In September, I sold my Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution, which left me without an all-wheel drive, winter-capable machine. My only other car, a 2003 Mazda MX-5 Miata, has been my daily driver since, spending a good chunk of its time on the streets of New York City. Instead of storing it away as the weather worsened and going without a car, I decided to winterize the little convertible in the most hardcore way I could think of: Adding studded winter tires.
Studded tires are like a cheat code for wintery conditions. As the name suggests, they combine a winter rubber compound with an array of metal studs mounted into the tread blocks. These studs jut out of the rubber, acting like claws that sink into ice, providing traction in places you wouldn’t normally have it.
Studded tires are commonplace in regions like Canada, but because true winter driving conditions are a fairly rare occurrence in places like southern New York, few cars use them. Most buyers opt for catch-all, all-wheel drive crossovers instead. Because my Miata only sends power to the rear wheels, I figured a set of studded tires would even the playing field, and even go a step further.
Nokian was nice enough to send over a set of its latest studded tires for the MX-5. The Finnish company, known globally as the go-to for winter rubber, debuted its Hakkapeliitta 10 tire back in 2020. The company says it improved grip, comfort, and tire noise over the outgoing model. Most importantly, Nokian makes a size that’s close enough to fit on my Miata’s 16-inch wheels without rubbing.
It didn’t take long for my decision to pay off. Just two weeks after I had the tires mounted, a weekend snowstorm hit New York City. It wasn’t anything catastrophic—maybe three inches of build-up occurred before things calmed down—but it was enough to strand any rear-drive roadster without the proper equipment. Thankfully, I was prepared.
Instead of cozying up to the fireplace and cooking up some hot chocolate, I grabbed the keys and hit the road. While I have thousands of miles of snow and ice driving under my belt, I’ve never done any driving with studded tires. The difference in grip is immediately evident. The rubber tread does what any good snow tire should, picking up snow and cutting through the rest to produce traction. But the studs take things further, grabbing onto the pavement and propelling you forward without a hint of slip.
With normal winter tires, you expect some slipping and sliding, whether you’re starting from a stop or accelerating out of a turn. But the studs keep things locked down, even without any ice on the ground. It’s slightly disorienting, but easy to exploit once you understand how it works. I was flying by Camry Ubers, anxious CR-V drivers, and huge plow trucks in no time. All in a Miata.
In the dry, the Hakkas perform about as well as any other winter tire. The soft tread blocks make the ride more comfortable over bumps, but floaty at high speeds. It’s a worthy tradeoff considering the grip you get, even at far below freezing temps.
There’s also the noise. These tires are loud. Think a set of knobby all-terrains, except because of the studs, it sounds like you’re driving on gravel all the time. It was all I could fixate on when I first started driving on the Hakkas, but after a few hours, the sound faded in the background. It’s like my brain just slotted the noise away, combining it with all of the other suspicious noises my Miata makes. The only other downside is the two- to three-percentage decrease in my fuel economy, though that could be down to the weird tire size I’m running.
Either way, I’m happy with this rubber. The upsides—unparalleled winter grip and a softer ride—far outweigh the downsides. The studs provide gobs of confidence in places you’d never expect it, which is the whole point.
This tire test is far from over. Provided the temps cooperate this winter, I’ll be taking the Miata to the upper parts of New York state to compete in some real-deal ice racing on a frozen lake. That’s where I expect these Hakkas to shine brightest.
Stay tuned.
