Tests – · none yet Owners 51 · 10 reviews
Head-to-head
Updated
Goodyear Assurance MaxLife vs Michelin Defender T+H — Compared
Relative Score (0–100): the weighted average of the categories below, each 60% road tests and 40% owner reviews (comfort 40/60). Based on 0 + 1 road tests and 10 + 1 owner reviews. How we score
Defender T+H is ahead, 70–56
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Tests – · 1 test Owners 69 · 1 review
Best test result: #1 of 8 in 2022 Consumer Reports All-Season Tires (tested tread life (miles))
Category by category
Relative Score per category, 0–100. Open “Why this score” for the tests and owner ratings behind it.
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54
Dry
Defender T+H +1569Why this score
Source Assurance MaxLife Defender T+H Professional tests (TWG score) ≈ 59 (est.) ≈ 69 (est.) Reviews found online 46 70 Assurance MaxLife: 60% × 58.8 (est.) + 40% × 46 = 54
Defender T+H: 60% × 68.9 (est.) + 40% × 70.1 = 69
No road tests of dry for Assurance MaxLife. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.42).
No road tests of dry for Defender T+H. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.42).
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49
Wet
Defender T+H +2372Why this score
Source Assurance MaxLife Defender T+H Professional tests (TWG score) ≈ 54 (est.) ≈ 72 (est.) Reviews found online 41 73 Assurance MaxLife: 60% × 54.4 (est.) + 40% × 41 = 49
Defender T+H: 60% × 71.9 (est.) + 40% × 72.9 = 72
No road tests of wet for Assurance MaxLife. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.55).
No road tests of wet for Defender T+H. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.55).
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59
Snow
Defender T+H +665Why this score
Source Assurance MaxLife Defender T+H Professional tests (TWG score) ≈ 64 (est.) ≈ 68 (est.) Reviews found online 51 61 Assurance MaxLife: 60% × 64.4 (est.) + 40% × 51.1 = 59
Defender T+H: 60% × 67.6 (est.) + 40% × 61.2 = 65
No road tests of snow for Assurance MaxLife. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.32).
No road tests of snow for Defender T+H. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.32).
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58
Comfort
Defender T+H +967Why this score
Source Assurance MaxLife Defender T+H Professional tests (TWG score) ≈ 66 (est.) ≈ 68 (est.) Reviews found online 53 66 Assurance MaxLife: 40% × 65.6 (est.) + 60% × 53.2 = 58
Defender T+H: 40% × 68.2 (est.) + 60% × 66 = 67
No road tests of comfort for Assurance MaxLife. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.20).
No road tests of comfort for Defender T+H. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.20).
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63
Noise
No comparison–Why this score
Source Assurance MaxLife Defender T+H Professional tests (TWG score) ≈ 66 (est.) – Reviews found online 59 – Assurance MaxLife: 60% × 66.3 (est.) + 40% × 58.7 = 63
No road tests of noise for Assurance MaxLife. The test half is the tested tires’ average (66): owners’ noise ratings barely follow the road tests.
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67
Treadwear
Defender T+H +673Why this score
Source Assurance MaxLife Defender T+H Professional tests (TWG score) · – / 1 tests ≈ 67 (est.) 76 Reviews found online 67 68 Assurance MaxLife: 60% × 66.7 (est.) + 40% × 67.1 = 67
Defender T+H: 60% × 76.1 + 40% × 67.9 = 73
No road tests of treadwear for Assurance MaxLife. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.36).
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43
Handling (owners)
No comparison–Why this score
Source Assurance MaxLife Defender T+H Reviews found online 43 –
Scores at a glance
| Category | Goodyear Assurance MaxLife | Michelin Defender T+H |
|---|---|---|
| Relative Score | 56 | 70 |
| Dry | 54 | 69 |
| Wet | 49 | 72 |
| Snow | 59 | 65 |
| Comfort | 58 | 67 |
| Noise | 63 | – |
| Treadwear | 67 | 73 |
| Handling (owners) | 43 | – |
Higher is better. The Relative Score follows your weights below; category scores do not change.
Weight the categories that matter to you
Wet grip starts at “Important”. Treadwear starts at “Neutral” here: road tests measured it for at most one of the two tires, so it rests on owner reviews. Move the sliders and the scores update instantly.
Important
NotLessNeutralImportantMost
Important
NotLessNeutralImportantMost
Neutral
NotLessNeutralImportantMost
Less important
NotLessNeutralImportantMost
Less important
NotLessNeutralImportantMost
Only one of the two tires has a score here, so this weight changes nothing in the head-to-head.
Neutral
NotLessNeutralImportantMost
Less important
NotLessNeutralImportantMost
Only one of the two tires has a score here, so this weight changes nothing in the head-to-head.
Recomputed
Headline score
56
/ 100
Assurance MaxLife
70
/ 100
Defender T+H
Only categories both tires have data for count toward the headline score.
Pros, cons & observations
Themes extracted from owner reviews found online — not the opinion of TireWheelGuide.
Tire A Assurance MaxLife
Pros
- Exceptional tread life and slow wear rate
- Quiet and comfortable ride quality suitable for daily driving and ridesharing
- Good initial highway and dry road comfort
Cons
- Severe lack of wet traction and poor performance in standing water or damp conditions
- Rubber compound appears to harden over time, leading to unpredictable slip from a stop and during acceleration
- Slight drop in fuel efficiency compared to certain OEM tires
Tire B Defender T+H
Not enough owner reviews yet to extract themes.
Specs side by side
| Attribute | A · Goodyear Assurance MaxLife | B · Michelin Defender T+H |
|---|---|---|
| Category | All-Season | All Season |
| Vehicle type | Passenger Car / Crossover | SUV and 4x4 |
| Sizes available | 46 | — |
| Rim diameters | 15″ – 20″ | — |
| Tread depth | 11 - 13/32″ | — |
| UTQG | 820 A B | 820 A - B B |
| Treadwear warranty | 85,000 mi | — |
| Sidewall | Vertical Serrated Band | — |
| Max pressure | 50 - 51 psi | — |
Which one should you actually buy?
56
/ 100
Goodyear Assurance MaxLife
70
/ 100
Michelin Defender T+H
Winner: Michelin Defender T+H — better wet, dry and comfort. It leads or ties in every category we score. Goodyear Assurance MaxLife rests on little evidence so far (0 tests, 10 reviews), so read this result as provisional. Michelin Defender T+H rests on little evidence so far (1 test, 1 review), so read this result as provisional.
Pick tire B
Your priority is wet-weather safety
Michelin Defender T+H scores 72 vs 49 on wet.
Pick tire B
You want the most grip on dry roads
Michelin Defender T+H scores 69 vs 54 on dry.
Pick tire B
You want the most comfortable ride
Michelin Defender T+H scores 67 vs 58 on comfort.
Pick tire B
You drive through snowy winters
Michelin Defender T+H scores 65 vs 59 on snow.
Tire A · Goodyear Assurance MaxLife
Tire B · Michelin Defender T+H
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Assurance MaxLife or Defender T+H?
Which is better in the wet, Assurance MaxLife or Defender T+H?
Michelin Defender T+H, 72 vs 49 on our wet score.
Which grips better on dry roads, Assurance MaxLife or Defender T+H?
Michelin Defender T+H, 69 vs 54 on our dry score.
Which is better in snow, Assurance MaxLife or Defender T+H?
Michelin Defender T+H, 65 vs 59 on our snow score.
Which is more comfortable, Assurance MaxLife or Defender T+H?
Michelin Defender T+H, 67 vs 58 on our comfort score.
Which lasts longer, Assurance MaxLife or Defender T+H?
Michelin Defender T+H, 73 vs 67 on our treadwear score.
How do we compare tires?
Every category score blends two independent signals. 60% comes from professional tire tests (braking distances, lap times, noise measurements), each result compared with every other tire in the same test and newer tests counting more. 40% comes from owner reviews found online, adjusted for how generously each site rates. Both use one scale: the average tested tire gets 70, the best 100. When a tire has only one of the two, the missing half is estimated from the other and the score stays closer to average; with no road test and fewer than five owner reviews it gets no score yet.
Handling is the exception: road tests measure it inside the dry and wet scores, so its own row comes from owner ratings only and starts as less important.
Community buzz from Reddit and forums is shown for context only — it never changes the score. Full methodology