The Bridgestone Blizzak 6 is a new winter tire for performance-minded cars, and it makes a lot of sense on paper. But…
Last year, I took my first look at Bridgestone’s latest sportier offering in its winter tire lineup, the Blizzak 6. Effectively, this tire replaced the outgoing LM series, and has now been widely available for most sedans, coupes and sports cars. After the outing at Bridgestone’s Winter Driving School in Steamboat Springs, Colorado, I asked the folks running the show if we could get a set to try out when the upcoming winter properly reared its head. A few months later, the PR team reached out to send a set (Disclosure: these tires were provided by Bridgestone for review), and I just picked up a great candidate of a car on which to try them out: the Subaru WRX.
There were a few reasons the combination of all-wheel drive and these new Blizzaks made a lot of sense. Colorado is a huge Subaru market, and the reputation for AWD performance puts forth one of the strongest cases on paper to turn what is already a solid, turbocharged sports sedan into an absolute monster with a proper set of winter tires. Bridgestone, for its part, put a lot of stock in its new “Enliten” technology for this generation, which is an effort aimed to boost both sustainability in its manufacturing processes and, for the end user, boost tread wear without compromising performance.
In my initial review, I was impressed with the Blizzak 6 on both the Toyota GR86 and GR Corolla, so my expectations were high when I could finally hit the powder and get these tires in their element once again…
You know what they say about the best laid plans? “Winter” had other ideas
Or rather, winter didn’t hit. Not for awhile, at least, as Colorado experienced an unseasonably warm patch when we’d normally expect to get buried (at least a few proper storms, right?). Not only did the lack of snow lead to remarkably greasy conditions as I tested this year’s Blizzak reveal with the new mainstream IcePeak, but it also delayed much serious real-world snow testing…until we finally saw some snow…in May, just when you think you can let your guard down.
All that is to say this “seasonal” review encountered one issue, and it’s not the tire.
But, there’s still plenty of useful information to present here!
Even with the relatively disappointing absence of Father Winter over my test period, there’s still plenty of great news to share when it comes time to shop for your next set of winter tires. I know this review is coming out just as we’re leaving spring behind, but we will (hopefully) be back into the winter weather here in the next few months, so all the following is information to keep in mind for that peace of mind when we get into cold and slippery conditions again.
One particular focus I’m going to get into with the Bridgestone Blizzak 6 is their optimization toward the high-speed-rated end of affairs. These are available in both V-rated (to 149 mph) and W-rated (168 mph) forms depending on which size you choose, which are both bumps up from the old LM005s. Bridgestone worked to improve the Blizzak 6’s lateral stiffness and grip for cornering confidence on cold, dry pavement — and it shows.
As much as I’d have loved to get three continuous months of snow and ice-covered roads (more on that performance in a moment), these three-peak mountain snowflake (3PMSF) tires provide exceptional dry and wet-pavement capability in colder conditions. Keep in mind, these softer compound tires are designed to be at their best below 45 degrees Fahrenheit, and these Blizzaks absolutely made their case when winter actually acted like winter and the mercury here dipped into freezing and below temps.
The zig-zagging sipes incorporated into the Bridgestone Blizzak 6 provide more “bite” into the surface as you’re rolling along, while the compound itself is more pliable to offer that better grip when it does get super cold. Compare that to even all-season tires or especially summers, which effectively turn into hockey pucks in cold temperatures and diminish your driving confidence, these are a class act. While we journalists absolutely couldn’t test the dry-weather grip at the snow-covered driving school by design, my real-world time over 4,000 miles offered a fun experience, when conditions were conducive to it.
Other major plus points for the Bridgestone Blizzak 6 are noise and ride comfort. Beyond the lateral grip, I’m impressed with just how quiet these tires are, even on dry pavement. Even better, they score a negligible hit on fuel economy. While I averaged 25-26 mpg tank-to-tank with a set of all-season tires on the current-generation WRX (I know, I don’t get into the boost as much as most folks), my fuel economy in daily driving on Blizzak 6s worked out to 23-24 mpg.
Snow and ice performance are exceptional, when you do need it
When we did get into some snow and ice this winter, the Bridgestone Blizzak 6 offers expectedly strong performance. That is what you’re buying these sort of tires for, and in terms of accelerating, braking and predictable control, they handled faultlessly. In fact, my abiding experience was trying a snow-covered hill start on Boulder County’s Lickskillet Road, one of the steepest county roads in the U.S. with an average grade of 14.2%. You know what? The WRX on Blizzak 6s didn’t even slip a wheel. I’m astounded how undramatic these tires make those sorts of conditions feel. No slip, no drama, and most importantly no danger — you just get solid control when you need it most.
Verdict: Well worth the price, but I have some (obvious) words of warning…
Overall, the Bridgestone Blizzak 6 performed admirably in most conditions in which you would feasibly want to use them. They provide excellent grip on snow and ice, speaking from experience both last year and over the past four months and 4,000 miles with the WRX, before swapping them off and going back to summer tires (more on that with my next ownership update).
Road noise, ride comfort and fuel economy are all solid. Treadwear is also what you should expect from softer winter rubber, too. I started out the season with 10/32″ tread depth in 255/40-R18 configuration, and ended with 7.5/32″. Because of that, I can easily throw this set back on when the temperatures dip below freezing again, and get another couple seasons’ worth of solid winter performance.
I will be doing that, too, since the general discussion among Blizzak users is that they are always great…for the first season. I am curious to see how these hold up after a particularly tough winter to run dedicated tires around our home base in Colorado.
The unseasonably warm conditions did really ram home a warning for folks doing some tire shopping. We consistently argue that tires are a great and relatively straightforward upgrade to improve your car. Getting the right kind of tires to match your conditions is also important for your enjoyment, as well as your safety. In extended warmer conditions, these softer tires do tend to lose the elements that aid their intended performance. The softer compound and tread block design that’s meant to be pliable in cold weather can get excessively soft when it warms up, making the car feel a bit greasy and actually increasing braking distances versus all-season or warm-weather/summer tires.
It also accelerates tread wear, and while Bridgestone designed its Enliten-branded tires to be more durable, I obviously don’t advise running these consistently above 45 degrees. Sometimes the season just won’t play ball, but if you do specifically need ice, snow and cold-weather performance, these are a great option.
Pricing for the Bridgestone Blizzak 6 can vary depending on size, but this set of 255/40-R18s is available through some tire retailers for about $1,000 for a set of 4. That’s notably less than the Michelin Alpin Pilot 5 or Pirelli Winter Sottozero 3, while coming in similar to the Vredestein Wintrac Pro+. Your mileage may vary there, depending on where and when you shop.
