2012 Autoreview Touring Tire Test

9 Premium Touring Summer tires tested in 205/55 R16 | Published July 16th, 2012 by Jonathan Benson

While German tire tests are great at putting raw figures together, they often miss out on some of the subjective feel of the tire. This is where the Russian magazine Auto Review comes into its own, combining great data along with the subjective feel felt when driving on each tire.

In 2012 Auto Review have tested 9 touring tires on an Audi A3 in 205/55 R16 91V. Auto Review selected the newest breed of touring tires, specifically designed to save fuel without sacrificing performance in any other areas, such as wet grip.

The Results

As always, the results at the top were extremely tight, sometimes with only the subjective feel distinguishing one tire from the next.

Click here to view Results as a single table and adjust the score weighting based on your own driving needs!

1st: Hankook Ventus Prime2
205/55 R16 3PMSF: no	Total: 80.2 Dry: 18 Wet: 37 Comfort: 8 Rolling Resistance: 8 Overall: 9.2 Best aquaplaning result, strong grip on dry and wet roads A little unstable during the wet handling tests Read Reviews Buy from £83.99
2nd: Nokian Hakka Blue
205/55 R16 3PMSF: no	Total: 81.2 Dry: 18 Wet: 38 Comfort: 9 Rolling Resistance: 7 Overall: 9.2 Fastest laptimes in the dry and wet Increased rolling resistance, average aquaplaning results Read Reviews
3rd: Pirelli CINTURATO P7
205/55 R16 3PMSF: no	Total: 79.2 Dry: 18 Wet: 36 Comfort: 8 Rolling Resistance: 8 Overall: 9.2 One of the lowest rolling resistance, excellent braking, good dry handling A little unstable during the wet handling tests Read Reviews Buy from £66.98
4th: Continental Premium Contact 5
205/55 R16 3PMSF: no	Total: 77.7 Dry: 18 Wet: 35 Comfort: 8 Rolling Resistance: 8 Overall: 8.7 One of the lowest rolling resistances, accurate steering, good control in the wet Low resistance to aquaplaning Read Reviews Buy from £84.99
5th: Michelin Pilot Sport 3 PS3
205/55 R16 3PMSF: no	Total: 76.7 Dry: 18 Wet: 34 Comfort: 8 Rolling Resistance: 8 Overall: 8.7 Well balanced in all tests, good grip in the dry and wet Low resistance to aquaplaning, slightly slow steering response Read Reviews
6th: Goodyear EfficientGrip
205/55 R16 3PMSF: no	Total: 77.7 Dry: 17 Wet: 35 Comfort: 9 Rolling Resistance: 8 Overall: 8.7 Good steering response, predictable at the limit, high resistance to aquaplaning Average overall grip in the wet and dry Read Reviews Buy from £72.00
7th: Dunlop SP Sport Fast Response
205/55 R16 3PMSF: no	Total: 74.5 Dry: 16 Wet: 34 Comfort: 9 Rolling Resistance: 7 Overall: 8.5 Quick steering response, very quiet, high resistance to aquaplaning Due to the quick steering, can be difficult to control in the wet Read Reviews Buy from £78.08
8th: Barum Bravuris 2
205/55 R16 3PMSF: no	Total: 64.2 Dry: 13 Wet: 29 Comfort: 7 Rolling Resistance: 8 Overall: 7.2 Low rolling resistance, price Very sluggish handling in the wet and dry, noisy, low resistance to aquaplaning Read Reviews
9th: BFGoodrich gGrip
205/55 R16 3PMSF: no	Total: 58.2 Dry: 12 Wet: 23 Comfort: 8 Rolling Resistance: 9 Overall: 6.2 Low rolling resistance Poor grip in the wet, poor handling in the wet and dry, low resistance to aquaplaning Read Reviews