At SimpleTire, we’ve gone through and compiled some of the best tire options for your Toyota Celica, including all-season, all-weather, and winter tire choices. We then went through them and ranked them in Best/Great/Good order, using our SimpleScore system that averages data points for traction, longevity, and handling and assigns a numerical score. Ready? Let’s go ahead:
1. Toyo Extensa A/S II: Best All-Season tire
Let’s kick off this list with the Toyo Extensa A/S II, an all-season tire we’ve been impressed with for some time thanks to its great value and performance. The Extensa A/S II starts with an advanced silica-rich rubber compound that delivers improved rolling resistance and fuel efficiency, along with long wear and reliable wet-weather traction. Toyo’s innovative design for the Extensa A/S II includes tread ribs that are optimized to even out stress and pressure across the tire’s tread face for more uniform wear along with improved cornering and braking performance. Wet-weather traction is enhanced with wide circumferential grooves that resist hydroplaning on wet roads by diverting water behind the tire’s contact patch. When the snow flies, there’s a dense network of sipes that multiplies the traction you need to make it easier to get through wet or wintry conditions. We also appreciate the nondirectional, symmetric tread design of the Extensa A/S II, making it easier to cross-rotate tires for even wear. Toyo backs the Extensa A/S II with a 75,000 mile limited manufacturer tread life warranty.
2. General Altimax 365AW: Best All-Weather tire
For drivers who live in parts of the country that see hard winter weather and several inches of snow that might stay on the roads for days or weeks at a time, all-season tires are usually just not capable of getting the job done. That means switching over to a set of dedicated winter tires, with the inconvenience that goes with it (and the need to store a set of tires somewhere). Or, you can just opt for a set of all-weather tires like the General Altimax 365AW. All-weather tires might be a new-ish category in the tire world, but they’re designed much the same as all-season tires — except with the goal of enhanced traction in winter weather. With its tread compound that stays flexible for grip in subfreezing temperatures and an aggressive, sipe-dense tread pattern, the General Altimax 365AW is Three Peak Mountain Snowflake rated for severe winter service, for a SimpleScore of 8.7 for traction. The Altimax 365AW is durable too, with a 60,000 mile warranty and a very strong SimpleScore of 9.8 for longevity. The sinusoidal sipe pattern, semi-solid center rib, and waved longitudinal grooves of the Altimax 365AW deliver cornering ability, road manners, braking, and steering response that are all precise and predictable, for a SimpleScore of 8.3 for handling.
3. Nokian Hakkapeliitta R5: Best Winter tire
If a tire manufacturer is based in Finland, you’d probably expect them to have extensive experience designing tires for a tough Scandinavian winter and you’d be correct. Nokian (yes, the same parent company as Nokia phones) has decades invested in designing next-generation winter tires, and the Hakkapeliitta R5 is loaded with innovative features to handle the demands of winter driving. With its low rolling resistance, the Hakkapeliitta R5 is a far cry from the heavy, noisy, clunky “snow tires” of 40 years ago. The Hakkapeliitta R5’s low rolling resistance makes it a great candidate for a winter tire for EVs. The Double Block Grip pattern is designed for both winter grip and nimble handling properties, with SimpleScores of 9.9 for traction and 8.6 for handling. Arctic Grip Crystals incorporated into the tread deliver the same kind of confident grip you’d expect with a studded winter tire, except without the legal restrictions, noise, and damage to pavement surfaces that go with studs. The tread compound and construction of the Hakkapeliitta R5 are also durable, for a SimpleScore of 9.2 in longevity. In case you’re curious about the name, “Hakkapeliitta” is the Finnish word for that country’s 17th-century cavalry troops. The Nokian Hakkapeliitta R5 is, as you’d expect, Three Peak Mountain Snowflake certified.
While these are the best Toyota Celica tires on the market, there are plenty of other options to consider:
4. Firestone Weathergrip: Great All-Weather tire
Next up is another all-weather option for your Toyota Celica, the Firestone Weathergrip. Firestone designed the Weathergrip’s tread with a dense network of sipes, the hair-thin slits that give you an advantage in winter traction with hundreds of extra biting edges that chew their way through snow and slush. While most tread elements lose their effectiveness as tread depth wears down, Firestone's innovative sipes are a 3D design that can keep boosting winter traction as the tire wears, along with “snow vices” that build snow-to-snow friction and grip by trapping and retaining snow in the tread. Firestone’s Hydro-Grip Technology package ups the game with chamfered grooves, slotted shoulders, and a fat, rounded contact patch. As you’d expect for an all-weather tire, the Firestone Weathergrip has the Three Peak Mountain Snowflake certification stamped on its sidewall for severe winter service; head-to-head tests against the competition show that braking distances are as much as 30 feet shorter in winter weather. After running the numbers, we gave the Weathergrip a SimpleScore of 8.6 for traction. Road manners, steering response, and cornering ability are all top-notch; the Weathergrip’s SimpleScore of 8.6 for handling comes from its rubber formulation and tread features. The Weathergrip gets a SimpleScore of 9.2 for longevity, as Firestone backs the Weathergrip with a best-in-class 65,000 mile limited manufacturer’s tread life warranty.
5. Cooper Ultra Touring: Great All-Season tire
Let’s wrap up this list with the Cooper Ultra Touring, a great value in an all-season tire with a quiet, refined ride and long treadwear. The CS5 Ultra Touring comes with a very strong SimpleScore of 9.1 for longevity; it’s backed by a 70,000 mile warranty. The traction SimpleScore is 8.5 thanks to broader shoulder block grooves (which also enhance handling), circumferential and angled grooves, 3D sipes, and an advanced rubber compound. Those tread features also mean good resistance to hydroplaning in wet weather and improved grip in light snow. Cornering, braking, and steering response are also predictable, precise, and consistent thanks to an asymmetric tread pattern and those robust shoulder blocks, for a SimpleScore of 8.6 for handling.
Order Toyota Celica Tires Online
Buying tires online can be a stressful process, but it really doesn't need to be. SimpleTire offers a simple approach to finding the tires that are best for you and your Toyota Celica. Select your Toyota Celica below, then tell us a few more things such as year and trim level to determine your tire size. From there, we'll show you tires that fit your vehicle and are the best match based on performance characteristics, but you can also look for the best value tires, tires that are on sale or part of a promo, have the longest tread life, and much more