Modern winter tyres must work on dry and wet, not just snow — and ADAC’s 2026 mid-size test 225/50 R17 on an Audi A4 Avant (Ivalo, Finland) shows how big the gaps are. Between best and worst wet braking lies more than 10 metres. Sixteen tyres for Audi A4, BMW 3-series and Mercedes C-Class were tested.
Result: four “good”, six “befriedigend” and six “mangelhaft” — better than the small size (only two good), confirming ADAC’s note that developers focus more on popular mid-size dimensions.
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How ADAC scores
German school grades (0.6 very good to 5.5 deficient), 70% safety (dry 30% / wet 40% / winter 30%) + 30% eco (mileage 40% / abrasion 20% / efficiency 20% / noise 10% / sustainability 10%). Source: ADAC 225/50 R17 2026.
Top 4 in detail
1. Pirelli Cinturato Winter 3 (2.2, safety 2.1) — best wet in test (short braking, high aquaplaning reserves, precise handling), balanced dry (2.3) and winter (2.4), mileage/abrasion still good. Only downside indoor noise. Strengths: balanced, safe/precise dry/wet/winter, low weight/consumption.
2. Continental WinterContact TS 870 (2.3) — very safe, short dry/wet braking, slight deductions dry precision and snow handling. 3. Goodyear UltraGrip Performance 3 (2.4, eco 2.0 best eco) — very high mileage. 4. Michelin Alpin 7 (2.5) — strong on winter, slightly imprecise dry steering.
Single talents fail
Sunwide Snowide (5.5) is best on snow (1.3, excellent snow/ice braking and handling) yet overall deficient: extremely spongy dry (5.0) plus severe wet weaknesses. Toyo Observe EWS1 (5.3) mirrors it oppositely (great dry 2.0 but winter 5.3). Falken EuroWinter HS02 Pro (★66) (4.8), Tracmax Ice-Plus S210 (5.4), Aptany RW211 (5.4), Royal Black Royalwinter UHP (5.5) must be avoided. Midfield satisfactory: Bridgestone Blizzak 6 (2.6), Hankook (2.7), ESA-Tecar (2.7), Dunlop (2.9, eco 1.8 best eco but safety 3.4), Yokohama/Vredestein (3.1).
| # | Model | Overall | Safety | Eco |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Pirelli Cinturato Winter 3 | 2.2 | 2.1 | 2.5 |
| 2 | Continental WinterContact TS 870 | 2.3 | 2.2 | 2.5 |
| 3 | GoodYear UltraGrip Performance 3 (★93) | 2.4 | 2.6 | 2.0 |
| 4 | Michelin ALPIN 7 (★84) | 2.5 | 2.6 | 2.3 |
| 5 | Bridgestone Blizzak 6 | 2.6 | 2.6 | 2.6 |
| 6 | Hankook W462 Winter i*cept RS3 | 2.7 | 2.6 | 2.8 |
| 7 | ESA-Tecar Supergrip Pro2 | 2.7 | 2.9 | 2.2 |
| 8 | Dunlop Winter | 2.9 | 3.4 | 1.8 |
| 9 | Yokohama BluEarth winter V906 (★55) | 3.1 | 3.1 | 3.1 |
| 10 | Vredestein Wintrac Pro+ | 3.1 | 3.1 | 3.2 |
| 11 | Falken EuroWinter HS02 Pro (★66) | 4.8 | 4.8 | 3.4 |
| 12 | Toyo Observe EWS1 | 5.3 | 5.3 | 2.3 |
| 13 | Tracmax Ice-Plus S210 | 5.4 | 5.4 | 2.9 |
| 14 | Aptany RW211 | 5.4 | 5.4 | 3.1 |
| 15 | Royal Black Royalwinter UHP | 5.5 | 5.5 | 2.1 |
| 16 | Sunwide Snowide | 5.5 | 5.5 | 3.1 |