There's a lot of tyres in the 2018 Auto Bild 195/65 R15 test, so we'll keep the intro as short as possible and let the data do the talking.
It's worth keeping in mind, the twenty tyres chosen for this test have been through a 51 tyre wet and dry braking pretest. This means the tyres included in this test are some of the best tyres available on the market, had Auto Bild included some of the worst tyres in the pretest, the gap between the best and the worst tyres overall would have been much larger.
Dry
In the dry the Hankook dominated, winning both dry braking and dry handling tests. Firestone, which is a midrange brand developed by Bridgestone, beat its parent company to finish second in both dry tests, and the Maxxis Premitra HP5 was third best overall.
- Hankook Ventus Prime 3 K125
- Firestone RoadHawk
- Maxxis Premitra HP5
- Bridgestone Turanza T005
- Dunlop Sport BluResponse
- Pirelli Cinturato P1 Verde
- Continental Premium Contact 5
- Falken ZIEX ZE310 EcoRun
- Vredestein Sportrac 5
- Fulda EcoControl HP
- Nokian Line
- Goodyear EfficientGrip Performance
- Michelin Energy Saver
- Cooper Zeon CS8
- Giti GitiSynergy E1
- Infinity Ecosis
- Avon ZV7
- BFGoodrich gGrip
- Uniroyal RainExpert 3
- Kleber Dynaxer HP 3
- Hankook Ventus Prime 3 K125
- Firestone RoadHawk
- Falken ZIEX ZE310 EcoRun
- Maxxis Premitra HP5
- Fulda EcoControl HP
- Goodyear EfficientGrip Performance
- Michelin Energy Saver
- Continental Premium Contact 5
- Pirelli Cinturato P1 Verde
- Dunlop Sport BluResponse
- Infinity Ecosis
- Bridgestone Turanza T005
- Nokian Line
- Vredestein Sportrac 5
- BFGoodrich gGrip
- Kleber Dynaxer HP 3
- Uniroyal RainExpert 3
- Avon ZV7
- Giti GitiSynergy E1
- Cooper Zeon CS8
Wet
While Bridgestone couldn't match its subrange Firestone in the dry, it dominates in the wet. The first showing of the new Turanza T005 proves Bridgestone have finally got on top of their wet weather issues, and win both wet braking and wet handling tests.
Uniroyal, a brand well known for their wet weather performance manages second during wet braking but struggles during the wet handling test, probably due to it's extremely soft sidewalls affecting the handling, while Hankook proves you can make a tyre which works in both the wet and dry with the Prime 3 finishing third place in both wet braking and wet handling.
- Bridgestone Turanza T005
- Uniroyal RainExpert 3
- Hankook Ventus Prime 3 K125
- Falken ZIEX ZE310 EcoRun
- Pirelli Cinturato P1 Verde
- Continental Premium Contact 5
- Firestone RoadHawk
- Vredestein Sportrac 5
- Infinity Ecosis
- Dunlop Sport BluResponse
- Cooper Zeon CS8
- Goodyear EfficientGrip Performance
- Kleber Dynaxer HP 3
- Nokian Line
- Maxxis Premitra HP5
- Avon ZV7
- Michelin Energy Saver
- BFGoodrich gGrip
- Giti GitiSynergy E1
- Fulda EcoControl HP
- Bridgestone Turanza T005
- Firestone RoadHawk
- Hankook Ventus Prime 3 K125
- Goodyear EfficientGrip Performance
- Vredestein Sportrac 5
- Continental Premium Contact 5
- Cooper Zeon CS8
- Maxxis Premitra HP5
- Dunlop Sport BluResponse
- Pirelli Cinturato P1 Verde
- Falken ZIEX ZE310 EcoRun
- Avon ZV7
- Nokian Line
- Infinity Ecosis
- Fulda EcoControl HP
- Michelin Energy Saver
- Uniroyal RainExpert 3
- Giti GitiSynergy E1
- BFGoodrich gGrip
- Kleber Dynaxer HP 3
What the Uniroyal lacked in wet handling, it makes up for during aquaplaning testing, finishing a long way ahead of the second and third placed Avon and Goodyear.
- Uniroyal RainExpert 3
- Avon ZV7
- Goodyear EfficientGrip Performance
- Falken ZIEX ZE310 EcoRun
- Dunlop Sport BluResponse
- Fulda EcoControl HP
- Cooper Zeon CS8
- Michelin Energy Saver
- Maxxis Premitra HP5
- Nokian Line
- Firestone RoadHawk
- Continental Premium Contact 5
- BFGoodrich gGrip
- Vredestein Sportrac 5
- Pirelli Cinturato P1 Verde
- Hankook Ventus Prime 3 K125
- Kleber Dynaxer HP 3
- Bridgestone Turanza T005
- Infinity Ecosis
- Giti GitiSynergy E1
Environment
The new brand, Giti prove to have the lowest fuel use on test by a significant margin, where Bridgestone blends low fuel use and wet performance better than any other tyre.
- Infinity Ecosis
- Vredestein Sportrac 5
- Hankook Ventus Prime 3 K125
- Giti GitiSynergy E1
- Michelin Energy Saver
- Dunlop Sport BluResponse
- Fulda EcoControl HP
- Continental Premium Contact 5
- Cooper Zeon CS8
- Maxxis Premitra HP5
- Falken ZIEX ZE310 EcoRun
- Goodyear EfficientGrip Performance
- Avon ZV7
- Kleber Dynaxer HP 3
- Nokian Line
- BFGoodrich gGrip
- Pirelli Cinturato P1 Verde
- Uniroyal RainExpert 3
- Bridgestone Turanza T005
- Firestone RoadHawk
Cost
While the Infinity and Maxxis are some of the cheapest tyres on test (see third chart below), the Maxxis in particular proves to be very poor value due to having the highest wear.
The Fulda has the second lowest purchase price and the best projected wear, meaning the cost per 1000km is by far the best.
- Fulda EcoControl HP
- Vredestein Sportrac 5
- Infinity Ecosis
- BFGoodrich gGrip
- Firestone RoadHawk
- Kleber Dynaxer HP 3
- Giti GitiSynergy E1
- Falken ZIEX ZE310 EcoRun
- Pirelli Cinturato P1 Verde
- Uniroyal RainExpert 3
- Michelin Energy Saver
- Hankook Ventus Prime 3 K125
- Bridgestone Turanza T005
- Cooper Zeon CS8
- Continental Premium Contact 5
- Nokian Line
- Dunlop Sport BluResponse
- Avon ZV7
- Goodyear EfficientGrip Performance
- Maxxis Premitra HP5
- Fulda EcoControl HP
- Michelin Energy Saver
- BFGoodrich gGrip
- Falken ZIEX ZE310 EcoRun
- Kleber Dynaxer HP 3
- Bridgestone Turanza T005
- Vredestein Sportrac 5
- Pirelli Cinturato P1 Verde
- Giti GitiSynergy E1
- Uniroyal RainExpert 3
- Continental Premium Contact 5
- Firestone RoadHawk
- Hankook Ventus Prime 3 K125
- Infinity Ecosis
- Goodyear EfficientGrip Performance
- Dunlop Sport BluResponse
- Cooper Zeon CS8
- Avon ZV7
- Nokian Line
- Maxxis Premitra HP5
- Infinity Ecosis
- Fulda EcoControl HP
- Maxxis Premitra HP5
- Firestone RoadHawk
- Vredestein Sportrac 5
- Giti GitiSynergy E1
- Hankook Ventus Prime 3 K125
- Nokian Line
- Uniroyal RainExpert 3
- Cooper Zeon CS8
- Kleber Dynaxer HP 3
- Pirelli Cinturato P1 Verde
- BFGoodrich gGrip
- Dunlop Sport BluResponse
- Avon ZV7
- Falken ZIEX ZE310 EcoRun
- Goodyear EfficientGrip Performance
- Continental Premium Contact 5
- Bridgestone Turanza T005
- Michelin Energy Saver
Results
The magazine scoring and testers notes below. As always, you can check out the Auto Bild website for the full details (in German)
Test winner with excellent all round driving qualities. Strong in the wet and wet with precise steering and short wet and dry braking. Good comfort, good value for money.
Average aquaplaning result.
Total: 40
Dry
9
Wet
7
Comfort
6
Rolling Resistance
6
Noise
7
Wear
5
Excellent premium tyre without fault. Good steering and balance in the wet, short wet and dry braking. Quiet.
Expensive.
Total: 37
Dry
7
Wet
7
Comfort
6
Rolling Resistance
5
Noise
7
Wear
5
Excellent aquaplaning safety, good steering precision and stable handling in the dry. Short wet and dry braking. Low wear.
Relatively high rolling resistance.
Total: 39
Dry
7
Wet
6
Comfort
7
Rolling Resistance
4
Noise
7
Wear
8
A well priced summer tyre with excellent handling, good steering precision and short braking in both the dry and wet. Good comfort.
Noisy.
Total: 36
Dry
8
Wet
7
Comfort
7
Rolling Resistance
5
Noise
4
Wear
5
Lowest wear and excellent rolling resistance. Short braking distances and precise handling in the dry.
Poor curved aquaplaning, high purchase price.
Total: 42
Dry
7
Wet
5
Comfort
5
Rolling Resistance
8
Noise
7
Wear
10
A well balanced premium tyre with safe handling in all conditions. Short wet and dry braking distances, good mileage.
Poor curved aquaplaning.
Total: 36
Dry
7
Wet
6
Comfort
5
Rolling Resistance
5
Noise
6
Wear
7
Top wet result, short wet and dry braking distance, stable dry handling, low wear and ow fuel use.
Average aquaplaning result, high price.
Total: 43
Dry
7
Wet
8
Comfort
8
Rolling Resistance
8
Noise
5
Wear
7
Very good aquaplaning, good handling and excellent steering in the dry, lowest wear on test and lowest price.
Average wet braking.
Total: 42
Dry
7
Wet
5
Comfort
8
Rolling Resistance
5
Noise
7
Wear
10
Balance performance in the dry and wet, short dry braking distances, low noise, low wear.
Average aquaplaning result.
Total: 42
Dry
6
Wet
6
Comfort
8
Rolling Resistance
7
Noise
8
Wear
7
Best curved aquaplaning result, stable handling in the wet and dry.
Average fuel use, average mileage.
Total: 38
Dry
7
Wet
7
Comfort
7
Rolling Resistance
7
Noise
6
Wear
4
Good aquaplaning result, stable handling in the wet and dry.
Average fuel use, average mileage.
Total: 36
Dry
7
Wet
6
Comfort
6
Rolling Resistance
6
Noise
7
Wear
4
Best straight aquaplaning result, short wet braking distances.
High levels of understeer in the wet and dry.
Total: 34
Dry
4
Wet
7
Comfort
6
Rolling Resistance
5
Noise
6
Wear
6
Stable dry handling, low noise, low price.
Average aquaplaning result, average mileage.
Total: 33
Dry
6
Wet
5
Comfort
4
Rolling Resistance
6
Noise
8
Wear
4
Good aquaplaning result, good comfort.
Understeer in the dry, average price.
Total: 31
Dry
4
Wet
6
Comfort
8
Rolling Resistance
3
Noise
6
Wear
4
VEry low wear, low rolling resistance, low fuel use.
Poor wet grip.
Total: 36
Dry
5
Wet
4
Comfort
6
Rolling Resistance
6
Noise
6
Wear
9
Balance performance in the wet, good comfort.
Understeer in the dry, average wear, high rolling resistance.
Total: 29
Dry
4
Wet
6
Comfort
6
Rolling Resistance
2
Noise
7
Wear
4
Good comfort, good wear, lowest fuel use in test.
High understeer in the dry.
Total: 38
Dry
5
Wet
4
Comfort
6
Rolling Resistance
10
Noise
7
Wear
6
Low wear, good comfort, good value for money.
Limited wet grip, long dry braking.
Total: 34
Dry
4
Wet
4
Comfort
7
Rolling Resistance
6
Noise
6
Wear
7
Short braking in the dry, low rolling resistance, good comfort levels.
Poor curved aquaplaning result, high wear.
Total: 30
Dry
5
Wet
5
Comfort
6
Rolling Resistance
6
Noise
6
Wear
2
Short dry braking, balance wet performance.
Very high wear making the tyre the worst value on test. Average comfort.
Total: 32
Dry
8
Wet
6
Comfort
4
Rolling Resistance
6
Noise
7
Wear
1
How the top is made with Bridgestone T005 in 7th place with total of 43 points but Hankook on 1st place with 40 points, less than Bridgestone?
I'm very interested to purchase Bridgestone T005 for a Golf 7 and see it's very good in wet. I'm sure it's ok on dry as well. The car is user in South East Europe so not too much rain as in North of Europe. I'm surpised to see it on 7th place.
Score weighting, Auto Bild priorities certain tests over the others, such as wet braking, which in this case makes no sense.
It will have been marked down due to aquaplaning performance.
Ok, now I understood. Thank you for information. Hard to decide between Hankook and Bridgestone. I think I whill choose Hankook. Looks very balanced and much better orice.
I recommended the Hankook ahead of the T005 in the video on youtube, but I think you're right, they're very very close tyres and both make excellent choices.
Yes, I whill choose Hankook because it's very good on dry when I drive the most and the climate it's most dominant, good on wet braking and handling when anyway all of us should be careful. I was Michelin fan but seems to be too expensive on similar criterias that I have. Thank you very much for all good work and plenty information provided.
Great, let me know how you get on :)
I read more and after a personal top 3 between model on this test from Hankook, Bridgestone and Continental I choose Bridgestone T005 as brand, caracteristics and new model. I will see how works after will arrive from shop in couple of days. The price is in the middle for Bridgestone, just 5 GBP more than Hankook and less that Continental.
It's strange the same AutoBild scored Bridgestone second in below link and in this test they ranked on 7th place. I understand the logic just that it's strange, as a comment.
http://www.tyrereviews.co.u...
Hi Adrian!
Did you buy the Bridgestone T005 tires for your Golf 7?
What kind of experience do you have?
Thanks for the detailed answer!
I have one more question.
How silly are the T005 tires?
This test shows noisy tires.
The tires are very very good, the noise it's not too much, measured in the car it wasn't more than 71 dBm at 100 km / h, depends on the road and also if air condition is on or not. I'm pleased with the noise also because the VW Golf it's very good isolated so no worries about the comfort on long drive. Maybe Michelin I heard that are better on the noise but on similar tests I saw a comment the difference between different brands inside the car is not higher than 2 dBm so no big difference. The very important difference is related to safety, stability and performance on wet and dry in any conditions, I'm very please with Bridgestone T005 comparing with Michelin that I used on other cars (Peugeot 207 and VW Golf 6) or Pirelly that I used on Golf 7. Looking back for Michelin used I remember the noise was a little lower but I didn't feel so confident on corners as with Bridgestone so I prefer T005. On 195/65 R15 they kept all 4 lines for water evacuation and for this size the performance from Bridgestone is the best, I think it's doing a very good job on other sizes as well depends on criteria from everybody. I drive on various type of roads, highways or country roads were safety, control and comfort it's the best on all situations. I drove them at the limit without worries or feeling I can lose control. Every time the feedback from the road was there and the traction from the car responded well. Looking on the price you'll see that it's a best buy performance tire, better price than Conti PC5, Michelin or Pirelly, price similar with Good Year or Dunlop but the performance it's better and new generation, it doesn't compare with previous generations, it's much better and balanced.. Look for your feedback to see what decision will take. From my side I recommend T005, it's the new generation from Bridgestone.
Cheeky request Adrian, but if you haven't already it would be super helpful to leave a review :)
http://www.tyrereviews.co.u...
Hi,
Yes, I already did a review also on that section, thank you for all support and wonderful work with this platform to share all information.
Great, thank you for your support too :)
The wear results are to be taken with a pinch of salt. Unless these tests go to the lengths of convoy driving to wear, the 'lab wear' is not realistic. A lot of these tyres have just been on my short-list, comparing test results and user reviews to find what is most appropriate, I purchased the Pirelli P1 Verde. The tests find that they offer good wet/dry grip/behaviour, decent longevity, and reasonable fuel consumption, whilst the user reviews report just the same.
Premium contact 5, roadhawk, t005 etc test really well, and users report similar behaviour subjectively, but report appalling wear, often bearing a 'not recommended' or 'avoid' message due to the stupidly short longevity.
I shall report my findings of the P1 verde later, but initial impressions are of a surefooted wet tyre...
I think the wear tests are relatively accurate. Just did +- 30000km with the PC5 on the front axle of a Focus II 1.6 TDCI; 90% driving in and around town.
Ordered the Hankooks this time; 10€ cheaper per tyre and better in the dry than the PC5.
A shame they will probably wear out just as fast...
I have ventus prime 3 and before premium contact 1. Hankooks are much better at handling and cornering (as expected from tires that are 2-3 generations newer) but worse in braking than PC1 (I'm really surprised here).
I don't know if same tires on different cars can have different characteristics, but it may be the case. I remember reading somewhere sometime about cooperation between Michelin and PSA about tweaking the OEM tires for some cars from PSA.
On OEM tires that's expected, I think there was article here on TR.co.uk about Pirelli OEM's for Mercedes, BMW and Audi and what are the differences on the same model.
Tests of aftermarket tires are usually done using VAG vehicles, and maybe the tire manufacturers tweak the tires towards better characteristics and cooperation with the electronics on those cars. Just my thoughts.
I have ventus prime 3 and before premium contact 1. Hankooks are much better at handling and cornering (as expected from tires that are 2-3 generations newer) but worse in braking than PC1 (I'm really surprised here).
I don't know if same tires on different cars can have different characteristics, but it may be the case. I remember reading somewhere sometime about cooperation between Michelin and PSA about tweaking the OEM tires for some cars from PSA.
On OEM tires that's expected, I think there was article here on TR.co.uk about Pirelli OEM's for Mercedes, BMW and Audi and what are the differences on the same model.
Tests of aftermarket tires are usually done using VAG vehicles, and maybe the tire manufacturers tweak the tires towards better characteristics and cooperation with the electronics on those cars. Just my thoughts.
As far as I'm aware Auto Bild run the tyres for 10,000 km then extrapolate the wear from there, so it's a fairly accurate picture.
But is that a road convoy or a machine?
Example of the Roadhawk, its showing here as reasonable, they were originally my choice, but reading the user reviews on here, most reviews are claiming that the tread almost disappears in a blink of an eye, so I stayed away for now pending more reviews/tests.
My point was more, where wear rusults in particular are quoted, do some research by fielding reviews to see what users have found, as always, read both tests and reviews to find what suits.
I've not checked this year, but previously Auto Bild have used road convoys for wear testing.
The disparity does interest me, I'll research it further and report back :)
Yep, the Maxxis does wear a lot in the beginning. Ive written a review on this site about this...
Back then I had done 10k km with them being on the rear axle.
(183k-193k). That day I bought 2 new tyres which were placed at the back (Vredestein Ultrac Satin), and the Maxxis were brought to the front. I changed to winter tires at 211k. So until now the Maxxis have done 28k.. (I'm at 220k now, but still on winter tyres)..
It seems the Maxxis premitra start wearing extremely fast, offering good grip, but after that changes character..
I just checked the thread depth (the tyres are in my garage), and it's 5mm. So 28k until now. So the first 10k on the rear axle I lost like 1.5mm (7.5 to 6mm), the next 18k at the front I lost only 1mm.
The tyres have become noisier over time, the grip in fast turns has become worse..
Could it be that Maxxis has different rubber qualities in this tyre?
- great dry/wet result in the beginning at the cost of durability for tests like this Auto Bild test.. after the initial 'setup' the rubber changes characteristics, so ultimately the tyres last as long as 'normal', but ride quality decreases..
Because of this autobild measures terrible wear, but good other results... Which might be good for Maxxis?
I wouldn't want to talk about a specific brand without doing the testing myself, but it's certainly technically possible to do something as you suggest.