On the track at slow speeds (well below either of the tires' limits), the All-Season Potenza RE92 and Blizzak MZ-01 winter tire combination provided what felt like normal handling. But as the test speeds increased, the only conditions in which this combination felt acceptable for were straight linestraight-line acceleration and braking. We found that when driven anywhere near their limit (through our 40-45 mph double lane change), the winter / snow tires reached their handling and traction limits before the All-Season tires, allowing our rear-wheel drive Lexus IS300 to oversteer and fishtail uncomfortably.

NOTE: If we could have added a few inches of snow over a layer of ice to this track evaluation, the test vehicle's handling traits would be reversed. The tires that grip better on dry pavement would slip in the snow, and the tires that slip on dry pavement would provide better grip in the snow. Therefore the handling characteristics of our rear-wheel drive test vehicle on dry and wet roads (oversteer) vs. snow-covered roads (understeer) would result in a vehicle that would be difficult to control and drive and would feel as though it had a "split personality" at the limit in all weather conditions.