Quote:
|
Originally Posted by blackmercedes
|
My earlier comment was from the following:
October 2005
"The Bridgestone Blizzak WS-50 (*est. $80) is one of the best-selling snow tires in the U.S., and it is still a top performer in some reviews, including those at The Tire Rack. However, in the stringent tests conducted by Sweden's Aftonbladet newspaper, the Blizzak shows its age. Although editors say the Blizzak WS-50 was an icon a decade ago, it no longer compares as well to newer technology. In terms of ice and snow braking and acceleration, the Blizzak was the worst in the test group. Tires easily lost traction in icy slush. In fact, Aftonbladet's review found nothing positive about the Blizzak WS-50 compared to other non-studded tires like the top-performing Continental Viking Contact 3 (not available in the U.S.), Gislaved SoftFrost 2 (*est. $85), Nokian Hakkapeliitta RSi (*est. $90) and Michelin X-Ice (*est. $80).
We enlisted the help of a Swedish translator to prepare our report on snow tires. That's because the best snow and ice tire testing takes place in Scandinavia rather than the U.S. One of Sweden's evening newspapers, Aftonbladet, has by far the best reviews of winter tires. Conducted annually, this publication tests at least twenty studded and non-studded winter tires at the northernmost test track in the world (in northern Finland). Tires are rated on performance in hard-packed snow, ice (including dangerous black ice), slush, and both wet and dry pavement.
Sweden's winters are harsher than North American winters, with the exception of some extreme northern states, mountainous areas and Canada, and testers at Aftonbladet exhibit a fairly strong bias towards studded tires, which offer marked performance improvements on icy roads. Studded tires aren't used as often in the U.S., and because they contribute to road damage, some states restrict or ban the use of studded tires."
http://www.consumersearch.com/www/automotive/snow-tires/
Steve