Winter Tires VS Studded Tires ❄ What's better on ICE?

[@albertschultz7151]

Live in Sweden and tried studless for two winters. Never again. When it is really cold, new snow cover and slightly hilly terrain the studded Nokian Hakke tires are saviors.

[@crazypict]

I have been using Nokian Hakkapeliitta studded tires for more than 10 years. When you need the grip in an emergency situation they are the best choice. Non-studded tires do not come even close when there is bare ice on the road, for example in freezing rain which happens too often here in Sweden.

[@idajosefin0121]

jag köpte odubbade nokian hakkas och tycker dem är bra även på is. så bra dem kan vara som odubabde

[@jwbeaton]

Where we live, in north western Canada, where we get a lot of ice - we only use studded tires. There is no real-world comparison. After buying $1,000+ studless tires from Nokian, and then buying $400 studded tires for my wife's car, and seeing how her studded tires kicked my tires butt, we've never gone back to studless. Neither has anyone else we know. here, if you value your life in the winter, you go studded.

[@enjoylife756]

Whaaat? i did not know that u are allowed 2 use studded tyres and at the same time i have always wondered why cause weather can be as bad as here in Finland! I know that studs are bad for tarmac wear and therefore they are illegal in some countries.I thought that in US and Canada studs are very rare and "extreme". Here they are always have been allowed of course. Personally i choose always studde cause better grip mainly having BMW rwd car so i really do need good friction.

[@alansach8437]

Maybe, if you live somewhere where there is snow and ice on the roads all winter. But that's not the case most places. It snows, then the plow comes by, then more traffic and the roads are clear for days or weeks on end. Or, side roads are icy but main roads are dry. In other words, you are driving on a variety of surfaces. On days when the road is covered in ice, studs are great. When the roads are dry, which might be half or more of the time, you go clunk, clunk, clunking down the road with actually less traction. Not to mention damaging the roads. That's where good studless tires come into their own, unreal world circumstances for those of us who don't live in rural Canada. I have a set of Continental Viking 7 and have never had a hint of slip on black ice, packed snow or deep powder. Plus they are comfortable and safe on dry pavement, which even here in the Northern Rockies, I am driving on 60 to 70 percent of the time.

[@enjoylife756]

@@alansach8437 I know cause i do mountain biking a lot too and most cases nice dh tire with huge knobs with soft compound is best. But riding conditions vary too and we have lots of smaller roads where snow is packed really "tight" and it is polished due usage so only stud will hold there. So i have studded mtb tires also and i use them all winter,too complicated change tires all the time..well i have too bikes. Well anyways when there is lot of new powder,softer and looser snow or where the tarmac is dry there is no need of studded tyres.

[@jm9371]

@@enjoylife756 Studded tires are legal in Canada, but only for a few months of the year. Although, I have never heard of anyone getting fined for keeping them on.

[@enjoylife756]

@@jm9371 Ok,it should be more related to current weather conditions than months when studs are allowed. I have not heard of anyone getting fined too in Finland also,that would really be something ;) Not so horrible crime after all

[@vykintasstumbrys8785]

The real difference between these tires is that one morning you just can not leave your home up the hill, and with other you can :)

[@poplaurentiu4148]

Unless you are living somewhere in wilderness or up in the mountains the normal stud-less tires tires are fine specially since roads are cleaned in winter..

[@helldiego]

or overwise one evening near your home you able to stop on the downhill or you cant :D

[@freddyhaza1377]

I feel you man got stuck at home for not changing my winter tires. I have a audi s4 quattro v8 4.2L and still gets stuck on snow uphill with summer tires. Tires really make a huge difference

[@hakont.4960]

I have tire chains for those rare occasions that the road is too slippery for my Hakka R2 sutdless tires. Studded tires are certainly better on ice, but they put a ridiculous amount of salt on the roads here each winter, so my car needs rust protection rather than tire studs.

[@Bryan-Hensley]

I've driven over 30,000 miles on snow and ice covered roads and I've never owned studded tires or winter tires. Learn how to drive

[@dragogranic8171]

I think that I can speak for everybody out there when I say that you are the best. Your videos are so good, not too long, informative and true. Just keep on going.

[@tyrereviews]

Thank you, really appreciated!

[@EddieSkyZ]

Agreed - great material, informative and well put together!

[@mausyyy85]

@@tyrereviews I Totally Agree, regards from Switzerland

[@Mrbfgray]

Same from California. :D

[@MattCSLnut]

Well said Sir 👍🏼 Totally agree 🤘🏼

[@derekennow4528]

There is no comparison for me the studded tires out perform non studded by far. The amount of confidence I gained to actually control the vehicle on snow and icy conditions with the studs is amazing.

[@brosbrakkas7421]

In slush , water and salted snow..studded are usless

[@brosbrakkas7421]

When it Comes to dry roads, slush, water, salted snow..studded are useless

[@polarissucks]

@@brosbrakkas7421 not useless, just about the same as non studded. i have x ice snow on one car and hakka 10's on the other and although my x ice snows are great, on pure wet ice my hakka's stop a bit faster, but its enough difference that it might be the difference between an accident or not

[@tenkikun]

Not true @@brosbrakkas7421

[@frutbum]

Except when the studs wear out.

[@fdcrat]

Improving an already very good lap time is much more difficult than improving an ok one. Those 5 seconds are just as impressive as the first 10 are.

[@madott]

tbh this whole test is pointless because 99% of people wont drive in such conditions.

[@Xfacehack]

madott Not true man

[@Phae576]

@@madott stupid claim. try living in snow countries like, Norway, Sweden, Finland and Russia. never heard suuuuch a stupid claim

[@Rainbowstunting]

The comparison is very weird anyway, the studded tyres look like they're based on the Nokian Snowproof which means that changing the compount was actually worse than just studs. Change compound? -11 seconds. Add studs to first tyre? -16 seconds.

[@sighermike]

@@madott Take it from an Alaskan. These conditions exists all winter when you're 58 degrees and up.

[@DaveMcIntyre]

Been saying this for years, I was in the industry (automotive repair and tire sales) and I drive on average 50-60 K kilometers a year, at least a 1/3rd of it in winter conditions. Studded ice radials are the ONLY way to go

[@ilijapetrovic5002]

I know the comment is 10 months old but i gotta ask how do studded tires behave on relatively clean pavement. I'll do some icy hill driving where studds would come in handy but most will be driving on pavement with a lot of salt over it. Do studds wear out faster?

[@Sn0ws519]

@@ilijapetrovic5002 Not the guy you're replying to but I live in western Canada and used studded snow tires on my father's pickup truck so hopefully, I can help lol. Usually studded tires will just be noisier and will wear out a bit faster. If you do more driving on pavement then a studless would be the way to go. Studded tires are more for icy and hard-packed snow.

[@storm5013]

@@ilijapetrovic5002 I use studded tires in western Canada and I haven't seen any visible wear on the studs themselves at all in 2 seasons. That's from driving about 44km everyday mostly on an 80km/h highway (usually bare asphalt most days) with some side roads and large hills (always snow/ice covered). The stud tips are typically made of tungsten carbide which is perhaps the hardest commercially available metal (about 5x harder than tool steel, 4x harder than titanium) so wear really isn't an issue.

[@roywarriner8441]

Not legal in all jurisdictions.

[@Martink9191]

Studded tyres are not best option for everyone. I live in country, where studs are legal. I had last studed tyres 8 years ago. From there I am driveing only "winter tyres". I even drive on ice tracs in witner whit theese. I see no point of owning noisi studed tyres, that brakes the asphalt. thees days where studs are really needed are like 3-5 in year.

[@t.mendous7922]

I live in southcentral Alaska, where we get a lot of different conditions throughout the winter. My experience is that studs really only make a difference on actual hard ice, whereas the tires themselves make much more of a difference on any other slippery surface such as hard packed snow. Studs are great, but i also drive a lot on dry pavement where the ice does not have a chance to accumulate, and the studs wear out and come out of the tire very quickly. I prefer studless winter on a two wheel drive vehicle, but all weather on my four wheel drive truck, which usually last longer and work just fine in nearly all the conditions i drive in

[@alansach8437]

The point I was trying to make in my comments. Well said.

[@bkakus]

Which part you in? I'm in Anchorage. I have 2 cars both with studded Nokian. One used for 7 winter seasons, and one used for 6 winter seasons. Both are still in wonderful conditions with all studs in place and in good condition.

[@t.mendous7922]

@@bkakus I’m up in Palmer

[@tannerhughes6274]

I’m Fairbanks right now and I’m looking for new front tires for my FWD car. Right not I have new Blizzak tires, but it feels like I get thrown all over the road on these icy roads up here. So trying to look at studded tires at least for the front two tires.

[@t.mendous7922]

@@tannerhughes6274 Roads are bad up there right now, just came back a couple weeks ago. The tires I have been most impressed by are the ipike. I had some that had the studs removed, and they still went up hills with a half inch of freezing rain on them no problem

[@BullrullarN]

Improving 10 sec from 1:22 is not the same as improving 5 sec from 1:12

[@alfie3836]

Tobias Bredin...... I was thinking the same thing, but to an extent, those numbers are still informative in the sense that compounds make as much difference as having metal spikes

[@MrComputerCoder]

You are taking it out of context. He's saying the compound alone made an 11-second improvement. Adding studs on the same tire, only gained shaved 5 seconds off the same tire with no studs. Therefore you could say the compound is more important, but can still be improved upon by adding studs that will further enhance the compound's performance.

[@Orbacle]

agree, 1:22 to 1:11 is 13% improvement and 1:11 to 1:05 is further 8% improvement and obviously it would be increasingly harder to improve it further still nice, would like to see first tires studded version for comparison

[@cycl0n362]

The conclusion of the test is simply not representative ... What really would be needed were some studded tires with the European compound so you see what difference the studs alone make from 1:22, and then the other way round what difference of having studs and changed compound makes to that time ...

[@RealCadde]

​@@MrComputerCoder No, you are missing the point. Going from 1.22 to 1.11 is easier than going from 1.11 to 1.05 even though the gained time isn't that much. I mean, drive around a race track without changing your car in any way. Drive the fastest lap you can possibly do. Now, shave off a second of that record. Without changing anything on the vehicle. You are going to have a very hard time doing that because the closer you get to the limit, the harder it is to shave off seconds. Now then, change tires... Without changing their diameter or width or height. Just change compounds. You are going to shave off that second on the lap but can you shave off 10 seconds? Change tires again to the ultimate grip ones, can you now shave off another 10 seconds just like that? Or are there simply other limiting factors, such as the "road" disappearing from underneath you as you tear around the track.

[@ChrisBrown-vc7ty]

My first winter running the Hak-9s and I'm very impressed. I live on top of a small "mountain" that has a long, steep dirt road up to the house. I made it to the top easy in 4wd with the 9's mounted, no surprise there. Then I tried it in RWD and made it up the iced over dirt road just fine! And nice to hear the R-3's are almost as good...

[@BiggMo]

Studs hands down here in the Pacific NW. When we get ice in the valley it's always a wet ice, not the nice cold dry stuff. But the best tires ever are no longer available. Back in the Midwest when I was a young man we had a retreader that mixed black walnut shells into his rubber mix. Those where awesome and didn't damage road surfaces as bad as metal studs.

[@starcraft5379]

How about a side by side comparison of the Nokian R3 and the Continental ContiViking Contact 7. These are the top nordic winter tyres, in my opinion. 😉

[@rauland]

Toyo’s GS5 series use walnut shells in their winter tires, fyi

[@trevors8577]

Even better, there was a company that did carbide bits instead of walnut in the retreads. Called Green Diamond or something but it was only around for a few years around the 2008 time and think they've long since went under. Carbide would be awesome for rock climbing as well.

[@valde3336]

Nokian R3 (and I think also the older R2) do have “Cryo Crystal” particles mixed with the rubber. I’m sure they’re better than just walnut mixed with rubber on re-tread. Probably old tires just seemed better cause in the past there was less traffic, maybe also better road conditions, and maybe memories just grow sweeter with time.

[@vannorman1116]

Big Mo What were the best tires ever ?? Just curious your opinion

[@starchmed]

I'd like to see a comparison between a budget studded tyre vs a premium nordic studless winter tyre

[@sdrubaa]

Never imagined anyone could buy budget studded tyres given the danger of the surface.

[@MarbleTL]

@@sdrubaa as someone who lives where 60% of cars in the south run studds and like 85% in the north do (during winter), it is super common.

[@a2jettagli]

Yes I live up in the hills... These ice compound tires do help but studs will keep the car from sliding down the hill on black ice. I tried the Michelin xIce tires and they just don't work well on ice. Studs for me unfortunately. I just only run them very specific weeks of the year.

[@slava_trushkin]

@@sdrubaa If you go north to countries where winter means actual snow and ice, you'll be surprised. I'm from Estonia (expecting snow and ice in January - March), here almost every vehicle in winter uses studded tyres and it does make massive difference. Our eastern Russian neighbours have even more snow and wouldn't be able to drive in winter without studs. Even with studs sometimes grip is bad, without studs some days it would be impossible to drive. It does affect road condition, in spring almost every road has to be repaired, but that's a tradeoff for being able to drive in winter without sliding into other cars.

[@johnditoro1676]

@@a2jettagli Using Michelin XIce on my Tesla this year. First time without studs in over a decade. No comparison. Yes, the compound is amazing, but still nothing like the security I get with studded Hakka's.

[@joshcoe1]

I've driven on studded tyres in Iceland a couple of times and really were amazed with the grip levels they give you.

[@darkscope2]

Well yeah! You’re driving on a land made of ice

[@kjamesjr]

When you’re driving in winter it’s not about how much faster you can drive in a circle. It’s about getting from one point to another as safely as possible. Where I live it’s studs or you’re not going to get very far.

[@justnothing8692]

Canada?

[@noah7008]

Alaska?

[@Whiteknight0721]

@@justnothing8692 unless you live in the far north studded are illegal in most places

[@poisedonis]

Live in Calgary, r3s are great for me

[@hereweare9011]

Vermont?

[@Rantsula]

Studded tires save lives, in Finland we use studded tyres also with towing vehicles.

[@rrshse6704]

Great video, awesome testing and report. I live in central Canada and have been wearing Nokian tires for 20 years. Snow is an issue here but the most troubling issue is ICE! Studded Hakka 9's is my favourite tire choice for my Range Rover and having tried the Nokia WR's I can certainly say, the difference even in snow conditions is huge. The studs are a bit noisy on dry road but they are awesome.The tests are conclusive when it comes to breaking, non-studded tires are great but Studded tires are best. The difference in stopping distance on ice ( about 1 meter ) is like hitting your breaks and saying....."OOOPS"! or hitting the breaks and saying ......OH SH*T! :) Car accident avoided. ( studs are allowed in Canada from November 1 till May 1) and the Nokian eco-studs are designed to do little to no road damage by the way

[@alansach8437]

If you are hitting your breaks and saying, "Oh sh*t!" you are going too fast! Studies from The University of Washington actually showed that studs are better between zero and thirty two degrees (F). The advantage of studs decreases (and eventually disappears) at lower temperatures because the gets too hard for the studs to dig in. At such point studs can become more like skates. The study is available on line.

[@rrshse6704]

@@alansach8437 It seems to me that your knowledge is based on studies and that's ok.. Here in Canada we don't need to consult the internet for answers, because the answer is called tried tested and true life experience. You don't need to go fast for your tires to hit ice hidden under the snow in certain "bad spots" ( as we call them and can be at various areas unbeknown to the unsuspecting motorist and critically at stop signs or controlled intersections). I have pictures of my studs digging on solid ice and making scar marks! Further more to dispel any of your doubts about studs, I invite you to watch videos of cars racing on frozen rivers in Canada. You will see with your own eyes that the ONLY tires the race cars or motorbikes are wearing are....STUDDED!! Videos are available on line.

[@callumduncan6728]

@@rrshse6704 well said sir, i find that people seem to demonize studded tires when have never used them , the difference is amazing modern studded tires are so different from the studded tires of old that people still think off , the only draw back to these tires is price but on a -30 icy day they are worth there weight in gold . Drive safe

[@rrshse6704]

@@callumduncan6728 Thank you! :)

[@jamesmiller113]

Excellent summary here, UK issues are that we have about 1 or 2 days per year where we even see snow - ice from burst water mains is the main hazard we see - running a compound that'll give you a fighting chance in that one-off situation is where these Nordic compound tyres would shine

[@logansheppard3066]

I run nokian hak 9’s on both of my vehicles. I LOVE THEM!!

[@timokuusela5794]

As a Finn, Hakkapeliittas have been familiar for the last 50 years or so. The first ones then had super grip when new, but when the square "suction cup" wore out, only the studs helped. Back then, the studs were allowed to be more "out" of the rubber, so the ice grip was better than with modern studded tires. The drawback then was almost no grip on cobblestone streets... There is also the thing here called "first slipperies", as the road surface is smooth after the summer, and the first Black Ice is the most challenging for the non-studded tires. After the studs have made the roads and ice layer more coarse, most people can manage with non-studded tires. Later in the winter the snow and ice are grippier because of different ice crystal forms. I have 4x4:s and use non-studded BFG AT:s year around. As users of those know, they have reasonable braking grip, but poor lateral grip in any other direction. I do not recommend those for beginners, though. Studded tires are main source of dust pollution in the urban areas here, but without them making the roads coarse, non-studded tires would be a bad choice for less experienced drivers, as the wet icy road would be too much to handle, possibly even not driveable. There are studs in the rally car tires for a reason.

[@LackyUno]

This was the most interesting winter tyre test ever, seriously i find ice surface testing is the most important thing for a winter tyre unless the area you live has no snow. On almost every other condition you can adapt your speed and driving behaviour, but when you drive on snow and sudden the surface changes from snow to icy snow there i got more than one situation where i had no chance to adjust my driving soon enough to not get in trouble especially on up and downhill. Also funny and interesting is that i heard the first time from this nordic compound tyres here on this channel. Here in Austria we got a newspaper from a Automobile Club who does Wintertyre Tests every year but they never mentioned that there is a more special tyre type for more alpine areas....kind of sad

[@tyrereviews]

Glad you find it useful. Tyre information in mainstream press is somewhat limited so it's good you're doing research. Check out the video linked in the pinned comment if you've not already to see the differences further

[@LackyUno]

@@tyrereviews Check

[@daniel635biturbo]

I live in Sweden, and for me it's the complete other way around, many years I thought that everyone used "our" winter tyres. But when I bought a couple of used wheels that came from a imported BMW I found out. The tyres were Michelin Pilot Alpine, and I was very surprised how bad they were. But when I did some research I understood, that's a completely different tyre. Much higher speed rating, and harder compound, and less "sajping". And for that matter i compared it to a Nordic Studded, so no wonder that I thought they were bad. (For my conditions of course) Big thumbs up, keep the videos coming !!

[@LackyUno]

​@@daniel635biturbo With Studds there is really a big difference. Once i was in Norway, i think every third car had studded tyres, but the terrain was way less hilly than in austria, that i found interesting. ;) When i have someone here who has experience in this sort of tyre, what non studded tyres you can recommend for icy snow surface?

[@daniel635biturbo]

​@@LackyUno I always have studded myself, because the rain in Subzero temperatures is the absolute worst conditions, and it's very difficult to spot. But based on what other use, I would recommend. Pirelli Ice Zero FR, Continental ContiVikingContact 7 or Nokia Hakkapelitta R2 Note, these are Nordic compound, and feel very different to drive on. I my self have Nokia Hakkapelitta Studded, and they sway a lot in higher speeds. The some what softer side walls and "sajps" make the tyre very soft, and not suitable for speeds exceeding 130 kph, especially when above +10°C An not to buy Chinese Linglong Greenmax Winter HP :) By the way, there sure are hilly roads in Norway but it depends where you are, as with Austria around Vienna It's more flat :)

[@HuevosAzules]

I'm not sure it's just the compound that made a difference for grip. The first tire looks to have a lot more grooves than the second tire. That tire has quite a bit more surface area on the ground at one point than the other. I don't know if that really make a difference for it but it seems like that would be a pretty big factor

[@jeanjacques9365]

it makes no difference on ice tho because well there is nothing to move out of the way like snow or rain which is the only purpose of the grooves. While driving on ice it is all about the compound.

[@stoabock8971]

European Winter Tyre = 1:22.0 = 82.0 s = 100 % of laptime Nordic Winter Tyre = 1:11.0 = 71.0 s = 87 % of laptime Studded Winter Tyre = 1:05.6 = 65.6 s = 80 % of laptime Top film, compareable testing!

[@hotprop92]

15 yrs ago I put Nokian WR's on a STI since it does snow, sometimes heavily, in NJ and I would drive into upstate NY where the roads would be impassable for the stock Potenza tires. The snow performance was incredible. Braking and accelerating were awesome, cornering, however, was not on par with braking and accelerating. I couldn't believe how hard I needed to step on the brakes before the ABS would finally kick in. The WR was a high speed tire with the snowflake symbol on the sidewall and yet useable year round. These tires were very mushy in the warmer weather and as soon as the chance of snow subsided the Potenzas went back on, each to there own.

[@Brzeczyszczykiewicz1]

What would be interesting is testing out the same tyres, but after being used a season or two

[@seanlive6975]

Result will be the same.

[@Xanthopteryx]

@@seanlive6975But what would the difference be between studded and studless? After lets say 1 year, 2 years, 3 years, 4 years, 5 years, 6 years, 7 years, ...? And also compare with the European version. Different chemicals in the rubber age differently, and wear and tear also change the thread dynamics.

[@thehimself4056]

I use studded for my area. I average 3 seasons on the tires. The studs however do not. They get worn down. Some fall out. So by the third season. It’s about 80-90% of the rubber doing the work. I have noticed that the tire compound gets stiffer with age. To the degree of how much from year one? I do not know.

[@Xanthopteryx]

@@thehimself4056 What brand do you have? And what type? I have never, and i mean never, had any studs falling out. Using studded tires several months per year (Sweden).

[@thehimself4056]

Tires Winter i*Pike RW11, Winter Studdable. From a business in the U.S. called Les Schwab. The studs for me are definitely needed. I have approximately 4 kilometers of dirt gravel road to travel before I get to any paved roads. I think some studs get removed in the spring and fall. As the rocks move with the vehicle. It cases focused weight distribution onto one tire at at moment. So I should say. They get ripped out. lol. I live in the cascade mountains of the Pacific Northwest. Tall mountains and cold winters.

[@xaninator]

More people need to see your videos. If they even get winter tires, they think they are all the same, but you guys show how important it is to pick the right type of winter tire

[@danielz267]

Keep up the excellent work! Would be really interesting to see RWD vs FWD vs AWD on the same winter tyres under the same conditions. Cheers!

[@Scramasax]

1. AWD 2. FWD 3. RWD Tested in winter during the history of cars here in the north...

[@wildbill23c]

That would be a great comparison. Also, it would be great to show what happens when you only put your winter tires on the drive axle (front for front wheel drive, rear for rear wheel drive) VS winter tires on all 4 wheels like you are supposed to do....some people believe that they only need 2 winter tires if they have a 2WD vehicle, but a comparison showing having all 4 winter tires installed VS only 2.

[@luckyjj11]

this is what I want to see!

[@cdl0]

@@wildbill23c et al. Already done: kzbin.info/www/bejne/d2bEfqGjmtB0aZo See also kzbin.info/www/bejne/l6XEqnuHjtZ0ack

[@dennyc4135]

@@wildbill23c if you only put 2 winter tires, front or back, you will glide. especially in turns, This video represents similar situation because difference of grip between axle kzbin.info/www/bejne/lajSXmxnZpeUftk

[@rc2634]

I would like to thank you about your work. I always lived in a warm area but now I moved to a snowy area and I am a rookie about this snowtyre thing. I have been watching your videos and I learned a lot . I feel safe and confident now driving with good snowtires on that I chose accordingly with some of your reviews! Keep it up!

[@Trendyflute]

Thanks Tyre Reviews for another cool, substantial video; and I repeat your thanks to Nokian for allowing this test to happen and be made public! Us consumers appreciate companies that are open and honest; perfection can't be expected, so thank you for showing us the tradeoffs and benefits of the choices we make :)

[@mrdark9916]

Been using studded/syped Federal Himalayas for years and years now in hard North Idaho winters. Both in the city as well as where it matters even MORE, out in the boonies as an avid hinter and outdoorsman. Been very happy with them

[@bottomlayer]

Can you do a comparison of studdable tires without the studs? You should do a video comparing these four: Hakkapeliita 9 with studs Hakkapeliita 9 without studs Hakkapeliita R3 (studless) The studless R3 with tire chains on the drive axle (doesn't have to be Nokian, I just used them in my example because you used Nokian in the video)

[@AKJeeper]

I run studded tires in the winter on all my vehicles in coastal Alaska. We don't get that deep of snow in most cases, but our ice is absolutely killer - it's often got water on top of it. I like to think of it as nature's Zamboni being used on the roads. I used to run compound/studless winter tires when I lived in interior Alaska, and those work fine in that climate, but studded tires are definitely king of the roads in the more 'mild' parts of Alaska. Nokian tires are my absolute favorites, with Hankook winter tires being my second choice. The Hankook tires appear to be a close copy of their Nokian counterparts, so it's no surprise to me they work as well as they do. Great video, I'm glad Nokian gave you the opportunity to test their offerings on the ice track, kudos to them for that!

[@Xachremos]

I'm considering studded winter tires next. The only two times I've gotten completely stuck and needed to call a winch, wasn't caused by snow, it was caused by ice. If I had studs I'd never had gotten stuck.

[@alansach8437]

Did you ever consider carrying chains?

[@crpth1]

@@alansach8437- For what it's worth nowadays I'm 100% for tyre winter socks instead of the traditional chains. In either case I just used them the bare minimum to get me out of some dodgy situation. For which the Winter tyres couldn't hold. With this said, Socks are lighter, way easier to set on or off. Easier to store... If your conditions don't call for heavy duty chains. This is the way to go. ;-) Cheers from cold Norway.

[@FinCBolt]

Hands down the best article series on winter tyre motoring and the different options out there for different markets. 5 out of 5

[@CtrlTechKev]

I got the hakkapeliita R3 myself and they are indeed quite awesome!

[@beri232]

I live in northern Alberta Canada. We get snow, ice and cold weather in our winters and I run studded Nokian Hakka’s. We ran non-studded before but the difference on icy roads is night and day. Studded Nokian Hakka’s…. get them! You’ll be the only one moving and stopping at icy intersections.

[@skittles5347]

I have an older Mazda 3. Started out umpteen years ago with the studded Hakka 8's. Got six really harsh winter seasons out of them. Absolutely loved them. Phenomenal tire. Traded them for the nonstudded Nokian Hakka R'2s. 3 seasons. Didn't much care for them. Tried to upgrade to what I thought would be a better performing studless tire...the Hakka R'3s. Nope. Worst ice/snow performance of the three tires. I live and work on a hill, so traction is important during our winters. In fact, the ice/traction performance of the R3's was so questionable last year that I absolutely refuse to use them again this year for winter season #4. Bought my parents a set of Nokian Nordman 7's for Christmas 3 years ago for their Ford SUV. This will be their 3rd season using the Nordmans. Phenomenal tire so far! My mom drives quite a distance in tons of ice and snow during the winter. Nordman 7's..proving to be a very stable and long lasting tire....kind of like the studded Hakka 8's. Fantastic tire. I will be investing in the Hakka 10's studded this season. We will see how it goes. Regardless of what reviews may indicate...my personal opinion is that studded tires are better all around. :)

[@tyrereviews]

Interesting, I wonder if you got a bad R3 as that tested to be a very good tyre! The new R5 is awesome

[@poisedonismeru7240]

I have r3s on 2 of my cars and they climb icy mountains and 12 inches of snow. They are amazing

[@skittles5347]

@@poisedonismeru7240 I'm so super glad they work for you! As for me, I had to put down sand and traction mats to barely get out of my driveway that was only at about a 5% incline. In fairness, last year was the third year I had run on the Hakka r3s, however, I still had about 80% traction on them as per the little snowflake embedded in the tire. I think this year, because I will be driving a lot further than last year, I will invest in the Hakka studded 10's. I drove on both the r2s and the r3s for 6 years combined, and I do believe the r2's outperformed the r3s, but I just feel safer with studs on my tires. I'm happy I live in a state that still allows it.

[@poisedonismeru7240]

@@skittles5347 ya, gonna buy the hakka 10s for my dodge caravan, should be fun to see how they do. Will put nokian apt's on in the spring for the back road stuff. Thanks for your response

[@skittles5347]

@@poisedonismeru7240 That is so cool! I always say safety first! And you can never be too safe when it comes to Winter driving. I truly think that pretty much any Nokian winter tire is just that, although for me personally, my preference is for the studded snow tire. I prefer Nokian products so much that it is the reason why between my parents and myself, I will have purchased my fifth set over the last 13 years. I won't buy anything else. :-) I'm really honestly debating though on whether I need that aggressive of a tire on my little Mazda with front-wheel drive, IE: the Hakka 10's. On the other hand, I will be driving over 70 miles one way every other weekend to get work. There is a section or a stretch of road during the trip that is completely over-shadowed and covered with evergreen trees. It's almost like driving over a pass but only for a about 10 miles. During the winter, it gets really nasty, to the point where last year, if I am not mistaken, they actually shut part of that road down. It is that area that I'm most worried about. When I bought the Nordman 7's, 3 years ago for my parents for Christmas, I was so impressed with them that I'm very seriously thinking that I could get away with the 7's on my car instead of paying more for the 10's. However, the 10's have so many more studs, and two different kinds too. They also have a much more aggressive tread pattern and I believe even more sipes built into the tire. The Nordman 7's are actually based off the old Hakkappliitta 7 pattern.We will see how it goes. Where I am, I am being quoted about a $150 difference between the Hakka 10's and the Nordman 7's. :) Maybe I could get the 7's and get chains and save myself about $100. Either way, I would still be getting an amazing product. Good luck and I believe you are making an awesome choice!

[@faithlesshound5621]

The problem of choosing tyres in England is that conditions can vary so much: slithering over hard-packed snow, covered by powder or ice according to time of day in the housing estates, slush in the shopping areas and dry tarmac where the 40 ton lorries have blasted the main roads free.

[@cdl0]

Try Michelin Cross-Climate for UK winter conditions, as seen on this channel.

[@vladmarius9181]

Nokian Weatherproof . You won't regret. Also the Nokian wrd4 . In our country there are the same conditions and I successfully use the Wrd4 and I wouldn't change it for nothing.

[@filipotteback84]

I actually would've liked to see how the studded tyres handled in the wet/dry above freezing temperatures. I see alot of studded tyres in the south of Sweden where I live and can't help but think it's a bit pointless or even worse than a normal winter tyre.

[@MASRTOSPIROS]

You will need the studded tires ones or twice. And that might cost you your life...

[@whirving]

My work vehicle has Blizzak studless, a good snow tire. But my personal car has Nokian Hakas with studs and it is significantly better in all conditions. The studless are still good though, but that extra safety with studs is very comforting if a moose walks out in front of you. And yes, even better in wet snow.

[@tarassu]

THANK you. There is massive debate about why studded tires "is a must" here. This helps a lot.

[@tyrereviews]

Glad it's useful :)

[@majorelliot1916]

Thank you. Your previous nokian winter review sent me to nokian for the wr d4 which have just gone on the car. So well done nokian for letting you be honest and fair. Scottish winter so no studs for me...

[@222INFINITY]

One thing no one understands unless they've experienced it, is the fact that -40c ice is 10 times worse than -20c ice. In other words I would never bother with studs to drive ice packed roads in the Rockies, but wouldn't be caught without them in Manitoba, Saskatchewan, and most of Alberta. Rubber that doesn't go hard, does at -40!!!!!

[@rrshse6704]

true that!

[@jimd4964]

Superb video as always! I've had 4 WR SnowProofs on my Honda Jazz since the start of November. So far they're incredibly silent and give me a lot more confidence while driving in bad conditions. Drove with them down to the polish mountains in November and they fared extremely well. I'll be moving to Scandinavia next month though, so I'll consider changing to R3s. Keep up your amazing work!

[@paulozavala3232]

J Zimcz If you are moving to scandinavia buy the hakkapeliitta 9 instead (if you are planning to only drive in the nordic countrys where they are legal)

[@jimd4964]

@@paulozavala3232 I would, I'll be driving over to Poland and Germany often enough so it wouldn't be the best idea from a money perspective. :(

[@NMETSGChan]

"Just because a tire doesn't have studs doesn't make it a bad ice tire!" TRUE But "Adding studs does make them better!"

[@BreadAndGatorade]

Damn this guy does the most legit tire reviews

[@tyrereviews]

Thank you :)

[@philip4588]

@@tyrereviews Still missing the most important and that is breaking distance.

[@grahamkearnon6682]

Nirvana for safe Winter roads has been for us the last 24 yrs is Nokian studded winters on a Subaru, it's like your glued to the road. We're at 3000', 6 mo winters , no issues.

[@ioannisiordanidis3562]

Love Nokian Tyres 🥰🥰🥰 and finish brands in general. What a country!

[@SeppoKoivisto]

Me too! (but I'm a happy Finn living in Finland :D )

[@darkscope2]

When I get freezing rain where I live and have to drive on the main highway, you just can’t beat studded tires. They cost more, but it costs a hell of a lot less than getting into an accident.

[@Rumbleghost]

Great video, overall. I have been selling tires in Canada for over 25 years. I would like to observe a few points: - It is unfortunate that you didn't compare against an all season or a summer performance tire. It would have shown how much better ANY of these winter options are. - Although you can infer that a studded winter tire without special compound rubber would have been less preferable to a studless compound tire, it would have been nice to see the proof, because that's what a lot of the cheaper winter tires are offering. - When a tire is half worn, it still has studs, but in many winter tires, the special compound only makes up the first half of the usable tread. So, in your third winter, how do those compound winter tires perform compared to their studded friends?

[@larill_]

A Finnish magazine recently tested cheap studded vs premium studless, and the premium studless came ahead in the final scoring. I don't remember which one it was, Tuulilasi, Moottori or Tekniikan Maailma. Basically they said that just adding studs to a crap tire will not make it good. It is nowadays quite normal for people to drive studless, especially in Southern Finland, all over the country. Talking about premium tyres, the difference isn't as big as people often claim, though pure ice grip will usually fall in favour of a studded tire.

[@OrganicWheat]

Gave my old man a set of hakkapeliitta 9 studded as advanced Christmas gift. You appreciate different type of gifts the older you get

[@OrganicWheat]

I'm done with Michelin ice x as I have them for 2 of my cars now and will be trying a Nokian next time

[@tyrereviews]

That's a great gift!

[@03757]

I bought a set of four Nokian Hakkapeliitta R2 studless 215/60/17 I feel confident on snowie and ice roads. Greetings from Canada 🇨🇦

[@Jamboraama]

I've had those for about 3 winters now. Never had any problems. They grib even better on icy tarmac than studded TIRES. And amazingly quiet!

[@hakont.4960]

I have the same tires on my car, they have surprisingly good grip on ice.

[@lxgaucher]

I drive in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains in Colorado, and I frequently have to drive over hilly, cold roads that are neglected for a couple of days after a snowfall. Depending upon overnight temperature oscillations, these roads can become ice rinks. A few of my morning commutes have involved watching cars drive off the road for lack of traction. The first few winters I lived here, I relied on Bridgestone Blizzak winter tires. They performed very well, but nothing compared to when I started using Nokian Hakkapeliitta 10 studded winter tires. Their traction on ice and hard-packed snow sometimes seems surreal.

[@killsalltires156]

Studs in winter. Only choice dont even think anything different!

[@SuperJ213]

Awesome comparison. I wish I could drive on a frozen lake for fun. Where I live in Utah, we don't have constant snow or ice, but when a storm comes through, having studs makes going in and out of my hilly neighborhood a breeze. There's a couple tiers of hills each with a stop sign at the top. Most people run all season tires and can't make it up the hills let alone gain traction if they make a complete stop at each stop sign (when it's icy). If my Sienna could speak, it would say, "ice? what ice?" when we run studs.

[@trevors8577]

Worse thing about ice driving is the stopping as ABS is way way too intrusive on all the vehicles I own.

[@crazyjames9460]

Pull the abs fuse lol good luck

[@NiGHTSaturn]

I’ve had 2 accidents due to the ABS going in while I needed to stay fully in control. That system sucks.

[@AimingWanderously]

@@NiGHTSaturn You're going too fast then

[@NiGHTSaturn]

@@AimingWanderously sliding down a hill with no acceleration how about that.

[@AimingWanderously]

@@NiGHTSaturn Touche, that sucks. Been there. Odds are though that locking the brakes up you'd still slide.

[@kexsurf]

Running the hakka 9 on a Volvo XC90.. For a car that heavy i really would not have gone with any other tires. They are incredible! Thanks for the video! Happy xmas from Norway 😀👍

[@simionster]

Awesome review! I was surprised at how well the Hakka R3 did against the other two, especially the studded Hakka 9. I will attend a winter lapping day on a frozen track here in Canada, and I have the Nokian Hakka R2 tires on an MK7 Golf R. Studded tires are not allowed, so I guess the Hakka R2s are the best option.

[@tyrereviews]

That will be a pot of fun!

[@simionster]

@@tyrereviews "pot", ha! I see what you did there...

[@Rebasepoiss]

I live in Estonia and studded tyres are actually a huge source of air pollution in Tallinn since they grind up the road surface and then in Spring you have asphalt dust flying around in the wind. I know studded tyres are more grippy on ice but I still use studless tyres because I don't want to contribute to the air pollution. Also, studless tyres are far quieter.

[@Lynch84]

Great work man! I’ve had a set of Nokian while living in northern Maine. (USA). And they worked great. I’m on a set of Michelin x-ice right now that have also worked well. Keep up the good work.

[@tyrereviews]

Thank you!

[@alexwoods2836]

@@tyrereviews Michelin x-ice-3 is good on ice and digs loose snow. I do not recommend using it on a country road. More multipurpose MICHELIN Alpin

[@relledk]

You are by far the best at this. Clever and not arrogant. Brilliant

[@kertolen1348]

Excellent review! I live in the north and just love good grippy compound tires. They are so much better than studded tyres. Studded tyres on tarmac are hopeless. No grip at all and the damage they do to the road is awful. Such a shame that most of the people here still think that studded are better. But they struggle every time when the light goes green or it goes red suddenly and a bit more brakeing is needed.... you always hear the abs kicking in. The thruth is that 99% of distance nobody really need studs. And that 1% well... just drive a bit more carefully and everybody wins.

[@hakont.4960]

I'm very happy with my Nokian Hakka R2 studless tires, I change to and from winter tires when I want rather than follow the set dates and it's certainly more comfortable than studded tires. On ice studded tires are better, but drive slowly and you'll be okay with studless.

[@poisedonis]

Right on

[@kristianhermann5971]

That may be true where you live, but your climate doesn't exist everywhere. Some places are icy all winter and winters last 5-6 months. So cold road salt doesn't work. So studs absolutely have their place. Visit central Canada and see for yourself. Just bring your parka.

[@KaelinatorPVP]

If we're being honest, because of diminishing returns, drops in your lap times will decrease. A 5 second drop is very significant particularly after dropping 11 seconds. It's more like the studded tire + new compound gained 16 seconds whereas just the new compound gained 11 seconds. That's not quite the same as saying the studded tire only gained 5 seconds over the compound.

[@thomasriver3546]

Another great video! You deserve much more subs! Greetings From Finland

[@HexlGaming]

In one of the recent schaefchen videos he and a friend of his took out their Audi RS4s and were struggling for grip so this is kinda what led me here. Having all this added grip when having fun with your mates must be an absolute gamechanger

[@andersw1152]

Awesome video, I would really like to see what kind of difference it would be with used tires. Do they all degrade more or less at the same rate or will studded provide better grip for a longer time?

[@heisenfeis]

A bit late of a reply by me. Tires that are 8 years old used Nokian Hakkapeliitta 8 (studded) with 7mm thread in a test scored 56 of 100, a cheap Chinese Goodride IceMaster Spike Z-506 studded brand new tire scored 57 of 100 on the same test. This basically means is that if you buy a premium tire it is "good" even tho it is old. Always worth it to invest on the 4 things that keep you on the road. Also a side note how well do you think a 8 years old Chinese will do in the same test? I have not seen one yet.

[@nissanlove]

reviving an old(but very beneficial) video, in north america, for some reason, you can purchase studadble winter tires without the studs installed. could you produce a video contrasting nordic winter tires, vs studable winter tires with and without the studs installed? thank you!

[@PouyaLucky]

Oh thanks for this AWESOME video ... My Leon FR came with winter tires instead of the usual studs in Finland, I was really scared to drive it at first and this video helped me calm down lol ... I really enjoyed driving on the icy Finnish roads without studs, it's much more quieter and it feel actually pretty decent and fun to drive (but you gotta be reaaaaaaly slow)

[@valiantredneck]

Southern Alberta here. Quite a lot of larger 4X4 trucks here. How do these tires perform on 4X4 high? Not interested in some Eurobox that are only front wheel drive type of testing. I’ve always found that the Blizzak winters are very good. Thank you.

[@antonlitvinau8142]

Nokian Hakkapeliitta R3 - i know which set of winter tires i'm getting next time!

[@Adzis138]

I have some comparison. I have bought NEW Yokohama for European market, but in Norway's winter those tyres were trash, I have bought used Yokohamas for another car but for Nordic market, and performance of the tyres is way better. I have also bought tyres for yet another car (RWD, no ABS) studded Pirelli, and those are absolutely amazing. So I can confirm two things. 1. Nordic tyres are better for European ones. 2. Studded tyres are really nice even on car without any assistants. Yet another thing. Norwegian people absolutely LOVE Nokian tyres, both studded and studdless. I think over half of the Norwegian cars are on Nokian tyres. :D So for my European friends - If You are looking for tyres, look for Nordic market, it is worth it.

[@MetroidChild]

Now drive on wet ice (late winter/spring conditions) and see what happens with the stuless ;)

[@squangan]

I ran studded Hakkepilita 7’s on a AWD Honda CRV in the Canadian far north. They were awesome as long as they had serious snow pack or ice on the road surface to grip into which fortunately for me was most the time. On the rare occasions I had them on bare frozen pavement it was a different story however as the studs would just slide on the pavement. After one set I went back to a quality non studded winter tire as really those were plenty sufficient for my driving needs.

[@garyg3617]

Thank you for a great review. Also thank you, again, for your review last year. I bought a set of Nokian’s as the result of your review. They are in service again this winter in the French Alps.

[@tyrereviews]

Feel free to leave a review if you haven't already 😊

[@mikkokarvonen6632]

As a Finn I'm interested what model of Nokians did you buy and where did you purchase them?

[@garyg3617]

Mikko Karvonen I bought WR D4’s online and had them delivered to, and fitted by, a local tyre dealer in Aigueblanche.

[@MaioFourpaws]

5 seconds is one hell of a looooong of time to be sliding on an undivided highway! No amount of anything will ever make me give up my Nokian Hal 10s! They would be $1000 a tire and I’d hustle any way I could to get them.

[@richiewong1]

Good impression of Bambi at the end!😂

[@tadasstrikauskas1205]

He thought so much about rubber on vehicle so he forgot rubber on his feet.

[@cdl0]

Been there, done that! This is typical in southern Finnish winter conditions, where you can barely walk to the car, but have no trouble driving with studded Nordic-type tyres. This is when you really appreciate the studs. The ice melts slightly during the day, then refreezes at night, resulting in perfect ice-rink conditions.

[@SirBlackieChan]

I live in southern parts of Sweden, driving studless as the bigger roads are 95% in good condition during winter. If I lived in the middle or northern parts i would drive with studded, obviously.

[@Peto02]

Regarding to the rubber compound for Hakkapeliitta R3. It contains microscopic crystals (like small diamonds) work like built-in studs, improving grip on ice by grabbing onto the driving surface. So it is not just the rubber ;-)

[@SeppoKoivisto]

I remember that I have read about the crystals too! Diamond tires, so that is the reason for price. Do you know how deep R3 contains these diamonds in its surface?

[@specialopsdave]

They keep the roads salted well enough where I live that slush is the main concern, solid ice is almost never an issue. Nobody else uses studded tires here, so if it's too icy to go studless, other drivers are putting you at risk and you should stay off the roads anyways.

[@Wifyish]

Did I miss it or the most important part ‘braking distance’ wasn’t addressed?

[@Rhaman68]

WiFy The word is “braking” from “brakes.” Easily confuses terms. You are right to ask about braking performance. However, there variables are high in numbers: wind, weight of vehicle, temperature, depth of contaminants, road slope and bank angle and, the big one-speed. Plenty of UTube videos illustrate drivers oblivious to the hazards of winter driving. The moral of the story: the operator of the vehicle IS the main safety factor, winter/studded tires notwithstanding. In short, get trained by professionals and practice, practice, practice. Safe travels. Thanks

[@Wifyish]

Ramon Cardona Thanks for the correction, I’ll edit :) All things the same in a test like this, it will clearly show a major difference between studded and non studded tires, which of course matters just as much if not more in other conditions as well :) This is sponsored by Nokian that indeed does well revered tires, but the fact that they left that part out is probably on purpose. I’m from Sweden myself and well versed in winter driving, this simply does not show the major metric an experienced driver would ask for is which is stopping/brake distance. Acceleration? That test was the most stupid one, since in loose terrain you want a slow controlled start to make sure you do not slip. If and when you do, you even make the road more slippery for the next car.

[@tyrereviews]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/oqHPkoeIoLWdisk

[@Wifyish]

Tyre Reviews That was a good video :)

[@dougpalmer6786]

I live in upstate new York, have owned several Ford mustangs As every day drivers ,I drive In Every weather condition ,studded tires are the only way to go ,I've gotten off my street when other cars wouldn't move in snow and ice storms but I am truck driver so I an used to driving!!!

[@andrewhurstcars]

Nice review. Also worth bearing in mind that the studded tyres slide more on a dry tarmac road, so are really only suited for Nordic climates and where salt is banned on roads.

[@einar8019]

It isnt banned its just that its only done in cities

[@andrewhurstcars]

@@einar8019 there are some parts of Switzerland where salt isn’t allowed.

[@adrianwallace2797]

Hoping to see a review of the Hakka 10 🤔🤔

[@raf7244x]

So we know what's the best tire for ICE, all we need is to know what's the best tire for Electric!

[@nicholas99norge]

I always buy Nokian tires, and this video just proves i made a good choise. I will continue to do so now more confident than ever :)

[@NoahBB]

I love these videos. Keep 'em coming! No one else does tire testing like you guys. As someone who lives far north, these winter tire comparisons are really helpful. Do you have any content on WS90 vs R3?

[@Broadpaw_Fox]

This! I would love to see a comparison of the new Blizzaks to the new Haakas...

[@uncleben4536]

They really do make the best winter tires in the world.

[@googleuser2426]

Make me wanna buy Nokian!!! They know how to advertise....too bad to the others...

[@Twitch_Moderator]

I run a semi-rugged all season tire on my car (RWD) and my SUV (4X4) and we haveno problems up North in extreme winter. I run Goodyear Wrangler SR-A tires. I drive on ice and in slick slush or dense snow with very little concern.

[@TwinShards]

It's because those tire are made by *NOKIA* -n , they are reliable.

[@jasonmorehouse3756]

no, they are not Nokia {they make electronics} tires are Nokian

[@juhojalonen3046]

@@jasonmorehouse3756 Nokia, which became the largest mobile telephone manufacturer in 1998,[8] ended its ownership interest in Nokian Tyres in 2003, selling its holding of 2 million shares to Bridgestone Europe NV/SA, a subsidiary of the Japanese tyre manufacturer Bridgestone, for U.S. $73.2 million.

[@raphaeldumont-lavoie1985]

I'm from Canada and own a Volt... So many garages didn't want to sell me studded tires for my electric car, so happy I held my end and bought the Hakka 9's. Ain't no messing around with those bad boys on my car.

[@tiberiu_nicolae]

Why didn't they want to sell ypu studded?

[@raphaeldumont-lavoie1985]

@@tiberiu_nicolae they said that the manufacturer didn't recommend it.

[@paulf3353]

The lower the temperature, the less there will be difference studded vs non studded on ice. And the opposite the closer to zero the better studs are on ice.

[@alansach8437]

I have heard that. That at ten or twenty below the studs can no longer penetrate the ice and become skates.

[@ARCNA442]

Sounds like a good video idea for TyreReviews.

[@hotprop92]

If you ever skated outdoors when it's in the teens or lower F you'd learn how sticky/draggy ice can get compared to ice in an arena.

[@KeepersWay]

Right studs are old wives tales their old technology and not really recommended which is why so many countries despite dangerous condition keep them banned their not as effective if the ice temperature is Bellow 6 degrees studs won't do anything.

[@dellyet]

Diving without studd in winter and thinks it works good, but don't forget that studded winter tyres rougheds up the road surface and makes non studded tyre's get better grip.

[@Jontelitooo]

Here in Sweden a european wintertire is like having plastic wheels on you're inlines :D

[@alpine_pro5814]

I run Nokian Hakkiiplitta 8 studless on my Audi A3 TDI and they are amazing. Grip and corner on pack snow and ice with ease. Hakka’s are the way to go.

[@sharpuslf]

When in doubt....get a STUDDED h9 :P

[@opera93]

Me too: though, actually my GMC Canyon RWD HAS HANKOOK studded : four season’s seem to be a good product ( Nokian studs on my FWD Journey , I know “ BOO”).....love the HAKKAPA STUDS

[@mfletcherg122]

Yes and when you stud the really good ice tires like I did. They run even better 😉. Quattro with studded winter tires 😁

[@Henchman1977]

Assuming they're carbide tipped studs it would be more accurate to say you're jamming ceramic into the ice.

[@tyrereviews]

Pedantic. I like it!

[@elektro3000]

I read that the Hakkapeliitta 9 studs are stainless steel instead of the traditional tungsten carbide to reduce corrosion on salted roads.

[@trevors8577]

Depends, I'll bet that more than 50% of the stud is metal vs carbide so metal still fits better..

[@tommfuller]

If you want pedantic: the material used in most studs is tungsten carbide with cobalt, a Cemet (Ceramic-metal).

[@diggergeensen860]

The amount of times that I’ve actually needed studs in central British Columbia has been reduced to a minimal during the last 4-5 years. I’d rather take the friction tires to be honest. You can still get around safely, albeit a bit slower on the horribly icy days, but you aren’t listening to the constant annoying drone that the studded Hak 9s make. You will also achieve superior grip running friction tires in dry, or wet conditions during cold weather. The performance in deep snow/slush is a saw off. I’d rather run a tire that is comfortable for 120 days, and sacrifice a bit of grip on the 10-12 really icy days, where studs would actually be beneficial.

[@ivana.1261]

Great test as usual! Thanks for your work! Would be great to see a brake test also.. And Michelin claim XIN4 as the best winter tyre, is it possible to test it once vs Nokian HKPL 9?

[@StanleyKubick1]

Apparently, they don't wanna

[@tyrereviews]

Brake test can be found here: kzbin.info/www/bejne/imWnpKaggaylas0 I hope to do a nordic winter tyre test next year!

[@steveniemyer9288]

It all depends where you live. They have done studies in the continental USA and they have determined that studded tires provided no additional traction over regular winter tires, in almost all real world winter/icy conditions. The only exception was when the ice registered zero degrees Fahrenheit, then at the point the studded tires slightly outperformed regular winter tires.

[@potatopotato8360]

Fake news. My studded tires perform significantly better on hard packed snow and ice in extremely cold temps (-20c and colder) than the Blizzaks I had before (supposedly top of the line studdless winter tire).