Vehicles using 225/40R18 tire size:
- Buick Verano
- Acura RSX
- Alfa-Romeo Giulietta
- Audi A3
- Audi A4
- BMW Alpina B3
- BMW 1 Series
- BMW 2 Series
- Cadillac ATS
- Chevrolet Cobalt
- Dodge Avenger
- Ford Focus
- Honda Accord
- Honda Civic
- Honda Civic Type R
- Honda S2000
- Hyundai Elantra
- Hyundai Veloster
- Jaguar X Type
- Kia Forte
- Mazda3
- Porsche Boxster
- Toyota Corolla
- VW Golf
1. Pirelli Cinturato WeatherActive - Best All-Weather Tire
We’re going to get this list going with a great all-weather tire from Pirelli, the Cinturato WeatherActive. We know that the all-weather tire category might still be an unknown quantity for some drivers. While all-weather tires have a lot of common ground with their all-season counterparts, they’re also designed with a heightened emphasis on improved performance in winter conditions. That’s all without having to make any real tradeoffs regarding handling, braking, ride quality, tread life, road manners, and cornering dynamics. For decades, Pirelli has been one of the most respected brands; they’re well-known for their innovation, value, and quality, and the Scorpion WeatherActive is a tire that proudly deserves the Pirelli reputation. The WeatherActive is one of the newer iterations of the proven Scorpion family of tires; it’s certified with the tire industry’s Three Peak Mountain Snowflake rating for severe winter service. On the twisty roads, the Scorpion WeatherActive delivers braking and cornering that tracks firmly and precisely. It’s designed with a 3-rib directional tread pattern, a stiffer sidewall, and a shoulder intended to be rigid enough to handle the g-forces of hard cornering with minimal deformation and tread squirm. When the weather turns rainy, the Pirelli WeatherActive fights hydroplaning with a zigzag central groove and angled grooves that evacuate water and slush, routing it through and behind the tire’s contact patch. You can count on a ride that’s as dead-quiet as a Grand Touring tire with the WeatherActive, too; its tread pitch is computer-tuned and randomized to cancel specific resonances and frequencies and keep road noise low on the highway. The advanced tread compound of the Pirelli WeatherActive stays pliable for winter grip In subfreezing weather but is still tough and durable enough for excellent wear properties and long miles. Pirelli covers the WeatherActive with a 60,000 mile limited manufacturer tread life warranty. After averaging up all the numbers for the WeatherActive, we came to SimpleScores of 9.8 for traction, 9.2 for longevity, and 9.5 for handling – proof positive that shows the Pirelli WeatherActive to be not just a great performer but a great value all around.
2. Continental PureContact LS - Best All-Season Tire
If you’re familiar with Continental tires, you probably already know what to expect with the PureContact LS. The Continental PureContact LS is designed to deliver Grand Touring levels of ride comfort and low noise, along with year-round traction, handling, and exceptional road manners. A solid center rib lends a secure road feel and steering response, and stable tread blocks in the asymmetric tread pattern are all part of the PureContact LS’s excellent cornering and steering feedback, earning it a SimpleScore of 9.4 for handling. The PureContact LS is designed for exceptional wear properties, too, with next-generation technology that includes temperature-activated polymers in the tread compound that deliver tenacious traction, low road noise, and extended wear (with a 70,000-mile limited manufacturer tread life warranty) – SimpleTire’s SimpleScore for longevity with this tire is a solid 9.7. Continental’s +Silane additives are used in the tread compound, circumferential grooves, and angled and sweeping grooves for consistent grip in rainy or light wintry conditions. When winter weather comes in, the PureContact LS has “traction grooves” that trap and retain snow to provide snow-on-snow friction and sipes in the shoulders, all adding up to a SimpleScore of 9.7 for traction.
3. Bridgestone Blizzak WS90 - Best Winter Tire
For severe winter weather and deep snow that lingers on the roads for days on end, in most cases, all-season tires cannot get the job done and get you from point A to point B and back safely. Our pick for a premium winter tire in the 225/40R18 size is the Blizzak WS90 from Bridgestone. The Blizzak WS90 is a studless tire certified with the Three Peak Mountain Snowflake rating for severe winter service and is designed as an update from the Blizzak. Its winter tread compound is designed for excellent traction on snow, slush, and ice with multicell technology and tiny bite particles for improved friction on slick surfaces. Yet, it stays pliable for a dependable grip on sub-freezing days. When you need traction and control, the Blizzak WS90’s winter tread features a solid center rib with large tread blocks and a pattern of circumferential and angled grooves and sipes that multiply surface area and grip, slicing their way through snow and slush. We give this tire an outstanding SimpleScore of 9.6 for traction. Its contact patch is redesigned to be wider and flatter, putting more rubber on the road, and tread block stiffness is enhanced for sharp steering response, braking, and cornering. The Blizzak WS90 gets a SimpleScore of 8.7 in the handling department. That enhanced footprint also helps with improved wear properties; even though the Blizzak WS90 doesn’t have a treadwear warranty (most winter tires don’t), we give a SimpleScore of 8.6 for longevity. The aggregate SimpleScore for the Bridgestone Blizzak WS90 is a solid 9.1.
4. Yokohama ADVAN Sport AS+ - Best UHP All-Season Tire
The UHP all-season tire category is designed for year-round traction with breathtaking performance, and our suggestion in the 225/40R18 tire size is the ADVAN Sport AS+ from Yokohama. Yokohama covers the ADVAN Sport AS+ with a 55,000-mile manufacturer’s treadwear warranty; it features a high-turnup sidewall, long-wearing silica-rich tread compound, and durable internal construction and pulls in a SimpleScore of 9.1 for longevity. Cornering and steering response is accurate, immediate, and secure with extra-large outboard shoulder blocks and 2-in-1 intermediate blocks, registering a SimpleScore of 8.7 for handling. In wet or dry conditions, the ADVAN Sport AS+ is consistent and reliable with a combination of circumferential grooves, lateral grooves, Z-shaped grooves, and Yokohama’s innovative Wavy Sipes, all of which work as a system to resist hydroplaning on wet pavement and provide mechanical grip and adhesion on dry roads. SimpleScore for traction: 8.8. All in all, the Yokohama ADVAN Sport AS+ would be an excellent choice for various sporty coupes, sedans, and crossovers. Composite SimpleScore for the ADVAN Sport AS+ is 8.8.
5. Kumho Solus TA51A - Great All-Season Tire
For most drivers, all-season tires are a great jack-of-all-trades choice. They offer long, even wear, a quiet and refined ride, capable and predictable handling, good road manners, and secure traction in just about every condition other than deep snow. With that in mind, we will wrap up this list with one more premium all-season tire, the Solus TA51A from Kumho. The Solus TA51A is a versatile all-season choice that might come in at a slightly cheaper price point but offers features, quality, and performance that are all premium-level. Kumho engineers designed the Solus TA51a for great wet-weather performance, combining circumferential, angled, and lateral grooves that prevent hydroplaning. For light wintry conditions, a system of 3D interlocking sipes multiplies traction and surface area, working with its 3D chamfered tread blocks for a confident grip. Kumho designed the Solus TA51a from the ground up with an advanced tread compound infused with multi-functionalized polymers and silica additives for long wear and consistent grip in wet or dry weather. The Solus TA51a keeps road noise low, too, with ribs in the tread that break up and disperse sound waves to cancel specific frequencies and resonances, keeping highway noise and vibrations to a minimum. Additionally, Kumho backs the Solus TA51a with a 75,000 mile or 65,000 mile warranty, depending on tire size.
With an average SimpleScore of 9, the Solus TA51a offers excellent longevity (9.6), traction (9.0), and handling (8.5).
Buy 225/40R18 Size Tires Online
At SimpleTire, the tire buying process can become frustrating and even overwhelming. There are so many tires to choose from at so many price points, with so many warranty packages and sets of features to sort out, and it can all become a little much. We hope this guide to some of the best premium all-season, touring, winter, and performance tires in the 225/40R18 tire size will help you decide when to bite the bullet and replace your tires.