2018 Auto Bild 15 inch Summer Tyre Test

Test Summary
Wet BrakingHankook Ventus Prime 3 K125
Dry BrakingBridgestone Turanza T005
Rolling ResistanceGiti GitiSynergy E1
NoiseAvon ZV7
Vredestein Sportrac 5
Fulda EcoControl HP
Bridgestone Turanza T005
Snow BrakingFulda EcoControl HP
Michelin Energy Saver
Snow HandlingInfinity Ecosis
Vredestein Sportrac 5
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. 

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.

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.

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.

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.

Results

The magazine scoring and testers notes below. As always, you can check out the Auto Bild website for the full details (in German)

1st: Hankook Ventus Prime 3 K125

Hankook Ventus Prime 3 K125
  • 195/65 R15
  • 3PMSF: no
  1. Total: 40
  2. Dry: 9
  3. Wet: 7
  4. Comfort: 6
  5. Rolling Resistance: 6
  6. Noise: 7
  7. Wear: 5
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.

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2nd: Continental Premium Contact 5

Continental Premium Contact 5
  • 195/65 R15
  • 3PMSF: no
  1. Total: 37
  2. Dry: 7
  3. Wet: 7
  4. Comfort: 6
  5. Rolling Resistance: 5
  6. Noise: 7
  7. Wear: 5
Excellent premium tyre without fault. Good steering and balance in the wet, short wet and dry braking. Quiet.
Expensive.

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3rd: Falken ZIEX ZE310 EcoRun

Falken ZIEX ZE310 EcoRun
  • 195/65 R15
  • 3PMSF: no
  1. Total: 39
  2. Dry: 7
  3. Wet: 6
  4. Comfort: 7
  5. Rolling Resistance: 4
  6. Noise: 7
  7. Wear: 8
Excellent aquaplaning safety, good steering precision and stable handling in the dry. Short wet and dry braking. Low wear.
Relatively high rolling resistance.

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4th: Firestone RoadHawk

Firestone RoadHawk
  • 195/65 R15
  • 3PMSF: no
  1. Total: 36
  2. Dry: 8
  3. Wet: 7
  4. Comfort: 7
  5. Rolling Resistance: 5
  6. Noise: 4
  7. Wear: 5
A well priced summer tyre with excellent handling, good steering precision and short braking in both the dry and wet. Good comfort.
Noisy.

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5th: Michelin Energy Saver

Michelin Energy Saver
  • 195/65 R15
  • 3PMSF: no
  1. Total: 42
  2. Dry: 7
  3. Wet: 5
  4. Comfort: 5
  5. Rolling Resistance: 8
  6. Noise: 7
  7. Wear: 10
Lowest wear and excellent rolling resistance. Short braking distances and precise handling in the dry.
Poor curved aquaplaning, high purchase price.

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6th: Pirelli Cinturato P1 Verde

Pirelli Cinturato P1 Verde
  • 195/65 R15
  • 3PMSF: no
  1. Total: 36
  2. Dry: 7
  3. Wet: 6
  4. Comfort: 5
  5. Rolling Resistance: 5
  6. Noise: 6
  7. Wear: 7
A well balanced premium tyre with safe handling in all conditions. Short wet and dry braking distances, good mileage.
Poor curved aquaplaning.

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7th: Bridgestone Turanza T005

Bridgestone Turanza T005
  • 195/65 R15
  • 3PMSF: no
  1. Total: 43
  2. Dry: 7
  3. Wet: 8
  4. Comfort: 8
  5. Rolling Resistance: 8
  6. Noise: 5
  7. 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.

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8th: Fulda EcoControl HP

Fulda EcoControl HP
  • 195/65 R15
  • 3PMSF: no
  1. Total: 42
  2. Dry: 7
  3. Wet: 5
  4. Comfort: 8
  5. Rolling Resistance: 5
  6. Noise: 7
  7. Wear: 10
Very good aquaplaning, good handling and excellent steering in the dry, lowest wear on test and lowest price.
Average wet braking.

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9th: Vredestein Sportrac 5

Vredestein Sportrac 5
  • 195/65 R15
  • 3PMSF: no
  1. Total: 42
  2. Dry: 6
  3. Wet: 6
  4. Comfort: 8
  5. Rolling Resistance: 7
  6. Noise: 8
  7. Wear: 7
Balance performance in the dry and wet, short dry braking distances, low noise, low wear.
Average aquaplaning result.

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10th: Goodyear EfficientGrip Performance

Goodyear EfficientGrip Performance
  • 195/65 R15
  • 3PMSF: no
  1. Total: 38
  2. Dry: 7
  3. Wet: 7
  4. Comfort: 7
  5. Rolling Resistance: 7
  6. Noise: 6
  7. Wear: 4
Best curved aquaplaning result, stable handling in the wet and dry.
Average fuel use, average mileage.

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11th: Dunlop Sport BluResponse

Dunlop Sport BluResponse
  • 195/65 R15
  • 3PMSF: no
  1. Total: 36
  2. Dry: 7
  3. Wet: 6
  4. Comfort: 6
  5. Rolling Resistance: 6
  6. Noise: 7
  7. Wear: 4
Good aquaplaning result, stable handling in the wet and dry.
Average fuel use, average mileage.

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12th: Uniroyal RainExpert 3

Uniroyal RainExpert 3
  • 195/65 R15
  • 3PMSF: no
  1. Total: 34
  2. Dry: 4
  3. Wet: 7
  4. Comfort: 6
  5. Rolling Resistance: 5
  6. Noise: 6
  7. Wear: 6
Best straight aquaplaning result, short wet braking distances.
High levels of understeer in the wet and dry.

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13th: Infinity Ecosis

Infinity Ecosis
  • 195/65 R15
  • 3PMSF: no
  1. Total: 33
  2. Dry: 6
  3. Wet: 5
  4. Comfort: 4
  5. Rolling Resistance: 6
  6. Noise: 8
  7. Wear: 4
Stable dry handling, low noise, low price.
Average aquaplaning result, average mileage.

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14th: Avon ZV7

Avon ZV7
  • 195/65 R15
  • 3PMSF: no
  1. Total: 31
  2. Dry: 4
  3. Wet: 6
  4. Comfort: 8
  5. Rolling Resistance: 3
  6. Noise: 6
  7. Wear: 4
Good aquaplaning result, good comfort.
Understeer in the dry, average price.

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15th: BFGoodrich gGrip

BFGoodrich gGrip
  • 195/65 R15
  • 3PMSF: no
  1. Total: 36
  2. Dry: 5
  3. Wet: 4
  4. Comfort: 6
  5. Rolling Resistance: 6
  6. Noise: 6
  7. Wear: 9
VEry low wear, low rolling resistance, low fuel use.
Poor wet grip.

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16th: Cooper Zeon CS8

Cooper Zeon CS8
  • 195/65 R15
  • 3PMSF: no
  1. Total: 29
  2. Dry: 4
  3. Wet: 6
  4. Comfort: 6
  5. Rolling Resistance: 2
  6. Noise: 7
  7. Wear: 4
Balance performance in the wet, good comfort.
Understeer in the dry, average wear, high rolling resistance.

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17th: Giti GitiSynergy E1

GiTi GitiSynergy E1
  • 195/65 R15
  • 3PMSF: no
  1. Total: 38
  2. Dry: 5
  3. Wet: 4
  4. Comfort: 6
  5. Rolling Resistance: 10
  6. Noise: 7
  7. Wear: 6
Good comfort, good wear, lowest fuel use in test.
High understeer in the dry.

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18th: Kleber Dynaxer HP 3

Kleber Dynaxer HP 3
  • 195/65 R15
  • 3PMSF: no
  1. Total: 34
  2. Dry: 4
  3. Wet: 4
  4. Comfort: 7
  5. Rolling Resistance: 6
  6. Noise: 6
  7. Wear: 7
Low wear, good comfort, good value for money.
Limited wet grip, long dry braking.

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19th: Nokian Line

Nokian Line
  • 195/65 R15
  • 3PMSF: no
  1. Total: 30
  2. Dry: 5
  3. Wet: 5
  4. Comfort: 6
  5. Rolling Resistance: 6
  6. Noise: 6
  7. Wear: 2
Short braking in the dry, low rolling resistance, good comfort levels.
Poor curved aquaplaning result, high wear.

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20th: Maxxis Premitra HP5

Maxxis Premitra HP5
  • 195/65 R15
  • 3PMSF: no
  1. Total: 32
  2. Dry: 8
  3. Wet: 6
  4. Comfort: 4
  5. Rolling Resistance: 6
  6. Noise: 7
  7. Wear: 1
Short dry braking, balance wet performance.
Very high wear making the tyre the worst value on test. Average comfort.

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