One test, two winners – AMS compares EV-specific tyres with conventional flagships

Test suggests EV specific products have made significant strides in the last couple of years

The electric vehicle tyre market is evolving quickly, with manufacturers adding EV-appropriate technologies to existing ranges and in some cases launching new lines of specialist products. These products have several goals, most notably offering range-maximising fuel economy, increased resistance to wear, reducing noise, and the ability to carry heavier loads, all while demonstrating greater sustainability and continuing to offer a high level of safety performance. Naturally these characteristics require technological advancements in order to reconcile contradictory demands; for example, making lower-weight tyres that consume fewer materials while also increasing ruggedness to reduce wear and tyre emissions. With tyres specified for electric vehicles now appearing on the European aftermarket in greater numbers, the need for independent scrutiny is becoming greater, and German magazine Auto Motor und Sport has responded by comparing three of the newest EV-specified products with current flagships, fitted to comparable Kia EV and internal combustion engine (ICE) models.

For the summer tyre test, AMS chose ten 255/45 R20 profiles, including an original equipment specification and three models specially designed for electric cars. While range optimisation has been a foundational principle of EV tyre development, its ICE equivalent fuel efficiency was already an important aspect of conventional tyre development. In a forerunner of this test, conducted by the Swedish magazine Vi Bilägare in 2021, EV tyres were shown to lag behind in wet performance characteristics. But the new AMS test suggests that some of the latest products have already made advances in this regard.

The three EV-optimised tyres were WhatTyre Electric Car Tyre of the Year 2022, the Michelin E.Primacy, Falken’s new eZiex and the Pirelli Scorpion Elect. Conventional tyres in the test were the all-conquering Continental SportContact 7 (WhatTyre Tyre of the Year 2022), Bridgestone’s Potenza Sport, Michelin’s Pilot Sport 4 SUV Acoustic, the Falken Azenis FK520, the Victra Sport 5 SUV from Maxxis, and GT Radial’s SportActive 2 SUV. Another Conti tyre, the PremiumContact 6, was also fitted as Kia’s original equipment specification for the EV6, which was used as the second test vehicle, alongside a Kia Sorento. In a sense, this tyre is in-between the two categories, as it is optimised for one particular EV, though it is generally produced as a conventional tyre product. AMS used the 20” size as tyres of similar dimensions are specified for vehicles like the Audi Q4 E-Tron, Hyundai Ioniq 5, Mercedes EQC, Skoda Enyaq iV, Tesla Model X, and VW ID.4 and ID.5.

Overall, the EV tyres in the test demonstrated the strides forward manufacturers are making in reconciling higher levels of safety with the demand for increased fuel efficiency. AMS said the EV-optimised tyres “can now achieve short braking distances. That was different just a few years ago, when lower rolling resistance was bought with longer braking distances.” The testers’ positivity was qualified; AMS said these tyres tended to be weaker in “cornering on wet roads” and “aquaplaning.”

Two winners

The Continental SportContact 7 secured yet another overall test win ahead of the OE specification PremiumContact 6 from the same manufacturer. Michelin’s E.Primacy finished third overall in the test’s original weighting (50 per cent wet, 40 per cent dry, 10 per cent eco characteristics), but was made the test winner for electric vehicles. To find this, AMS tweaked its weighting of dry and eco characteristics, making the latter 30 per cent of the overall mark and cutting dry performance to 20 per cent.

The higher performance SportContact 7 made a very positive impression against its rivals, despite elevated road noise and some understeer. The tyre scored well in all disciplines, with testers noting its aquaplaning safety, balance in the wet, responsiveness, and short dry braking distances. Compared to its higher performance stablemate, the Kia EV6 spec Conti PremiumContact 6 demonstrated “sluggish steering behaviour, more pronounced tendency to understeer and a slightly lower level of grip”, though the tyre was comfortably ahead of its performance-oriented brother in eco characteristics. In other words, it performed as you might expect its relative positioning in Conti’s product portfolio would indicate. Both Conti tyres remained above average in the EV-weighting, though they slipped below the two EV-spec products into third and fourth place.

Michelin’s E.Primacy was criticised for its “ride comfort with low self-damping”, though the tyre demonstrated the expected combination of very low rolling resistance and quiet tyre noise. What was surprising was AMS’s conclusion that the tyre’s wet braking capabilities were the head of the pack. This differs from the tyre’s performance in other tests from ADAC and Vi Bilägare, for example. In addition, the product was called an “easily controllable tyre with a safe tendency to understeer.”

Falken EV tyre performs above expectation

Another EV tyre, Falken’s eZiex crossed the finish line in fourth overall and very narrowly in second in the EV-specific weighting thanks to “very short braking distances on wet and dry asphalt” in addition to its very low rolling resistance and quiet rolling noise. The tyre was criticised for its sluggish response and an “increased risk of slipping in puddles in curves”, although it is still rated “very good”. Alongside the Michelin product, the tyre scored a perfect 10 on its eco characteristics – both leading EV tyres were a long way ahead of competitors in this part of the test, with only the Pirelli Scorpion Elect and the Kia EV6 tweaked PremiumContact 6 getting above-average eco grades.

The Bridgestone Potenza Sport, Michelin Pilot Sport 4 SUV Acoustic, and Falken Azenis FK520 were all labelled “very good” too, in a top seven separated by just 0.5 overall marks out of 10 in the original weighting. While performing well overall in wet and dry, the Potenza Sport was criticised for its wet braking distance and for its temperature sensitivity, in addition to increased rolling resistance and a louder pass-by noise. In addition, it was “a little noisy.” It was a similar story for the Michelin tyre, albeit with slightly better eco grades and lower wet and dry marks. The Pilot Sport 4 SUV Acoustic had “slightly longer braking distances in the dry, marginal dynamic weaknesses in wet handling, slightly increased rolling resistance, increased noise when driving past,” according to the test. The Acoustic suffix indicates the tyre has an insulating foam on the inside to keep noise out of the vehicle interior. The Falken Azenis FK520 was even better in the eco segment, jumping above its premium brand rivals in the EV weighting, though it was somewhat let down by “indifferent” wet handling and “somewhat sluggish steering” and dry braking distances.

Two “good” tyres, one “adequate”

In eighth and ninth positions were two tyres ranked as “good”: the Maxxis Victra Sport 5 SUV and Pirelli Scorpion Elect. The Maxxis tyre lagged just behind competitors particularly in the wet, and was criticised for “longer braking distances on wet and dry asphalt” in combination with a slightly increased rolling resistance. On a more positive note, the Maxxis tyre offered “proper cornering and safe handling in the wet, which is also active during load changes” as well as “balanced, safe and quite precise handling in the dry” – it also finished above a premium brand competitor in the rankings, demonstrating the brand’s increasingly good reputation in tyre tests.

AMS said the Pirelli tyre also had “sluggish steering, limited grip and low steering precision in the wet.” It gained a “good” rating through “largely safe, understeering behaviour in dry corners” together with a passing noise described as very quiet and high fuel efficiency with decent ride comfort.

Alongside the Maxxis Victra Sport 5, the GT Radial SportActive range has performed well in recent years’ tyre tests, though in SUV sizes the gap with the top premium brand products appears to remain slightly wider. The 20” SportActive 2 SUV offered “good protection against aquaplaning, safe lane changes when dry,” and “very quiet and comfortable” interior impressions. However, the tyre had to make do with the overall grade “sufficient” because AMS devalued the tyre a full point due to excessive wet braking distances. In addition, the tyre had “poorly balanced wet handling with oversteer and understeer” and seemed “a little overwhelmed” when driving in a sporty manner.