The best all-season tire…
…is one that hasn’t been invented yet. Until then, we still have the Nokian WR G2. These tires are sold in British Columbia exclusively by KalTire. I paid an arm and a leg for these tires but so far they’ve been totally worth it.
Nokian’s tire is classified as an “All-Weather” tire and bear the Severe Service Emblem endorsed by Transport Canada and the Rubber Association of Canada.
Forget the “All-Season” classification nonsense. All-Season tires generally have a “M+S” (for mud and snow) marking on the sidewall but really are just a compromise: they work just OK in a variety of conditions. This is why some people will use two sets of tires: performance tires for the summer (on nice alloy wheels), winter tires for the winter (usually on black steel wheels). You get dedicated tire performance for the weather conditions.
But what tire can I use all year that’ll give me good performance in snow? This is where the Nokian WR G2 excels. CanadianDriver has an article on the first generation WR. The WR G2, however, has a new asymmetrical tread pattern that offers the improved handling on wet and dry pavements.
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nokian_wr_g2
Most all-season tires perform great in dry summer conditions, are “ok” in the wet, and really suck in the snow. My Mazda5’s OEM tires – Toyo A18 – are no exception.
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Proxes A18
I’m not the type to go swapping tires on my car. I drive a Mazda5, I’m not going to win any autocrosses anytime soon. And besides, our climate here is considered “temperate rainforest” climate. We get a lot of precipitation here. So I decided to get a tire that I can leave on year-round that shifts its characteristics more towards improved wet/snow performance. We’ve already had a few days now of snowfall (15cm of snow in my neighbourhood this morning) and so far, the WR G2’s don’t disappoint. Don’t get me wrong, the WR G2’s are still great in the dry, but when it comes to rain and snow, you really can’t put a price on safety.
Vince,
How is the road noise with the Nokians? My wife has a 2007 Mazda5 Touring and I was considering these as replacements for her. The stock Toyos have become LOUD and that is her biggest complaint. The open design of the 5 really accentuates tire noise.
I had Nokian Hakkas on my Subaru WRX for winter only use and loved them. I would love to hear your thoughts as a real-world owner driving the same vehicle. Thank you.
Paul
I actually found my stock Toyo A18 quieter compared to the WR G2’s. The drone might be a bit noticeable at first especially at highway speeds but my family and I have gotten used to it.
The OEM tire size of the Toyo A18 is 205/50/17. However, my tire dealer couldn’t find that size on the WR G2. The closest size for the WR G2 is 215/45/17 (i.e. wider, lower profile).
http://www.nokiantires.com/en/tire_wrg2.aspx?season=winter
Despite the wider tire, these tires outperform the A18 in rain and snow. Also, 215/45 has a smaller circumference than 205/50. So your speedometer will read faster than normal and your mileage on your odometer will be read more than actual.
Thanks for the reply. I guess that logic would dictate that with all of the additional siping on the Nokians that they would not be the quietest of tires at speed. Oh well, life is full of trade-offs. I appreciate your real world insight.
Paul
I’m been looking at buying the Nokian all weather tires. However it is confusing whether both the WR and the WR G2 bear the “Severe Service Emblem” requirements. The Nokian sites shows the actual emblem on both the WR and WR G2. However the statement made in the “Safety Issues and benefits” is only stated for the WR : “Only four-season family of tires that carries the Severe Service Emblem exceeding new government snow condition regulation”.
On the Canadian Rubber Association listing of tires that meet the “Severe Service Emblem”, neither the Nokian WR or the WR G2 appeared as meeting the conditions to bear the emblem. My understanding of the description and/or advertisement by Nokian, on their site, and by their retailers, is that both the WR and the WR G2 meet those requirements.
If they are justified in bearing the “Severe Service Emblem”, why has the Canadian Rubber Association recognized them as such? If they are not, could that be considered “false advertising”?
For your information, here is the link to the Canadian Rubber Association listing of tires meeting requirements
http://www.rubberassociation.ca/wintertires.html#LIST
Any comments anyone??
On the RAC’s winter tire list page, it states:
“The following list provides the model names of RAC Member tire brands that meet the “winter tire” performance requirements. This list may not be exhaustive and is subject to change without notice as new information becomes available. This page was last updated October 3, 2007.”
I have emailed them for an update. Thanks.
Thank you Vince. I hadn’t checked CRA website. The Government of Quebec’s draft regulation posted on their site, didn’t list the tires stated:
“Arctic, Blizzard, Ice, LT, Snow (but not mud and snow), Stud or Winter.
or
• Tires on which the icon representing a mountain with a superimposed snowflake appears.
I don’t know whether their final regulation will be more specific. The Canadian Rubber Association stated, (as CRA): “…. This list may not be exhaustive and is subject to change without notice as new information becomes available. This page was last updated October 3, 2007.”
I wrote an e-mail to both the Canadian Rubber Association and Nokian requesting clarification. Not sure how long it will take to get an answer. I hope not too long…. I really don’t want to get two set of tires as I only drive about 8,000 km per and so was considering buying winter tires and using them all year. Then I saw the Nokian WR and WR G2, and I thought, this might be the answer for me. I read a review of the WR at Canadian Driver July 15/2003 (see link)
http://www.canadiandriver.com/articles/hl/nokian.htm. They basically said the WR were the best tires if one was in my “predicament”, but didn’t mention the WR G2. So, the unclear information from Nokian about the WR G2, showing the snow flake but not mentioning it in their “Safety Issues and Benefits” made me wonder. That’s why I then tried to find the list on the Canadian Rubber Association but there again, their statement “list may not be exhaustive” and “Dated October 7/07, made me wonder… Since the Canadian driver reviewed in 2003, they have had ample time to include them.
Confusing?????
If you find out let me know. If I do receive a reply from Nokian or Canadian Rubber Association, I’ll post it.
Sighhhhh Thanks again for replying and looking into it.
As a follow up to my previous longgg post, for anyone who is interested, here is the reply I got from Nokian concerning the WR and WR G2, and I quote:
” Thank you for your interest in Nokian Tyres and your astute observations of the list provided on the RAC (Rubber Assiciation of Canada) website.
First, please note at the top of the RAC web page that the list is quite old and has only been updated in Oct 2007. They do not display any of the current Nokian winter tire lines since many have been updated with new product over the last 2 years (Nokian winter lineup consists of Hakka 5, Hakka 5 SUV, Hakka R, Hakka R SUV, WR G2 and WR G2 SUV, as well as the product lines listed in the list). We are currently in contact with the RAC to have this list updated with our current products.
Having said this, for technical and semantic reasons, the RAC will only list products that are dedicated winter tires on this list that you’ve mentioned. Since Nokian markets the WR and WR G2 products as “all-weather” and include a tread wear warranty, the RAC will not include these products in their list.
The WR and WR G2, however, do meet the requirements put forth by the new tire laws in Quebec. These products have the “mountain snowflake” or “severe service emblem” on the sidewall of the tire. In order to have this marking, there are a number of tests that a tire must pass in order to prove that it is an acceptable product for winter driving conditions. The WR and WR G2 have met and passed these tests and conditions. You should have no concerns about these tires conflicting with the tire laws in Quebec.
For confirmation of my previous statement, please see the following website:
http://www.mtq.gouv.qc.ca/portal/page/portal/grand_public_en/vehicules_promenade/securite_routiere/securite_conditions_hivernales/reglement_utilisation_pneus_hiver#definition
Note the section heading ” What is the definition of winter tires?”. The reference of ” Tires on which the icon representing a mountain with a superimposed snowflake appears.” is the same reference that I had mentioned above. I have included a picture of this icon below. Once again, this icon can be found on the Nokian WR and WR G2. ”
Pretty good customer service if you ask me. I got a reply from Nokian within hours of sending them my e-mail.
In case someone is as “tire illeterate” as I am, here is additional information.
I asked Nokian the difference between the WR G2 and the WR. Nokian informed me that the WR G2 is a new product to replace the WR and that
“Overall, the WR G2 is a vast improvement over the WR in almost
every tested category (high speed, wet and ice handling, ice and snow
braking, longitudinal and lateral aquaplaning, etc). The biggest
improvements in the WR G2 is the handling in slush.”
Thank you for the valuable information, Mireille.
Just got an email from Gilles Paquette from the Rubber Association of Canada:
“Thank you for your email. The list will be updated shortly for this year’s products. Even with the mountain snowflake logo on the side, the Nokian WR G2 is marketed as an all-weather tire that offers the best performance in every season which is why it is not listed on our winter tire listing. I hope this helps.”
Thanks Vince for the follow-up as the RAC didn’t reply to me. It confirms what Nokian told me. Since the tires passed all the tests to meet the requirements for the new Quebec legislation for winter tires and qualify for the snow flake logo, I’m interpreting that as…. the Nokian should be better than “regular four seasons” but not as good as snow tires. That remains to be see…. I’ve decided to give them a try since I really did not want to have two set of tires. Once I’ve used them in different weather conditions, I’ll give my “un-expert” opinion for whatever it’s worth… I guess it will take a while… I’ve had very good comments on these tires from people, on two other sites, where I had asked the question. Also http://www.canadiandriver.com/news/060630-1.htm gave very good reviews. Thanks again.
I’m getting the WR G2s installed tomorrow as I too felt that these were the best tires for the mild winters of south coast BC. I will still be getting dedicated summer performance tires on 17″ rims regardless so I make use of the WR G2s when they really shine. Remember when it got to almost 20C last winter? It’ll be nice to know that the tires won’t get chewed up if it gets like that again.
I have a simple question. I am getting WRG2s mounted next week because of balancing problems with my WRs with 26,000 kms. But warranty seems an issue. I had 100,000 kms on the WRs but now the dealer tells me only 50,000 kms on the WRG2s. Does anybody have information we Nokian WRG2 tire warranty.
The warranty is 100,000km on the 70, 65, 60, and H Rated 55 series tires, and 50,000km on 30, 35, 40, 45, 50, and V Rated 55 series.
Hi!
I’ve been reading up on these tires for sometime now and would like to purchase – I’m a little worried about reports I’ve read regarding the tracking on dry roads at highway speeds and in cross winds. How is it?
Also how much did you guys pay? I’m looking at 195/65/15 and dont want to be taken for a ride by some mean sales person
I haven’t had a problem on dry roads but your mileage may vary. In my case, these tires actually drive a lot better (though a bit noisier) than my OEM Toyos.
My OEM Toyos were 205/50/17 but my Nokians are 215/45/17 (a bit wider but shorter sidewall) so the ride is actually a bit “sportier” and responsive. Check the Miata.net tire calculator (http://www.miata.net/garage/tirecalc.html) for compatible sizes.
My tires were around $1300CAD for a set of 4 in Feb/2008. It should be a bit cheaper for 195/65/15. Since KalTire is the only retailer in BC, I doubt you’ll get a great deal. Hopefully you’ll find a deal now that winter’s almost over.
Hello All
On Monday, March 30,2009 I was traveling on US24 between Colorado Springs and Limon, CO during a snowstorm with cross winds gusting to 50 MPH. I was driving a Honda Odyssey with Nokian WR’s (205/65HR15 XL) purchased in October 2007 which at the time of this excursion into a simulated milk bottle had 22K miles on them.
I was impressed by their ability to hold their position on the road.
There were a couple of times when I felt them break traction with the road and the van move sideways but these periods were infrequent and of very short duration. With the strong cross winds there was some accumulation of snow in spots, usually in areas sheltered a bit from the wind.
I live in Wisconsin so am used to driving in wintry driving conditions but must say this was the worst I can recall in 46 years of driving. I’m glad I had these tires on the van.
Just prior to this trip I convinced a fellow worker to get the WR G2s and he is very pleased with them as well.
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