Top 10 Best All Season Performance Tires: Latest Options

Just a few decades ago, anyone that owned a high-performance vehicle, like a sports coupe or sports sedan, could only install summer tires on it. All-season performance tires weren’t a thing back in the day simply because they weren’t up to the task of providing high G-forces in the corners, strong acceleration, and short braking distances. In other words, all-season tires were only good for regular daily driving.

Fortunately, though, the advancement in rubber compound technology and tread design brought us some very good all-season performance tires.

Sure, a summer performance tire will always provide higher longitudinal traction and lateral grip, but for most people in North America, a good set of performance all-season tires will be more than good enough.

However, not all of these tires are worth your money. Lately, we’ve seen many cheap performance all-season tires that promise excellent performance but fail to deliver.

Most of them work well on dry roads but are completely unusable when it rains and almost never provide enough snow traction. In addition, the cheap Chinese performance all-season tires can quickly degrade, especially if you drive aggressively.

But you shouldn’t need to worry about that, as in this article, I cherry-picked the best premium all-season performance tires, all providing a generally entertaining driving experience.

Even better, I’ve thrown some excellent budget options for those that don’t have very deep pockets. Regardless of the price, all of these tires provide a safe daily drive and last reasonably long (considering the category).

So, without further ado, let’s gid into my best all season performance tires list!

Top 10 Best All Season Performance Tires Available in 2024

I - Best Premium All-Season Performance Tires

1. Continental ExtremeContact DWS 06 Plus

The Continental ExtremeContact DWS 06 Plus is perhaps the most accomplished ultra-high-performance all-season tire today, as it does almost everything right, and crucially, it works in every climate.

The only problem enthusiasts might have with it is the somewhat vague steering – the ExtremeContact DWS 06 Plus is slower to react than its direct rivals.

However, that doesn’t heart the overall experience much, as there is enough dry grip and traction to give you the thrills while pushing your vehicle to the limits.

How this tire handles rainy conditions, though, is even more impressive. The ExtremeContact DWS 06 Plus has the highest traction on wet tarmac, contributing to excellent acceleration and the shortest braking distances in the category.

The tire is also very easy to drive in the rain, with balanced handling and good behavior at the limit.

The ExtremeContact DWS 06 Plus also doesn’t disappoint in the winter – it provides good overall traction and is very easy to drive in the corners.

To top it all off, Continental also managed to give you a smooth ride over almost all surfaces and almost no noise on the highway. This is an impressively comfortable tire for the category.

Finally, although the price is steep, you shouldn’t need to worry about durability, as the ExtremeContact DWS 06 Plus comes with an excellent 50,000-mile treadwear warranty.

2. Michelin Pilot Sport All Season 4

The Michelin Pilot Sport All Season 4 is another UHP tire that provides balanced performance. Notably, it’s on par with the Continental in rainy conditions, where it drives very well in the corners and provides excellent longitudinal and lateral traction.

Furthermore, the Pilot Sport All Season 4 is very good to drive on dry tarmac, with responsive and linear steering and good overall grip. As expected, the acceleration is also excellent, and the stopping distances are among the shortest in the category.

Michelin’s UHP all-season tire also doesn’t disappoint in the winter, where it provides the driver with good overall traction and balanced behavior in the corners.

However, while the Pilot Sport All Season 4 certainly doesn’t disappoint when it comes to performance, it’s not the most comfortable UHP all-season tire out there. Notably, the ride can feel harsh over repetitive impacts, and you can clearly hear the tread growl in the cabin.

Fortunately, the treadlife on this tire is excellent, just like on every other Michelin, and the manufacturer provides a generous 45,000-mile treadwear warranty.

3. Goodyear Eagle Exhilarate

Goodyear’s offering in the UHP all-season category is a very strong performer in dry and wet conditions. However, to truly disturb the class-leading tires, it needs more snow traction, which is only average for the category.

That said, if you don’t live in areas where it frequently snows in the winter, you should seriously consider the Eagle Exhilarate. It’s one of the best all season performance tires to drive, thanks to the very responsive steering that provides granular feedback from the road.

Furthermore, the dry grip and traction are almost on the level of a summer performance tire, and the handling is very balanced, even at the limit. The wet traction is also impressive, and again, the tire provides you with surefooted handling.

When it comes to comfort, the Eagle Exhilarate isn’t particularly smooth over bumps, but it’s at least quiet on the highway. Also, it comes with a 45,000-mile treadwear warranty, which is good for the price.

4. Vredestein Hypertrac All Season

The Vredestein Hypertrac All Season is a lower-cost alternative to other premium offerings, but that doesn’t make it any less capable. Notably, this is a tire with exceptionally good lateral grip in dry conditions, accompanied by strong acceleration and braking.

Now, if I nitpick, the steering isn’t very responsive, and the Hypertrac All Season doesn’t work as well at the limit as other premium tires. However, that shouldn’t worry you if you mostly drive on public roads.

Crucially, this is a tire with excellent traction and drivability in wet conditions, and it doesn’t disappoint on light snow, either. Overall, you shouldn’t have any issue with the traction, regardless of the weather.

The Hypertrac All Season is also a very comfortable tire that rides smoothly and quietly. To top it all off, it comes with an exceptional 50,000-mile treadwear warranty for the price.

5. Bridgestone Potenza RE980AS Plus

Bridgestone’s UHP all-season tire is the best if you want to enjoy driving, as it has the sharpest steering in its class, with an excellent on-center feel and sharp responses. That’s accompanied by excellent grip and traction on dry roads and very good behavior at the limit.

On top of that, the improved Bridgestone Potenza RE980AS+ (compared to the non-plus model) provides excellent snow traction, with balanced handling and easy-to-drive nature.

However, while the tire handles very well in rainy conditions, the overall traction is lower than on other premium UHP all-season tires. 

Still, you will be comfortable while driving, thanks to the taut but refined ride and generally quiet-free operation. Finally, Bridgestone provides a 50,000-mile treadwear warranty on this tire, which is as good as it gets in the category.

6. Pirelli P Zero All Season Plus

Like most P Zero products, the Pirelli P Zero All Season Plus is a great driver’s tire, thanks to the very sharp and responsive steering.

The good behind-the-wheel experience is accompanied by a very strong lateral grip in dry conditions, along with excellent acceleration and short stopping distances. Pirelli’s UHP all-season tire also performs admirably at the limit, with easy-to-correct behavior.

Still, while the handling in the rain is also excellent, the overall traction is lower than what you’ll get on the class-leading tires. The light-snow traction is also only average – Pirelli really needs to do better for the price.

Nonetheless, the P Zero All Season Plus doesn’t disappoint when it comes to comfort, as it’s both smooth and quiet. Finally, the 50,000-mile treadwear warranty is excellent for the price.

II - Best Budget All-Season Performance Tires

7. Sumitomo HTR A/S P03

The Sumitomo HTR A/S P03 is a very accomplished budget UHP all-season tire that doesn’t trail the premium competition by much.

In my eyes, it’s the best among similarly-priced products, thanks to the excellent dry grip and traction and balanced handling. The steering is a bit vague, but it’s not too objectionable on the street.

Crucially, the HTR A/S P03 works very well when it rains, unlike other cheap tires. The light-snow traction is also very good for the category, and your vehicle will feel very surefooted during cornering.

On top of that, Sumitomo offers an excellent 65,000-mile treadwear warranty on lower speed ratings and still good 45,000 miles on the highest W-speed rated models.

Still, this isn’t the best tire when it comes to comfort, as the ride feels unrefined over sharp imperfections, and there is a noticeable tread growl at higher speeds.

8. Kumho Ecsta PA51

The Kumho Ecsta PA51 solves the comfort issues of the Sumitomo, providing an exceptionally smooth ride over any surface while also remaining quiet at higher speeds.

Furthermore, this tire grips the road very well, regardless if it rains or not, and the handling is very balanced. The braking is also excellent for the category – no real issues there.

However, the steering isn’t as precise or linear as some of its rivals, which somewhat hurts the driving experience. Also, this isn’t the best tire for winter driving, as the snow traction is lower. Hence, I’d recommend against buying it if you live in areas with very harsh wintry conditions.

If you don’t encounter a lot of snow in your area, though, the low price and excellent 45,000-mile treadwear warranty make the Ecsta PA51 a steal!

9. Riken Raptor ZR A/S

The Riken Raptor ZR A/S is a very cheap UHP all-season tire – cheaper even than the previous budget offerings on this list.

Naturally, that means it suffers in some areas. For instance, the wet traction is a whole step behind some more expensive tires, and you won’t get a treadwear warranty. The steering is also vague on-center, though it’s not a lot worse than some other offerings.

The Raptor ZR A/S is not very comfortable over bumps as well, though noise won’t be an issue. But there are a few bright points about this tire – the dry grip is outstanding for the price, and the steering feels quite lively off-center.

Also, I was surprised by the amount of snow traction on offer, which is better than you’d expect for the price.

10. Fuzion UHP Sport A/S

The Fuzion UHP Sport A/S surprised me with its excellent performance in dry conditions. This is a truly enjoyable tire with direct steering that provides granular feedback from the road.

The lateral grip is also excellent, and you can accelerate early out of a corner and brake later. It’s also not too loud for a performance tire, so if you only need a good dry tire, the UHP Sport A/S should be a serious contender.

Nonetheless, the Fuzion shows its limitations in rainy conditions, where it doesn’t provide enough longitudinal and lateral traction. It also doesn’t perform well on light snow, with lower traction than anticipated. Finally, the ride is firm, and you won’t get a treadwear warranty.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

• Are all-season performance tires better than summer performance tires?

There is really not a better option between all-season and summer performance tires, as each has its use scenario.

For instance, if you have a fast car and want a dependable year-round solution, an all-season performance tire makes a lot of sense.

Any good all-season performance tire will have enough grip for spirited driving on dry roads, along with solid wet and snow traction. Hence, if you never use the track, you probably won’t even notice the lower overall grip compared to a summer performance tire.

However, if you are into extracting the best possible performance of your sports car, you should definitely go with a set of summer performance tires. Provided the temperature is warm enough, these tires will provide you with much better grip and traction than any all-season tire while also giving you a sharper and more linear steering feel. Summer performance tires are also better for track days, autocross, drag strips, etc.

Still, you’d have to replace your summer performance tires in the winter, as the traction they offer degrades at lower temperatures, and they are completely unusable on snow.

• Can I use all-season performance tires on the track?

Yes, you can use them on the track, but don’t expect to be competitive. The first issue is the lower traction and grip than any summer performance tire, meaning you wouldn’t be able to drive quickly through the corners or brake as late.

Crucially, though, all-season performance tires don’t work well at very high temperatures. On the track, the tires will become hotter after each acceleration, brake, and turn, which is desirable on summer tires but not so much on all-season performance tires.

Hence, expect your times to degrade quickly after each lap. Sure, you can do a cool-down lap, but in my eyes, that’s just losing precious time at the track.

• How long do all-season performance tires last?

Modern all-season performance tires are very durable and generally have much longer treadlife than comparable summer performance tires. You should easily get 30,000 miles from these tires and even more if you don’t drive too aggressively.

Some manufacturers provide a 50,000-mile treadwear warranty, which is excellent for a tire intended for high-performance vehicles.

• Can I use all-season performance tires in the winter?

All-season performance tires are designed to give you good traction on light snow, and most of the models on this list do that without any issue. However, while you will be able to accelerate, brake, and steer, the overall traction will still be much lower than on a regular winter tire.

Moreover, all-season performance tires won’t work well on unpacked or deep snow, and they certainly won’t provide you with enough traction on ice. Hence, if you live in an area with very harsh wintry conditions, you should go for a set of proper winter tires.

Conclusion

Many enthusiast drivers still scratch their heads over all-season performance tires. However, as I hope this review showed you, some premium options can really work well with your performance car, especially if you never visit the track. You also get better treadlife than on a summer performance tire and some winter usability.

With that said, make sure that you always choose a performance tire that suits your driving style and the weather in your area. Hence, if you live in states with many dry days throughout the year, then you can escape paying a lot of money for a premium tire and instead buy a cheaper tire that’s average on wet and great on dry roads!

So, read the reviews thoroughly before you make the decision, and if possible, purchase your new set of tires from us – it will help us deliver many more helpful articles like this one!