I’m running Michelin X-Ice Snow and love them. To me, they’re slightly (tiny bit) better than the Blizzaks I’ve had, but what makes me like them even more is that Blizzaks only have winter compound for the first half of the tread. After that it’s just regular compound and the grip is worse. The Michelins are the same compound through the entire tread

 

+1 for X-Ice Snow. We've had a lot of snow in MN this winter... 14" last week and these tires ate through it all with complete control. And that was with my F Pace!

 

Even though its not a true 'winter' tire, I had a set of Goodyear Duratrac's fitted to my 5098 20's. These do well in the snow (so far) and for the last 18 months have performed well in the wet - not significantly louder than my Continental Cross Contact's on my 22" wheels, and not a huge drop in mpg either - I'm impressed with the tire in general given its aggressive tread. I believe this is the same wheel/tire spec as the No Time To Die Bond Defenders......I've heard great things about the Nokian Outpost AT tire - might test that one out next.

 

Vehicle: MY 2023.5 Defender 110X (USA), 20" 5098s with classic flaps, no rack or extra weight.

Conditions: Colorado area; 6,000 - 9,000 feet above Mean Sea Level; Temps 0-45 degrees Fahrenheit; dry, wet, snow, ice conditions on top of mostly asphalt/concrete pavements with occasional dirt/packed gravel base.

I am very pleased with my Nokian Hakkapelitta R5 SUV 275/55/R20 117R XL tires. These stop and corner way better than the OEM Wrangler AT tires and, despite the Defender's weight, these Nokians seem to give me the same level of traction as I enjoyed with my Subaru Outback with a Nokian setup. The size is per the Defender manual, and I am not experiencing any rubbing at access, normal or offroad height. The manual states 'R3', but Nokians have discontinued those in lieu of the R5; they seem to have a slightly wider stance.

For snow/ice packed roads, I select Snow/Gravel Terrain Response (TR). For wet pavement with snow patches, I select Auto TR. I have not noticed a difference other than having personal confidence the Defender is optimized for the conditions.

 

You might check out the Cooper Evolution winter tires. I am not a big fan of Blizzaks tires but you can try searching for more tires here https://www.corwheels.com/best-snow-tires-for-suvs/. Cooper had an all terrain type tread that excelled on slushy dirt roads and in deeper snow. I believe that conventional snow tires perform better on icy and snow-packed roads.

 

Since this thread was bumped...
Anybody got a recommendation for our stupid 19"? LR recommends WinterContact yet all the reviews I've read of them say they aren't good. I run Nokians on our Volvo and they have been fantastic. Just can't find one for our 19" (same for X-Ice and Blizzak). Thanks!

 

Get a set of 20" take off wheels and put Nokian Hakkapelitta R5 SUV 275/55/R20 117R XL tires on them.

 

I'm questioning the recommendation for a wider than stock winter tire. In my experience, a narrower tire performs better in the snow.

 

I had been using Nokia Hakkapelittas for years. I had an issue with the last set on the Range Rover, the inside sidewalls started to get really bad circumferential cracks and I had to replace them after 18 months. Turned out they were being made in Russia and a common failure. So that particular problem may have solved itself. When I got the Defender, it poked around and got the Cooper AT3-S snow tires. They seem to have performed well last year in the 10' or so of snow we got. They also perform well off road and seem fairly quiet.

Funny story, I had the Hakka's on my Vanagon Synchro Westphalia as well. They did the snow thing perfectly as normal. I sold the van to a guy who immediately took it up into the mountains and proceeded to get it stuck in an intersection spinning all 4 wheels, that had thawed and frozen into an ice rink. He called me all angry. "You said these were the best snow tires out there!" I replied, "they are, but they are snow tires, not ice tires!"

I agree that too wide a tire will not give enough footprint weight to get all the benefit a snow tire can provide. Same is true of desert armor rock coverings. Real wide tires will tend to spin and strip off the rocks and put you in the underlying sand. Narrower tires will not do that, keeping the footprint weight just right.

 

More a choice issue. Lots more to choose from in 275/55 R20 v the non-winter OEM sizing. Also easier to source a replacement in the event you need one. Blizzaks are everywhere including Costco.