$600 Winter Tires vs $2000 WRC Rally Tires

Come geek out with me ►► The Pirelli Ice Zero 2 is one of the best studded road tires money can buy on snow and ice, but how does it compare to a competition based WRC rally tire at over three times the price? To find out I’m testing the Pirelli Ice Zero 2 against the Pirelli SottoZero WRC rally tire from the 2021 Swedish rally event. The IceZero is 225/40 R18 and the WRC tire 205/65 R15. Both tyres have a similar goal, and both tyres are heavily governed by different rule sets. The Pirelli IceZero 2 has been developed around the stud, a 10mm long tungsten carbide pinned monster with a 1mm protrusion. The studs are positioned to to optimise noise and grip, and the area around the stud is designed to keep snow away from the pin, which is very important for maximum traction. The biggest challenge for the road tyre is the road wear test, which every studded road tyre must pass to ensure the tyres don’t do too much dama