Performance Winter Tires

Performance snow tires for mild winters

If winter comes and goes in your area -- rainy or dry roads most days, with bouts of snow and ice -- a good performance winter tire will keep you ready to handle any road condition, experts say. These higher-speed-rated tires are designed to keep performance cars sure-footed in cold weather, not as a workhorse for harsh winters. Prices shown here reflect the smallest size readily available; performance cars and performance winter tires often use larger rims than non-performance cars.

The Bridgestone Blizzak LM-60 (*Est. $145) is the new winner in this category. It replaces the discontinued Bridgestone Blizzak LM-25 (Discontinued) (*Est. $90 on closeout). The Blizzak LM-60 is an improvement, says CanadianDriver.com, with "continuous lugs and zigzag sipes to improve snow and ice traction." Experts at TireRack.com have tested the LM-60 and made it their top-recommended performance winter tire for 2009.

Previously, the LM-25 garnered more kudos for its grip on snow and ice than any other performance winter tire from owners and in the most reliable U.S. tests. Canadian and Scandinavian testers have faulted the LM-25, though, with Canada's APA calling it "a good choice for dry pavement, but not optimized for snow or ice." Editors of Sweden's Auto Motor & Sport call the LM-25 "a disappointment" that demonstrates far weaker grip and takes far longer to brake to a stop than the best performance winter tires.

A solid runner-up in several reviews is the Dunlop SP Winter Sport 3D (*Est. $95). Experts and customers at TireRack.com say it's outstanding on wet and dry roads, but not quite as good on snow and ice as the Blizzak. The Dunlop SP Winter Sport 3D takes first prize overall in Auto Motor & Sport's performance winter tire test, just ahead of the Continental ContiWinterContact TS810 (*Est. $75), even though testers say both tires are geared more toward wet and dry roads than ice and snow. Aftonbladet flunks the Dunlop for being "nervous in all winter conditions."

While customers at TireRack.com like the Dunlop SP Winter Sport 3D, they aren't as enthusiastic about the Continental ContiWinterContact TS810. In fact, their favorite performance winter tire is the Michelin Pilot Alpin PA3 (*Est. $125), although they don't rate it quite as highly on snow and ice as the Blizzak or the Dunlop. TireRack.com's experts list the Pilot Alpin PA3 (behind the Blizzak LM-60 and Dunlop SP Winter Sport 3D) as one of their top performance winter tire choices, saying it drives well on dry, wet and packed-snow roads -- "a good all-around snow tire" -- but it's not as widely tested as the other tires mentioned here.