The detailed tread design allows the tire to boost the braking ability, shortening the braking distance. The reinforced construction and the heat-build-up michelin cross climate preventing compound enable the tire’s safer high speed performance. The CrossClimate 2 lowers the road noise levels reaching the vehicle’s cabin.
While in wet handling, both tires were effective the same as the new Cross Climate 2 was only 0.03 second quicker than its predecessor. Overall wet performance was improved with most of the gains coming from wet braking. Crucially, the tire also features many large sipes in every tread block, which further help with the water dissipation, and a tread compound designed to operate in a wide temperature range. And according to our dry road test, the CrossClimate 2 easily beats most competitors on dry roads, with an exceptional lateral grip that comes close to that of summer touring tire.
The Michelin CrossClimate 2 comes in many sizes, ranging from 16-inch to 20-inch wheel diameter, covering compact and mid-size cars, crossovers, and even some SUVs. Although the reviews are not as many as that of the Crossclimate 2, Michelin Defender 2 tires are said to provide a soft ride that is somehow similar to the Defender T+H. The other Defender tires, namely the Defender T+H and Defender 2, are both slightly less durable than the LTX.
By comparison to many test vehicles shod with all-season rubber that I drive on a weekly basis, the CrossClimate 2 tires inspired more confidence in the heavy rain. And much more than the summer-only high-performance tires on the new European sports coupe I drove that same day. On the other hand, the Defender T+H, Defender 2, and LTX have the usual symmetrical tread pattern for touring tires. The rib-type design equipped with sipes provides excellent traction and steering response on dry surfaces. The Crossclimate 2 is a grand touring tire, so it is expected to have greater performance than standard touring models.
However, due to its tread pattern and the right amount of compound stiffness, the Crossclimate 2 is the better option here. The mileage warranty of a tire indicates the number of miles that a tire is estimated to last. It is not advised to fit just two all season tires, when you do encounter snow or ice the grip imbalance is so high it can cause very dangerous situations. Stopping, turning, and staying free from hydroplaning was not a problem. If we could offer more scientific data on the tires we would, but ours is a real-world test, so we can only do our best to report what we experience.
Given that the UK suffers from moderate and interchangeable winter conditions – with severe ice and snow becoming uncommon for much of the country – this makes all season tyres a very good choice for our roads. As both tires are the poster child for all season tires equipped with 3 peak mountain, it is only natural to test them on snow. In the snow handling criteria, Cross Climate 2 did much more than what it was expected by being 2.7 seconds faster than Cross Climate +. Even though there were no objective snow braking tests but with a much faster lap time, Michelin showed massive improvements in snow once again. When it comes to all season tires, rolling resistance is definitely not at the highest priority as the engineer has to handle the most important winter vs summer target conflict.
I would imagine the current lack of + version would indicate it’s a low volume size and the moulds have yet to be updated. The CrossClimate is ranked 18th of 52 All Season Premium Touring tires. The CrossClimate 2 is ranked 12th of 52 All Season Premium Touring tires.
The Michelin CrossClimate 2 is a Premium Touring All Season tire designed to be fitted to Passenger Cars. Outstanding combination of longevity, reliability and year-round traction including 3PMSF[1] on all road surfaces for today’s most demanding commercial vehicles. The recall from Michelin is the first from the company since December 2022, when it recalled 16,983 vintage tires. The tires started production in 2018 and were sold in the U.S. and Canada. Last Saturday night the Boston area had a deluge that lasted all day. My wife and I needed to head into Boston from the suburbs after the storm drains had been leaf-choked and the roadways flooded anywhere the street dipped.
As always, the French tire giant promised the impossible and delivered on it, offering a great dry/wet tire that also comes with the 3PMSF symbol. But if anyone could design a tire that will work excellently across the board, it’s Michelin. Overall, the CrossClimate 2 is the best dry all-season tire by a significant margin and performs at a very high level in all tests. The tire michelin cross climate also performs very well at the limit and doesn’t lose grip immediately like some cheaper tires. Namely, the tread blocks align with the fore and aft forces, making an uninterrupted block area to increase longitudinal traction. I’ve gone almost 30,000 miles with this tire and rotated tires every 5,000 miles and they have no abnormal wear, that said they will last for a long time.