The first tyre test of 2018 is rather unique. German publication Auto Zeitung have tested six summer and three all season tyres all in the same test, and while it's going to make the Tyre Reviews version of the results at the bottom of this page read slightly wonky, it's a really interesting way of comparing the dry and wet performances of the two tyre types.
Keep in mind, the nine 225/45 R17 tyres were only tested in the dry and wet, there was no snow or ice testing to highlight the all season tyres year-round abilities. This means this test should just be looked at to see how the all season tyres compare to the summer tyres in summer conditions, rather than making a purchase decision for year-round motoring.
Dry
Dry braking was a double win for Michelin, with the Pilot Sport 4 the best summer tyre and the Michelin CrossClimate+ the best all season tyre. While the CrossClimate+ beat the other two all season tyres by a considerable margin, it was unable to match even the cheapest Giti tyre during dry braking.
Dry Braking
Spread: 7.70 M (21.8%)|Avg: 38.31 M
Dry braking in meters (Lower is better)
Michelin Pilot Sport 4
35.40 M
Continental Premium Contact 6
35.80 M
Falken Azenis FK510
36.50 M
Hankook Ventus Prime 3 K125
36.70 M
Goodyear EfficientGrip Performance
37.70 M
Giti GitiSport S1
38.10 M
Michelin CrossClimate Plus
39.00 M
Continental AllSeasonContact
42.50 M
Goodyear Vector 4 Seasons Gen 2
43.10 M
Michelin once again had a double win during dry handling, but this time with the CrossClimate further away from the summer tyres. The new Continental AllSeasonContact sat between the Michelin CrossClimate and Goodyear Vector 4Seasons Gen-2 in the dry.
Dry Handling
Spread: 2.90 s (4.6%)|Avg: 63.83 s
Dry handling time in seconds (Lower is better)
Michelin Pilot Sport 4
62.80 s
Falken Azenis FK510
63.10 s
Hankook Ventus Prime 3 K125
63.20 s
Giti GitiSport S1
63.30 s
Continental Premium Contact 6
63.30 s
Goodyear EfficientGrip Performance
63.40 s
Michelin CrossClimate Plus
64.60 s
Continental AllSeasonContact
65.10 s
Goodyear Vector 4 Seasons Gen 2
65.70 s
Wet
Wet braking was won by the Goodyear all season tyre, and lost by the Goodyear summer tyre! The Continental summer tyre beat the Continental all season tyre, as did the Michelin summer. The Goodyear EfficientGrip Performance usually scores strongly in the wet, perhaps this is a rogue result.
Wet Braking
Spread: 7.50 M (15.3%)|Avg: 51.92 M
Wet braking in meters (Lower is better)
Goodyear Vector 4 Seasons Gen 2
49.10 M
Continental Premium Contact 6
49.10 M
Michelin Pilot Sport 4
49.40 M
Falken Azenis FK510
50.00 M
Michelin CrossClimate Plus
50.90 M
Continental AllSeasonContact
50.90 M
Giti GitiSport S1
55.20 M
Hankook Ventus Prime 3 K125
56.10 M
Goodyear EfficientGrip Performance
56.60 M
Wet handling is a harder test for the all season tyres than wet braking, and the best all season tyre could only finish fourth overall. In both wet braking and handling, the Michelin, Continental and Falken summer tyres were close.
Wet Handling
Spread: 5.20 s (6%)|Avg: 89.97 s
Wet handling time in seconds (Lower is better)
Michelin Pilot Sport 4
87.00 s
Continental Premium Contact 6
87.60 s
Falken Azenis FK510
88.20 s
Goodyear Vector 4 Seasons Gen 2
89.30 s
Continental AllSeasonContact
90.60 s
Goodyear EfficientGrip Performance
91.00 s
Michelin CrossClimate Plus
91.70 s
Giti GitiSport S1
92.10 s
Hankook Ventus Prime 3 K125
92.20 s
The Michelin and Falken summer tyres impress again with the best straight aquaplaning results.
Straight Aqua
Spread: 10.90 Km/H (14.1%)|Avg: 71.74 Km/H
Float Speed in Km/H (Higher is better)
Michelin Pilot Sport 4
77.40 Km/H
Falken Azenis FK510
73.30 Km/H
Goodyear EfficientGrip Performance
72.80 Km/H
Hankook Ventus Prime 3 K125
72.70 Km/H
Giti GitiSport S1
72.30 Km/H
Continental Premium Contact 6
72.30 Km/H
Goodyear Vector 4 Seasons Gen 2
69.90 Km/H
Continental AllSeasonContact
68.50 Km/H
Michelin CrossClimate Plus
66.50 Km/H
Other
Three decibels covered all nine tyres during noise testing.
Noise
Spread: 3.00 dB (4.3%)|Avg: 71.11 dB
External noise in dB (Lower is better)
Goodyear Vector 4 Seasons Gen 2
70.00 dB
Hankook Ventus Prime 3 K125
70.00 dB
Giti GitiSport S1
70.00 dB
Michelin Pilot Sport 4
71.00 dB
Falken Azenis FK510
71.00 dB
Continental AllSeasonContact
71.00 dB
Goodyear EfficientGrip Performance
72.00 dB
Continental Premium Contact 6
72.00 dB
Michelin CrossClimate Plus
73.00 dB
Goodyear had a clear lead in fuel use which might explain the wet performance, and Giti and Hankook lead on purchase price. The Falken also proves to be excellent value when balancing the test results against the purchase price.
Rolling Resistance
Spread: 1.54 kg / t (19.8%)|Avg: 8.74 kg / t
Rolling resistance in kg t (Lower is better)
Goodyear EfficientGrip Performance
7.76 kg / t
Continental AllSeasonContact
8.27 kg / t
Hankook Ventus Prime 3 K125
8.49 kg / t
Continental Premium Contact 6
8.80 kg / t
Giti GitiSport S1
8.89 kg / t
Goodyear Vector 4 Seasons Gen 2
8.91 kg / t
Michelin CrossClimate Plus
8.95 kg / t
Falken Azenis FK510
9.26 kg / t
Michelin Pilot Sport 4
9.30 kg / t
Price
Spread: 230.00 (79.3%)|Avg: 415.56
Price in local currency (Lower is better)
Giti GitiSport S1
290.00
Hankook Ventus Prime 3 K125
310.00
Falken Azenis FK510
330.00
Goodyear EfficientGrip Performance
390.00
Michelin Pilot Sport 4
450.00
Continental Premium Contact 6
450.00
Goodyear Vector 4 Seasons Gen 2
490.00
Continental AllSeasonContact
510.00
Michelin CrossClimate Plus
520.00
Sadly wear wasn't tested, but this is an area where Michelin usually excel in.
The Vector 4 Season Gen-2 proves to be the strongest all season tyre in the wet, but can't match the Crossclimate or summer tyres in the dry. An excellent all round performance otherwise.
The AllSeasonContact has no real drawbacks, but isn't as strong as the CrossClimate in the dry or the Goodyear Vector 4Seasons Gen-2 in the wet. As an all season tyre, the AllSeasonContact seems to sit between the Michelin and Goodyear with regards to the dry/wet/snow blend of performance.
The GitiSport S1 might have finished in last place, but when you look at the balance of performance to price, this is one of the better cheap tyres available, proving to be quicker than the Goodyear in the dry, better than the Hankook in the wet, one of the quietest tyres on test and the cheapest to buy.
