Michelin Primacy 5 vs Vredestein Ultrac plus
The interesting part isn't that one is simply “better”, but where the trade-offs land for real drivers: the Primacy 5 repeatedly posts lower noise and lower rolling resistance, and ADAC projects dramatically longer life (56,000 km vs 30,600 km). The Ultrac+ can look very compelling in wet-grip headline numbers (notably a big wet-braking win in the ECO test), but its results and test notes also point to a less precise, more heat-sensitive dry character and a weaker environmental/wear picture.
Test Results
Independent comparison tire tests are the best source of data to get tire information from, and the good news is there have been three tests which compare both tires directly!
| Tire | Test Wins | Performance |
|---|---|---|
| Michelin Primacy 5 | two | |
| Vredestein Ultrac plus | one |
While it might look like the Michelin Primacy 5 is better than the Vredestein Ultrac plus purely based on the higher number of test wins, tires are very complicated objects which means where one tire is better than the other can be more important in real world use.
Let's look at how the two tires compare across multiple tire test categories.
Key Strengths
- Efficiency and low rolling resistance across tests (e.g., 7.2 vs 8.3 kg/t; 10.4 vs 10.9 kWh/100 km), supporting lower running costs
- Much stronger longevity/environmental metrics in ADAC: 56,000 km wear projection and far lower abrasion (54 vs 97 mg/km/t)
- Lower noise and a more refined touring bias (wins noise in two tests, including 70.9 vs 72.6 dB)
- Generally stable, safe balance in mixed conditions with good straight-line aquaplaning results (wins straight aquaplaning in 2/3 shared tests)
- Very strong wet-grip headline performance in the ECO test, including a major wet-braking advantage (35.5 m vs 38.8 m)
- Good wet circle results (wins in 2/2 tests where reported), suggesting dependable lateral wet grip
- Often competitive aquaplaning, particularly in ADAC where it leads both straight and curved aquaplaning
- Short dry braking in two of the three comparisons (e.g., 35.3 m vs 36.3 m in ADAC)
Dry Braking
Looking at data from three tire tests, the Vredestein Ultrac plus was better during two dry braking tests. On average the Vredestein Ultrac plus stopped the vehicle in 0.75% less distance than the Michelin Primacy 5.
Best In Dry Braking: Vredestein Ultrac plus
See how the Dry Braking winner was calculated >>
Dry Handling [s]
Looking at data from one tire tests, the Vredestein Ultrac plus was better during one dry handling [s] tests. On average the Vredestein Ultrac plus was 0.05% faster around a lap than the Michelin Primacy 5.
Best In Dry Handling [s]: Vredestein Ultrac plus
See how the Dry Handling winner was calculated >>
Dry Handling [Km/H]
Looking at data from one tire tests, the Michelin Primacy 5 was better during one dry handling [km/h] tests. On average the Michelin Primacy 5 was 0.09% faster around a lap than the Vredestein Ultrac plus.
Best In Dry Handling [Km/H]: Michelin Primacy 5
See how the Dry Handling winner was calculated >>
Subj. Dry Handling
Looking at data from one tire tests, the Michelin Primacy 5 was better during one subj. dry handling tests. On average the Michelin Primacy 5 scored 8.54% more points than the Vredestein Ultrac plus.
Best In Subj. Dry Handling: Michelin Primacy 5
See how the Subj. Dry Handling winner was calculated >>
Wet Braking
Looking at data from three tire tests, the Vredestein Ultrac plus was better during one wet braking tests. On average the Vredestein Ultrac plus stopped the vehicle in 1.6% less distance than the Michelin Primacy 5.
Best In Wet Braking: Vredestein Ultrac plus
See how the Wet Braking winner was calculated >>
Wet Braking - Concrete
Looking at data from one tire tests, the Michelin Primacy 5 was better during one wet braking - concrete tests. On average the Michelin Primacy 5 stopped the vehicle in 1.77% less distance than the Vredestein Ultrac plus.
Best In Wet Braking - Concrete: Michelin Primacy 5
See how the Wet Braking - Concrete winner was calculated >>
Wet Handling [s]
Looking at data from one tire tests, the Michelin Primacy 5 was better during one wet handling [s] tests. On average the Michelin Primacy 5 was 0.71% faster around a wet lap than the Vredestein Ultrac plus.
Best In Wet Handling [s]: Michelin Primacy 5
See how the Wet Handling winner was calculated >>
Wet Handling [Km/H]
Looking at data from one tire tests, the Vredestein Ultrac plus was better during one wet handling [km/h] tests. On average the Vredestein Ultrac plus was 0.55% faster around a wet lap than the Michelin Primacy 5.
Best In Wet Handling [Km/H]: Vredestein Ultrac plus
See how the Wet Handling winner was calculated >>
Subj. Wet Handling
Looking at data from one tire tests, the Michelin Primacy 5 was better during one subj. wet handling tests. On average the Michelin Primacy 5 scored 1.27% more points than the Vredestein Ultrac plus.
Best In Subj. Wet Handling: Michelin Primacy 5
See how the Subj. Wet Handling winner was calculated >>
Wet Circle
Looking at data from one tire tests, the Vredestein Ultrac plus was better during one wet circle tests. On average the Vredestein Ultrac plus had 1.68% higher lateral wet grip than the Michelin Primacy 5.
Best In Wet Circle: Vredestein Ultrac plus
See how the Wet Circle winner was calculated >>
Straight Aqua
Looking at data from three tire tests, the Vredestein Ultrac plus was better during one straight aqua tests. On average the Vredestein Ultrac plus floated at a 0.2% higher speed than the Michelin Primacy 5.
Best In Straight Aqua: Vredestein Ultrac plus
See how the Straight Aqua winner was calculated >>
Curved Aquaplaning
Looking at data from three tire tests, the Michelin Primacy 5 was better during one curved aquaplaning tests. On average the Michelin Primacy 5 slipped out at a 1.84% higher speed than the Vredestein Ultrac plus.
Best In Curved Aquaplaning: Michelin Primacy 5
See how the Curved Aquaplaning winner was calculated >>
Subj. Comfort
Looking at data from one tire tests, the Michelin Primacy 5 was better during one subj. comfort tests. On average the Michelin Primacy 5 scored 7.25% more points than the Vredestein Ultrac plus.
Best In Subj. Comfort: Michelin Primacy 5
See how the Subj. Comfort winner was calculated >>
Noise
Looking at data from two tire tests, the Michelin Primacy 5 was better during two noise tests. On average the Michelin Primacy 5 measured 1.48% quieter than the Vredestein Ultrac plus.
Best In Noise: Michelin Primacy 5
See how the Noise winner was calculated >>
Wear
Looking at data from one tire tests, the Michelin Primacy 5 was better during one wear tests. On average the Michelin Primacy 5 is predicted to cover 45.36% miles before reaching 1.6mm than the Vredestein Ultrac plus.
Best In Wear: Michelin Primacy 5
See how the Wear winner was calculated >>
Rolling Resistance
Looking at data from two tire tests, the Michelin Primacy 5 was better during two rolling resistance tests. On average the Michelin Primacy 5 had a 10.72% lower rolling resistance than the Vredestein Ultrac plus.
Best In Rolling Resistance: Michelin Primacy 5
See how the Rolling Resistance winner was calculated >>
Energy Consumption
Looking at data from one tire tests, the Michelin Primacy 5 was better during one energy consumption tests. On average the Michelin Primacy 5 used 4.59% less energy than the Vredestein Ultrac plus.
Best In Energy Consumption: Michelin Primacy 5
See how the Energy Consumption winner was calculated >>
Abrasion
Looking at data from one tire tests, the Michelin Primacy 5 was better during one abrasion tests. On average the Michelin Primacy 5 emitted 44.33% less particle wear matter than the Vredestein Ultrac plus.
Best In Abrasion: Michelin Primacy 5
See how the Abrasion winner was calculated >>
Real World Driver Reviews
Tire Reviews also collects real world driver reviews for the Michelin Primacy 5 and Vredestein Ultrac plus.
In total the Michelin Primacy 5 has been reviewed 30 times and drivers have given the tire 86% overall.
The Vredestein Ultrac plus has been reviewed 5 times and drivers have given the tire 80% overall.
This means in real world driving, people prefer the Michelin Primacy 5.
They are much quieter than All Season Pirellis, the noise is mainly a low hum, which is nicer to the ear than the alternatives.
I feel more comfortable when cornering at speed with them. Been driving some forest/field roads and they held up nicely. The tread doesn't seem as deep as other brands, will update how things are looking after 10k km.
Conclusion
Vredestein Ultrac+ makes its case when you prioritize wet-grip-focused performance metrics, especially in the 2026 Summer ECO test where it delivered the best wet braking (35.5 m vs 38.8 m) and strong wet circle and wet handling results, helping it finish 2nd overall. The downside is that across the broader set of tests it's less consistent: it ranks lower overall in two of the three comparisons (10/13 and 12/16), with repeated notes about vague/slower steering response, below-average subjective dry handling, and overheating when pushed. The practical takeaway: Ultrac+ can feel like the “wet-metric specialist,” while Primacy 5 is the quieter, more economical long-distance choice-provided you're happy with its generally safe-but-not-sporty grip positioning and some reports of imprecision at the limit.
Key Differences
- Longevity and environmental impact are the biggest separator: ADAC projects Primacy 5 at 56,000 km vs Ultrac+ at 30,600 km, with much lower abrasion (54 vs 97 mg/km/t).
- Efficiency/rolling resistance consistently favors Michelin (e.g., 7.2 vs 8.3 kg/t; 7.12 vs 7.73 kg/t), which matters for fuel/EV consumption and long-term cost.
- Wet braking is split by test: Ultrac+ dominates in the ECO test (35.5 m vs 38.8 m), but Primacy 5 is better in the other two wet-braking results (29.73 vs 30.2 m; 32.7 vs 33.9 m).
- Dry braking slightly favors Vredestein overall (wins 2/3), but the margins are small (about 1.0 m in ADAC; ~0.9 m in ECO).
- Subjective/feel and “touring refinement” lean Michelin: higher subjective dry score (8.2 vs 7.5), better comfort score (6.9 vs 6.4), and lower measured noise (70.9 vs 72.6 dB).
- Limit behavior differs: test notes flag Primacy 5 can feel unstable in fast lane changes and firm over bumps, while Ultrac+ is repeatedly described as less precise/vague on dry roads and prone to overheating when driven hard.
Overall Winner: Michelin Primacy 5
Based on the tire test data and user reviews we have in our database, the Michelin Primacy 5 has demonstrated better overall performance in this comparison. However, as you can see from the spider diagram above, each tire has its own strengths which should be considered in your final tire buying choice.Similar Comparisons
Looking for more tire comparisons? Here are other direct comparisons involving these tires:
Michelin Primacy 5 Top Comparisons
No other comparisons available for this tire.
Vredestein Ultrac plus Top Comparisons
No other comparisons available for this tire.
Footnote
This page has been developed using tire industry testing best practices. This means we are only comparing tests which have had both tires in the same test.
Why is this important? Tire testing is heavily affected by things like surface grip levels and surface temperature, which means you can only compare values from the same day. During a tire test external condition changes are calculated into the overall results, but it is not possible to calculate this between tire tests performed on different days or at different locations.
As a result you will see other tests on Tire Reviews which feature both the %s and %s, but as they weren't conducted on the same day, the results are not comparable.
Lots of other websites do this sort of tire comparison, Tire Reviews doesn't.