MOTOR Tyre Test 2015: The Verdict

From the get-go, 2015’s Tyre Test was a two-horse race between Continental’s high-performance on-road ‘sport’ model, the ContiSportContact 5P, and the more hard-core, road-and-track hybrid design that is Michelin’s Pilot Sport Cup 2.

The Michelin’s focused, ‘extreme’ track-friendly design demonstrated untouchable dry-running capabilities and it was certainly no slouch in the wet, as its impressive runner-up position in Wet Motorkhana certifies. That the Cup 2 was good, rather than outstanding, in Wet Braking is ultimately what let the French team down. And so very marginally at that.

The highlights of the Continental’s arsenal? According to Luff, it’s the tyre’s ability to produce a surfeit of grip everywhere, shining particularly brightly in the loaded mid-corner stuff in the dry, and it possesses an extraordinary all-round talent in the wet.

Nor does it feature an overly soft compound or have a particularly low wear rating either. At 240 UTQG (Uniform Tyre Quality Grade), its treadwear rating was about middle of the field, equal to the Toyo (240) and ‘theoretically’ more durable than the Michelin (180) or Bridgestone (140).

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