New issue of Evo - Winter Tyre Test

Last, by a massive margin, because they marked them at -30 something % for snow.

I was goning to post the figures and then recalculate them without the snow values, but as I have no idea how they have got the figures in the first place, I cant.

Using the 'average of the 4 percentages' figure, the Michelin all rounder beats the Conti snow tyre, which conflicts with what they have in their table (Conti snow top, Michelin second).

I've not read the whole article, so it may well be explained in there. But from a glance at the results table, the figures alone make no sense.
 
burns said:
Any idea how they got that figure? I couldn't really see it tbh.
Click to expand...

the summer CSCs on couldn't set a lap time for the snow test as it couldn't get up the hill at the start of the circuit...
Click to expand...

That was probably the justification although how that equates to a -30% I don't know.

Just an assumption, I don't read Evo.
 
I'm sure the article will detail more, but I would figure not being able to complete a test is a 0%. What they are saying is that in the snow the summer Conti is over 30% worse than not moving at all.

Like I said, all the figures look a bit odd. I still need to figure out the final percentages.
 
Skeeter said:
I'm sure the article will detail more, but I would figure not being able to complete a test is a 0%. What they are saying is that in the snow the summer Conti is over 30% worse than not moving at all.

Like I said, all the figures look a bit odd. I still need to figure out the final percentages.
Click to expand...

:D It does seem odd. I might pick up a copy as I could do with something to thumb through while waiting for a presentation this evening.
 
Will try to get a useable reproduction later but as an example, the snow breaking test (from 25mph with ABS) saw the Conti WC stop in 19.7m (100%) but the Conti SC took 72.7m (-152.4%)
 
[TW]Fox;20269169 said:
Ice on a the windscreen forms far easier than on roads.
Click to expand...

Sorry, that statement is too glib and not fact based, it will depend on a number of factors including dew levels, residual moisture, heat inside the vehicle, how much radiant heat has been stored in the road sub layers etc etc. All things being equal, yes, faster on windscreen, but some areas of road are subjected to abnormal wind chill and can form ice amazingly fast with no impact on your windscreen. A car that spends overnight in town may never get ice on the windscreen but still come accross icy country roads ;)

The other difference is that once your car has heat to the windcsreen, there will be no ice, yet you can still come accross ice on the roads with no warning.

But Ice is not the only factor, (or snow) Winter tyres will have a better compound to deal with any temps below 7 degrees C, and they also deal with salt slime better than summer/all season tyres. Below 7 degrees, all season tyres will massively underperform winter tyres above 7 degrees, the all season tyres will start to get better exponentially. Because we spend little time below 7 degrees, we don't have a compulsion to fit winter tyres like other countries.

Like you repeatedly say Fox, winter tyers, not better in rain, where they are better is sub 7 degree temps, so a clear dry day with 2 degrees ambient will show an improvement for winter tyres, 12 degrees and wet, the all season tyre will win.

November to February I would think our average 24hr temperature is below 7 degrees.
 
They probably got a large amount of money for putting the percents in favour of winter tyres, to do so they just made some numbers up, and conti obviously paid the most :p :p

As winter is fast approaching i decided to get some cut slicks...oh wait...
 
Just read the article. Edited highlights are Conti Sport Contact 3 was best in the dry (<7°), was not the best in the wet (<7°) but neither the worst, and was the worst in snow. Because of the snow result it came last overall.

Something for Fox to look forward to when he comes home from holiday!
 
Who made 7C the magic number?

Should I carry around a spare set of tyres incase the road temperature reaches 8C?

Important questions needing important answers!
 
I thought this whole 7C nonsense was what was up for debate as there haven't been any tests before that directly compare decent summer tyres to decent winter tyres in cold but otherwise normal wet and dry conditions.

Has the Evo test done this or not?

edit - from what Westyfield has summarised above, it would seem the summer Sport Contact tyres actually performed rather well under 7C, which would rather imply the idea that all winter tyres perform better in the cold due to compound is a load of dingo's kidneys.
 
I have the article myself.

Tyres tested are all 225/45/17 on VW Golf and Seat Leon

Winter tyres
Continental Contiwintercontact TS £177
Dunlop SP wintersport 4d succ £165
Goodyear Ultragrip performance 2 £189
Michelin Alpin A4 £222
Nankang snow SV-2 £94
Pirelli sottozero w240 serie 2 £165

All season
Hankook optimo 4s £133
Kumho solus vier £115
Vredestein quatrac 3 £144

Summer

Continental Contisportcontact 3 £127

Snow circuit evenly spread down to 9th

1st Vredestein all season 107.2
2nd Goodyear winter 107.3
3rd Pirelli winter 107.4
9th Kumho all season 121.0
10th Conti summer no time.

Braking from 25mph with ABS

1st Conti winter 19.7m
Evenly spread
8th Nankang 23.8
9th Kumho 27.0
10th Conti summer 72.7

Wet circuit lap times 5 second even spread fastest to slowest summer tyre 7th.

Aquaplanning resistance

Conti summer tyre 1st 79.6kmph.
Conti winter tyre second best with 71.4kmph

Wet braking/stopping distance from 50m with an even spread of results

1st conti winter 35.8m
10th conti summer 43.0m

Dry circuit lap times 5 second even spread.

1st conti summer 114.6 seconds
2nd vredestein (all season) 117.7
10th Pirelli 119.2

Dry braking from 50mph

1st conti summer 37.1m
2nd vredestein (all season)41.6
10th Michelin 43.6

To me that summarises as a massive MEH.

Unless it is guaranteed to snow for a long period of time, ill just leave summer tyres on the car. Other summer tyres test may have performed better in the conditions, whose to know. The hassle of buying and storing a set of winter tyres is too great to bother in the UK for what might be a week of disruption. With all the roads being gridlocked anyway, even if you do have suitable tyres your workplace may not even be open or the shops.
 
Last edited:
The Conti Winter stops in the WET just over 1m shorter than the Conti Summer stops in the DRY (which is the best tyre in that test)?

Something doesn't add up with the wet vs dry 50mph braking, that means the Conti Winter can stop vastly better in the wet than it can in the dry :confused:
 
Berger said:
I have the article myself.

Ignoring the snow as the summer tyre will obviously be rubbish.

Wet circuit lap times 5 second even spread fastest to slowest summer tyre 7th.

Aquaplanning resistance

Conti summer tyre 1st 79.6kmph.
Conti winter tyre second best with 71.4kmph

Wet braking/stopping distance from 50m with an even spread of results

1st conti winter 35.8m
10th conti summer 43.0m

Dry circuit lap times 5 second even spread.

1st conti summer 114.6 seconds
2nd vredestein (all season) 117.7
10th Pirelli 119.2

Dry braking from 50mph

1st conti summer 37.1m
2nd vredestein (all season)41.6
10th Michelin 43.6

To me that summarises as a massive MEH.

Unless it is guaranteed to snow for a long period of time, ill just leave summer tyres on the car. Other summer tyres test may have performed better in the conditions, whose to know. The hassle of buying and storing a set of winter tyres is too great to bother in the UK for what might be a week of disruption. With all the roads being gridlocked anyway, even if you do have suitable tyres your workplace may not even be open or the shops.
Click to expand...

Thanks for breaking it down.

But I will be sticking to a good set of winter rubber for the ungritted roads we have in Cumbria.
 
Kenai said:
The Conti Winter stops in the WET just over 1m shorter than the Conti Summer stops in the DRY (which is the best tyre in that test)?

Something doesn't add up with the wet vs dry 50mph braking, that means the Conti Winter can stop vastly better in the wet than it can in the dry :confused:
Click to expand...

That is quite amusing now you have pointed it out. Retrofit headlight washers that point at the ground infront of the car to wet the ground when you press the brake pedal.
 
That's all very well, but i still don't understand the overall figures. They look so fishy that I can only assume they have been made up.

And alexisonfire, I love your winter tyre choice! :)
 
Gonna have to buy this and read it, the data so far provided by berger is incomplete and tells me nothing of any use.

What is "Dry" temperature? Condtions? Salted Road? Non Salted Road?

This is the problem with most tyre tests is they test at a very specific set of conditions that may bear no resemblence to the conditions we drive in.

Fox has often said there have been no decent tests to show winter tyres to be of value, I am not sure this changes anything.

Winter tyres for the odd day we may get snow, not worth it, winter tyres that Are a significant margin better in December and January, could well be worth it.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom