Winter tyre test 225/50 R17 - ADAC 2026
Winter Winter testing at Ivalo, Finland (snow/ice) plus dry/wet handling and braking at Contidrom/ATP proving grounds; snow braking/traction measured on compacted snow/ice.
Audi A4 Avant 2.0 TFSI – front-wheel drive reference for mid-size class 225/50 R17; also representative for BMW 3-series, Mercedes C-class, VW Passat.
Price vs Quality
See how tyre price relates to test performance at a glance
Results
Agenda:Best value in test
Better than average value
Worse than average value
Worst value in test
Dry braking 100–0 km/h: field tight around 42–46 m (exact best/worst not disclosed numerically, grades 2.0–5.0). Best dry grades: Toyo Observe EWS1 and Continental/Pirelli around 2.0–2.3; worst dry 5.0 (Sunwide Snowide) – described as 'extremely spongy' with late response.
Winter2.4
Wet1.7
Dry2.3
Enviromental impact2.5
Noise2.9
Wear2.5
Driving safety2.1
Fuel consumption2.1
Summary
- Published overall result: — · 1/16
- Best discipline position: Wet performance (1/16)
- Lowest discipline position: Mileage (10/16)
Wet braking decisive – >10 m spread between best and worst (ADAC highlights). Best wet grades: Pirelli Cinturato Winter 3 (best wet overall), Continental 1.9, Michelin 2.5; worst wet 5.5 (Royal Black, Sunwide, Aptany, Tracmax) – these tyres cannot combine longitudinal and lateral forces on wet asphalt/concrete.
Winter2.4
Wet1.9
Dry2.5
Enviromental impact2.5
Noise2.6
Wear2.5
Driving safety2.2
Fuel consumption2.4
Summary
- Published overall result: — · 2/16
- Best discipline position: Exterior noise (2/16)
- Lowest discipline position: Mileage (10/16)
Snow braking 30–0 km/h and ice braking 20–0 km/h – best snow note 1.3 (Sunwide Snowide!) yet overall mangelhaft due to dry/wet collapse; best balanced snow: Pirelli, Continental, Goodyear, Michelin all 2.4–2.6. Worst snow 4.8–5.3 (Toyo, Tracmax) – Toyo especially very weak on winter (grade 5.3) despite excellent dry (2.0).
Winter2.6
Wet2.2
Dry2.4
Enviromental impact2.0
Noise2.7
Wear1.4
Driving safety2.6
Fuel consumption2.1
Summary
- Published overall result: — · 3/16
- Best discipline position: Mileage (2/16)
- Lowest discipline position: Snow performance (8/16)
Snow traction: top values for Pirelli/Continental/Michelin (high dN), worst for some budget tyres with low snow traction despite good ice braking. Sunwide proves best snow traction/braking does not make a good winter tyre if dry/wet fails.
Winter1.7
Wet2.5
Dry2.6
Enviromental impact2.3
Noise2.8
Wear2.1
Driving safety2.6
Fuel consumption2.0
Summary
- Published overall result: — · 4/16
- Best discipline position: Snow performance (2/16)
- Lowest discipline position: Wet performance (8/16)
Same weighting as 185 test: 70 % safety (dry 30 % wet 40 % winter 30 %) + 30 % eco (mileage 40 % abrasion 20 % efficiency 20 % noise 10 % sustainability 10 %). Aquaplaning, handling, snow-handling and sustainability can trigger downgrades.
Winter2.6
Wet2.3
Dry2.1
Enviromental impact2.6
Noise3.2
Wear2.2
Driving safety2.6
Fuel consumption2.2
Summary
- Published overall result: — · 5/16
- Best discipline position: Dry performance (2/16)
- Lowest discipline position: Exterior noise (11/16)
Four 'good' tyres at the top (Pirelli 2.2, Continental 2.3, Goodyear 2.4, Michelin 2.5) prove balanced winter tyres exist even in mid-size – unlike small size where only two achieved good.
Winter2.6
Wet2.3
Dry2.3
Enviromental impact2.8
Noise3.1
Wear2.8
Driving safety2.6
Fuel consumption2.4
Summary
- Published overall result: — · 6/16
- Best discipline position: Dry performance (3/16)
- Lowest discipline position: Mileage (13/16)
Six 'mangelhaft' tyres demonstrate that winter excellence alone is insufficient: Sunwide, Royal Black, Aptany, Tracmax, Toyo and Falken collapse on dry/wet or vice versa; Toyo's opposite imbalance (great dry 2.0 but winter 5.3) mirrors Sunwide's.
Winter2.9
Wet2.4
Dry2.8
Enviromental impact2.2
Noise2.7
Wear2.1
Driving safety2.9
Fuel consumption1.8
Summary
- Published overall result: — · 7/16
- Best discipline position: Exterior noise (4/16)
- Lowest discipline position: Snow performance (12/16)
Measured price range ca. €49–€165 – best price-performance according to ADAC data is not Tama but Goodyear (high mileage) and ESA-Tecar (Swiss-only) with good plus/minus balance.
Winter2.1
Wet2.9
Dry3.4
Enviromental impact1.8
Noise2.6
Wear1.1
Driving safety3.4
Fuel consumption2.0
Summary
- Published overall result: — · 8/16
- Best discipline position: Mileage (1/16)
- Lowest discipline position: Dry performance (13/16)
Environmental trade-off visible: Dunlop Winter scores best eco 1.8 (very high mileage) but safety only 3.4 (befriedigend/ausreichend dry), while Pirelli balances both.
Winter3.1
Wet2.8
Dry2.8
Enviromental impact3.1
Noise3.5
Wear1.9
Driving safety3.1
Fuel consumption3.1
Summary
- Published overall result: — · 9/16
- Best discipline position: Mileage (5/16)
- Lowest discipline position: Snow performance (13/16)
Aquaplaning and snow-handling are frequent fail points for cheap tyres – lateral aquaplaning and snow-handling grades often decide 'mangelhaft' vs 'befriedigend'.
Winter2.5
Wet2.6
Dry3.1
Enviromental impact3.2
Noise2.9
Wear3.2
Driving safety3.1
Fuel consumption2.4
Summary
- Published overall result: — · 10/16
- Best discipline position: Snow performance (7/16)
- Lowest discipline position: Mileage (15/16)
Pirelli Cinturato Winter 3 wins narrowly (overall 2.2, safety 2.1) – best wet performance in test plus balanced dry (2.3) and winter (2.4), with good mileage/abrasion and low consumption; only downside indoor noise.
Winter4.8
Wet2.7
Dry3.1
Enviromental impact3.4
Noise3.3
Wear3.4
Driving safety4.8
Fuel consumption2.1
Summary
- Published overall result: — · 11/16
- Best discipline position: Wet performance (10/16)
- Lowest discipline position: Mileage (16/16)
Continental WinterContact TS 870 second (2.3) and Goodyear UltraGrip Performance 3 third (2.4, eco 2.0 best eco) – both 'good' without major weaknesses, Goodyear with very high mileage (>55 k km predicted for Dunlop sibling).
Winter5.3
Wet2.3
Dry2.0
Enviromental impact2.3
Noise3.6
Wear1.6
Driving safety5.3
Fuel consumption2.3
Summary
- Published overall result: — · 12/16
- Best discipline position: Dry performance (1/16)
- Lowest discipline position: Snow performance (15/16)
Michelin Alpin 7 fourth 'good' (2.5) – strong on winter (best winter among top 4) but slightly imprecise dry steering prevents podium.
Winter5.3
Wet5.4
Dry2.9
Enviromental impact2.9
Noise2.7
Wear2.4
Driving safety5.4
Fuel consumption2.9
Summary
- Published overall result: — · 13/16
- Best discipline position: Exterior noise (4/16)
- Lowest discipline position: Snow performance (15/16)
Safety warning: Six mangelhaft tyres – Falken 4.8, Toyo 5.3, Tracmax/Aptany 5.4, Royal Black/Sunwide 5.5 – must be avoided; Toyo and Sunwide are textbook 'single-talent' fails (one discipline excellent, others catastrophic).
Winter1.7
Wet5.4
Dry4.0
Enviromental impact3.1
Noise3.9
Wear3.0
Driving safety5.4
Fuel consumption2.3
Summary
- Published overall result: — · 14/16
- Best discipline position: Snow performance (2/16)
- Lowest discipline position: Exterior noise (16/16)
Midfield befriedigend (Bridgestone 2.6, Hankook 2.7, ESA-Tecar 2.7, Dunlop 2.9, Yokohama/Vredestein 3.1) are conditional recommendations – check Stärken/Schwächen per tyre before buying for your climate.
Winter2.8
Wet5.5
Dry4.8
Enviromental impact2.1
Noise3.6
Wear1.4
Driving safety5.5
Fuel consumption1.9
Summary
- Published overall result: — · 15/16
- Best discipline position: Mileage (2/16)
- Lowest discipline position: Wet performance (15/16)
Larger size shows better overall quality than small size: 4× good vs 2× good, confirming ADAC's remark that developers focus more on popular mid-size dimensions.
Winter1.3
Wet5.5
Dry5.0
Enviromental impact3.1
Noise2.5
Wear2.6
Driving safety5.5
Fuel consumption2.2
Summary
- Published overall result: — · 16/16
- Best discipline position: Exterior noise (1/16)
- Lowest discipline position: Dry performance (16/16)
Same size tyres not featured in the test
Tests usually don't cover the whole market - here is our selection what not to miss when shopping for tyres in this size.
