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Michelin Defender looks discontinued: no new owner reviews or road tests in five years and no current EU tyre label.

Yokohama Parada Spec-2 looks discontinued: no new owner reviews or road tests in five years and no current EU tyre label.

Head-to-head Updated

Michelin Defender vs Yokohama Parada Spec-2 — Compared

Relative Score (0–100): the weighted average of the categories below, each 60% road tests and 40% owner reviews. Based on 0 + 0 road tests and 4 + 118 owner reviews. How we score

Defender is ahead, 72–66

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Michelin Defender
Tire AMichelin

Defender

Summer Premium Touring tires

Provisional

Tests – · none yet Owners 74 · 4 reviews

Category by category

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

  1. 73

    Dry

    Level
    73
    Why this score
    SourceDefenderParada Spec-2
    Professional tests (TWG score)≈ 71 (est.)≈ 71 (est.)
    Reviews found online7675

    Defender: 60% × 71.2 (est.) + 40% × 76.4 = 73

    Parada Spec-2: 60% × 70.7 (est.) + 40% × 75.2 = 73

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

    No road tests of dry for Parada Spec-2. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.40).

  2. 73

    Wet

    Defender +12
    61
    Why this score
    SourceDefenderParada Spec-2
    Professional tests (TWG score)≈ 72 (est.)≈ 63 (est.)
    Reviews found online7458

    Defender: 60% × 72.2 (est.) + 40% × 74.1 = 73

    Parada Spec-2: 60% × 63 (est.) + 40% × 57.6 = 61

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

    No road tests of wet for Parada Spec-2. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.56).

  3. 71

    Comfort

    Defender +6
    65
    Why this score
    SourceDefenderParada Spec-2
    Professional tests (TWG score)≈ 70 (est.)≈ 68 (est.)
    Reviews found online7362

    Defender: 60% × 69.9 (est.) + 40% × 73.4 = 71

    Parada Spec-2: 60% × 67.8 (est.) + 40% × 61.5 = 65

    No road tests of comfort for Defender or Parada Spec-2. The test half is the tested tires’ average (69): owners’ comfort ratings barely follow the road tests.

  4. 69

    Treadwear

    Defender +7
    62
    Why this score
    SourceDefenderParada Spec-2
    Professional tests (TWG score)≈ 67 (est.)≈ 63 (est.)
    Reviews found online7259

    Defender: 60% × 67.5 (est.) + 40% × 71.6 = 69

    Parada Spec-2: 60% × 63.5 (est.) + 40% × 58.7 = 62

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

    No road tests of treadwear for Parada Spec-2. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.31).

  5. 77

    Handling (owners)

    Defender +8
    69
    Why this score
    SourceDefenderParada Spec-2
    Reviews found online7769
Scores at a glance
CategoryMichelin DefenderYokohama Parada Spec-2
Relative Score 72 66
Dry 73 73
Wet 73 61
Comfort 71 65
Treadwear 69 62
Handling (owners) 77 69

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
Less important
NotLessNeutralImportantMost
Neutral
NotLessNeutralImportantMost
Less important
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Recomputed
Headline score

Defender

Parada Spec-2

Pros, cons & observations

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

Tire A Defender

Pros

  • Excellent ride comfort and quiet operation
  • Strong tread life and durability over several years
  • Reliable grip on dry pavement

Cons

  • Susceptibility to hydroplaning in heavy rain
  • Limited traction in deep or severe snow
  • Audible squealing during aggressive dry-pavement acceleration
All owner themes in the Defender review

Tire B Parada Spec-2

Pros

  • Outstanding dry grip and cornering stability
  • Excellent value for money and aggressive tread design
  • Precise steering feedback and predictable breakaway limits in the dry

Cons

  • Poor wet-weather traction and high risk of aquaplaning
  • Fast tread wear due to the soft rubber compound
  • Noticeable road noise at cruising speeds
All owner themes in the Parada Spec-2 review

Specs side by side

Attribute A · Michelin Defender B · Yokohama Parada Spec-2
CategorySummer Premium Touring tiresSummer
Vehicle typePassenger Car / CrossoverPassenger Car / Crossover

Which one should you actually buy?

Michelin Defender

Yokohama Parada Spec-2

Winner: Michelin Defender — better wet, handling and treadwear. It leads or ties in every category we score. Michelin Defender rests on little evidence so far (0 tests, 4 reviews), so read this result as provisional.

Pick tire A Your priority is wet-weather safety

Michelin Defender scores 73 vs 61 on wet.

Pick tire A You enjoy sharp, responsive handling

Michelin Defender scores 77 vs 69 on handling.

Pick tire A You want the longest tread life

Michelin Defender scores 69 vs 62 on treadwear.

Pick tire A You want the most comfortable ride

Michelin Defender scores 71 vs 65 on comfort.

Tire A · Michelin Defender
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Tire B · Yokohama Parada Spec-2
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Defender or Parada Spec-2?

Which is better in the wet, Defender or Parada Spec-2?

Michelin Defender, 73 vs 61 on our wet score.

Which grips better on dry roads, Defender or Parada Spec-2?

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

Which is more comfortable, Defender or Parada Spec-2?

Michelin Defender, 71 vs 65 on our comfort score.

Which lasts longer, Defender or Parada Spec-2?

Michelin Defender, 69 vs 62 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