Top 10 Best All Season Performance Tires for Cars

There is nothing better than not having to replace your tires in the winter. First of all, using one set of tires is cost-effective, especially in the long run. Moreover, replacing the tires takes time, and also space. Sure, real car enthusiasts cringe at the thought of all-season tires, but they are becoming increasingly good in recent years.

They became so good, actually, that today you can find many performance variants with an all-season tread compound. These tires aren’t only designed to give you dependable year-round traction – they are also designed for aggressive driving. So, yes, you can have one set of tires that you can use throughout the year, and drive aggressively almost all of the time. What’s not to like about that?

Now, of course, you might not want to get all-season tires for ultimate handling or track days, but for driving on the street, they will be completely fine. Moreover, today you can find all-season performance tires in many sizes and speed ratings, which cover almost every performance vehicle on the market, starting from the smallest ones.

The thing is, though, there are many all-season tires on the market, some of them not designed for performance. These tires are mostly aimed at drivers that want dependable handling, comfortable ride, and long-lasting treadlife.

To help you find excellent all-season performance tires, we created a carefully-selected list of the best models on the market. Each tire on our list will give you exhilarating drive throughout the year, that’s for sure. We also included some budget-friendly models for the drivers that don’t want to spend a fortune on tires.

Furthermore, we also created a buying guide on all-season performance tires. In that guide, you can learn about the differences between all-season and summer performance tires, and how they affect your driving. We recommend reading through that section if you are new to the performance tire category.

Without further ado, let’s see the ten best all-season performance tires you can buy!

The 10 Best All Season Performance Tires Available in 2024

Best Ultra High Performance All Season Tires

1. Bridgestone Potenza RE980AS

The Bridgestone Potenza RE980AS is one of the newest all-season ultra-high-performance tires, and also one of the best overall. Apart from the choppy ride, we couldn’t find any other disadvantage on the Potenza, which says a lot about its qualities.

On the road, this model performs as you expect from the best all-season ultra-high-performance tire. Responsiveness is top-notch, while steering feel is superb. Moreover, the tire provides the driver with a lot of grip and traction on dry surfaces, even during very hard cornering.

Thanks to the 3D full-depth sipes and high sipe density, the RE980AS performs outstandingly well over wet surfaces, even during very heavy rain. Light-snow traction is good for a tire in this category as well.

The Potenza RE980AS was also designed with comfort in mind – the noise-optimized tread pattern makes this tire almost inaudible at highway speeds.

Bridgestone provides a 50,000-mile treadwear warranty on the Potenza RE980AS, which is as good as you can get from an all-season ultra-high-performance tire.

2. Continental ExtremeContact DWS06

The ExtremeContact DWS06 is perhaps the best all-season ultra-high-performance tire for driving over wet surfaces. Continental’s model consistently provides the driver with excellent traction and grip when it rains. The tire is also easily controllable at the limit over wet surfaces, and brakes outstandingly well.

On top of that, the ExtremeContact DWS06 is also the best all-season ultra-high-performance tire for driving over light snow. Continental even employed special tread indicators (D, W, and S letters) that will show you when the tire isn’t good for snow driving anymore.

For example, when all letters are visible, it means that the tire will perform greatly on dry, wet, and snowy surfaces. As the tire wears down, S will become less visible, which means that snow performance will suffer. It’s the same with the letter W (wet performance), and so on.

Fortunately, dry cornering didn’t suffer – the DWS06 is responsive and provides the driver with very high levels of grip and traction. High-speed stability is excellent as well, on par with the best tires in this category.

Finally, Continental provides a 50,000-mile treadwear warranty on this tire, which is on-par with its premium competitors.

3. Michelin Pilot Sport A/S 3+

The Michelin Pilot Sport A/S 3+ shows that the French company is still the best when it comes to steering feel. Behind the wheel, this is the most enjoyable all-season ultra-high-performance tire to drive. The steering is very direct and the tires react to the input blazingly fast. Moreover, we also found that this tire communicates with the driver much better than the competition.

This is also one of the best ultra-high-performance all-season tires when it comes to cornering and braking. The grip and traction from this product are simply outstanding on dry surfaces, and they are joined by exceptional high-speed stability.

The Pilot Sport A/S 3+ doesn’t stop to impress even when it rains. Traction and braking over wet surfaces are excellent, on-par with the best tires in this category. Moreover, Bridgestone managed to make this tire work over light snow, which is impressive.

Finally, the French company provides a 45,000-mile treadwear warranty, which is slightly lower than its premium competition, but still very good. That said, like most Michelin tires, the Pilot Sport A/S 3 is expensive.

4. Pirelli P Zero All Season Plus

Pirelli is an Italian company that’s mostly known for its outstanding P Zero performance tires. Therefore, we entered the testing of the P Zero All Season Plus with very high expectations and we certainly weren’t disappointed.

In terms of responsiveness and steering feel, the P Zero is on-par with the Michelin Pilot Sport A/S 3. The tire reacts to the driver’s input extremely fast, and it communicates when it loses traction very well.

Moreover, thanks to the stiff sidewalls, the P Zero is easy to drive at the limit, even during very hard cornering. And, the best thing about this tire is that it is also very quiet and comfortable.

That being said, while the P Zero All Season Plus is very good over wet pavement, it doesn’t compare to the best in the category. The same can be said for winter traction, which is only adequate.

On the positive side, this tire comes with a 50,000-mile treadwear warranty, which is impressive. We also found that owners of this tire are very satisfied with the treadlife.

5. Goodyear Eagle Sport All-Season

Goodyear decided to use their RaceWrap Construction Technology on the Eagle Sport All-Season, which is an excellent move. Why? Well, because they use the same technology on their Eagle Race tires that are used in NASCAR, that’s why.

The RaceWrap Construction Technology has a polyester cord casing ply down the sidewall at a slight angle, wraps around the bead, and returns all the way up the sidewall until it ends under the edge of the steel belts.

As a result of this technology, the Eagle Sport All-Season is one of the most responsive tires in its category. The tire also communicates with the driver outstandingly well, even at the limit. Furthermore, the stiff construction helps with stability at very high speeds.

The Eagle Sport All-Season also provides the driver with outstanding grip and traction over a dry pavement, and excellent overall performance in rainy conditions thanks to the outstanding hydroplaning resistance. That said, snow traction could be better.

In terms of comfort, the Eagle Sport provides the passengers with a smooth ride, but noise could be a bit more suppressed, especially at higher speeds.

Goodyear provides a 50,000-mile treadwear warranty on this tire, which is as good as you can get in this category.

6. BFGoodrich g-Force Comp-2 A/S Plus

The g-Force Comp-2 A/S Plus is a budget-friendly all-season ultra-high-performance tire that focuses on overall performance. That being said, while BF Goodrich managed to make it better for wintry conditions when compared to the predecessor, we would still like to see improvements.

On the positive side, this tire handles almost as good as its premium competition. Responsiveness is excellent and there is a lot of feel through the steering wheel. Moreover, the tire provides the driver with very high levels of grip and traction, both over dry and wet surfaces.

The g-Force Comp-2 A/S Plus positively surprised us with the comfortable ride and the noise-free ride on the highway. Also, the 45,000-mile treadwear warranty is among the best in the budget category.

7. General G-Max AS-05

The General G-Max AS-05 is a true budget-friendly performance tire that provides enthusiast drivers with fun and exhilarating drive in most weather conditions.

The all-season tread compound in the G-Max AS-05 performs very well in hot and cold conditions, but we still think that improvements in snow traction could be made.

Still, for driving over dry and wet surfaces, this is perhaps the best tire at this price. The tire is very responsive and grippy in the corners, and very stable at higher speeds. Sure, you can’t expect performance on the level of premium tires, but the G-Max AS-05 comes very close.

Moreover, General managed to make this tire very comfortable and quiet, especially for the category. Also, the 50,000-mile treadwear warranty is impressive for the price.

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Best High Performance All Season Tires

8. Kumho Ecsta PA31

The Kumho Ecsta PA31 is another budget-friendly all-season performance tire that is very enjoyable to drive on the street.

Behind the wheel, the Ecsta PA31 feels much more expensive than it really is. The handling is responsive and crisp, and there is a very good grip in the corners.

Moreover, the tire performs outstandingly well in rainy conditions, especially for the price. The Ecsta PA31 is also adequate over light snow.

Kumho provides a 45,000-mile treadwear warranty on the Ecsta PA31, which is very good for the price. That being said, we’ve heard owners complain about accelerated treadwear when driven hard.

9. Hankook Ventus V2 Concept 2

The Ventus V2 Concept 2 is a very stylish tire that won’t look out of place on some exotic supercar. However, it also needs to perform well to capture an enthusiasts’ heart.

And it does, to a degree. In terms of grip and traction, the Ventus V2 Concept 2 compares to some premium offerings, especially on dry surfaces.

However, the tire isn’t as responsive as we would’ve liked, especially when driven hard. Also, braking distances could be shorter.

On the positive side, the Ventus V2 Concept 2 is very quiet and comfortable for a performance tire. Also, the manufacturer provides an excellent 45,000-mile treadwear warranty.

10. Sumitomo HTR A/S P02

The Sumitomo HTR A/S P02 is one of the cheapest good all-season performance tires that you can buy. Despite the very low price, the HTR A/S P02 impresses with excellent high-speed stability and crisp and responsive handling.

Moreover, the silica-enhanced tread compound manages to provide the driver with good levels of grip and traction, even in the rain. Traction and braking over snow and ice suffer, though.

The best thing about this tire is how long it lasts – Sumitomo provides a 65,000-mile treadwear warranty, which is the highest of any other tire on this list.

Best All-Season Performance Tires – Buying Guide in 2024

1. Difference Between Summer and All-Season Tires (Advantages and Disadvantages)

In the past, all performance tires had summer tread compounds. That was done for performance purposes – the summer tread compound is stickier, while the whole tire is stiffer.

This helps immensely for performance driving. The sticky rubber provides the driver with much better traction for hard acceleration, much better grip in the corners, and stronger braking. Tires with a summer tread compound are not only better for aggressive driving, but they are more enjoyable behind the steering wheel as well.

Interestingly, summer tires also perform much better in wet conditions, especially when the weather is warmer and the tread compound is sticky. So, for ultimate cornering, acceleration, and stability, summer tires are always the preferred choice.

That being said, the summer tread compound on these tires is completely unusable in freezing conditions. When the temperature falls, the rubber on these tires becomes too stiff, which limits their ability to stick to the road. Moreover, the tires can get easily damaged if driven in freezing weather.

That’s where all-season tires come into play. These tires have a tread compound that’s designed to work both in hot and cold conditions. The tread compound on all-season tires is not as sticky, and the whole tire isn’t as stiff. That limits overall performance, for sure.

However, the softer and more pliable rubber on all-season tires helps immensely in freezing weather. All-season tires perform much better when the temperature falls below the freezing point, especially over slippery surfaces. Some all-season tires also perform over light snow, as opposed to summer tires.

Apart from the type of compound used, summer and all-season tires differentiate in the tread pattern. Summer performance tires usually have larger tread blocks and fewer grooves, which enhances grip over dry and wet surfaces. However, the shallow tread pattern on summer tires won’t give you any traction over snow.

All-season tires have a much more prominent and deeper tread pattern. This helps them achieve much better traction over snow, but also provide the driver with excellent resistance to hydroplaning during very heavy rain. Overall, all-season performance tires are slightly worse in light rain, but comparable to summer tires in heavy rain.

But, enough with performance – there are other important differences between summer and all-season performance tires.

For example, the tread compound on all-season tires might not be very sticky, but that’s why it is supremely durable. Tire manufacturers design their all-season tires for outstanding treadlife, which sometimes exceeds 50,000-miles, even for performance models. Summer performance tires, on the other hand, only last around 20,000-miles.

Thanks to the outstanding treadlife and lower price point, all-season performance tires are a much more cost-effective solution in the long run. Moreover, you can use these tires throughout the year, while you can only use summer tires 7-8 months.

Overall, we think that most sports car drivers will be completely satisfied with a set of all-season performance tires. The latest models in this category offer some pretty amazing handling and stability, and they also last really long. Also, they work over light snow, something that can’t be said for summer performance tires.

Nonetheless, if you use your vehicle for track days, autocross, or drag racing, we strongly recommend going for summer performance tires. All-season tires might’ve become excellent, but they are still not on the level of summer tires when it comes to overall performance.

2. Difference Between High-Performance and Ultra-High-Performance Tires

All-season performance tires fall into two categories – high-performance and ultra-high-performance tires. There are some small differences between these tires and we will review each one of them below.

The biggest distinction between these tires is the speed rating. High-performance tires usually have slightly smaller speed ratings than ultra-high-performance tires. Moreover, the former usually come in smaller sizes, while the latter comes in larger sizes. That said, many speed ratings and sizes might still overlap between them.

Other differences are in how the tires perform. High-performance tires are a step above touring tires in terms of responsiveness, traction, grip, and braking. Ultra-high-performance tires are a step above high-performance tires in the same categories.

When it comes to treadlife, high-performance and ultra-high-performance tires are largely similar – you will get around 50,000 miles from each tire type.

Finally, ultra-high-performance tires are slightly more expensive, but that’s mostly due to the different size availability.

So, which type should you choose? In most circumstances, you should just pick a size and speed rating that suits your car and you’ll be fine. However, if some sizes overlap, ultra-high-performance tires will give you a slight edge in terms of cornering, high-speed stability, traction, and braking.

Final Words

As you can see from our list above, we mostly included high-quality tires from reputable manufacturers. The reasoning behind this is very simple. In our experience, very cheap tires from Chinese manufacturers don’t provide good performance. 

As a matter of fact, some of them are dangerous, especially when the roads are wet. In these conditions, even a passenger all-season tire from a reputable manufacturer will perform better. Moreover, cheap all-season performance tires don’t last nearly as long as premium tires, so they might be more expensive in the long run.