Toyo Celsius Sport vs Firestone WeatherGrip: All season tires have always been the go to tires for the American market and this segment has been well established across the years. With many competitors yearning to become the best all season tire, Toyo recently announced their latest ultra high performance all season tireline called Celsius Sport. This tireline slightly differs to its previous all season line up as the Celsius Sport comes with a certified 3 peak mountain label which makes them effectively a legal snow tire. We will pair the Celsius Sport against one of its main rivals of a similar class which is the Fireston’s WeatherGrip which also has the 3 peak mountain label on it. Celsius Sport was launched in 2022 which is freshly new while the WeatherGrip has been in the market since 2019. Let’s put them head to head and see who comes out on top !
Table of Contents
Results
Results below were taken from the Tire Rack’s “Testing Grand Touring All-Season Tires 2022” test. A total of 4 tires were tested this time around. The graph below shows the comparison between Toyo Celsius Sport vs Firestone WeatherGrip based on the relevant performance category. The Toyo Celsius Sport 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 with 3 peak mountain labels, Tire Rack will conduct the snow & ice tests in this upcoming 2022 winter season hence please stay tuned for further updates. The tire size of interest is a 215/45R17 which is a common tire size for Honda Civic 2.0 & Toyota Corolla Altis. You can check out our latest tire size table for more information. The testing vehicle is a powerful 2022 Subaru BRZ Limited.
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. With regards to our comparison, WeatherGrip was worse in wet braking compared to Celsius Sport with a 5.9 feet (1.8 m) deficit in braking distance.
While in wet handling, the differences are much more clearer as Celsius Sport was 1.49 seconds faster than WeatherGrip in a relatively short lap with a lap time of 35.6 seconds. This was further reinforced from the subjective rating with Celsius Sport scoring a 7.28/10 while WeatherGrip could only manage a low 5.66/10 rating. Overall, WeatherGrip proves its worth in wet with strong dominating performances in braking & handling.
WeatherGrip :
- -4.7% in wet braking
- -8.1% in wet handling (subj)
- -4.0% 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. This is where we witness a huge 9.1 feet (2.8m) braking distance advantage for Celsius Sport. In this context, Toyo managed to balance the trade off between wet & dry grip to outperform Firestone.
While the similar trend continued in subjective dry handling, Celsius Sport managed a 7.19/10 rating which was slightly ahead of the 6.06/10 obtained by WeatherGrip. In regards to the lap times, Celsius Sport was 0.62 seconds faster per lap relative to WeatherGrip. Overall, Celsius Sport managed to show excellent dry performances and outmaneuvered WeatherGrip very easily.
WeatherGrip :
- -9.2% in dry braking
- -5.7% in dry handling (subj)
- -2.0% in dry handling (lap time)
Noise/Comfort/Ride Quality
Ride comfort, noise & comfort was tested and WeatherGrip was lacking behind Celsius Sport especially in noise & steering/road handling. The Celsius Sport came out ahead at 7.96/10 rating compared to the 6.75/10 rating of WeatherGrip.
WeatherGrip :
- -6.1% in average of Noise, Comfort & Ride Quality.
Snow
When comparing the snow performance between the Toyo Celsius Sport and the Firestone WeatherGrip tires, we can observe several differences. In terms of snow braking from 25 mph to a complete stop, the Toyo Celsius Sport takes 62.30 feet, which is 8.3 feet longer than the Firestone WeatherGrip’s 54.00 feet, indicating the Firestone WeatherGrip has better stopping power in snow.
For snow acceleration, from 0 to 12 mph, the Toyo Celsius Sport covers the distance in 31.91 feet, slightly longer than the Firestone WeatherGrip, which takes 30.20 feet. This suggests that the Firestone WeatherGrip provides marginally better acceleration in snow.
When evaluating subjective snow handling, the Toyo Celsius Sport scores 7.25 out of 10, which is lower than the Firestone WeatherGrip’s 8.42 out of 10. This indicates that drivers generally feel more confident handling the Firestone WeatherGrip on snow.
Lastly, on a snow handling lap time test, the Toyo Celsius Sport completes the circuit in 53.20 seconds, significantly slower than the Firestone WeatherGrip, which clocks in at 46.80 seconds. This demonstrates that the Firestone WeatherGrip offers superior agility and speed in snow conditions.
Overall, the Firestone WeatherGrip shows better performance in snow braking, acceleration, subjective handling, and lap times compared to the Toyo Celsius Sport.
WeatherGrip :
- +15% in snow braking
- +6% in snow acceleration
- +6% in snow handling (subj)
- +14% in snow handling (lap time)
Ice
When comparing the ice performance specifically for braking between the Toyo Celsius Sport and the Firestone WeatherGrip tires, there’s a noticeable difference. On ice, it takes the Toyo Celsius Sport 6.11 feet to brake from 12 mph to a complete stop, whereas the Firestone WeatherGrip requires only 5.59 feet. This means the Firestone WeatherGrip has a shorter stopping distance on ice, outperforming the Toyo Celsius Sport by approximately 0.52 feet. This indicates that the Firestone WeatherGrip tire provides better braking efficiency on icy surfaces.
WeatherGrip :
- +9% in ice braking
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bridgestone | WeatherGrip | All | 640 | A | A |
| Toyo | Celsius Sport | All | 400 | A | A |
The mileage warranty for WeatherGrip is 65,000 miles while Celsius Sport is 60,000 miles. The extra 5,000 miles warranty was not proportional to the difference in UTQG as WeatherGrip has a 640 value compared to 400 of Celsius Sport. However at least it is in the same direction 🙂 Overall we can expect a slightly more mileage for WeatherGrip in comparison to Celsius Sport.
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
Firestone’s WeatherGrip cost 19 dollars less compared to Toyo’s Celsius Sport
Tire size: 215/45R17
- Celsius Sport: $194
- WeatherGrip: $175
Difference: -10.9% more cheaper for WeatherGrip.
Summary
The Toyo Celsius Sport outshines the Firestone WeatherGrip in summer conditions, with superior wet and dry performance, offering better braking, handling, and overall comfort. It’s the ideal choice for drivers looking for excellent summer driving dynamics. Conversely, the Firestone WeatherGrip excels in winter conditions, providing better traction and stability on snow and ice, making it more suitable for those facing harsh winter weather. In essence, choose Toyo Celsius Sport for summer and Firestone WeatherGrip for winter for optimized performance in respective seasons.