in 2022 and have driven them for four winters. My impressions are very good, especially when there's a lot of snow in the winter. They've never let me down, and I've never gotten stuck even when the snow level looks scary. They're not afraid of ruts in snow and mud, and they perform predictably on a mixed road surface of ice, water, or snow.<br />
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For snowy winters, they're a fantastic option.<br />
There's still plenty of tread left; they haven't reached the wear mark. At first, I was worried they might be too soft and wouldn't withstand potholes or cuts, but everything is fine.<br />
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On the downside, in dry weather, there's a subjective feeling that the braking distance is longer. Their softness, which is a plus in cold weather, leads to the car becoming slightly wobbly as the weather warms up. This could, of course, be due to the 205/60 R16 size.<br />
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For the anti-skid system to work on ice, you have to really try hard; I did this specifically to understand the limits of these tires. As with braking on ice, it's best not to mess around with them, as they certainly don't measure up to studded tires.<br />
The highway ride is quite comfortable; you don't worry about speeds above 90 mph, even on wet roads. But its performance in the snow is beyond praise. While SUVs are frantically searching for cleared patches of road, I calmly make my way.

The way it ploughs through the snow is beyond words.<br />
Soft, comfortable, with good feedback.<br />
On the downside, if you live in a region where snowfall is low, you won't appreciate the driving pleasure. They wear out quickly in dry weather.

I really enjoyed my Blizzak WS80, I will say they are better than the newer WS90. I will be going with a different winter tire for this up coming season. Just a quick comparison, the WS80 is directed more for snow, which is what I live with in rural Southern Ontario. The WS90s unfortunately have a softer compound, which is nice in the wet and slush, but backwards compared to the last generation for the snow. Which would be fine in major cities, but not where I live. <br />
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In the first 70% of its life, the WS80s were really great at biting into snow, whether it was hard packed, or softer powder, and never really struggled when it mattered most. Something I find amusing that I never hear about is reversing with winter tires on. I back into parking spots, and pretty much need to back into my driveway, which has a decent slope to it, the WS80s don't struggle here, even with snow as deep as 9", or slush as deep as 6". I have found struggles with other winter tires going backwards up a slope, it's like they struggle to dig in, but I never had that issue with these. I'm sure it's somewhat a neiche thing, but it may be more common than people think.<br />
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Even though I'm currently in my last winter with these, I'd say they're still quite effective in snow, wet, and slush, but they've aged for sure. I will miss this generation of Blizzak, but I loved having it.