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Vredestein Wintrac 4 Extreme looks discontinued: no new owner reviews or road tests in five years and no current EU tyre label.

Head-to-head Updated

Goodyear UltraGrip 9 vs Vredestein Wintrac 4 Extreme — Compared

Relative Score (0–100): the weighted average of the categories below, each 60% road tests and 40% owner reviews. Based on 3 + 0 road tests and 39 + 44 owner reviews. How we score

UltraGrip 9 leads, 75–73 Narrow edge

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Goodyear UltraGrip 9
Tire AGoodyear

UltraGrip 9

Winter

Tests 74 · 3 tests Owners 76 · 39 reviews

Best test result: #1 of 20 in 2018 Auto Bild Winter Tyre Test (snow braking)

Category by category

Relative Score per category, 0–100. Open “Why this score” for the tests and owner ratings behind it.

  1. 71

    Dry

    Wintrac 4 Extreme +1
    72
    Why this score
    SourceUltraGrip 9Wintrac 4 Extreme
    Professional tests (TWG score) · 3 / – tests70≈ 71 (est.)
    Reviews found online7275

    UltraGrip 9: 60% × 70.4 + 40% × 72.3 = 71

    Wintrac 4 Extreme: 60% × 70.7 (est.) + 40% × 75 = 72

    No road tests of dry for Wintrac 4 Extreme. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.40).

  2. 82

    Wet

    UltraGrip 9 +4
    78
    Why this score
    SourceUltraGrip 9Wintrac 4 Extreme
    Professional tests (TWG score) · 3 / – tests82≈ 76 (est.)
    Reviews found online8180

    UltraGrip 9: 60% × 82.3 + 40% × 80.8 = 82

    Wintrac 4 Extreme: 60% × 75.7 (est.) + 40% × 80.4 = 78

    No road tests of wet for Wintrac 4 Extreme. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.56).

  3. 75

    Snow

    UltraGrip 9 +5
    70
    Why this score
    SourceUltraGrip 9Wintrac 4 Extreme
    Professional tests (TWG score) · 3 / – tests73≈ 70 (est.)
    Reviews found online7770

    UltraGrip 9: 60% × 73.1 + 40% × 76.8 = 75

    Wintrac 4 Extreme: 60% × 70 (est.) + 40% × 70.1 = 70

    No road tests of snow for Wintrac 4 Extreme. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.33).

  4. 74

    Comfort

    UltraGrip 9 +1
    73
    Why this score
    SourceUltraGrip 9Wintrac 4 Extreme
    Professional tests (TWG score)≈ 71 (est.)≈ 71 (est.)
    Reviews found online7977

    UltraGrip 9: 60% × 70.8 (est.) + 40% × 78.6 = 74

    Wintrac 4 Extreme: 60% × 70.5 (est.) + 40% × 77 = 73

    No road tests of comfort for UltraGrip 9 or Wintrac 4 Extreme. The test half is the tested tires’ average (69): owners’ comfort ratings barely follow the road tests.

  5. 65

    Noise

    No comparison
    –
    Why this score
    SourceUltraGrip 9Wintrac 4 Extreme
    Professional tests (TWG score) · 2 / – tests64–
    Reviews found online≈ 67 (est.)–

    UltraGrip 9: 60% × 63.7 + 40% × 67.3 (est.) = 65

    No owner ratings of noise for UltraGrip 9. The owner half is the owners’ average (67): owners’ noise ratings barely follow the road tests, so the tests say nothing about how owners would rate it.

  6. 72

    Treadwear

    UltraGrip 9 +3
    69
    Why this score
    SourceUltraGrip 9Wintrac 4 Extreme
    Professional tests (TWG score) · 1 / – tests72≈ 67 (est.)
    Reviews found online7271

    UltraGrip 9: 60% × 72 + 40% × 72.2 = 72

    Wintrac 4 Extreme: 60% × 67.3 (est.) + 40% × 71.1 = 69

    No road tests of treadwear for Wintrac 4 Extreme. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.31).

  7. 77

    Handling (owners)

    UltraGrip 9 +2
    75
    Why this score
    SourceUltraGrip 9Wintrac 4 Extreme
    Reviews found online7775
Scores at a glance
CategoryGoodyear UltraGrip 9Vredestein Wintrac 4 Extreme
Relative Score 75 73
Dry 71 72
Wet 82 78
Snow 75 70
Comfort 74 73
Noise 65 –
Treadwear 72 69
Handling (owners) 77 75

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
Important
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
Recomputed
Headline score

UltraGrip 9

Wintrac 4 Extreme

Only categories both tires have data for count toward the headline score.

The professional test results behind the scores

Per discipline: the average % of the best tire over every test both tires were in, and how many of those tests each one won. “Different tests” rows compare results from separate tests.

DisciplineCategoryUltraGrip 9Wintrac 4 ExtremeΔHead-to-head
Also published by the testers (not in the score)
Overall Ranking Overall #2/8 2020 Wybór Kierowców Winter Tire Test R16 #7/8 2011 Auto Bild 4x4 Winter Tyre Test – Different tests

Pros, cons & observations

Themes extracted from owner reviews found online — not the opinion of TireWheelGuide.

Tire A UltraGrip 9

Pros

  • Exceptional snow and ice traction
  • High level of ride comfort and low road noise
  • Excellent wet and dry weather performance in cold temperatures

Cons

  • Reduced performance on dry, warm asphalt (above 12°C)
  • Soft sidewalls can lead to a less sporty or 'wallowy' handling feel
  • Reports of premature tread wear or chunking in specific heavy-use cases
All owner themes in the UltraGrip 9 review

Tire B Wintrac 4 Extreme

Pros

  • Exceptional traction and stability in deep snow and on ice
  • Strong performance in cold, wet, and greasy road conditions
  • Impressive tread longevity and durability

Cons

  • Reduced handling precision and 'squidgy' feel in temperatures above 13°C
  • Initial stiffness or harsh ride quality during the break-in period
  • Increased tread wear if used consistently in warm summer weather
All owner themes in the Wintrac 4 Extreme review

Specs side by side

Attribute A · Goodyear UltraGrip 9 B · Vredestein Wintrac 4 Extreme
CategoryWinterWinter
Vehicle typePassenger Car / CrossoverSUV and 4x4

Which one should you actually buy?

Goodyear UltraGrip 9

Vredestein Wintrac 4 Extreme

Narrow edge: Goodyear UltraGrip 9 — better snow, wet and treadwear. Where the Vredestein Wintrac 4 Extreme is ahead, it is by less than 3 points.

Pick tire A You drive through snowy winters

Goodyear UltraGrip 9 scores 75 vs 70 on snow.

Pick tire A Your priority is wet-weather safety

Goodyear UltraGrip 9 scores 82 vs 78 on wet.

Pick tire A You want the longest tread life

Goodyear UltraGrip 9 scores 72 vs 69 on treadwear.

Tire A · Goodyear UltraGrip 9
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Tire B · Vredestein Wintrac 4 Extreme
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UltraGrip 9 or Wintrac 4 Extreme?

Which is better in the wet, UltraGrip 9 or Wintrac 4 Extreme?

Goodyear UltraGrip 9, 82 vs 78 on our wet score.

Which grips better on dry roads, UltraGrip 9 or Wintrac 4 Extreme?

Neither, by our numbers: 71 vs 72 on the dry score, within 3 points.

Which is better in snow, UltraGrip 9 or Wintrac 4 Extreme?

Goodyear UltraGrip 9, 75 vs 70 on our snow score.

Which is more comfortable, UltraGrip 9 or Wintrac 4 Extreme?

Neither, by our numbers: 74 vs 73 on the comfort score, within 3 points.

Which lasts longer, UltraGrip 9 or Wintrac 4 Extreme?

Goodyear UltraGrip 9, 72 vs 69 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