2021 Auto Zeitung Summer UHP Tire Test

Dry BrakingMichelin Pilot Sport 4: 34.3 MDunlop SportMaxx RT 2: 36.2 M
Dry HandlingContinental Premium Contact 6: 68.8 sDunlop SportMaxx RT 2: 69.7 s
Subj. Dry HandlingContinental Premium Contact 6: 10 PointsDunlop SportMaxx RT 2: 04 Points
Wet BrakingGoodyear Eagle F1 Asymmetric 5: 41.9 MHankook Ventus S1 evo 3: 50.6 M
Wet HandlingPirelli P Zero PZ4: 62.6 sNexen N Fera Sport SU2: 64.9 s
Subj. Wet HandlingPirelli P Zero PZ4: 10 PointsNexen N Fera Sport SU2: 03 Points
Straight AquaDunlop SportMaxx RT 2: 73.3 Km/HPirelli P Zero PZ4: 68.2 Km/H
Subj. ComfortNexen N Fera Sport SU2: 9 PointsHankook Ventus S1 evo 3: 6 Points
NoiseNexen N Fera Sport SU2: 69.1 dBNokian PowerProof: 71.9 dB
PriceNexen N Fera Sport SU2: 300 Michelin Pilot Sport 4: 440
Rolling ResistanceDunlop SportMaxx RT 2: 8.38 kg / tPirelli P Zero PZ4: 9.99 kg / t
The 2021 summer tire test season is kicking off early, with the excellent team at Auto Zeitung publishing their 10 set 225/40 R18 summer tire test during February!

As this test is out so early in the season, it means the testing would have been completed in late 2020, which means it's missing the new Bridgestone Potenza Sport, but it's still an excellent start to the year as AZ always dig into the subjectiveness of the tires, covering dry handling, wet handling and comfort!

All testing was carried out using a Seat Leon FR, and the popular 225/40 R18 UHP tire size should cover many mid-sized sporty cars, including the ever popular VW Golf, the front of a BMW 1 Series, the Audi TT and many other vehicles.

Dry

It might be a new year, but it's not a new result for dry braking testing, with Michelin Pilot Sport 4 once again taking the top spot by a significant margin, over the Continental PremiumContact 6. Maxxis also had an impressive showing with the ever impressive Maxxis Victra Sport 5.

Dry handling played to the Continentals sharp steering, giving the German tire an impressive win during dry handling. Michelin, Maxxis, Goodyear and Hankook all followed closely in a tight group.

Subjective handling was also very close, with only Continental ahead of the tires that impressed during dry handling.

Wet

Goodyear and Continental lead the way during wet braking testing, with the Goodyear Asymmetric 5 taking its first win. Falken again impressed with the FK510.

Wet handling brought another new winner, this time Pirelli with the Pirelli P Zero PZ4. Goodyear and Continental, which did so well during wet braking, dropped down the order during wet handling.

Pirelli also proved to have the best subjective wet handling, with the testers reporting a neutral balance and impressive feedback.

Dunlop, which struggled in the dry, had the best aquaplaning resistance by a large margin.

Environment

Nexen was the standout of subjective comfort scoring with the N Fera Sport SU2.

The Nexen also proved to have the lowest external drive by noise.

The Dunlop won its second test, having the lowest rolling resistance on test. Falken, Nexen and in particular, Pirelli had significantly higher rolling resistance than the group.

Below is the price for a full set of tires in the local currency (Euros)

Results

View Results as a single table and adjust the score weighting

1st: Goodyear Eagle F1 Asymmetric 5

Goodyear Eagle F1 Asymmetric 5
  • 225/40 R18 92Y
  • EU Label: E/A/71
Test#Difference%
Dry Braking4th+0.8 M97.72%
Dry Handling4th+0.3 s99.57%
Subj. Dry Handling2nd-1 Points90%
Wet Braking1st100%
Wet Handling7th+0.8 s98.74%
Subj. Wet Handling3rd-2 Points80%
Straight Aqua3rd-1.8 Km/H97.54%
Subj. Comfort2nd-1 Points88.89%
Noise5th+1.9 dB97.32%
Price7th+90 76.92%
Rolling Resistance3rd+0.22 kg / t97.44%
Top marks in the wet and dry, plus low rolling resistance means the Goodyear Eagle F1 Asymmetric 5 wins this test.

Read Reviews    Buy from £78.39

2nd: Continental Premium Contact 6

Continental Premium Contact 6
  • 225/40 R18 92Y
  • EU Label: C/A/72
Test#Difference%
Dry Braking2nd+0.4 M98.85%
Dry Handling1st100%
Subj. Dry Handling1st100%
Wet Braking2nd+0.2 M99.52%
Wet Handling9th+1.1 s98.27%
Subj. Wet Handling9th-5 Points50%
Straight Aqua2nd-1.6 Km/H97.82%
Subj. Comfort2nd-1 Points88.89%
Noise9th+2.3 dB96.78%
Price9th+110 73.17%
Rolling Resistance7th+0.5 kg / t94.37%
The PremiumContact 6 is strong in the dry, but not quite up to the best in the wet.

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3rd: Pirelli P Zero PZ4

Pirelli P Zero PZ4
  • 225/40 R18 92Y
  • EU Label: E/A/68
Test#Difference%
Dry Braking5th+0.9 M97.44%
Dry Handling6th+0.4 s99.42%
Subj. Dry Handling2nd-1 Points90%
Wet Braking5th+3.2 M92.9%
Wet Handling1st100%
Subj. Wet Handling1st100%
Straight Aqua10th-5.1 Km/H93.04%
Subj. Comfort5th-2 Points77.78%
Noise2nd+0.7 dB99%
Price5th+60 83.33%
Rolling Resistance10th+1.61 kg / t83.88%
The Pirelli PZero PZ4 has a strong balance wet handling performance, propelling it to third overall.

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4th: Michelin Pilot Sport 4

Michelin Pilot Sport 4
  • 225/40 R18 92Y
  • EU Label: C/A/71
Test#Difference%
Dry Braking1st100%
Dry Handling2nd+0.2 s99.71%
Subj. Dry Handling2nd-1 Points90%
Wet Braking4th+2.9 M93.53%
Wet Handling3rd+0.5 s99.21%
Subj. Wet Handling6th-4 Points60%
Straight Aqua5th-2.9 Km/H96.04%
Subj. Comfort5th-2 Points77.78%
Noise7th+2 dB97.19%
Price10th+140 68.18%
Rolling Resistance4th+0.26 kg / t96.99%
Read Reviews    Buy from £90.99

5th: Falken Azenis FK510

Falken Azenis FK510
  • 225/40 R18 92Y
  • EU Label: E/A/69
Test#Difference%
Dry Braking6th+1.1 M96.89%
Dry Handling9th+0.8 s98.85%
Subj. Dry Handling9th-5 Points50%
Wet Braking3rd+0.9 M97.9%
Wet Handling8th+0.9 s98.58%
Subj. Wet Handling5th-3 Points70%
Straight Aqua4th-2.7 Km/H96.32%
Subj. Comfort5th-2 Points77.78%
Noise4th+1.3 dB98.15%
Price3rd+40 88.24%
Rolling Resistance8th+0.85 kg / t90.79%
Read Reviews    Buy from £71.99

6th: Nokian PowerProof

Nokian PowerProof
  • 225/40 R18 92Y
  • EU Label: C/A/69
Test#Difference%
Dry Braking6th+1.1 M96.89%
Dry Handling6th+0.4 s99.42%
Subj. Dry Handling6th-2 Points80%
Wet Braking6th+4.7 M89.91%
Wet Handling2nd+0.3 s99.52%
Subj. Wet Handling2nd-1 Points90%
Straight Aqua6th-3.4 Km/H95.36%
Subj. Comfort5th-2 Points77.78%
Noise10th+2.8 dB96.11%
Price2nd+10 96.77%
Rolling Resistance5th+0.28 kg / t96.77%
Read Reviews    Buy from £69.99

7th: Maxxis Victra Sport 5

Maxxis Victra Sport 5
  • 225/40 R18 92Y
  • EU Label: C/A/72
Test#Difference%
Dry Braking3rd+0.5 M98.56%
Dry Handling2nd+0.2 s99.71%
Subj. Dry Handling2nd-1 Points90%
Wet Braking8th+7.8 M84.31%
Wet Handling4th+0.6 s99.05%
Subj. Wet Handling3rd-2 Points80%
Straight Aqua9th-3.8 Km/H94.82%
Subj. Comfort5th-2 Points77.78%
Noise5th+1.9 dB97.32%
Price6th+70 81.08%
Rolling Resistance6th+0.4 kg / t95.44%
Read Reviews    Buy from £79.00

8th: Dunlop SportMaxx RT 2

Dunlop SportMaxx RT 2
  • 225/40 R18 92Y
  • EU Label: C/A/68
Test#Difference%
Dry Braking10th+1.9 M94.75%
Dry Handling10th+0.9 s98.71%
Subj. Dry Handling10th-6 Points40%
Wet Braking7th+6.8 M86.04%
Wet Handling5th+0.7 s98.89%
Subj. Wet Handling6th-4 Points60%
Straight Aqua1st100%
Subj. Comfort2nd-1 Points88.89%
Noise2nd+0.7 dB99%
Price8th+100 75%
Rolling Resistance1st100%
Read Reviews    Buy from £77.79

9th: Hankook Ventus S1 evo 3

Hankook Ventus S1 evo 3
  • 225/40 R18 92Y
  • EU Label: E/A/72
Test#Difference%
Dry Braking8th+1.2 M96.62%
Dry Handling4th+0.3 s99.57%
Subj. Dry Handling7th-3 Points70%
Wet Braking10th+8.7 M82.81%
Wet Handling5th+0.7 s98.89%
Subj. Wet Handling6th-4 Points60%
Straight Aqua7th-3.5 Km/H95.23%
Subj. Comfort10th-3 Points66.67%
Noise8th+2.1 dB97.05%
Price4th+50 85.71%
Rolling Resistance2nd+0.12 kg / t98.59%
Read Reviews    Buy from £75.39

10th: Nexen N Fera Sport SU2

Nexen N Fera Sport SU2
  • 225/40 R18 92Y
  • EU Label: E/A/71
Test#Difference%
Dry Braking8th+1.2 M96.62%
Dry Handling8th+0.6 s99.14%
Subj. Dry Handling8th-4 Points60%
Wet Braking9th+8.2 M83.63%
Wet Handling10th+2.3 s96.46%
Subj. Wet Handling10th-7 Points30%
Straight Aqua8th-3.6 Km/H95.09%
Subj. Comfort1st100%
Noise1st100%
Price1st100%
Rolling Resistance9th+0.89 kg / t90.4%
Read Reviews    Buy from £78.39

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