2016 Off Road Summer SUV Tyre Test

Test Summary
Wet BrakingNokian Line SUV
Dry BrakingContinental Cross Contact UHP
WearContinental Cross Contact UHP
Nokian Line SUV
Rolling ResistanceContinental Cross Contact UHP
Nokian Line SUV
Star Performer SUV 1
Off road vehicles don't always spend all their time off road, and the new generation of "soft-road" vehicles can go their entire lives without seeing so much as a muddy verge.

For this reason, the German "Off Road" magazine have chosen to test six 215/65 R16 tyres on an Audi Q3, which are designed to spend 99% of their life on the road.

The Top Three

Continental win this test with the CrossContact UHP. The Continental tyre offers the best balance between dry and wet braking, excellent handling in the wet and a low rolling resistance. It is however the most expensive tyre on test, the nosiest tyre on test, and has a tendency to understeer in the dry at the limit.

Second place is awarded to Nokian with the Line SUV. The Nokian boasts the shortest wet braking, but can only manage an average result in the dry braking test.  It has excellent rolling resistance and is just half a decibel louder than the quietest tyre on test.

Goodyear round out the top three places with the EfficientGrip SUV. The Goodyear proves to be a very strong all round tyre, and the quietest tyre on test, with the only negatives a high rolling resistance and a slight balance instability under extreme load changes.

Fourth to Sixth

Pirelli placed fourth with the Scorpion Verde. The Pirelli couldn't quite match the top three tyres in the handling or aquaplaning tests, but was the strongest tyre under dry braking.

Hankook could only manage fifth place. The Dynapro HP2 RA33 had excellent wet braking, but the worst dry braking on test, and while it was a quiet tyre it had a high rolling resistance.

Last place went to the budget Star Performer SUV-1. While it scored well in the rolling resistance and aquaplaning tests, the low cost Star Performer scored extremely badly under wet braking, dry braking and the noise tests.

Full Results

With five of the six tyres recommended, the gap between the best tyres on the market is ever shrinking. The full results are below with further details.

1st: Continental Cross Contact UHP

Continental Cross Contact UHP
  • 215/65 R16
  • 3PMSF: no
  1. Total: 35
  2. Dry: 7
  3. Wet: 10
  4. Rolling Resistance: 9
  5. Overall: 9
Short braking distances and good handling on wet surfaces, low rolling resistance
Tendency to understeer on dry surfaces, high price
Highly recommended

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2nd: Nokian Line SUV

Nokian Line SUV
  • 215/65 R16
  • 3PMSF: no
  1. Total: 36
  2. Dry: 9
  3. Wet: 9
  4. Rolling Resistance: 9
  5. Overall: 9
Good dry and wet balance with a hint of understeer. Shortest wet braking
Longer dry braking
Highly recommended

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3rd: Goodyear EfficientGrip SUV

Goodyear EfficientGrip SUV
  • 215/65 R16
  • 3PMSF: no
  1. Total: 28
  2. Dry: 6
  3. Wet: 9
  4. Rolling Resistance: 6
  5. Overall: 7
Good in all conditions
High rolling resistance, poor lateral stability during emergency turns
Recommended

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4th: Pirelli Scorpion Verde

Pirelli Scorpion Verde
  • 215/65 R16
  • 3PMSF: no
  1. Total: 27
  2. Dry: 7
  3. Wet: 7
  4. Rolling Resistance: 6
  5. Overall: 7
Good braking
And oversteer balance, high wear
Recommended

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5th: Hankook Dynapro HP2 RA33

Hankook Dynapro HP2 RA33
  • 215/65 R16
  • 3PMSF: no
  1. Total: 25
  2. Dry: 6
  3. Wet: 7
  4. Rolling Resistance: 6
  5. Overall: 6
Low noise, short braking distances in the wet
Poor resistance to aquaplaning, poor dry braking performance
Recommended

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6th: Star Performer SUV 1

Star-Performer SUV 1
  • 215/65 R16
  • 3PMSF: no
  1. Total: 21
  2. Dry: 4
  3. Wet: 4
  4. Rolling Resistance: 9
  5. Overall: 4
Cheap, high resistance to aquaplaning, low rolling resistance
Poor braking in the dry and wet, poor handling and grip in the dry and wet
Satisfactory

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