Michelin Defender T+H vs Goodyear Assurance MaxLife: All season tires have always been the go to tires for the American market and this segment has been well established across the years. There are 2 types of all season tires, one with 3 peak mountain & one with only M+S. We have covered these 2 types of tire head to head with Michelin’s Defender T+H (M+S) vs Cross Climate 2 (3 peak mountain) and the M+S all season tires are worst in winter performances but excel much better in mileage.
This time around we picked up another M+S all season challenger in the form of Goodyear’s Assurance MaxLife. This tireline was launched in 2018 and covers a large range of passenger cars and crossovers. Defender T+H on the other hand was launched a year earlier in 2017 and covers mostly SUV sizes from 15″-18″. Let’s put 2 of the finest M+S all season tires head to head and see who comes out on top !
Table of Contents
Results
Results below were taken from the Tire Rack’s “Testing Standard Touring All-Season 2021” test. A total of 4 tires were tested this time around in Tire Rack’s own proving ground. The graph below shows the comparison between Michelin Defender T+H vs Goodyear Assurance MaxLife based on the relevant performance category. The Defender T+H was set as a reference hence at the 100% mark. Note that for subjective evaluation, we equate 1 point as 5%. Hence for example if tire A is graded 7 while tire B is graded 6, A is better than B by 5%.
As both tires are categorized as all season tires, Tire Rack has included snow & ice in its testing portfolio. A detailed testing on snow including acceleration, braking & handling were evaluated. The tire size of interest is a 225/50 R17 which is a common tire size for Audi A4 & Honda Accord. You can check out our latest tire size table for more information. The testing vehicle is a rear wheel drive 2020 BMW F36 430i Gran Coupe with a 17×7.5 rim.
Wet
The friction of coefficient of the tire/road dramatically decreases in wet roads compared to dry roads. Hence it is more likely to get into a road accident during wet conditions rather than on a sunny day. It was so important that the EU label has wet braking as one of its three criteria. Both tires were neck in neck when it comes to wet braking and only 0.1 feet (0.03m) separated them apart. Talking about a close finish 🙂 !
When it comes to wet handling, the stars are aligned to Assurance MaxLife with a 1.1 seconds advantage in lap time against Defender T+H. It was the same for subjective wet handling rating as Assurance MaxLife faired better with a subjective score of 6/10 compare to 5.56/10 of Defender T+H. Overall, both tires were equally matched in wet braking but Assurance MaxLife was better in wet handling.
Assurance MaxLife:
- -0.1% in wet braking
- +2.2% in wet handling (subj)
- +3% in wet handling (lap time)
Dry
As for dry, safety is usually not an issue as the braking distance is much longer than wet. However this is the default daily usage and the tires have to perform at a very consistent level. Similar to the wet results, it was pretty much a close fight battle in dry as well. Defender T+H was slightly better in dry braking as it managed to brake 1 feet (0.3m) earlier compared to Assurance MaxLife from a speed of 50mph (80km/h) down to 0.
In dry handling, both tires perform marginally the same with Assurance MaxLife having a small advantage with a subjective rating of 6.56/10 over Defender T+H’s 6.38/10. In regards to the lap times, Assurance MaxLife was 0.18 seconds faster per lap relative to Defender T+H. Overall, both tires showed similar performances in dry with Defender T+H having a tiny edge in dry braking while Assurance MaxLife was slightly better in dry handling.
Assurance MaxLife:
- -1.1% in dry braking
- +0.9% in dry handling (subj)
- +0.6% in dry handling (lap time)
Noise/Comfort/Ride Quality
Ride comfort, noise & comfort was tested and it was clear that Defender T+H was better with a 7.21/10 rating compared to the 6.5/10 rating of Assurance MaxLife with steering & road handling being the main differences.
Assurance MaxLife:
- -3.6% in average of Noise, Comfort & Ride Quality.
Snow
As both tires have been rated as an all season tire, we were thrilled when Tire Rack included snow on its testing list. As discussed earlier in the introduction, Assurance MaxLife & Defender T+H do not have the elusive 3 peak mountain logo. Hence both tires do not need to pass a certain threshold of snow traction level as determined by the legislation.
With dry & wet performances being extremely close, we saw a big difference in winter performances with Defender T+H dominating across all snow tests. It stopped 8.7 feet (2.7m) earlier than Defender T+H from a speed of 25 mph (40 km/h) to 0. It was also extremely good when it came to snow acceleration as it took 6.4 feet (2 m) less distance to accelerate from 0 to 12 mph (20 km/h). While it was also quicker in lap time (2.8 seconds !) and also subjectively better in snow handling (+0.84 points). Overall, Defender T+H is clearly the better snow tire.
Assurance MaxLife:
- -12.4% in snow braking
- -16% in snow acceleration
- -4.2% in snow handling (subj)
- -3.7% in snow handling (lap time)
Ice
With such dominating performances in snow, we would expect this to continue in ice. This was proven true as Defender T+H out-brake Assurance MaxLife by 4.4 feet (1.3m) from a braking speed of 12 mph (20 km/h) to 0. In ice traction, Defender T+H once again is in the lead by taking 0.36 seconds less to travel 60 feet in comparison against Assurance MaxLife. Overall just like in snow, Defender T+H was dominant in ice.
Assurance MaxLife:
- -7.9% in ice braking
- -6.4% in ice acceleration
UTQG rating
We have previously shown that UTQG tread wear rating can be a good indication of your expected mileage. Below are the UTQG values of both of the tirelines.
| Brand | Tireline | Size | Tread Wear | Traction | Temperature |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Goodyear | Assurance MaxLife | All | 820 | A | B |
| Michelin | Defender T+H | All | 820 | A | B |
The mileage warranty for Defender T+H is at 80,000 miles while for Assurance MaxLife it is at 85,000 miles. Even though both tires have the same UTQG tread wear rating (820) Goodyear still offered an extra 5,000 miles more compared to Michelin. However taking into consideration the overall picture, both tires should have the same expected mileage “give and take” the standard real life tolerances (road condition, car alignment, driving style & rotation)
For more in depth information about UTQG, please check out this article here. We even have a free download on the latest UTQG values from the leading tire manufacturers.
Price
Being the undisputed technology leader, we would expect Michelin to command the highest priced tire in the market. Defender T+H was found to cost only 7 dollars more compared to Assurance MaxLife which came as a surprise. The price mark up of the same segment tire was relatively low based on Michelin’s standard.
Tire size: 225/50R17
Defender T+H: $189
Assurance MaxLife: $182
Difference: -4% more cheaper for Assurance MaxLife.
Summary
Overall, both tires showed very similar performances in wet & dry. However Defender T+H stole the show by totally out performing Assurance MaxLife when it comes to ice & snow. Without a doubt, the winner of this duel is Defender T+H with its excellent winter performances !
