Point S urges the tyre trade to judge tyres on how they perform when worn
• Point S International calls on workshops, networks and OEMs to judge tyres on how they perform when worn, not when new. • Independent tests by TÜV SÜD Product Service, commissioned by Point S, put the Point S 4 Seasons 3 ahead of a selection of Tier 2 and Tier 3 brands on wet grip at 2mm of tread. It also led on wet braking, aquaplaning, cornering and snow when new. • Winter tyre rules return across Europe on 1 November, and France and Germany now accept only 3PMSF-marked tyres, which the 4 Seasons 3 range carries, giving workshops a reason to act now.
www.point-s-group.com
27th October
Point S International is calling on workshops, networks and vehicle manufacturers to judge tyres on how they perform late in their life, not on the day they are fitted. The call comes ahead of the return of winter tyre rules across Europe on 1 November.
The case rests on testing Point S commissioned from TÜV SÜD Product Service in February and March 2026. The new Point S 4 Seasons 3 all-season tyre was compared with a selection of Tier 2 and Tier 3 brands in size 205/55 R16 94V XL, on an Audi A3 and a Volkswagen Golf VIII.
With every tyre worn to 2mm of remaining tread, close to the 1.6mm legal minimum, Point S 4 Seasons 3 set the wet grip reference of 100. The Tier 2 selection averaged 85 and the Tier 3 selection 83.
The tyre also led the comparison when new. It stopped from 80km/h on a wet surface in 31.73 metres, 2.66 metres shorter than the Tier 2 average and 3.30 metres shorter than the Tier 3 average. It held on longer before aquaplaning, gripped harder through wet corners and stopped from 40km/h on snow in 17.3 metres, against 17.7 and 19.0 metres for the Tier 2 and Tier 3 selections. The Point S 4 Seasons 3 also offers excellent rolling resistance, helping to reduce fuel consumption in combustion-engine vehicles and preserve the range of electric vehicles. Against its reference of 100 on that measure, the Tier 2 selection scored 90 and the Tier 3 selection 86.
Fabien Bouquet, CEO of Point S International, said: “The figures drivers and workshops see usually describe a tyre on its first day. Most of its life is spent part-worn, and that is when it is most likely to let a driver down in the wet.
“We tested at 2mm because that is the tyre a customer is really driving on when the weather turns. If a tyre only performs when it is new, the driver finds that out at the worst possible moment.”
European regulation is moving the same way. Passenger car tyres must now meet a minimum wet braking standard in a worn state as well as when new, recognising that a tyre’s performance on its first day says little about how it behaves in its last months.
From 1st November, drivers in 34 mountain départements of France must fit tyres carrying the Three-Peak Mountain Snowflake (3PMSF) symbol, or carry chains or snow socks, with tyres marked only M+S no longer qualifying. Germany likewise recognises only 3PMSF-marked tyres as winter tyres. The Point S 4 Seasons 3 range, including 4 Seasons Van + for light commercial vehicles, carries 3PMSF certification.
Emilie Faure, International Private Labels Product Manager at Point S International, said: “We gave 4 Seasons 3 an improved tread and a more flexible compound so it performs across a wider temperature range, and it is fully compatible with electric vehicles, which is still unusual among all-season tyres. Every development team believes in its own tyre. That is why we put ours in front of TÜV SÜD Product Service against the brands our members compete with every day, and why we test it worn as well as new.”
Bouquet added: “A workshop customer in October wants to know one thing: will this tyre still do its job next winter, and the one after? Independent results at 2mm give our members a straight answer to that question.”
Point S is a partner of Team Peugeot TotalEnergies in the FIA World Endurance Championship, which raced at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya for the first time on 18 October ahead of the season finale at Monza on 8 November.
