The British tire portal tested 14 models of UHP and UUHP summer tires.
List of models tested:
- Altenzo Sports Comforter+
- Avon ZV7
- Bridgestone Potenza Sport
- Continental PremiumContact 6
- Falken Azenis FK510
- Goodyear Eagle F1 Asymmetric 5
- Goodyear Eagle F1 SuperSport
- GT Radial SportActive 2
- Hankook Ventus S1 evo3 K127
- Michelin Pilot Sport 4
- Michelin Pilot Sport 4 S
- Nokian Powerproof
- Pirelli P Zero (PZ4)
- Vredestein Ultrac Vorti+
In his new test, Jonathan Benson, the founder of the British portal Tyre Reviews, tested tires in popular size 225/40 R18 at a Goodyear test facility in France, using a VW Golf GTI as a test car. The test involved UHP tires, but the test team also added three «even sportier» UUHP tires — the Bridgestone Potenza Sport, the Goodyear F1 SuperSport, and the Michelin Pilot Sport 4S — due to which Goodyear and Michelin were represented by two models at once.
The Bridgestone Potenza Sport is a new model 2021 that has already won an Auto Bild Sportscars test; in addition, the TR test for the first time around included such tires as the premium Pirelli P Zero PZ4, and the budget Altenzo Sports Comforter (the Altenzo brand is owned by Zhejiang Bodong Industry & Trade Co., Ltd., headquartered in the Chinese province of Zhejiang). Other new models of the season on test also included the GT Radial SportActive 2 and the Vredestein Ultrac Vorti+.
On dry pavement, the cheap Altenzo tires immediately started to fall behind their rivals, and the only other tire that could not make it within 97 seconds was the Avon ZV7 (the brand is owned by the American Cooper). As the TR experts noted, both these tires felt fine on the warm-up laps, but as the tires got warm the grip dropped off quite quickly which resulted in a lot of understeer. Next up in the 96 second range were GT Radial, Nokian, and Hankook. According to Benson, the GT Radial was an enjoyable tire to drive but did not have the desired grip, whereas Nokian and Hankook both felt a little vague through the front of the car, were prone to understeer, and didn’t enjoy being hot.
Then comes a group of Falken, Goodyear, Vredestein, and Pirelli — all within a second of each other! The Falken was praised for good steering response and well balanced performance, but it was lacking a bit of feedback through the wheel, while the Goodyear Eagle F1 Asymmetric 5 subjectively felt quite sporty, had a stable balance and good braking and turning, but it felt a little traction-limited coming out of the slower corners, which cost it a few precious tenths of second of the lap time. The Vredestein tire had direct precise steering with good grip, and felt sporty right up until the limit where the grip could suddenly go without a warning. At the same time, Vredestein turned out to be one of the most stable tires in terms of heat, and it was also one of the freshest-looking tires when it came off the car at the end of the test. As for the Pirelli P Zero PZ4, it was a fast, direct steering, well weighted tire, and felt really good when cornering. Although it did seem to struggle with the heat a little more than some, its handling response was up to the high standard that you would normally expect from this popular Italian brand.
Third and fourth places were scored by the Michelin Pilot Sport 4 and the Continental PremiumContact respectively. The TR experts noted that there was no denying the Michelin’s grip, but it felt a little numb compared to the Goodyear, Pirelli, and Continental. At the same time, the Michelin was stable in its lap time and gave the driver lots of confidence to push on. As for the Continental, it was the fastest of the UHP tires, and had an exceptionally sporty feeling, but it seemed to struggle with the heat a little more than others, so laps two and three were slower than the first one.
The top three tires in dry handling were the UUHP tires, and, although the difference in lap time between the Bridgestone and Michelin was all but negligible, they behaved differently, and, according to Benson, the Potenza Sport «felt meatier and more like a track tire», ensuring an extremely confident lateral grip. First place, however, was scored by the Goodyear Eagle F1 SuperSport, which not only ensured excellent handling response but also better maintained its performance when heated, compared to the Bridgestone and Michelin.
Like in the dry, the Altenzo was the slowest tire on test, just with a bigger margin in the wet. The TR experts noted that there wasn’t anything particularly terrible about the balance of this tire, it just lacked grip in all directions. The last but one place was shared by the Avon and Goodyear SuperSport, and, while Avon ensured a good handling performance with gentle understeer, but fell short of its rivals in terms of grip, especially on the brakes, the F1 SuperSport had direct steering and great feedback, but struggled a little with hydroplaning, especially on the rear which led to oversteer.
The Nokian and Vredestein both lacked a bit of grip and feedback through the wheel, though the Vredestein was a little prone to understeer, and the Nokian to oversteer. The Michelin Pilot Sport 4S was the nicest of the three UUHP tires in terms of balance, but, like all the UUHP tires it hydroplaned more than the UHP tires on the lap making an ultimate lap time difficult, while the Continental PremiumContact 6 again ensured a stable and reliable performance and demonstrated an excellent grip in any situation. A little bit of a surprise was brought this time around by Hankook, which demonstrated a relatively low lateral stability during the handling test — just like in the dry — but in the braking test outperformed all of its rivals with such an impressive lead that the testers had to conduct extra runs that further proved the tire’s outstanding straight traction on wet pavement.
The new GT Radial SportActive 2 was more impressive in wet handling than it was in wet braking, having no issues with the deeper water on the wet handling lap which certainly helped its overall lap time. The Falken and Asymmetric 5 were opposing styles on a similar time. The Falken felt more sporty than when tested in other sizes, with quick direction changes on the front axle — but the rear couldn’t keep up, so the driver was fighting oversteer — whereas the Goodyear Asymmetric 5 was a very well-balanced tire, giving you good grip and predictable handling in all directions.
Third place in the handling test was scored by Pirelli, which was a joy to drive in the wet (its only negative point being slight oversteer), and silver was won by the new Bridgestone Potenza Sport, the fastest of the UUHP tires and almost the fastest of all the tires. The compound on this tire feels a bit like a track tire, it needed a few laps to get some heat into it, and it struggled with hydroplaning more than any other tire, but when it was in contact with the surface it had excellent levels of grip. And, finally, first place in the wet test was won by the Michelin Pilot Sport 4, which allowed the driver to develop high speeds and at the same time feel perfectly safe.
The experts also evaluated the external noise level and rolling resistance — the quietest tire turned out to be the GT Radial, and the best environmental performance was delivered by the Altenzo.
Verdict
First place in the TR test was shared by three tires — Goodyear Eagle F1 Asymmetric 5, Michelin Pilot Sport 4, and Michelin Pilot Sport 4S. The TR experts described the Goodyear Eagle F1 Asymmetric 5 as a tire with almost no weaknesses, excellent grip in the dry and wet, sporty handling, excellent hydroplaning resistance and low rolling resistance. As for the two Michelin tires, both of them demonstrated very good results, but fell a little short of some of the competitors in terms of crispness of steering response in the dry. About the new Bridgestone model, which fell a little short of the leaders, the TR experts said that it felt more like a track tire for the road, and, when heated, ensured outstanding grip. At the same time, low tread depth creates difficulties on wet pavement, first of all, resulting in low hydroplaning resistance.
The Goodyear Eagle F1 SuperSport also demonstrated excellent maneuverability on dry pavement, but it had problems once the track was sprinkled with water, while the Hankook Ventus S1 evo3 impressed the testers with an exceptionally short wet braking distance, but was a little bit slow to respond to the driver’s actions in any conditions. The Pirelli P Zero PZ4 is a rare tire that seems to blend good grip in the dry and wet, sporty handling, low rolling resistance and good levels of comfort. If this tire had a slightly better hydroplaning resistance, it would have been in the top group.
Then came the Continental PremiumContact 6, which showed a good lap time in the dry, including due to fast and crisp steering response. At the same time, however, for all intents and purposes, these capabilities were achieved at the cost of sacrificing the ride comfort level. The Falken Azenis FK510 came only ninth this time around, but the TR experts noted that this tire did deliver good dry and wet handling, short wet braking distance, and good hydroplaning resistance. One line below in the tournament bracket was occupied by the new GT Radial SportActive 2 tire, which also had good straight and lateral hydroplaning resistance, the lowest noise on test, stable wet handling with good levels of grip, and low rolling resistance, but was failed by a relatively long wet braking distance.
The Nokian Powerproof did not make it in the top group in the TR test because it lacked the level of grip of its rivals, while 12th place was scored by the recently presented Vredestein Ultrac Vorti+, which demonstrated good heat resistance and dry handling, but was unable to repeat its performance on wet pavement. The last-but-one line in the tournament bracket was scored by the Avon ZV7, which had low noise and was good value for the money, but demonstrated less-than-perfect grip. The main outsider of the test became the cheapest Altenzo Sports Comforter+, which also fell short of all the other tires in terms of grip.
1st place: Goodyear / Eagle F1 Asymmetric 5
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
- Excellently balanced performance, almost no issues found
- Great handling response in the wet and in the dry
- Very short wet braking distance
- Excellent hydroplaning resistance
- Increased noise
- Highly recommended
2nd place: Michelin / Pilot Sport 4
Quick Take
Michelin Pilot Sport 4
- Available Sizes in Line: 150
-
Original Equipment (OE) tires
for:
- • Alpine A110 [2017 .. 2023]
- • Audi A4
- • Audi A5
- • Ford Fiesta
- • Nissan Qashqai
- • Opel Corsa
- • Peugeot 308
- • Porsche Panamera
- • Renault Clio
- • Volvo S90
- • Toyota 86 ZN8/ZD8 [2021 .. 2023]
- • Honda Civic
- • Honda Civic XI [2021 .. 2023]
- Year Released: 2015
- Regions for sale: North America, Central & South America, Europe, Russia+, East Asia, Southeast Asia, Middle East, Africa, Oceania
- Excellently balanced performance, almost no issues found
- Excellent traction and short braking distance in any conditions
- Slightly delayed steering response
- Highly recommended
3rd place: Michelin / Pilot Sport 4S
Quick Take
Michelin Pilot Sport 4S
- This tire has been replaced by Michelin / Pilot Sport S 5
- This tire replaced Michelin / Pilot Super Sport
- Available Sizes in Line: 229
-
Original Equipment (OE) tires
for:
- • Ferrari GTC4Lusso [2016 .. 2020]
- • Porsche 911
- • Porsche Boxster
- • BMW X3 M F97 [2019 .. 2021]
- • BMW X4 M F98 [2019 .. 2021]
- • Cadillac CT4-V GM Alpha [2020 .. 2023]
- • Cadillac CT5-V GM Alpha [2020 .. 2023]
- • Honda Civic Type R FK8 [2017 .. 2023]
- Year Released: 2017
- Regions for sale: North America, Central & South America, Europe, Russia+, Japan, South Korea, Southeast Asia, Middle East, Oceania
.png)
- Excellently balanced performance
- Very short dry braking distance
- Excellent hydroplaning resistance
- High rolling resistance
- Highly recommended
4th place: Bridgestone / Potenza Sport
Quick Take
Bridgestone Potenza Sport
- This tire replaced Bridgestone / Potenza S001
- Available Sizes in Line: 87
-
Original Equipment (OE) tires
for:
- • Lamborghini Huracan Facelift [2019 .. 2023]
- • Ferrari Roma [2020 .. 2023]
- • Maserati MC20 [2020 .. 2024]
- • Maserati Grecale [2022 .. 2024]
- • Fisker Ocean [2022 .. 2024]
- Year Released: 2021
- Regions for sale: North America, Europe, Russia+, China, Southeast Asia, Middle East, Oceania
- Crisp steering response, good handling, and a short dry braking distance
- Low hydroplaning resistance
- Prone to oversteer on wet pavement
- Recommended
5th place: Goodyear / Eagle F1 SuperSport
Quick Take
Goodyear Eagle F1 SuperSport
- Available Sizes in Line: 116
-
Original Equipment (OE) tires
for:
- • Cupra Formentor [2020 .. 2023]
- • Porsche 911 IX (992) [2019 .. 2023]
- • Volkswagen Golf GTI Mk8 (CD1) [2020 .. 2023]
- • Lotus
- • Maserati GranTurismo [2007 .. 2016]
- Year Released: 2018
- Regions for sale: USA+, Canada, Europe, Russia+, Japan, China, Southeast Asia, Middle East, South Africa, Oceania
- A road tire that is equally good on a racetrack
- Quick steering response, and good feedback through the wheel in the dry
- Prone to oversteer and long braking distance on wet pavement
- High noise emission
- High rolling resistance
- Recommended
6th place: Hankook / Ventus S1 evo3 K127
Quick Take
Hankook Ventus S1 evo3 K127
- This tire has been replaced by Hankook / Ventus S1 evo3 EV K127E
- This tire replaced Hankook / Ventus S1 evo2 K117
- Available Sizes in Line: 213
-
Original Equipment (OE) tires
for:
- • Audi RS6 C8 [2019 .. 2023]
- • Audi RS7 C8 [2019 .. 2023]
- • BMW 3 Series VII (G20/G21) [2018 .. 2023]
- • BMW Z4 III (G29) [2018 .. 2023]
- • Audi S3 8V [2013 .. 2016]
- • Audi S3 8V Facelift [2016 .. 2020]
- • Audi S3 8Y [2020 .. 2023]
- • Tesla Model 3 [2017 .. 2023]
- • BMW 2 Series F44 [2019 .. 2023]
- • Porsche Boxster III (981) [2012 .. 2017]
- • Porsche Cayman II (981) [2013 .. 2016]
- • MINI Cooper F55/F56 [2014 .. 2021]
- • MINI Cooper F55/F56 Facelift II [2021 .. 2023]
- • BMW 2 Series Active Tourer F45 Facelift [2018 .. 2021]
- • BMW 2 Series Gran Tourer F46 Facelift [2018 .. 2023]
- • BMW 5 Series VII (G30/G31) [2016 .. 2020]
- • Audi A1 citycarver GB [2019 .. 2023]
- • Volkswagen Golf Mk8 (CD1) [2019 .. 2023]
- • Mercedes-Benz S-Class W223 [2020 .. 2023]
- • Volkswagen Golf GTI Mk8 (CD1) [2020 .. 2023]
- • Volkswagen Golf R Mk8 (CD1) [2020 .. 2023]
- • BMW i4 G26 [2021 .. 2023]
- • BMW 4 Series G22/G23/G26 [2020 .. 2024]
- Year Released: 2019
- Regions for sale: North America, Central & South America, Europe, Russia+, East Asia, Southeast Asia, Middle East, Oceania
- An exceptionally short braking distance on wet pavement
- Short braking distance on dry pavement
- Low rolling resistance
- Prone to understeer on wet pavement
- Average hydroplaning resistance
- Recommended
7th place: Pirelli / P Zero PZ4
Quick Take
Pirelli P Zero PZ4
- This tire replaced Pirelli / P Zero
- Available Sizes in Line: 324
-
Original Equipment (OE) tires
for:
- • BMW 8 Series G14/G15/G16 [2018 .. 2023]
- • Hyundai Kona OS Facelift [2020 .. 2023]
- • Acura NSX NC1 [2016 .. 2023]
- • Volvo V90 II [2016 .. 2023]
- • Jaguar XF
- • BMW X1
- • BMW X2
- • MINI Countryman
- • MINI Clubman
- • Mercedes-Benz C-Class
- • Jaguar XE
- • Audi A4
- • Audi A5
- • BMW 3 Series
- • Mercedes-Benz A-Class
- • Mercedes-Benz B-Class
- • Mercedes-Benz CLA-Class
- • BMW 7 Series
- • BMW 6 Series Gran Turismo
- • BMW X3
- • BMW X4
- • BMW X5
- • BMW X6
- • Mercedes-Benz CLS-Class
- • Mercedes-Benz E-Class
- • Mercedes-Benz E-Class Coupe
- • Audi A8
- • Bentley Continental GT
- • Bentley Continental GTC
- • Porsche Boxster
- • Porsche Cayman
- • Audi A3
- • McLaren 540C
- • McLaren 570GT
- • McLaren 570S
- • Volvo V40
- • Hyundai Veloster
- • Lamborghini Huracan
- • McLaren Senna
- • Audi R8
- • McLaren 720S
- • Porsche 911
- • BMW 5 Series
- • Mercedes-Benz AMG GT 4
- • Porsche Panamera
- • Audi A6
- • Audi A7
- • Mercedes-Benz GLE-Class
- • Mercedes-Benz GLS-Class
- • Volkswagen Touareg
- • Lamborghini Aventador
- • BMW Alpina B5
- • Jaguar F-Type
- • Ferrari 488 Pista
- • Ferrari GTC4Lusso
- • Ferrari Portofino
- • Maserati GranTurismo
- • Maserati GranCabrio
- • Ferrari 812 Superfast
- • Dodge Challenger
- • Aston Martin Vantage
- • Alfa Romeo Stelvio
- • BMW Alpina XD3
- • BMW Alpina XD4
- • Jaguar E-Pace
- • BMW X4 M
- • BMW X3 M
- • Land Rover Range Rover Evoque
- • Mercedes-Benz GLA-Class
- • McLaren GT
- • Aston Martin DBS Superleggera
- • Lamborghini Urus
- • Volkswagen Atlas
- • Ford Mustang Mach-E [2020 .. 2023]
- • Aston Martin DBX [2020 .. 2023]
- • BMW i4 G26 [2021 .. 2024]
- • Lotus
- • Porsche Cayenne E3 (9Y) Facelift [2023 .. 2025]
- • Hyundai IONIQ 5 N NE [2023 .. 2025]
- Year Released: 2016
- Regions for sale: North America, Central & South America, Europe, Russia+, East Asia, Southeast Asia, Middle East, Oceania
- Great handling response in the wet and in the dry
- Low noise emission
- Average hydroplaning resistance
- Recommended
8th 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
- Excellent handling response and short stopping distance on dry pavement
- Excellent hydroplaning resistance
- Extremely high noise emission
- Average lap time on wet pavement
- Recommended
9th place: Falken / Azenis FK510
Quick Take
Falken Azenis FK510
- This tire has been replaced by Falken / Azenis FK520
- This tire has run-flat model:
- Available Sizes in Line: 205
-
Original Equipment (OE) tires
for:
- • Audi A1 GB [2018 .. 2023]
- • Toyota Mirai II [2020 .. 2023]
- Year Released: 2016
- Regions for sale: North America, Central & South America, Europe, Russia+, Japan, South Korea, Middle East, Africa, Oceania
- Great handling response in the wet and in the dry
- Short braking distance on wet pavement
- Excellent hydroplaning resistance
- Good price/quality ratio
- Average dry braking performance
- High noise emission
- Recommended
10th place: GT Radial / SportActive 2
Quick Take
GT Radial SportActive 2
- This tire replaced GT Radial / SportActive
- Available Sizes in Line: 11
- Year Released: 2021
- Regions for sale: Central & South America, Europe, Japan, South Africa, Oceania
- Very high hydroplaning resistance, both straight and lateral
- Extremely low noise emission
- Great handling response in the wet
- Low rolling resistance
- Long braking distance on wet pavement
- Average dry grip
11th place: Nokian / Powerproof
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
- Great riding comfort
- Low rolling resistance
- Long braking distance on wet pavement
- Low hydroplaning resistance
12th place: Vredestein / Ultrac Vorti+
Quick Take
Vredestein Ultrac Vorti+
- This tire replaced Vredestein / Ultrac Vorti
- Available Sizes in Line: 67
- Year Released: 2021
- Regions for sale: Europe
- Good feedback through the wheel and good handling in the dry
- High resistance to wear
- Long braking distance and less-than-perfect handling response on wet pavement
- Very high rolling resistance
13th place: Avon / ZV7
Quick Take
Avon ZV7
- This tire replaced 🏁 Avon / ZV5
- Available Sizes in Line: 77
- Year Released: 2014
- Regions for sale: Europe, Russia+
- Low rolling resistance
- Low noise emission
- Attractive price
- Long braking distance and less-than-perfect handling response on dry and wet pavement
14th place: Altenzo / Sports Comforter +
Quick Take
Altenzo Sports Comforter +
- Available Sizes in Line: 50
- Year Released: 2019
- Regions for sale: Oceania
- Very low rolling resistance
- Low noise emission
- Low price
- Very long braking distance and less-than-perfect handling response on dry and wet pavement
- Low hydroplaning resistance
