More than fair point sw........the ratings can also go up as well. ;) You start to get a better sense of a tires overall performance & expectations when you get at least a million + miles reported from owners from the tire rack site. There are several other tire sites that have their own ratings 'systems' as well (mainly written reviews as opposed to a number system & some just a number system with a few comments added), but there are different tires carried by other sites (Toyo & Falken as an example) that tire rack do not carry & vice versa. In Imrams case specifically however, I'm afraid there are only 2 'decent' choices that should even be considered as it stands right now.......I'm sure more will be available in the future, but I'm not sure how soon the 'future' will be, depending on how soon Imran wants & needs replacements......my guess is definately before the winter hit's if not sooner. Other options of course include specific snow tires for winter, but that won't solve the wet weather problems he is having for the other 3 seasons of the year. :(