Very please with this tyre.
Running on Renault Sport Megane GT220 with refreshed suspension (shocks and bushings and a few other worn item replaced with new OEM parts)
Car has no limited slip differential like other Renault Sport so front grip is especially important for this vehicle
I use the car for spirited mountain driving.
Use to Run Maxxis HP5 since two near new tyres came on the rear when purchased and I got matching ones for the front.
The HP5's are a great wet and dry tyre for regular driving but struggled when pushed on demand twisty mountain roads both on corner exit traction and side wall rigidly, rolling over with excess wear.
Replaced the rim and tyre running some Dunlop Direzza Ziii's which drastically improved grip and handling yet where also noisy in curtain conditions and required heat and pressure monitoring to get the best of them.
Due to being winter ATM I decided to save the Ziii's for summer and track driving and replace the HP5'S with Max Contact 7. I got the XL (extra load version) with the re-enforced sidewall. For me they perfectly bride the gap between a comfortable high grip road tyre and a semi slick. No warm up required they start grippy straight away as soon as you arrive at your favourite twisty road, braking is excellent, I didn't once have the ABS pulsate even in very heavy breaking or at least feel like it cut in at all.
Traction is dramatically improved as well as cornering ability and lateral gfoce I can feel working my core to keep me in the seat bolster.
Initial turn in is fantastic and is very stable, however unlike a semi slick like the Ziii it does need a very small moment to deal with fast direction change loads like suddenly going into a sharp right directly after a hard left without straighten up in between.
That's where the a quality semi slick will be noticeably different.
Noise level is definitely very good obviously alot better than my Ziii although being the XL version the re-enforced side wall means it's rides more on the sporty side rather than plush ride but certainly still very acceptable for the type of tyre.
For the price point in Australia I don't think there's any UHP tyre that is comparable. I've driven on Michelin PS4's and Bridgestone Potenza sports both fantastic but also 2-3 times the price for what I think are both comparable tyres.
Price point wise in Australia the Maxxis HP5 and Bridgetone RE003 are Kuhmo Ecsta PS71 (I've driven on all 3) are all in the same ball park.
The HP5 is grippy wet and dry tyre for street use but above 7/10ths on a twisty road and it falls apart.
The RE003 is a nice weekend dry tyre in warm weather but is a bit old now. It only has an A not AA wet traction rating and just doesn't have the dynamic range of a modern UHP tyres to cope with all conditions.
The PS71 (yes I know the PS72 is now out but it's in a higher price point) has a nice blend of performance and dynamics in wet and dry however it's ultimate grip and ability sits below current top shelf UHP tyres including the MC7.
Can't comment on wear cause I haven't had it long but I didn't get excess shoulder wear like I did on the HP5 after an aggressive mountain drive.
The tread wear rating is apparently 360 too.
Which is surprising given the grip.
The RE003 has a 220 rating, the HP5 has a 340 rating and my Ziii has a 200tw.
Grip wise they feel in between the RE003 and the Ziii. However being a new tyre with new compound technology is it possible for both high grip and long life? Only time will tell.
Running on Renault Sport Megane GT220 with refreshed suspension (shocks and bushings and a few other worn item replaced with new OEM parts)
Car has no limited slip differential like other Renault Sport so front grip is especially important for this vehicle
I use the car for spirited mountain driving.
Use to Run Maxxis HP5 since two near new tyres came on the rear when purchased and I got matching ones for the front.
The HP5's are a great wet and dry tyre for regular driving but struggled when pushed on demand twisty mountain roads both on corner exit traction and side wall rigidly, rolling over with excess wear.
Replaced the rim and tyre running some Dunlop Direzza Ziii's which drastically improved grip and handling yet where also noisy in curtain conditions and required heat and pressure monitoring to get the best of them.
Due to being winter ATM I decided to save the Ziii's for summer and track driving and replace the HP5'S with Max Contact 7. I got the XL (extra load version) with the re-enforced sidewall. For me they perfectly bride the gap between a comfortable high grip road tyre and a semi slick. No warm up required they start grippy straight away as soon as you arrive at your favourite twisty road, braking is excellent, I didn't once have the ABS pulsate even in very heavy breaking or at least feel like it cut in at all.
Traction is dramatically improved as well as cornering ability and lateral gfoce I can feel working my core to keep me in the seat bolster.
Initial turn in is fantastic and is very stable, however unlike a semi slick like the Ziii it does need a very small moment to deal with fast direction change loads like suddenly going into a sharp right directly after a hard left without straighten up in between.
That's where the a quality semi slick will be noticeably different.
Noise level is definitely very good obviously alot better than my Ziii although being the XL version the re-enforced side wall means it's rides more on the sporty side rather than plush ride but certainly still very acceptable for the type of tyre.
For the price point in Australia I don't think there's any UHP tyre that is comparable. I've driven on Michelin PS4's and Bridgestone Potenza sports both fantastic but also 2-3 times the price for what I think are both comparable tyres.
Price point wise in Australia the Maxxis HP5 and Bridgetone RE003 are Kuhmo Ecsta PS71 (I've driven on all 3) are all in the same ball park.
The HP5 is grippy wet and dry tyre for street use but above 7/10ths on a twisty road and it falls apart.
The RE003 is a nice weekend dry tyre in warm weather but is a bit old now. It only has an A not AA wet traction rating and just doesn't have the dynamic range of a modern UHP tyres to cope with all conditions.
The PS71 (yes I know the PS72 is now out but it's in a higher price point) has a nice blend of performance and dynamics in wet and dry however it's ultimate grip and ability sits below current top shelf UHP tyres including the MC7.
Can't comment on wear cause I haven't had it long but I didn't get excess shoulder wear like I did on the HP5 after an aggressive mountain drive.
The tread wear rating is apparently 360 too.
Which is surprising given the grip.
The RE003 has a 220 rating, the HP5 has a 340 rating and my Ziii has a 200tw.
Grip wise they feel in between the RE003 and the Ziii. However being a new tyre with new compound technology is it possible for both high grip and long life? Only time will tell.