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Head-to-head Updated

Michelin CrossClimate 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 2 + 1 road tests and 152 + 1 owner reviews. How we score

CrossClimate leads, 74–70 Narrow edge

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Michelin CrossClimate
Tire AMichelin

CrossClimate

All Season

± 5

Tests 75 · 2 tests Owners 74 · 152 reviews

Best test result: #1 of 14 in 2018 New and Worn Summer Tyre Test (noise)

Michelin Defender T+H
Tire BMichelin

Defender T+H

Premium Touring All Season tire

± 8Provisional

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.

  1. 76

    Dry

    CrossClimate +7
    69
    Why this score
    SourceCrossClimateDefender T+H
    Professional tests (TWG score) · 2 / – tests78≈ 69 (est.)
    Reviews found online7470

    CrossClimate: 60% × 77.9 + 40% × 73.5 = 76

    Defender T+H: 60% × 68.8 (est.) + 40% × 70 = 69

    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 0.41).

  2. 76

    Wet

    CrossClimate +4
    72
    Why this score
    SourceCrossClimateDefender T+H
    Professional tests (TWG score) · 2 / – tests75≈ 72 (est.)
    Reviews found online7873

    CrossClimate: 60% × 75.4 + 40% × 77.8 = 76

    Defender T+H: 60% × 71.9 (est.) + 40% × 72.8 = 72

    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).

  3. 69

    Snow

    CrossClimate +4
    65
    Why this score
    SourceCrossClimateDefender T+H
    Professional tests (TWG score) · 2 / – tests71≈ 68 (est.)
    Reviews found online6561

    CrossClimate: 60% × 70.9 + 40% × 65.4 = 69

    Defender T+H: 60% × 67.5 (est.) + 40% × 61.1 = 65

    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).

  4. 74

    Comfort

    CrossClimate +7
    67
    Why this score
    SourceCrossClimateDefender T+H
    Professional tests (TWG score)≈ 70 (est.)≈ 68 (est.)
    Reviews found online7666

    CrossClimate: 40% × 70.1 (est.) + 60% × 75.8 = 74

    Defender T+H: 40% × 68.1 (est.) + 60% × 66 = 67

    No road tests of comfort for CrossClimate. 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).

  5. 69

    Noise

    No comparison
    –
    Why this score
    SourceCrossClimateDefender T+H
    Professional tests (TWG score) · 1 / – tests71–
    Reviews found online≈ 66 (est.)–

    CrossClimate: 60% × 70.7 + 40% × 66.4 (est.) = 69

    No owner ratings of noise for CrossClimate. The owner half is the owners’ average (66): owners’ noise ratings barely follow the road tests, so the tests say nothing about how owners would rate it.

  6. 74

    Treadwear

    CrossClimate +1
    73
    Why this score
    SourceCrossClimateDefender T+H
    Professional tests (TWG score) · 1 / 1 tests7476
    Reviews found online7568

    CrossClimate: 60% × 73.8 + 40% × 74.9 = 74

    Defender T+H: 60% × 76.1 + 40% × 67.9 = 73

  7. 73

    Handling (owners)

    No comparison
    –
    Why this score
    SourceCrossClimateDefender T+H
    Reviews found online73–
  8. 76

    Efficiency

    No comparison
    –
    Why this score
    SourceCrossClimateDefender T+H
    Professional tests (TWG score) · 2 / – tests76–
Scores at a glance
CategoryMichelin CrossClimateMichelin Defender T+H
Relative Score 74 70
Dry 76 69
Wet 76 72
Snow 69 65
Comfort 74 67
Noise 69 –
Treadwear 74 73
Handling (owners) 73 –
Efficiency 76 –

Higher is better. The Relative Score follows your weights below; category scores do not change.

Weight the categories that matter to you

Wet grip and treadwear start at “Important” — the two things buyers rank highest. Move the sliders and the scores update instantly.

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Only one of the two tires has a score here, so this weight changes nothing in the head-to-head.

Important
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Less important
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Only one of the two tires has a score here, so this weight changes nothing in the head-to-head.

Not important
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Only one of the two tires has a score here, so this weight changes nothing in the head-to-head.

Recomputed
Headline score
± 5

CrossClimate

± 8

Defender T+H

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.

DisciplineCategoryCrossClimateDefender T+HΔHead-to-head
Also published by the testers (not in the score)
Overall Ranking Overall #9/9 2018 ADAC All Season Tyre Test #1/8 2022 Consumer Reports All-Season Tires – Different tests

Pros, cons & observations

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

Tire A CrossClimate

Pros

  • Exceptional tread life and durability
  • Strong wet-weather grip and hydroplaning resistance
  • Reliable traction in light snow and cold conditions

Cons

  • Tendency to pick up and retain small stones in the tread pattern
  • Noticeable drop in performance as tread depth decreases
  • Potential for reduced fuel economy compared to dedicated summer tires
All owner themes in the CrossClimate review

Tire B Defender T+H

Not enough owner reviews yet to extract themes.

Specs side by side

Attribute A · Michelin CrossClimate B · Michelin Defender T+H
CategoryAll SeasonPremium Touring All Season tire
Vehicle typePassenger Car / CrossoverSUV and 4x4
UTQG—820 A - B B

Which one should you actually buy?

Michelin CrossClimate

Michelin Defender T+H

Narrow edge: Michelin CrossClimate — better dry, comfort and wet. It leads or ties in every category we score. Michelin Defender T+H rests on little evidence so far (1 test, 1 review), so read this result as provisional.

Pick tire A You want the most grip on dry roads

Michelin CrossClimate scores 76 vs 69 on dry.

Pick tire A You want the most comfortable ride

Michelin CrossClimate scores 74 vs 67 on comfort.

Pick tire A Your priority is wet-weather safety

Michelin CrossClimate scores 76 vs 72 on wet.

Pick tire A You drive through snowy winters

Michelin CrossClimate scores 69 vs 65 on snow.

Tire A · Michelin CrossClimate
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Tire B · Michelin Defender T+H
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CrossClimate or Defender T+H?

Which is better in the wet, CrossClimate or Defender T+H?

Michelin CrossClimate, 76 vs 72 on our wet score.

Which grips better on dry roads, CrossClimate or Defender T+H?

Michelin CrossClimate, 76 vs 69 on our dry score.

Which is better in snow, CrossClimate or Defender T+H?

Michelin CrossClimate, 69 vs 65 on our snow score.

Which is more comfortable, CrossClimate or Defender T+H?

Michelin CrossClimate, 74 vs 67 on our comfort score.

Which lasts longer, CrossClimate or Defender T+H?

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

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