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Review on MICHELIN X-Ice North 4 205/55 R16 94T winter by Ada Adaszek ᠌

Revainrating 5 out of 5

A wonderful product, its nice to use.

1. Mileage on tires 195/65 R15 approximately 3000 km on an am VW Golf 6 in a variety of conditions (ranging from +10 C asphalt / wet asphalt / aquaplaning to -16 S snow / asphalt / snow / salt porridge); 2. 2. The initial roughly 700 kilometers of the break-in period were completed in a relatively easygoing fashion. Driving on this rubber for the first one hundred kilometers or so was akin to driving "on a tank." The vibrations were incredibly intense even in a relatively lightly vibration-loaded Volkswagen Golf 6 that had excellent sound insulation. The volume of the noise was loud enough that it "jammed" the driver's ears, and the entire vehicle was violently shaking in every sense of the word. The sensations are comparable to standing in close proximity to a speaker system that has an electrical power of forty kilowatts. Following a run of approximately 250 kilometers, the vibrations lessened many times until they reached an acceptable level. After approximately 500 kilometers of operation, the vibration and noise levels dropped to an acceptable level, and the rubber became silent. 3. The level of traction is excellent regardless of the surface. The car drives very similarly on snow and salt as it does on asphalt. The level of grip decreases on snow and ice, but it is still a very good level. Before it, there were hak-ta R2 tires that did not have studded tread, which is a significant difference. I strongly encourage each and everyone to purchase ONLY tires with studs. 4. A non-linear relationship between the angle of rotation and the coefficient of friction of rubber is one of the characteristics of this material. When traveling in a straight line, the vehicle has the most grip possible; but, when the wheels are turned slightly in any direction, there is a loss of grip, which results in understeer; and when the steering wheel is turned quickly in any direction, there is a significant gain in grip. While using studded tires, the rear axle can be detached, but only at a substantially higher speed than when using regular tires. 5. The rubber has a very rigid structure; it is somewhat more durable than the Hak-Ta R2 and significantly more durable than the Summer Primacy 4. For me personally, I see this as an advantage. 6. The attached image features an accelerogram that was obtained using an accelerometer (MIKROE-254, ADXL 330) that was affixed to the left front glass. The measurements were taken in fourth gear while traveling on asphalt at a speed of around 80 kilometers per hour along the Hong Kong Ring Road at a range of 2022.2–2500 revolutions per minute (peaks at 31 and 39 Hz). Although it may be observed that the sound of rubber predominates at infrasonic frequencies (vertical vibration), the driver is not aware of this phenomenon.

Pros
  • High levels of traction can be achieved on every surface (snow, ice, snow / salt, wet asphalt, and asphalt); low levels of noise after running between 300 and 500 kilometers.
Cons
  • The relationship between the angle of rotation of the wheel and the tire's coefficient of friction is suboptimal.