Tyre reviews: best tyres 2015 ~ station of gear

17 Jun, 2015 2:15pm

Our experts push 11 top-selling tyres to the limit to help you pick the best tyres to buy in 2015

Tyres are big business. For the average family car, you’ll spend at least £70 to replace one tyre, and even with deals a whole set is £250-plus. So we’re here to make sure you spend your money on the right tyres.

This year, we’ve returned to the popular 225/45 R17 size found on many family cars. We last tested these in 2013, when many had just been launched to secure top ratings in the three categories of tyre labels – wet grip, fuel economy and pass-by noise. But they’ve had two years of development, and we headed to Continental’s Uvalde proving ground in an unseasonably wet and cool Texas to see how this generation of tyres stacks up now.

• Winter tyres test: reviews and prices 2014

While labelling has made picking a tyre easier, its three categories only show part of the picture – so we assess nine criteria before giving our verdict. We also include cabin noise; this is a more relevant test for drivers than pass-by noise, which tyre labels cover for environmental reasons. Plus, our results give a precise rating rather than the labels’ wide bands.

Image 5 of 34

All tests were done by Auto Express drivers apart from aquaplaning, which requires specialist skills. Rolling resistance – key to fuel economy – was rated at Continental’s R&D centre in Hanover, Germany.

• Product Awards 2015: the winners

To ensure we test what you can buy, we asked makers to nominate their most suitable tyre, which we bought on the wholesale market. So which are our top picks?

What we tested

Our 225/45R17 tyres had a speed rating of W (up to 168mph) or Y (186mph) and a weight index of 91 or 94. Tyre label ratings are measured from A (best) to G (worst) on rolling resistance (RR) and wet grip (WG), with pass-by noise (N) in decibels – the lower figure the better.

Bridgestone Turanza T001 91 Y
Ratings RR: C WG: B N: 71

Continental ContiSportContact 5 94 Y
Ratings RR: E WG: A N: 72

Dunlop Sport BluResponse 94 W
Ratings RR: B WG: A N: 69

Falken Azenis FK453 94 Y
Ratings RR: F WG: B N: 72

GT Radial Champiro HPY 94 Y
Ratings RR: E WG: B N: 70

Goodyear Eagle F1 Asymmetric 2 94 Y
Ratings RR: C WG: A N: 69

Hankook Ventus evo 2 94 Y
Ratings RR: E WG: A N: 71

Michelin Pilot Sport 3 94 Y
Ratings RR: E WG: A N: 71

Pirelli P Zero 94 Y
Ratings RR: F WG: A N: 72

Toyo Proxes T1 Sport 94 Y
Ratings RR: F WG: F N: 71

Yokohama Advan Sport V105 94 Y
Ratings RR: F WG: A N: 72

How we pick a top tyre

Image 3 of 34

Each of our 11 tyres is rated in nine key performance criteria (below), plus on price. We convert their results into percentages, with the top performer getting 100 per cent and the rest scored relative to that.

We add these percentages together to find a winner, but the results of some tests, like dry handling, are close, while in others (eg rolling resistance), there can be big gaps between the best and worst performers.

• Best sat-navs: our top picks for 2015

So we weight the scores to reflect these differences overall. The exception is price, which plays a minor role as choosing a tyre should be primarily about safety.

Here are the 10 key areas where we rate our tyres.

Wet handling

Image 23 of 34

We might not have been to Continental’s Uvalde proving ground in Texas for a few years, but we have had plenty of practice on the site’s wet handling track as it’s an exact replica of the one at the Contidrom in Hanover, Germany – right down to the surface materials. To provide the result in this test, we took an average of several lap times on the flooded circuit.

Wet cornering

Wedge yourself against the seat and accelerate until the line around the inner edge of the 55-metre circle, flooded to 1mm, can no longer be held. Repeat 10 times. The wet cornering test is tough on the stomach, but it provides a measure of pure wet grip without aquaplaning or traction playing a role. An average of lap times forms the result.

Wet braking

For the first time we used the Uvalde rail system, which ensures the car always runs over the same strip of tarmac for the wet braking test. It’s unnerving at first because no steering is required – or even allowed – but it enables you to concentrate on entry speed and braking point. Tyres are ranked based on an average of stops from 50mph.

Dry braking

Image 20 of 34

No rail system here, but there’s plenty of time to let brakes cool as the test strip is on the three-mile oval. We entered the section in our test VW Golf at around 65mph, then hit the middle pedal. GPS measures the distance needed to stop from 62mph (100kph), and we used an average of runs to rate the tyres.

Dry handling

The finishing touches were still being put to an impressive new circuit with several elevation changes when we arrived at Uvalde, so we used the twisty 1,362-metre track that winds through the Texas scrub. It combines rapid direction changes with long sweeps, and we timed how long it took to complete the constantly turning section, taking an average from three attempts.

Straight aquaplaning

Proving ground staff completed our two aquaplaning tests, and the rail was pressed into service again for the straight-line assessment, which involves accelerating hard with one wheel in the flooded section. Electronics measure the difference between the two driven wheels. When the level of slip reaches 15 per cent, the speed is recorded and an average used.

Curved aquaplaning

Image 22 of 34

You need to really be on form for this test as the car is accelerated through a curved section flooded to 5mm at increasing speeds until all grip is lost. You then need to bring it back under control. The lateral g-force is measured at the different speeds to separate the contenders.

Rolling resistance

Two tyres from each of our 11 sets were tested in Germany to see how much fuel they’ll use. It was done to industry standards at several speeds and measures how much energy is required to roll a loaded tyre. A rough rule of thumb is that you’ll see a one per cent difference in fuel economy for a five per cent change in rolling resistance.

Cabin noise

Image 21 of 34

While the noise test that dictates tyre labels is designed to make life better for those living near busy roads, the Auto Express test focuses on what a driver hears. On the three-mile oval, we measured noise levels in the cabin while coasting from 50mph over three quite different road surfaces. An average of all three runs provided the final rating.

Price

Hunting around for the best price used to involve a time-consuming series of phone calls, but Internet tyre retailers have put an end to all that. Our figures are from Black Circles – Best Site in our test of tyre retailers – and are what it charges, or what it would charge if a model isn’t part of its range, for a fitted tyre including new valve and disposal.

So what has changed since last year? Read our previous test to find out.

Thank you for reading the article about Tyre reviews: best tyres 2015 in blog station of gear If this article was helpful please bookmark this page in your web browser by pressing Ctrl + D on your keyboard keys.