Nankang Sportnex CR S vs Yokohama Advan A052
- TR Score
- 7.3/10
- Owners say
- 71% · 4
- TR Score
- 8.1/10
- Owners say
- 82% · 15
In the 2 independent tests that ran both tyres, the Nankang Sportnex CR S finished ahead 2 times and the Advan A052 not once. The Sportnex CR S stopped 1% shorter in the dry; the Advan A052 stopped 5.1% shorter in the wet.
Data updated
Which should you buy?
Choose the Yokohama Advan A052 if wet grip and wet braking are non-negotiable (rain-prone track days, mixed-weather road miles, maximum wet confidence). Choose the Nankang Sportnex CR-S if you want the better all-round trackday package-more consistent dry braking and stronger long-run pace-with durability that suits frequent, full-session use.
Where the Sportnex CR S is stronger
- Stronger dry braking in both shared tests (30.7 m vs 30.98 m; 28.9 m vs 29.2 m), suggesting more consistent decel capability in the dry
- Better long-run pace/consistency in both tests (157.42 s vs 158.98 s; 100.57 s vs 100.88 s), aligning with track-day session use rather than single-lap hero runs
- Well-rounded balance reported by AutoBild with no major weaknesses and comparatively low pick-up, helping keep the tread surface cleaner over time
Where the Advan A052 is stronger
- Best-in-pair wet braking and wet handling in both tests with clear margins (e.g., 47.2 m vs 50.1 m wet braking; 31.15 s vs 33.01 s wet handling)
- More favorable subjective ratings in Tire Rack for both dry handling (8.75 vs 8.25) and wet handling (7.25 vs 6.5), reflecting driver confidence and “feel”
- Wet stability and ABS compatibility highlighted by AutoBild, making hard braking in the wet more predictable
The bullet points are analysis of the shared tests and of owner reviews; the measured wins in each discipline are in the tables below. Where the two disagree, the figures are right.
Sportnex CR S vs Advan A052 at a glance
| Category | Sportnex CR S | Gap | Advan A052 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Shared tests won2 shared tests | 2 | 0 | |
| Dry7 measurements | 5 | The Sportnex CR S stopped 1% shorter in the dry (2 tests) | 2 |
| Wet5 measurements | 0 | The Advan A052 stopped 5.1% shorter in the wet (2 tests) | 5 |
| Comfort2 measurements | 0 | Level between the two. | 0 |
| Tyre Reviews Scoreevery test and review we hold | 7.3/10 | The Advan A052 by 0.8 | 8.1/10 |
| Owner rating4 and 15 reviews | 71% | The Advan A052 by 11 points | 82% |
Wins count every measurement the shared tests recorded for both tyres; a tick marks the tyre ahead on that line. Subjective driver scores count as wins but are never averaged, because each test uses its own scale.
Head to head in 2 tests, 2025 to 2026
Each row is one published test in which both tyres ran on the same car, in the same size, on the same day. The line is the whole field, winner on the left.
| Test | Sportnex CR S | Field | Advan A052 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 AutoBild Track Day Tyre Test | P3 of 5 | P4 of 5 | |
| 2025 Tire Rack Extreme Performance Track Tyre Test | P4 of 7 | P5 of 7 |
Performance profile
5 measurements from the 2 shared tests, each tyre shown as its share of the better figure in every test.
Where each is furthest ahead
Sportnex CR S
Advan A052
Point at or tap any spoke for both tyres' figures.
In each test the better of the two figures counts as 100% and the other as its share of it, so a 36 m stop against 34.2 m is 95%; each spoke averages the shared tests that recorded it. 4 measurements recorded in only one shared test are left off; every measurement is in the table further down.
Where owners rate each higher
Sportnex CR S
Advan A052
Point at or tap any spoke for both tyres' figures.
Owners rate the Sportnex CR S 71% from 4 reviews and the Advan A052 82% from 15. Each spoke is one question owners answer out of 10; reviews are vetted by hand before publication.
Every measurement, side by side
Averages of the figures both tyres posted in the same tests. The gap is the average of each test's own gap, so figures from different cars and years are never mixed. Open a discipline for its measurements, and a measurement for every test's figure.
| Measurement | Sportnex CR S | Gap | Advan A052 | Wins | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 29.8 | 1% | 30.09 | 2-0 | |||||||||
|
||||||||||||
| 125.2 | 0.1% | 125.2 | 1-1 | |||||||||
|
||||||||||||
| 129 | 0.6% | 129.9 | 2-0 | |||||||||
|
||||||||||||
| scored | 6.1% | scored | 0-1 | |||||||||
|
||||||||||||
| 52.65 | 5.1% | 50 | 0-2 | |||||||||
|
||||||||||||
| 83.49 | 4.6% | 80.16 | 0-2 | |||||||||
|
||||||||||||
| scored | 11.5% | scored | 0-1 | |||||||||
|
||||||||||||
| scored | = | scored | 0-0 | |||||||||
|
||||||||||||
| scored | = | scored | 0-0 | |||||||||
|
||||||||||||
Braking distances and lap times are better when lower; speeds, wear and grip figures when higher. A test's figures are its own: sizes, cars, surfaces and temperatures differ from one to the next, which is why the averages here are only ever of tests the two tyres shared. "Scored" rows are subjective driver ratings: each test uses its own scale, so only the wins are counted.
Scores beyond the shared tests
On the Tyre Reviews Score, which weighs every test and review we hold, the Sportnex CR S scores 7.3 and the Advan A052 8.1 out of 10.
| Sportnex CR S | Category | Advan A052 | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 57 | Dry | 51 | ||
| 36 | Wet | 71 | ||
Category scores are percentiles among tyres of the same season and class: 90 means this tyre out-performs 90% of them, measured across every test we hold, not only the ones it appeared in.
What owners say
| Sportnex CR S | Category | Advan A052 | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 9 | Dry Grip | 9.9 | ||
| 3.7 | Wet Grip | 7.8 | ||
| 7.8 | Road Feedback | 8.7 | ||
| 8.8 | Handling | 9.5 | ||
| 7 | Wear | 5.1 | ||
| 3.5 | Comfort | 7.1 | ||
Owners rate the Sportnex CR S 71% from 4 reviews and the Advan A052 82% from 15. Reviews are vetted by hand before publication; ownership is not verified.
Nankang Sportnex CR S
- 71%from 4 reviews
- 20,702 milesdriven by reviewers
All 4 Sportnex CR S reviewsI've purchased these tires three times so far. Between these tires I have had Falken RT660+, RT615k+ and Kumho V730. None have been as consistent and performant all the way down to the end of the tire's life.
I use these for autocross at 275/35-18 on an 18x10" Apex VS5R wheel. The tire is extremely well supported on that size wheel. Nankang measures the tire on a 9.5" wheel but it's a bit pinched on that width so I'd recommend going larger.
I find that the compound comes on quickly and handles heat really well. I've never had to spray them down even during the Florida summers. I do make sure to get them to 32PSI hot and they'll hot lap no worries.
Yokohama Advan A052
- 82%from 15 reviews
- 100%would buy again
- 57,578 milesdriven by reviewers
Drivers describe the Yokohama Advan A052 as an extremely high-grip, confidence-inspiring semi-slick/200TW tyre, especially in the dry, with strong braking and very progressive, communicative limit behavior. Many also report impressive wet grip for this category in damp/cool conditions and consistent performance across heat cycles, making it a popular autocross/track choice. The most repeated drawbacks are rapid wear (often shoulder wear without sufficient camber) and high cost, with multiple users also warning that heavy rain/standing water aquaplaning resistance is poor despite good damp-wet traction.
- Exceptional dry grip and short braking distances
- Predictable, progressive handling and strong feedback at the limit
- Consistent grip over heat cycles; doesn't fall off quickly
- Good wet grip for a semi-slick in damp/cool conditions
- Fast wear/short lifespan, especially on track; shoulder wear without enough camber
- Expensive compared with alternatives
- Poor resistance to aquaplaning/heavy rain/standing water
Summarised by AI from 12 vetted reviews; the reviews themselves are on the tyre page.
All 15 Advan A052 reviewsDriven almost exclusively on tracks with a BMW M3 E46. For me, the absolutely best tire I have used so far. I have experience with Cup, Cup2, Dunlop, Nankang.
Sizes, EU label and lineage
| Category | Sportnex CR S | Advan A052 |
|---|---|---|
| Season | Summer | Summer |
| On the market since | - | 2016 |
| Replaced | - | Yokohama Advan A048 |
Reading the results
Written from the test results and owner reviews above. It is analysis, not a measurement: where it and the tables disagree, the tables are right.
Nankang's Sportnex CR-S and Yokohama's Advan A052 sit in the same “trackday/competition” summer niche: road-legal semi-slicks designed to deliver fast laps, sharp responses and heavy braking loads without immediately falling apart. Where they diverge is in how they achieve pace-compound choice, wet capability, and how well they sustain performance when temperatures rise and laps accumulate.
Across two shared, independent tests (AutoBild Track Day 2026 and Tire Rack Extreme Performance Track 2025), a consistent theme appears. The A052 repeatedly looks like the wet-weather ace-quicker and shorter-stopping in the wet with a clear margin-while the CR-S tends to be the more complete “track day tool,” especially once you care about repeatability, long-run pace and overall scoring. If you're choosing between them, the real question becomes: do you prioritize wet confidence and subjective feel, or do you want a steadier tyre over a full session?
Conclusion
On objective dry metrics, the Nankang Sportnex CR-S generally has the edge. It beat the A052 in dry braking in both tests (30.7 m vs 30.98 m in AutoBild; 28.9 m vs 29.2 m in Tire Rack) and, more importantly for track days, it was consistently stronger over longer runs (AutoBild long run 157.42 s vs 158.98 s; Tire Rack long run 100.57 s vs 100.88 s). Professional notes also support this: the CR-S tends to stay cleaner (less pick-up) and holds together better as laps build, even if it doesn't always feel the most communicative at the limit.
In the wet, the Yokohama Advan A052 is the clear performance leader in this pairing, winning wet braking and wet handling in both tests with meaningful gaps (e.g., AutoBild wet braking 47.2 m vs 50.1 m; wet handling 129.17 s vs 133.96 s; Tire Rack wet handling 31.15 s vs 33.01 s). Testers repeatedly attribute this to its very soft compound and strong wet/ABS synergy, giving it a stable, predictable hard-braking character on wet surfaces and high ultimate wet pace-though with caveats around hydroplaning sensitivity and, in AutoBild's long-run dry work, faster degradation/pick-up.
Practical takeaway: if your track days include real rain risk, road drives home in bad weather, or you want wet performance as a priority, the A052 is the safer bet on pace and stopping. If your priority is repeatable lap times across a session, consistent dry braking, and a more “all-round” trackday tyre that tends to score better overall, the CR-S is the smarter choice-especially for drivers who value durability and long-run stability over having the wet benchmark.
Sportnex CR S vs Advan A052: your questions
Is the Nankang Sportnex CR S or the Yokohama Advan A052 the better tyre?
In the 2 independent tests that ran both tyres, the Nankang Sportnex CR S finished ahead 2 times and the Advan A052 not once. On the Tyre Reviews Score, which weighs every test and review we hold, the Sportnex CR S scores 7.3 and the Advan A052 8.1 out of 10.
Which is better in the wet, the Sportnex CR S or the Advan A052?
The Advan A052 led 5 of the 5 wet measurements the shared tests recorded. On average it stopped 5.1% shorter in the wet across 2 tests.
Which is better in the dry?
The Sportnex CR S led 5 of the 7 dry measurements the shared tests recorded. On average it stopped 1% shorter in the dry across 2 tests.
Which is quieter and more comfortable?
Owners rate comfort 3.5/10 for the Sportnex CR S and 7.1/10 for the Advan A052.
What do owners say?
Owners rate the Sportnex CR S 71% from 4 reviews and the Advan A052 82% from 15.
Run either of these?
Your review is the part of this page no test can supply: how the tyre wore, how it aged, what it was like in the rain in year three. It takes about five minutes.
Where this data comes from
Finishing positions and measurements are transcribed from each published test. A test only counts here when both tyres ran in it, so every figure was recorded on the same car, size and day as the one it is compared to.
About the TR Score
The Tyre Reviews Score rates each tyre out of 10 from every independent test result and vetted owner review we hold, so two tyres can be compared even before a test has run them together.
Who does the testing
Every test published as a Tyre Reviews test is run by Jonathan Benson, who has been testing tyres independently since 2007.
Discussion