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Last updated 6/13/2024 - Originally published 6/13/2024
Written by SimpleTire
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What’s the story with all-weather tires, anyway? All-weather tires are a new-ish category in the tire world, filling a niche where all-season tires aren’t quite capable. Anyone who’s tried to get around when there are 3-4 inches of snow on the roads knows that most all-season tires are not going to be able to get the job done for you (in most cases), so all-weather tires are designed for enhanced winter traction with redesigned tread formulations, more aggressive tread patterns, redesigned sipe networks and other features that are all intended toward dependable traction in snow and slush. In other words, they’re designed to fill a niche between all-season and winter tires without the inconvenience of removing winter tires and storing them once temperatures get above 40-45 degrees F.
Are you familiar with SimpleScore? SimpleScore is the system the SimpleTire team devised to give you a quick, at-a-glance idea of a tire’s strengths and weaknesses. We look at the specs, review information and other data points for any given tire, and then use that to determine a numerical value from 1-10 for traction, handling, longevity, and an overall average SimpleScore. For the Pirelli Scorpion WeatherActive and Goodyear Assurance WeatherReady, the SimpleScore numbers shake out like this:
As you can see, those are a very solid set of SimpleScore ratings for any tire, regardless of the manufacturer or design. SimpleScore is handy, but it doesn’t take you down to the details that tell the story of a tire’s capabilities. Let’s unpack what the Pirelli and the Goodyear are all about with this comparison review:
For decades, drivers have been impressed with Pirelli tires for their performance, quality, and value, and the Scorpion WeatherActive is a great example of why that’s the case. This tire is one of the newer iterations of the Scorpion family and has the tire industry’s Three Peak Mountain Snowflake rating for severe winter service. In real-world situations where you need that tire to safely get you through difficult snow and slush, the Pirelli Scorpion WeatherActive is designed with a directional tread design and 3-rib pattern that’s rigid enough to resist deformation and tread squirm during braking or cornering, a zigzag central groove, angled grooves that resist hydroplaning by channeling water and slush away from the contact patch, and a tread pitch that’s randomized and computer tuned to help muffle road noise by canceling certain frequencies and resonances. The tread compound of the Scorpion WeatherActive is designed to remain flexible and deliver winter traction when temperatures are below freezing. However, it stays durable and tough enough for long miles and has great wear characteristics. Pirelli backs the Scorpion WeatherActive with a 60,000 mile limited manufacturer tread life warranty. SimpleTire’s price on the Pirelli Scorpion WeatherActive starts at $220.49 per tire.
Next, we look at the Goodyear Assurance WeatherReady, a premium Grand Touring tire designed to the performance parameters of an all-weather tire. Goodyear designed the Assurance WeatherReady with an environmentally sustainable, silica-rich, soy-based rubber formulation for consistent traction and excellent wear properties. Beneath the tread, the WeatherReady’s internal construction includes two wide steel belts that support a single-ply polyester casing and a polyamide layer that delivers secure high-speed stability, comfort, and direct steering response. You can rely on the Assurance WeatherReady for year-round traction; its tread design includes a system that incorporates outboard ribs for traction on wet or snowy roads, Goodyear’s 3D TredLock Technology Blades, and specially designed sipes toward the center block of the tread. While it makes sense that most tires will lose traction and performance as tread depth gets thinner, Goodyear’s Evolving Traction Grooves are designed to keep traction as the miles pile up and tread depth wears down. Sweeping Tread Grooves and the tire’s circumferential grooves work together as a comprehensive system that evacuates water from the tire’s contact patch and fights the tendency to hydroplane. Performance in snow and slush gets a boost from Zigzag Biting Edges along the tire’s inboard ribs, earning the Goodyear Assurance WeatherReady the tire industry’s Three Peak Mountain Snowflake certification for severe winter service. Goodyear backs the Assurance WeatherReady with a 60,000 mile limited manufacturer tread life warranty. SimpleTire’s price on the Goodyear Assurance WeatherReady starts at $153.99 per tire.
How do the SimpleScores stack up when it comes to traction? Well, it’s close…real, real close. The Pirelli weighs in with a SimpleScore of 9.8 vs. 9.6 for the Goodyear. When it’s this close, where do the differences lie? The Pirelli and the Goodyear both have the 3PMSF certification for severe winter service, advanced tread formulations, and well-designed, more aggressive all-weather tread patterns for enhanced traction in snow and slush. Reviews indicate that the tread grooves of the Pirelli, though, do a better job of evacuating water to resist hydroplaning and that the Pirelli displays better grip and shorter braking distances on wet or dry roads. Our decision:
ADVANTAGE: Pirelli Scorpion WeatherActive
With a SimpleScore of 9.6 for the Pirelli and 9.3 for the Goodyear, this is another one where both tires are closely matched in the handling category. While both tires have excellent tread features and reinforced shoulders designed for precise cornering, reviews suggest that the Goodyear can be a bit sluggish regarding steering response (as compared to the Pirelli). That probably has something to do with the design of the center rib of the Goodyear, and it’s been noted that on certain pavement surfaces, a more aggressive tread design can equate to handling that’s a bit less nimble. Our decision:
ADVANTAGE: Pirelli Scorpion WeatherActive
With SimpleScores of 9.2 for the Pirelli vs 8.8 for the Goodyear in the handling category, it seems like this should be pretty cut and dried, but it isn’t. Both tires have a 60,000 mile limited manufacturer’s tread wear warranty, so where does the disparity between the two come in? While the internal design of the Goodyear is robust and durable, it’s possible that the tread compound of that tire doesn’t have the wear properties that the Pirelli offers (or at least that’s what reviews seem to indicate). Even though both tires have the same tread wear coverage, our decision:
ADVANTAGE: Pirelli Scorpion WeatherActive
When it comes to dependable traction year-round, the Pirelli Scorpion WeatherActive and Goodyear Assurance WeatherReady are both excellent options in all-weather tires. As noted above, all-weather tires are a good choice when dealing with difficult winter weather, but you don’t want the hassle of specialized winter tires. Winter tires use a softer tread compound that stays flexible for traction at subfreezing temperatures (think the traction of a rubber boot vs. a hard-rubber hockey puck), but that tread compound wears quickly on warmer days. When temperatures get above 40-45 degrees, tire manufacturers recommend swapping your winter tires for all-season tires again - leaving you with the headache of dismounting them and finding a place to store them for the next nine months until winter returns. All-season tires are a great way around that; if that is your situation, you can’t go wrong with the Pirelli or the Goodyear.
Honestly, this one’s a tough call. Both tires rank very respectably in SimpleScore numbers, with 9.5 for the Pirelli and 9.2 for the Goodyear, but there’s a big price spread between the two, with a list price of $220.49 for the Pirelli vs $153.99 for the Goodyear. Is there enough of a difference in performance to justify that price disparity between the two tires? Here at the SimpleTire team, we’d say yes, yes, there is. We know that, for many drivers, it’ll come down to your budget. Still, if we were looking for premium all-weather tires for a late-model sedan, coupe, minivan, crossover, or SUV, we’d go with the Pirelli Scorpion WeatherActive.
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