Both Nexen WinGuard Sport 2 and Sava Eskimo HP2 are respected options in the arena of winter tires, each showcasing unique abilities. So let’s find a better tire for your needs.
Areas for Improvement for both tires:
- Nexen Winguard Sport 2 could enhance the comfort aspect by working on its vibration damping abilities.
- Sava Eskimo HP2 needs improvements in aspects such as Ice performance, tread life, snow performance, and road quietness.
Table of Contents
Ice Performance
Amongst tires engineered, especially for icy terrains, the Nexen Winguard Sport 2 emerges as a distinctive leader.
And here, its superior performance is attributed chiefly to its unique tread design, incorporating multi-directional snow vices and angled slits.
(These slits act as both the sipes, and the in-groove notches).
They contract/expand biting down on the packed up snow particles to provide with superior handling times, and braking distances (calculated on average).
On the other side, the Sava Eskimo HP2, lacks as aggressive of the overall biters’ design in comparison.
Dry Traction
In dry conditions, the Nexen Winguard Sport 2 excels in both directional grip and handling, the vital aspects of overall dry performance.
The grip is primarily governed by the central tread area, where this tire employs a streamlined, and a more continuous rib to maintain regular contact with the road, allowing for a more effective braking and acceleration capabilities.
Similarly, the tire offers superior sideways traction too, with its more closed up shoulder lugs, offering a more optimized rubber-to-road contact, as the tire corners.
In contrast, the Sava Eskimo HP2, with its wider grooves and added weight, experiences excessive lug movement during cornering, hindering steering feedback and overall handling.
Comfort
A tire’s contribution to comfort is multifaceted, with road noise and the capacity to absorb vibrations playing crucial roles. Let’s unravel the road noise first.
Road Quietness
Often undervalued, road noise significantly shapes the driving experience to a very significant degree, where it primarily originates from the collision of air particles with the tire tread walls.
As the tire rolls, air starts pumping in and out of the tread, where the impact of those air particles colliding the walls is what generating noise.
So this means, the more voided up the tire gets, the more nosier it would become.
That’s why it makes perfect sense here why the Sava Eskimo HP2 takes the back seat, whereas the Nexen with it’s more packed up structure, minimizes the pockets where air can ricochet, thus lessening the noise generated during the tire’s interaction with the road.
On Road Vibrations
As the vehicle’s initial buffer against the irregularities of the road surface, a tire effectively acts as a secondary suspension system, if you like.
Thus, a tire’s capability to adeptly absorb vibrations resulting from surface imperfections significantly adds to ride comfort.
In this arena, the Sava Eskimo HP2 takes the crown, demonstrating outstanding vibration damping abilities, where the tire’s proficiency emanates from its unique tread design and compound composition, equipping it with superior shock absorption capabilities.
Tread Life
A tire’s tread life is largely determined by its rolling resistance, which in turn is influenced directly by the tire’s weight and tread design.
So it makes sense, why the Nexen Sport 2 is taking the lead here, with its lighter weight which decreases the pressure exerted by the tread on the road, thus reducing friction and slowing down the rate of wear.
Contrarily, the heavier Sava Eskimo HP2 applies more weight over a smaller surface due to its larger tread gaps. This increases the rate of wear and could potentially lessen the overall lifespan of the tire.
Wet Traction
Preserving traction on damp surfaces is an essential characteristic for any tire. And this ability is largely defined by the tire’s tread pattern and the texture of the rubber.
And let me tell you, while both tires feature numerous tread voids that assist in water dispersion and reduce hydroplaning risk, the Nexen Winguard Sport 2 still manages to take the upper hand, (even though its by a slight margin).
It incorporates a combination of interlocking and straight sipes, effectively channeling and soaking up water for superior wet grip of a superior degree.
And it’s dense arrangement of sipes, along with its ideal balance of rigidity and flexibility, provides a heightened grip, particularly during cornering, (it showed 1 second faster lap times on average compared to its counterpart, on conducted tests).
Snow Performance
Snow is different from ice. I’m talking about fluffy, or you can say, powdery snow here, where the Nexen Sport 2 takes the lead with it’s well crafted biters which deliver a more optimal snow picking abilities.
Basically, its biters grab and hold on to snow particles, allowing for better snow to snow contact, (which is important because snow sticks on snow with greater friction, compared to rubber of the tread).
So here, the more substantial voids embedded within the Nexen tire’s tread, offer better snow adhesion capabilities, thereby allowing for faster handling times overall.
So to be clear, the Sava Eskimo HP2 provides better grip on icy terrains, whereas the Nexen does better with fluffy thick snow.
Summing Up
Nexen Winguard Sport 2 excels in:
- Ice Performance: Unique tread design with multi-directional snow vices and angled slits provide superior handling times and braking distances on icy terrains.
- Dry Traction: Showcases superior handling and directional grip in dry conditions.
- Tread Life: The lighter weight of the Nexen Winguard Sport 2 reduces the pressure exerted on the road, thus reducing the rate of wear.
- Wet Traction: Despite both tires having competent wet grip, the Nexen Winguard Sport 2 takes a slight lead due to its combination of interlocking and straight sipes.
- Snow Performance: Better suited for powdery snow due to its ability to grab and hold onto snow particles, thus enhancing snow to snow contact.
- Road Quietness: Reduced noise due to its packed-up structure that minimizes air pockets.
Sava Eskimo HP2 excels in:
- Dry Traction: The tire maintains regular contact with the road, allowing for more effective braking and acceleration capabilities.
- On-Road Vibrations: Exhibits superior shock absorption capabilities, enhancing ride comfort.
