The Polish magazine tested 17-inch tires designed to be fitted on cars of various categories.
List of models tested:
- Bridgestone Turanza T005
- Continental PremiumContact 6
- Debica Presto UHP 2
- Dunlop Sport Maxx RT2
- Goodyear Eagle F1 Asymmetric 5
- Imperial Ecosport 2
- Laufenn S FIT EQ+
- Maxxis Premitra HP5
- Nokian Powerproof
- Pirelli Cinturato P7 Blue
Normally, the experts of Poland’s Motor magazine conduct their tests of summer tires in winter at a test facility in Texas, USA, but this year due to the pandemic-related restrictions they had to wait until it got warmer in Europe, and eventually the tests were organized in Germany. Luckily, the temperature stayed within the range of 20–24 degrees Celsius, and the rain did not get in the way of conducting all the necessary tests either.
This time around, the team of the magazine decided to test tires in size 225/55 R17, which are suitable for cars of different classes. 17-inch tires are fitted on both midsize and large cars, such as Audi A6, BMW 5-Series, Mercedes E-Class, and Opel Insignia, and on compact cars, including BMW 3-Series and Mini Countryman. In addition, these tires are often picked by the owners of CUVs, such as Honda CR-V, Nissan X-Trail, and Skoda Karoq; even such minivans as Chrysler Voyager, Fiat Scudo, and Opel Vivaro can be fitted with tires of this size. The list of contestants included tires from all price brackets, from premium Continental and Goodyear models to the budget Imperial, which are some of the cheapest tires available retail.
The most important test for wet braking performance was won by the Continental tire, whose braking distance from 100 km/h was almost a meter shorter than that of the Goodyear model, which came second. The Nokian tire was also up to the level, and only the Pirelli and Imperial models demonstrated less-than-perfect performance.
The best handling response on wet pavement was also ensured by Continental, which was an obvious leader in this discipline. Goodyear again came second, and Imperial and Pirelli again had issues, this time joined by the Laufenn tire, a subsidiary of Korea’s Hankook.
In the lateral stability test on wet pavement, the Continental model was finally surpassed by Goodyear and Nokian, and the overall results were pretty decent, even though Pirelli’s last place comes as a little bit of a surprise.
The cheap Imperial tire made a minor sensation, scoring second place in the test for straight hydroplaning resistance. The Dunlop, Nokian, Bridgestone, and Goodyear models also showed good results, while the other tires fell behind. However, according to the experts, even they ensured quite an acceptable level of driving safety.
Lateral hydroplaning again was something that all of the tested tires combated quite successfully, the Imperial model again scoring a very high place. At the same time, Continental was quite unexpectedly surpassed by all of its rivals.
In the dry handling test, the first places were scored by the Continental and the Goodyear tires, but, again, the experts noted that even the Debica and the Pirelli models, which came last, did not raise any gripes in terms of driving safety.
The Motor experts also subjectively evaluated the behavior of the tires on dry pavement, and, according to them, none of the models had any prominent weak sides. It is also noteworthy that unexpectedly high scores were received by the inexpensive Laufenn tire (which at the same time had less-than-perfect handling performance on wet pavement).
The Nokian tire turned out to be the quietest one on test, the last places in this discipline having been scored by Bridgestone and Continental, which also provided a reasonably quiet ride.
The lowest rolling resistance was demonstrated by Pirelli, and if we are to compare it to the models from the bottom of the tournament bracket, the fuel consumption could be cut by 0.2l/100km.
Summing up the results, the experts noted that the market leaders could no longer be confident in their supremacy, because, for example, this time an unexpectedly good performance was demonstrated by the Nokian tire, which normally scores high places only in winter tire tests. While the top lines of the tournament bracket of the Motor magazine test got occupied by the Continental PremiumContact 6 and the Goodyear Eagle F1 Asymmetric 5 (no surprises here), bronze was won by the Nokian Poweproof, which was able to surpass the Bridgestone Turanza T005 and the Dunlop Sport Maxx RT2. At the same time, the Nokian summer tires attract the European consumers with their relatively low price, which is, of course, still another competitive advantage.
In the budget class, the victory was snatched by the Maxxis tires, which have recently been performing quite well in the European tests, followed by Debica, also showing quite acceptable results. Only the eighth place was achieved by the Laufenn model, which was not up to the level on wet pavement, with a price tag matching that of Maxxis and Debica.
The fact that price does not always spell quality, was again proved by the Pirelli model, the most expensive on test, and scoring the last but one line of the tournament bracket. This Pirelli model does have its strong side, though, which is low rolling resistance, but traction-wise, it definitely falls short of the competition.
The last place, just as expected, was scored by the cheap Imperial tires of a private brand owned by the Belgian trading company Deldo, which are manufactured in China and, as the Motor experts noted, «are rapidly gaining popularity among motorists." These tires owe their success first of all to their price — on the Polish market they cost half the price of premium tires. At the same time, even though they have average characteristics, the experts noted that these tires still do not compromise driving safety.
Test results
1st place: Continental / PremiumContact 6
Quick Take
Continental PremiumContact 6
- This tire has been replaced by Continental / PremiumContact 7
- This tire replaced Continental / ContiPremiumContact 5
- Available Sizes in Line: 267
-
Original Equipment (OE) tires
for:
- • Toyota C-HR Facelift [2019 .. 2023]
- • Mercedes-Benz C-Class Br205 [2015 .. 2021]
- • BMW 3 Series VII (G20/G21) [2018 .. 2023]
- • BMW 5 Series VII (G30/G31) Facelift [2020 .. 2023]
- • Mazda CX-5 KF [2016 .. 2023]
- • Ford Kuga III (CX482) [2019 .. 2023]
- • Renault Koleos II (HC) [2016 .. 2020]
- • Subaru Forester SK [2018 .. 2023]
- • Renault Megane IV (9A) [2016 .. 2022]
- • Volvo XC40 I [2017 .. 2023]
- • Skoda Superb III B8 (3V) Facelift [2020 .. 2023]
- • Volvo V60 Cross Country II [2018 .. 2023]
- • Mercedes-Benz X-Class D23 [2017 .. 2020]
- • Audi A6 C8 [2018 .. 2023]
- • Volvo S60 III [2019 .. 2023]
- • Renault Alaskan D23 [2016 .. 2020]
- • Volvo V60 II [2018 .. 2023]
- • Jaguar I-Pace [2018 .. 2023]
- • Ford Fiesta VII [2017 .. 2023]
- • Ford Mustang Mach-E [2020 .. 2023]
- • Porsche Taycan I [2020 .. 2023]
- • Mercedes-Benz C-Class Br206 [2021 .. 2023]
- Year Released: 2016
- Regions for sale: North America, Europe, Russia+, Japan, Middle East, Oceania
- High level of safety and comfort
- Stable behavior on dry pavement
- Excellent grip and good stability on wet pavement
- Relatively low hydroplaning resistance
Quick Take
Goodyear Eagle F1 Asymmetric 5
- This tire has been replaced by Goodyear / Eagle F1 Asymmetric 6
- This tire replaced Goodyear / Eagle F1 Asymmetric 3
- Available Sizes in Line: 154
-
Original Equipment (OE) tires
for:
- • Audi e-tron GT [2020 .. 2023]
- • Tesla Model Y [2020 .. 2023]
- • Rolls-Royce Ghost II [2020 .. 2023]
- • DS DS 4 F [2021 .. 2023]
- • Mercedes-Benz EQS X296 [2022 .. 2024]
- Year Released: 2018
- Regions for sale: Europe, Russia+, Japan, China, Southeast Asia, Middle East, South Africa, Oceania
- Good handling response and a short stopping distance on wet and dry pavement alike
- Good hydroplaning resistance
- High rolling resistance
Quick Take
Nokian Powerproof
- This tire will be replaced by Nokian / Powerproof 1
- Available Sizes in Line: 80
- Year Released: 2019
- Regions for sale: Europe
- A very good result for the brand, chiefly known for its winter tires
- Good results on dry and wet pavement
- Low noise emission
- Attractive price
Quick Take
Bridgestone Turanza T005
- This tire has been replaced by Bridgestone / Turanza 6
- This tire has run-flat model:
- Available Sizes in Line: 239
-
Original Equipment (OE) tires
for:
- • Audi A7 4K8 [2018 .. 2023]
- • Volkswagen Tiguan
- • Volkswagen Caddy V [2020 .. 2023]
- • Skoda Superb
- • Volkswagen Transporter
- • Jeep Renegade
- • Renault Captur
- • Nissan Juke
- • Ford Kuga
- • Nissan Micra
- • Volkswagen T-Roc I (A11/AC7) [2017 .. 2023]
- • BMW 1 Series
- • BMW 3 Series
- • BMW 8 Series
- • MINI Clubman
- • Audi A6
- • Audi A3
- • Audi SQ2 GA [2019 .. 2020]
- • Audi A1
- • Audi A4
- • Audi A5
- • Mercedes-Benz S-Class
- • Mercedes-Benz C-Class
- • Mercedes-Benz A-Class
- • Mercedes-Benz B-Class
- • Mercedes-Benz GLA-Class
- • MINI Countryman
- • BMW 2 Series Gran Tourer
- • Lexus LC Z100 [2017 .. 2023]
- • Lexus LS
- • Lexus ES
- • Mazda Mazda6
- • Mercedes-Benz CLA-Class
- • Toyota Camry
- • Volkswagen Polo
- • Volkswagen Golf
- Year Released: 2018
- Regions for sale: North America, Central & South America, Europe, Russia+, China, South Korea, Southeast Asia, Middle East, Africa, Oceania
- Great handling response in the wet and in the dry
- Low rolling resistance
Quick Take
Dunlop Sport Maxx RT2
- This tire replaced Dunlop / Sport Maxx RT
- This tire has run-flat model:
- Available Sizes in Line: 141
-
Original Equipment (OE) tires
for:
- • MINI Clubman F54 [2015 .. 2019]
- • MINI Clubman F54 Facelift [2019 .. 2023]
- • BMW 5 Series VII (G30/G31) [2016 .. 2020]
- • BMW 5 Series VII (G30/G31) Facelift [2020 .. 2023]
- • BMW 6 Series III LCI (F06/F12/F13) [2015 .. 2019]
- • Mercedes-Benz GLC-Class X253 [2015 .. 2019]
- • Mercedes-Benz GLC-Class X253 Facelift [2019 .. 2023]
- Year Released: 2016
- Regions for sale: USA+, Canada, Europe, Russia+, South Africa, Oceania
- Great handling response in any weather conditions (during high-speed cornering on wet pavement, slight understeer occurs, but on the whole the tires ensure adequate grip level)
- Great riding comfort
- Excellent hydroplaning resistance
Quick Take
Maxxis Premitra 5 HP5
- This tire replaced 🏁 Maxxis / Victra PRO R1
- Available Sizes in Line: 74
-
Original Equipment (OE) tires
for:
- • BMW 1 Series III (F40) [2019 .. 2024]
- Year Released: 2015
- Regions for sale: Mexico, Central & South America, Europe, Russia+, Japan, China, Middle East, South Africa, Oceania
- The best budget tire on test
- Well-balanced performance
- Good handling performance on dry and wet pavement (although slightly prone to understeer)
- Low price
Quick Take
Debica Presto UHP 2
- This tire replaced 🏁 Debica / Presto UHP
- Available Sizes in Line: 27
- Year Released: 2017
- Regions for sale: Europe, Russia+
- Acceptable results on dry and wet pavement
- Well-balanced performance
- Low noise emission
- Low rolling resistance
Quick Take
Laufenn S FIT EQ+
- This tire replaced Laufenn / S FIT EQ
- Available Sizes in Line: 94
- Year Released: 2020
- Regions for sale: Europe, Russia+, Middle East, North Africa
- Acceptable results on dry pavement
- Relatively low rolling resistance
- Poor results on wet pavement
Quick Take
Pirelli Cinturato P7 Blue
- Many sizes of this line have been discontinued.
- This tire replaced Pirelli / Cinturato P7
- Available Sizes in Line: 28
-
Original Equipment (OE) tires
for:
- • Audi
- • BMW 3 Series
- • Audi A3 8P [2003 .. 2005]
- Year Released: 2012
- Regions for sale: USA+, Canada, Europe, Russia+, East Asia, Middle East
- Very low rolling resistance
- The main disappointment of the test
- Long braking distance and less-than-perfect handling response on dry and wet pavement
- Relatively low hydroplaning resistance
- High price
Quick Take
Imperial EcoSport 2
- This tire replaced ⛔ Imperial / Ecosport
- Available Sizes in Line: 77
- Year Released: 2015
- Regions for sale: Europe, Russia+
- Very affordable price
- Good results on wet pavement
- Low noise emission
- Poor results on dry pavement
- High rolling resistance
