magazine and website tyre tests, independent tyre tests, manufacturer tyre tests
Test centre Horiba MIRA has fully converted its facilities into ‘COVID-Secure’ operations in three weeks. On 13 April the company suspended most physical operations at its expansive 850-acre site in Nuneaton and a further facility in Basildon, but safely welcomed the first wave of furloughed employees back to both sites by 4 May, well ahead of the UK government guidelines issued this week.
Tyre tests published in the run-up to summer show that the majority of mainstream tyres available in the UK are of a high or very high standard. Europe’s major car magazines and motoring associations recommended most products during the recent spate of testing. Of the 134 individual tyres put through their paces, only a handful weren’t recommended or were found to have serious issues. A further 13 were deemed merely ‘adequate’ or were conditionally recommended.
On 29 April, the European Parliament announced that new tyre labelling rules have moved a step closer to implementation. The European Parliament and the Council of EU reached an informal agreement on the labelling scheme in November 2019. The Council formally endorsed the rules in February 2020 and Parliament’s industry, research and energy committee voted in favour of them on 28 April 2020. The Parliament as a whole must now approve the deal in order for the new labels to be rolled out.
UK motorcycling magazine RiDE has looked at six brands of sports touring tyres and declared the Metzeler Roadtec 01 SE its top pick. In its evaluation of size 120/70-17 and 180/55-17 rubber, tested on a BMW R1250RS, RiDE awarded the Metzeler tyres a score of 91 points out of a possible maximum of 100 and recommended the Roadtec 01 SE as its “best purchase”.
All-season tyres offer safety in a wide range of weather conditions and have gained a lot of traction within the passenger car segment. But what about campervans – is all-season a good choice of tyre for those hoping to squeeze in a belated post-lockdown holiday? Auto Bild Reisemobil fitted eight sets of all-season campervan tyres to a VW Crafter with a 600 kilogramme payload and put them through their paces to check performance in dry, wet and snowy conditions.
Hot hatches don’t really get much more sizzling at the moment than the Mercedes-AMG A 45 S, whose turbocharged four-cylinder engine produces a hearty 416bhp. As usual, four rubbery rings take on responsibility for transferring all this power to the road – but what’s the best tyre for this job? That depends upon the sort of driving you have planned.
To find the best tyres for the “dynamic mid-range segment”, German motoring publication auto motor und sport (ams) has taken a look at 11 products in size 225/45 R18Y. While the usual premium suspects claimed the victors’ podium, the ams test also confirms what Auto Zeitung recently found – that Maxxis is making some great value for money tyres at the moment.
Test World reports that it is remaining open to “operate and fulfill a busy schedule of indoor tyre and vehicle testing during the global COVID-19 pandemic”. Writing in an email to customers and contacts published 31 March 2020, company representatives said: “Operating within official health guidance to the strictest degree and treating the health and wellbeing of its staff as the utmost priority, Test World strives to minimise disruption to the industry in these unprecedented times.”
Tyre choice is a “decisive factor” determining a vehicle’s dynamic qualities, comments Auto Bild Sportscars in the preamble to its latest comparative test.The performance motoring magazine stresses that this is particularly the case when choosing the right rubber for performance cars. We see this in its 2020 summer tyre test, in which Auto Bild Sportscars looks at ten size 245/35 R19 (front axle) and 265/35 R 19 (rear) tyres that cover a range of prices and performance levels.
Dunlop is very happy with Scooter & Sport magazine’s decision to name its ScootSmart overall winner in its test of five tyre brands. In its January/February magazine (Issue 1/2020), the German publication fitted the size 120/70-15 front and 140/70-14 rear tyres to a Honda Forza 300 and evaluated them with a focus on dry and wet grip and handling.
Auto Zeitung’s 2020 summer tyre test is one of the largest it has ever published. The German motoring magazine has looked at 20 brands of size 225/50 R17 94/98 W/Y tyres in an evaluation that covers premium to budget. The cheapest of the tyres on test can be had for around 230 euros (£200) a set; the most expensive cost more than twice as much. As you’d expect, the winners’ podium was dominated by premium products priced well above the average. The fourth-placed tyre is a different story.
After eliminating 30 tyres from its 2020 summer tyre test in a preliminary wet and dry braking round, Auto Bild scrutinised the remaining 20 more closely. The findings are now out, and the motoring publication is very happy with more than a third of the tested candidates. First place in test was shared by two tyres.
Eight premium and mid-range tyres are the subject of the latest summer tyre test from car magazine Gute Fahrt. The German publication chose to look at 215/50 R18, a popular size for smaller SUVs. Testing was performed using a VW T-Roc, and the Gute Fahrt team benchmarked the eight tyres against the T-Roc’s original equipment rubber.
As in previous years, Auto Bild’s 2020 summer tyre test has begun with a preliminary round in which the distance taken to stop in wet and dry conditions determines which tyres progress to the second, more extensive round of testing, and which don’t. The results of this first round are now available, and there’s one or two surprises to be seen.
HORIBA MIRA
Stephen Goodchild
European Parliament
Continental AG
Metzeler
Auto Bild Reisemobil