I've been running Falken Wildpeak AT4Ws on my 2011 Nissan Xterra Pro-4X for a year now and I want to start by saying these are great tires when they're new.
When fresh, they were excellent in dry and wet conditions, very predictable, quiet for an all-terrain, and handled rain exceptionally well. In winter, when new, they also performed very well in snow and ice for an AT tire. Traction was confident, braking felt controlled, and I never questioned their capability. For the first chunk of their life, I was genuinely impressed.
However, now that I'm at around 26,000 miles, winter performance has taken a very noticeable hit. Dry and wet traction are still fine, but snow and ice grip have dropped off significantly compared to when they were new. The loss of winter traction feels disproportionate to the amount of tread still remaining.
Unfortunately, I lost confidence in them after my Xterra ended up in a ditch while driving below the speed limit in winter conditions. There was no aggressive input or reckless driving -- the tires simply didn't hold the way they used to. That moment made it clear to me that their winter capability degrades faster than I expected as they wear.
Overall, I still think the Wildpeak AT4W is a very good all-terrain tire, especially when new, and I understand all AT tires are a compromise. But for someone who relies heavily on winter performance and confidence in snow and ice, the drop-off with wear is something to seriously consider. Because of that loss of confidence, I'll likely be replacing them sooner than planned and may look at a more winter-biased option next time.
.png&w=3840&q=75)
