Maxxis’ Premitra HP5 car tyre has received a ‘highly recommended’ rating from German motoring magazine Auto Zeitung in its latest summer tyre test. Competing against top global tyre brands, Maxxis states that the “result demonstrates how motorists can obtain all the hallmarks of premium tyre performance without the inflated price tag.” The Premitra HP5 came fourth overall in Auto Zeitung’s test.
Shortlisting has taken place for the Auto Bild 2019 summer tyre test, with a starting field of 53 candidates reduced to 20 finalists in the initial round. The size 225/45 R17 91/94 W/Y tyres selected for further testing mainly come from the premium and mid-range segments, while the budget segment was well-represented in the group of 33 tyres eliminated from proceedings. Disappointingly, the group also included two tyre brands belonging to leading manufacturers – both delivered ‘bottom ten’ results.
For their current summer tyre test, the main motoring associations in Germany, Austria and Switzerland (the ADAC, ÖAMTC and TCS) have looked at 32 products in total. Half of these were in the small family car size 185/65 R15 H/V, and the remainder size 215/65 R16C, tyres suited for use on vans, minibuses and campervans.
Hankook Tire says it “is ready for winter” with its Winter i*cept RS 2, Winter i*cept Evo 2 and Winter i*Pike RS 2 ranges, and to prove points to the tyres’ performance in independent tyre tests conducted in Germany, Finland, Russia, Sweden and the UK. The tyre maker notes that the testers praised “above all” the handling and braking characteristics of the Hankook tyres on snow.
If I were a winter tyre developer at Continental, I’d be getting smug by this point in time. The brand can boast yet another tyre test win, this time with sport auto. The German performance car magazine has named the WinterContact TS 850 P victor of its six-brand test.
Ten winter SUV tyres – from premium brands to a so-called “budget tyre from the Far East” – were put to the test in this year’s comparative evaluation from Auto Bild Allrad. The German 4×4/SUV publication examined size 235/60 R18 107H/V products, fitting the tyres to an Audi Q5 for testing in wet, dry and snow disciplines. Happily, the testers found no truly dreadful tyres within the candidates’ ranks.
We’ve got a winter tyre test in front of us, and for a change a Continental tyre hasn’t finished first. Auto Bild Sportscars evaluated ten size 245/45 R18 V tyres and crowned the Vredestein Wintrac Pro its winner.
Top honours in the Auto Bild Sportscars comparative evaluation of ten winter tyres have gone to the Vredestein Wintrac Pro, and Apollo Vredestein is thrilled with how its recently-released tyre performed.
No prizes for guessing the winner of the ADAC 14-inch winter tyre test. It’s the same tyre that won this year’s ADAC 16-inch test. And the Auto Express winter test. And this year’s winter tyre comparos from GTÜ and auto motor und sport. Not to mention close runner-up in the Auto Bild winter test. We are of course talking about the WinterContact TS 860. This time round, the Continental overachiever shared its victory with the Dunlop Winter Response 2. Special mention should also be made of ADAC’s runner-up tyre, the Firestone Winterhawk 3 – a product offering the attractive combination of good performance and low purchase price.
Continental has commented on its victory in the Auto Express winter tyre test, which represented a third in the three years since the WinterContact TS 860’s launch. The manufacturer said that summer and winter tyre test victories in 2018 are “an excellent endorsement for Continental’s continued ambition to improve driver safety as part of our VisionZero initiative.”
Debuting in 1946 and featuring US army runabout the Jeep in its first issue, auto motor und sport (ams to abbreviation-happy Germans) has grown into one of Germany’s leading motoring publications and a regular feature in the tyre testing landscape. After publishing its 2018 all-season test in the first half of September, ams has turned its attention to winter tyres.
Continental’s WinterContact TS 860 has won its third consecutive Auto Express winter tyre test. The tyre beat strong competition from major manufacturers, most notably Hankook, whose Winter i*cept RS2 received a “commended” rating in second place, in a test tweaked this year “to better reflect UK driving conditions”. Outside the winter tyre competition, Auto Express also commented that the all-season control tyre, the Michelin CrossClimate+, not only finished close to the top in dry and wet tests, but was also only behind Hankook’s star performer in the snow – a result Auto Express described as “remarkable”.
September has been packed with tyre tests, with Auto Express, Auto Bild, GTÜ and auto, motor und sport all publishing comparative evaluations of winter and/or all-season tyres. German motoring association ADAC has come to the party with not one, but two winter tyre tests.
Those who know their tyres are increasingly warming to all-season solutions. Although dismissed as a compromise on numerous occasions, most recently in this month’s GTÜ 2018 winter tyre test, an experienced and respected tester recently commented off the record that “the future belongs” to the segment. This is an impression that may also be gained from perusing the freshly minted all-season tyre test from Auto Bild.
For its 2018 winter tyre test, German vehicle inspection organisation GTÜ evaluated nine winter tyres together with German motoring organisation ACE and Austrian counterpart ARBÖ. For good measure, it also tested three all-season tyres alongside the winter rubber. The result? An all-season tyre took second place in the winter test.
If you would like the latest news from the Chinese tyre industry in Chinese, visit our partner site TyrepressChina.com. Or click below to continue on Tyrepress.