October 10, 2022
Highway All-Season tires are built to be dependable, daily driving partners focused on delivering a smooth, comfortable ride, long tread life and capable, all-season traction through inclement weather. While competent on dirt and gravel roads, they harbor no illusions of crawling rocks or overlanding through difficult terrain that their all-terrain brethren excel at. Instead, Highway All-Season tires, along with their drivers, concentrate on the daily task of navigating pavement to and from work or school with the occasional long-distance trip. Arguably, this covers most of the North American driver’s requirements, so it’s no surprise many new vehicles come equipped with Highway-All Season tires from the factory, and consumers replace them with the same.
Thanks to a new test platform in 2022, our team can evaluate two known top performers in this category, along with a new competitor that hopes it has what it takes to compete with the best. Returning to our test program is Continental’s TerrainContact H/T, which tested very well and has duly found itself at the top of the consumer surveys. The TerrainContact H/T will make an excellent benchmark for one of its closest rivals, which until recently, went untested by our team. With our new test platform, our team is able and excited to test Michelin’s Defender LTX M/S. The Michelin is a case study in "if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it," with incremental changes updating the line for decades. It’s certainly not the same tire as its predecessors, but the slow and methodical evolution has created a strong and loyal following. The latest contender in our test is the Vredestein Pinza HT, which, like its category, saves the flashy features for another time in favor of a simplistic but effective pattern and sidewall design. With these three pragmatic options, our team knew the proof would be in the performance, so our comparison used 2022 Ford Explorer ST test vehicles fitted with new, full tread depth 265/60R18 tires mounted on 18x8.0 wheels.
Our 6.0-mile loop of expressway, state highway and county roads provides a great variety of road conditions that include city and highway speeds, smooth and coarse concrete, as well as new and patched asphalt. This route allows our team to experience noise comfort, ride quality and everyday handling, just as you would during your drive to school or work.
A good on-road performance is a prerequisite of each of the three tires in this test, and in the end, each accomplished that baseline goal. However, there were differences and tradeoffs found by our team. The TerrainContact H/T had incredibly impressive noise comfort over each surface of our test route. Sounds blended into low-volume tones, which faded into the background with ease. Along with test-leading noise performance, the Continental’s ride quality was among the best in the group, with a very compliant ride over impacts. Our team noticed slight secondary movement from the tire after hitting some bumps, which, if better damped, could have helped the tire feel a little more composed. The steering feel was the "sporty" one of the group, with quick and eager turn-in to corners and when changing lanes. Some additional resistance would have helped complement its responsiveness, but our team found it satisfying nonetheless. The Defender LTX M/S didn’t fail to impress our drivers on the road, either. Leading in our steering evaluation, the Defender LTX M/S proved to be precise and even, combined with just the right amount of heft for a natural feel. Its ride was taut but more composed than the Continental, which isn’t an unusual tradeoff and one we’ve seen before. Luckily, the ride was never objectionable, which caused the two to match each other in subjective ride quality, even though they took slightly different paths to get there. Some cyclical pattern noise accompanied the Defender LTX M/S on the smooth asphalt, but overall, the noise was very good and mostly controlled. The Pinza HT emitted a little more noise along our test surfaces, with additional concrete resonance that the others were able to suppress. Some multiple-tone cavity noise was present on smooth pavement, which was appropriate for a Highway All-Season product but noticeable in this tough competition. Steering was a little dull on-center, with response requiring a bit more input to get the expected result. Luckily, after the response, there was a nice ramp-up in resistance that helped increase its feel through the corners. The Vredestein soaked up impacts with nice compliance but exhibited more secondary movement that was most apparent over larger imperfections. While still very good for the category, it seemed like there was a slight compromise on damping control at times.
Our 1/3-mile per lap test track course includes 90-degree street corners, a five-cone slalom and simulated expressway ramps. Run in both dry and wet conditions, the test track allows our team to experience the traction, responsiveness, handling, and drivability normally only encountered during abrupt emergency avoidance maneuvers or competition events.
If aggressive off-road pursuits are outside a Highway All-Season tire’s design requirements for the sake of long life and comfortable operation, then it makes sense that track lapping is also not a priority for the category. So naturally, our team didn’t expect laps to set new course records but more to help reveal traits and behaviors that can’t be obtained through straight-line braking or acceleration metrics alone. Similarly, it helps our team identify how a tire is expected to perform in an emergency, should the need arise. Often these dynamic maneuvers happen in the wet, where visibility and traction are limited, so predictability and grip are coveted traits. The TerrainContact H/T, historically, has strong wet performance in our testing, and once again made that clear after sweeping each test and evaluation. With the tire’s ten-foot braking advantage over its rivals and the highest lateral traction figures, corners in the Continental were more controlled, and laps were noticeably quicker. Its front-end grip was unquestionable, with neutral handling that would eventually turn into easy to control understeer. The Pinza HT managed very competitive lateral traction figures and capable braking distances from fifty miles per hour, which might not have been a match for the Continental, but our drivers were able to make the most of its looser rear axle for competitive laps close to the leader. The Defender LTX M/S essentially matched the Vredestein in braking distances but struggled to reach the group in lateral traction. Our drivers found the traction disparity far more apparent on track than the objective metrics would indicate. The Michelin managed its available traction well, but braking seemed to require earlier application with understeer quickly setting in mid-corner. Unlike the Vredestein’s usable loose rear axle, the Michelin would rotate the back end at more aggressive slip angles, unconducive to forward progress.
Once the track dried off, the Pinza HT’s nice front-to-rear axle balance really started to pay dividends. Even though its dry lateral traction and braking figures were only competitive, it seemed to be just enough for the tire to come alive in the corners, achieving the quickest times and highest subjective evaluations. The TerrainContact H/T was once again the objective test leader but almost suffered from its locked-down approach to cornering around some tighter bends. While this consistency might not have contributed to the fastest laps, it should be appreciated by drivers on the streets thanks to its predictability. The Defender LTX M/S essentially matched the TerrainContact H/T’s subjective evaluation now that it had more grip to work with. The Michelin’s precise steering and neutral feel through corners contributed to satisfying and quick laps.
The onset of winter weather can present a range of unpredictable challenges for drivers, so our team wasted no time subjecting these tires to rigorous testing to evaluate their performance in snowy conditions.
The Continental TerrainContact H/T immediately impressed our team with group-leading objective scores in acceleration and braking. Subjectively it showcased predictable, controllable steering and lateral traction even under aggressive driving. Vredestein’s Pinza HT was an interesting tire in the snow: its objective scores placed it noticeably at the back of the group. However, driving characteristics are about more than just numbers. The Pinza HT remained as strong of a contender as it had been in other environments. Our team’s subjective evaluations of its cornering placing it nearly on par with the TerrainContact H/T, albeit with some marginally delayed front-end response in steering. Michelin’s Defender LTX M/S struck a similar balance and displayed strong braking scores and remarkably competitive straight-line traction in acceleration testing, finishing 2/10th of a foot away from the leader.
When given the task of braking on ice, the selected tires continued close to one another. The TerrainContact H/T demonstrated respectable stopping distances and managed to come to a halt just slightly before the Pinza HT, with only a slim margin separating them. The Michelin took slightly further to stop, although it remained competitive.
After completing this test, our team concluded that all the tires in this bunch are excellent choices for drivers. However, the Continental tire stands out among its competitors due to its outstanding wet and winter performance. With it quickly passing a million miles in the consumer surveys, the verdict seems to indicate the Continental’s tread wear is among the best as well. While the Continental leaves some room for improvement, it’s hard to imagine a more practical package. The Defender LTX M/S has many millions of consumer survey miles reported, with drivers seemingly gravitating to it, and we can see why: while it sacrifices some wet grip and winter traction compared to this competition, it seems to satisfy most drivers on the streets. Even if its ultimate grip is lower, the way it utilizes that traction is expertly managed, which is important to how the tires feel on the road. The Pinza HT is the new addition to the category and seems to have found the right formula. It trails just off the others in most categories, except for winter environments, where it excels and finds the right mix of handling and grip in the dry. Time will tell if it has the all-important tread wear to satisfy drivers in this segment, but if it emulates its competition in that metric and the others, it should be a great value and an excellent option.
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