Last extremely long km, but very poor wet performance, a lot of understanding
205/45 R15 Tyres
Everything we know about the 205/45 R15 tyre size: 9 owner reviews covering 107,000 miles of driving, and EU label data for the tyres you can actually buy in it.
- 9owner reviews
- 107,000 milescovered on them
- 6tyres made in this size
205/45 R15 EU tyre label data
EU label values are declared for each individual size, so the figures here are exact for 205/45 R15 rather than a range across a model. 3 tyres carry label data in this size. The most common load index is 81 (up to 462 kg per tyre). Speed ratings on offer: V (240 km/h).
70dB Quietest tyres
The quietest 205/45 R15 tyres are labelled at 70 dB external noise:
- Starmaxx Ultra Sport ST730 Summer 7.1
- Toyo Proxes TR1 Summer 6.8
- Petlas Velox Sport PT711 Summer
Label values come from the EU EPREL database and apply to the EU market versions of each tyre. Wet grip and rolling resistance run from class A (best) to E; noise is the measured drive-by figure. A good label is a floor, not a verdict - the tests and owner ratings above tell you far more.
What does 205/45 R15 mean?
A 205/45 R15 tyre is 205 mm wide, its sidewall is 45% of that width (92 mm) tall, and it fits a 15 inch wheel. That gives an overall diameter of roughly 566 mm.
| Section width | 205 mm |
|---|---|
| Sidewall height | 92 mm |
| Rim diameter | 15" (381 mm) |
| Overall diameter | ≈ 566 mm |
| Circumference | ≈ 1,777 mm |
| Revolutions per km | ≈ 563 |
| Revolutions per mile | ≈ 906 |
Also written as
205/45R15 205/45 ZR15 205-45-15 205 45 15
Figures are calculated from the nominal size. A loaded, rolling tyre runs a few percent smaller, and true widths vary slightly between makes.
What cars use 205/45 R15 tyres?
The cars most often running this size in our owner reviews. Each links to the best rated tyres for that exact car.
Every tyre reviewed in 205/45 R15
The complete record, including discontinued tyres and tyres with too few reviews to rank, ordered by the amount of evidence. A further 7 tyres have a single review each; they count toward the totals but are not listed.
| Tyre | Season | Owner rating | Reviews | Distance reviewed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Toyo T1R Replaced by Toyo Proxes T1 Sport+ | Summer | 79% | 2 | 26,000 miles |
Reviews only cover part of the market: 6 tyres are made in 205/45 R15. Browse every 205/45 R15 tyre →
What drivers say about their 205/45 R15 tyres
The most recent owner reviews fitted in this size, in their own words.
Great track tyre, great value for money, on the same class as R888 and R888R by Toyo. Not especially good in wet roads, of course not recommended for a daily driver due to noise, stiffness, warm up times etc. A great tire for the weekend track car and the occasional mountain road, as long as you warm them up a bit first, then push the car. I tried both 195/50/15 and 205/45/15 and i can recommend the latter, as they basically are a 215 width tire, branded as a 205. Can achieve the same lap times for 5-10 fast laps, then they need cooldown. Tread is very few mm, will wear down very fast if you hit the track often, but the dry grip stays high even when worn.
Pretty woeful.
Put these on my old 1.4 corsa and even the mighty 80bhp was too much for these tyres. They would happily spin up in the dry let alone the wet.
Even had some oversteer on a wet roundabout a couple of times, and this was hardly even pushing them. Worse thing was it wasn't even progressive, would just let go out of no where.
Quickly changed to yoko's spec 2's. Awesome tyre in comparison.
Put these on my old 1.4 corsa and even the mighty 80bhp was too much for these tyres. They would happily spin up in the dry let alone the wet.
Even had some oversteer on a wet roundabout a couple of times, and this was hardly even pushing them. Worse thing was it wasn't even progressive, would just let go out of no where.
Quickly changed to yoko's spec 2's. Awesome tyre in comparison.
I bought these tyres for my Honda Integra Type R (1996).
All I can say is WOW, the first time I pushed them after wearing them in, was in the wet and could not believe the amount of "first gear launch" grip. It gripped just like my old tyres did in the dry, but in the wet!
The wet grip is the best I have ever experienced from a tyre.
The dry grip, still, absolutely outstanding, far better than a lot of tyres I have used, I would say probably the best for the road! The only downside is that the sidewalls are a bit soft, so you will notice a bit of "tyre roll" when flicking in and out of bends.
These tyres are very soft, so don't expect them to last a huge amount of time, for me they still last long enough to keep me from complaining.
The downside to the softness, is when using these in a track environment, they will get TOO hot and will start melting away and losing you grip, as for the road though, these are the best you can buy.
I have just bought two more of these for the front wheels on my TDI Ibiza to see how they grip with the 300ft lb of torque, if I am happy, I will replace the rears with these also.
All I can say is WOW, the first time I pushed them after wearing them in, was in the wet and could not believe the amount of "first gear launch" grip. It gripped just like my old tyres did in the dry, but in the wet!
The wet grip is the best I have ever experienced from a tyre.
The dry grip, still, absolutely outstanding, far better than a lot of tyres I have used, I would say probably the best for the road! The only downside is that the sidewalls are a bit soft, so you will notice a bit of "tyre roll" when flicking in and out of bends.
These tyres are very soft, so don't expect them to last a huge amount of time, for me they still last long enough to keep me from complaining.
The downside to the softness, is when using these in a track environment, they will get TOO hot and will start melting away and losing you grip, as for the road though, these are the best you can buy.
I have just bought two more of these for the front wheels on my TDI Ibiza to see how they grip with the 300ft lb of torque, if I am happy, I will replace the rears with these also.
Very good tyre for winter. Good on snow/icy... Drops on wet/rainy surface...
Weariness is awesome. Was driven on summer too...
Weariness is awesome. Was driven on summer too...
Especially for a Caterham or Lotus this is probably the best thing out there, the amount of dry grip is truly insane - at the end of the day it's a semi-slick so it's going to be good. Even in the wet this is still a great tyre - I've driven through torrential rain storms in southern france, through several cm's standing water at 70mph+ and I'm still here. In the dry go round a few corners hard, the tyres will warm up and you'll stick to the road like nothing else!
I have these tyres on my Peugeot 106 GTi and my Ford Fiesta Van. Very good tyre in the dry, you really feel like you can push them to the limit and have confidence. Totally different story in the wet I found. I live in Scotland, it's wet A LOT of the time. I found the tyres quite poor in wet conditions, roundabouts were my main concern. Having to slow right down before being confident in the tyre.
The wear on them is extremely low and there is very little road noise. I'd think twice about buying again due to the wet feedback.
The wear on them is extremely low and there is very little road noise. I'd think twice about buying again due to the wet feedback.
I've had several sets of these and have tried different profiles 2.2 VTEC with Bilstein/Eibach suspension.
On a hot summer's day when warmed up, these tyres are absolutely unbeatable for flat out acceleration, cornering, and braking. Far better than the sport equivalent Good Year's, Continental's, Pirelli's, Dunlop's and other lesser value brands I've driven on. Feedback is excellent, tyre roll is minimal, and progressive break-away is controllable with a little experience. They are extremely predictable which inspires great confidence late braking and tight corners.
On a warm (10 degrees C plus) wet road, they are also very grippy.
However old cold or freezing roads, they are only above average on dry roads. On a cold wet road, the performance is fairly poor - comparible to a good budget brand (eg CEAT Spider).
On snow, slush and ice, they are absolutely useless. It's unfortunate really as these tyres cost me £50-60 each, yet I've spent £100+ per tyre for other big brands and not has as good grip in the warm and dry.
Overall a fantastic SUMMER tyre. A average/below average WINTER tyre. Wear is average to poor, but I'd expect that from such a soft grippy tyre. Expect 10-15K miles with a high performance car and spirited driving.
On a hot summer's day when warmed up, these tyres are absolutely unbeatable for flat out acceleration, cornering, and braking. Far better than the sport equivalent Good Year's, Continental's, Pirelli's, Dunlop's and other lesser value brands I've driven on. Feedback is excellent, tyre roll is minimal, and progressive break-away is controllable with a little experience. They are extremely predictable which inspires great confidence late braking and tight corners.
On a warm (10 degrees C plus) wet road, they are also very grippy.
However old cold or freezing roads, they are only above average on dry roads. On a cold wet road, the performance is fairly poor - comparible to a good budget brand (eg CEAT Spider).
On snow, slush and ice, they are absolutely useless. It's unfortunate really as these tyres cost me £50-60 each, yet I've spent £100+ per tyre for other big brands and not has as good grip in the warm and dry.
Overall a fantastic SUMMER tyre. A average/below average WINTER tyre. Wear is average to poor, but I'd expect that from such a soft grippy tyre. Expect 10-15K miles with a high performance car and spirited driving.
Drive on 205/45 R15 tyres?
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Where this data comes from
Owner ratings are submitted through the review form on this site, naming the tyre, the size and the distance covered, and are checked by hand before publication. Test results come from independent published tyre tests indexed by size, and label values from the EU EPREL database.
About the TR Score
The Tyre Reviews Score rates each tyre out of 10 using independent test results and the full body of owner reviews, so you can check a car-specific ranking against the wider evidence.
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.