First time with CrossClimate 2’s in snow | SwedeSpeed

We drive the N. Oregon Coast Range between the Coast and Portland very frequently year round. Those who want to be prepared for the worst they will ever see will run studded tires in the winter here. We’ve tried that as well as high quality studless snow tires of various premium brands on our various vehicles, including a lot of Volvos, over the years. But I’ve concluded, in our very changeable climate, where mean temps can often range 25-40 in a single day over the Coast Range passes in winter, that the penalties of studded tires are too great in a climate dominated by rain. Studless snow tires were my choice for a long time, but I really got tired of seasonal change-overs and short tread life.

I started trying all-weather tires with Toyo Celsius about 15 years ago. I ran them on a number of cars when Les Schwab handled them. But Schwab dropped the Celsius in favor of the Vredstein Quatracs which are not bad tires but kind of middle grade in most talent categories. Since we’ve shopped tire dealers and run those, Vredstein Quatrac Pro, Michelin All-Climate and Nokian WRG4 and WRG5 tires on several different Volvos and Audis. Generally, the service has been outstanding, though when it’s really icy, I tend to stay home! I do carry cable chains on cars that can run them but putting them on is a vanishingly rare event., They’re not advised on our latest Volvo (’23 XC90 B6 with 20″ wheels) so I have snow sox for it though I have yet to use them.

I give that background because I have some impressions from multi-season usage of the above brands. One is that Michelin All-Climates are superb is just about every category but noisy! I can’t say that has bothered me in several Audis but my wife had them on a Mercedes ML (GLE) and an Audi Q5 and refused to have them again due to noise, even though she acknowledged superior performance in rain, slush and packed snow. The only all weather tire my wife “loved” was, for a long time, the Toyo Celsius SUV, which she was convinced got her through some times when nothing else would have (I personally have some doubts but that’s not the kind of argument you want to get into with your wife!). But the last set of tires she had on her Audi Q5 were Nokian WRG4s and she was absolutely convinced that she could go anywhere, anytime, in any conditions with those! (And that includes some limited experience with freezing nights over the Coast Range when the slush turns to ice!) And the Nokian’s were the first All Weather tires she’d driven since Toyo Celsius days that she felt were sufficiently quiet to meet her discerning standard on dry pavement.

So her 2023 XC90 got a new set of Nokians, the new WRG5s, replacing the Pirelli Scorpion Verde A/S factory tires. We’re having a warm winter this year with, so far, no real winter weather performance to report. But I’ve driven her XC90 in heavy rain and I can say their wet performance and hydroplane resistance is excellent. And they are VERY quiet tires on dry pavement.

If you’re shopping for all-weather, year-round tires, the Nokian WRG5 is worth a look. Never seen them tested head to head with the Micheling All-Climates or anything else for that matter, but our experience with them could be labelled “Very Good to Excellent”.