Sportauto evaluates sporty 215/40R18 tyres

After subjecting its Hyundai i20 N loan car to all manner of testing, the Sportauto team have finally turned their attention to the tyres. As a crowning finale to its activities with this pocket rocket, the German performance car magazine fitted five brands of size 215/40R18 summer tyre to evaluate how each product influences the Hyundai’s performance and safety characteristics. For good measure, the test team also worked with an all-season tyre, but did not include it in the final results.

One tyre gained Sportauto’s enviable ‘phenomenal’ rating. This is the Continental PremiumContact 7. Sportauto writes that the tyre is “very grippy on wet and dry roads, very balanced and safe to drive.” Specific positive qualities include extremely easy controllability in the wet, with great steering precision and high aquaplaning protection. In dry conditions, Sportauto describes the PremiumContact 7 as agile, stable and very safe.

The publication declared three tyres – the Michelin Pilot Sport, Bridgestone Turanza T005, and Maxxis Victra Sport 5 – to be ‘very good’, and the now eight-year-old Dunlop Sport Maxx RT2 a ‘good’ tyre. As it is an all-season tyre, the co-tested Goodyear Vector 4Seasons Gen-3 didn’t gain a rating. But had Sportauto used the same evaluation criteria, it would have finished in last place with a ‘satisfactory’ rating.

Rated phenomenal

Test winner: Continental PremiumContact 7
+ Extremely easy to control in the wet, great steering precision, high aquaplaning protection. Agile, stable & very safe in the dry
– Minor loss of rear axle comfort

Rated very good

Michelin Pilot Sport 5
+ Excellent controllability thanks to very high grip levels on wet & dry tracks, shortest dry braking distances. Low rolling resistance and pass-by noise
– Moderate aquaplaning protection in curves, somewhat bouncy ride comfort in places

Bridgestone Turanza T005 (AO)
+ Grippy on dry roads and when it rains. Low rolling resistance, good ride comfort, high straight line aquaplaning protection
– Rear axle more susceptible to load changes at the limit

Maxxis Victra Sport 5
+ High lateral control in the wet, spontaneous steering, precise in corners. Dynamic dry handling with high stability during lane changes
– Fairly long braking distances in the wet, delayed turn-in in the dry, high rolling resistance

Rated good

Dunlop Sport Maxx RT2
+ Low rolling resistance, good water drainage when travelling in a straight line through puddles
– Deceleration in wet conditions not at top level, sluggish wet handling, can be inharmonious in dry conditions

Tested but not rated

Goodyear Vector 4Seasons Gen-3
+ Quiet external rolling noise, safe lane changes on dry asphalt, good ride comfort
– Almost six metres longer braking distance in the wet compared to the best summer tyre, poor water drainage, low levels of grip in dry conditions