Test Summary
Wet Braking	Pirelli P Zero Trofeo R
Dry Braking	Falken Azenis FK510
Wear	Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2
Rolling Resistance	Hankook Ventus S1 evo2
Noise	Hankook Ventus S1 evo2 Falken Azenis FK510
Snow Handling	Pirelli P Zero Trofeo R
Snow Handling	Nankang Noble Sport NS20 Toyo R888
Ice Handling	Hankook Ventus S1 evo2 Falken Azenis FK510

The latest trend of combining two tire tests into a single result seems to be continuing, with the brilliant German publication Sport Auto combining six ultra high performance tires and three track day tires into a single test!

Using a BMW M2, Sport Auto used the M2 OE sizes of 245/35 R19 front and 265/35 R19 rear, and objectively tested wet and dry performances while also scoring the subjective handling and feel of a tire.

As you would expect, the track day tires dominated in the dry, were the weakest in the wet, and generally had the highest rolling resistance and were the nosiest. Some of the road tires were surprisingly close to the track day rubber during dry testing, and they were leagues ahead in the wet testing.

Read on for the full results!

Dry

The Pirelli Trofeo R was perhaps the most confusing tire in the dry. It was the strongest during dry handling, both in speed and subjective feel, but it could only manage fifth place overall in dry braking, being beaten by both the Michelin and Continental road tires!

The track oriented Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 was second in both braking and handling, while the road going Michelin, the Pilot Sport 4S, proved to be the best road tire for dry laptime, braking and subjective feel.

The cheapest tire on test, the Nankang NS20 had the slowest lap time, the longest dry braking, and the poorest subjective handling.

Wet

In the wet, the order was quite different. The Falken FK510 proved to be the best wet weather tire, winning the wet braking test and scoring second in wet handling. Confusingly, the Nankang NS20 which usually scores very poorly in the wet, proved to be the fastest wet handling tire on test. This could be down to a compound update or a size irregularity, but with the NS20 proving to be the slowest in the 2018 Auto Bild 19" and 20" tests, this is a very unexpected result.

Of the track day tires, the Michelin was the fastest on the wet handling lap, and had quite a subjective lead compared to the other two track day tires. The Toyo R888 stopped the car the quickest just 0.2 metres ahead of the Michelin, with the Pirelli Trofeo R struggling a further 3 metres on.

There are few surprises in the aquaplaning test results, other than the Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 out performing the other track day tires significantly.

Environmental

The Michelin Pilot Sport 4 S had the lowest fuel use.

While the Toyo R888 had the lowest drive-by noise, internally it was the least comfortable tire on test highlighting the EU external label score for noise doesn't directly relate to the internal noise or comfort levels.

The Michelin pair of tires were by far the most expensive on test, with the Nankang less than half the price of the Michelin in the 265/35 R19 size.

Results

Please note, Sport Auto also graded the track day tires with a "dry track grading", where the Pirelli won with 10.7, the Michelin was second with 10.3 and the Toyo third with 9.9. We've used the "road and track" ratings for each tire instead of the track only scorings. For full details please visit the Sport-Auto website and read the full test (in German)

1st: Michelin Pilot Sport 4 S
265/35 R19 3PMSF: no	Total: 70.6 Dry: 9.7 Wet: 7.7 Subjective: 10 Wet Subjective: 7 Comfort: 9 Rolling Resistance: 9 Noise: 9 Overall: 9.2 Super sporty and excellent in all dry tests. Excellent feedback, outstanding cornering stability and the best vehicle balance. Weaker wet traction and average aquaplaning results. Read Reviews    Buy from £294.99
1st: Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2
265/35 R19 3PMSF: no	Total: 66.7 Dry: 10.9 Wet: 6.1 Subjective: 10 Wet Subjective: 7 Comfort: 8 Rolling Resistance: 7 Noise: 8 Overall: 9.7 Very usable track day tire with excellent steering response, good feedback and a strong wet performance for a track day tire. A little nervous on high speed load changes compared to the Pirelli. Read Reviews    Buy from £320.50
2nd: Continental Sport Contact 6
265/35 R19 3PMSF: no	Total: 68.3 Dry: 9.3 Wet: 8 Subjective: 9 Wet Subjective: 8 Comfort: 8 Rolling Resistance: 8 Noise: 9 Overall: 9 Well balanced in the wet, including aquaplaning, excellent in the dry. Not as good as the best on test in wet handling. Read Reviews    Buy from £258.40
2nd: Pirelli P Zero Trofeo R
265/35 R19 3PMSF: no	Total: 60.5 Dry: 11.4 Wet: 4.1 Subjective: 12 Wet Subjective: 5 Comfort: 6 Rolling Resistance: 6 Noise: 7 Overall: 9 Best tire in the dry, excellent steering and handling. Super stable. Very poor in the wet, not recommended for the road. Noisy. Read Reviews
3rd: Hankook Ventus S1 evo2
265/35 R19 3PMSF: no	Total: 70.4 Dry: 8.3 Wet: 8.7 Subjective: 7 Wet Subjective: 9 Comfort: 10 Rolling Resistance: 10 Noise: 9 Overall: 8.4 Very good in the wet, excellent wet handling, good aquaplaning result. Poor steering feel in the dry, more load change sensitive than other tires. Read Reviews
3rd: Toyo R888
265/35 R19 3PMSF: no	Total: 60.4 Dry: 10.4 Wet: 4.9 Subjective: 10 Wet Subjective: 5 Comfort: 4 Rolling Resistance: 7 Noise: 10 Overall: 9.1 Best dry braking result, very good dry handling thanks to excellent grip and extremely precise steering. Very poor in the wet, not recommended for the road. Very loud in the cabin. Read Reviews
4th: Falken Azenis FK510
265/35 R19 3PMSF: no	Total: 68.3 Dry: 7.9 Wet: 9.2 Subjective: 7 Wet Subjective: 9 Comfort: 10 Rolling Resistance: 8 Noise: 9 Overall: 8.2 Shortest wet braking and second place in wet handling makes this one of the best wet weather tires in test. Good ride comfort. A little slow in the dry, poor steering response. Read Reviews    Buy from £178.80
5th: Toyo Proxes Sport
265/35 R19 3PMSF: no	Total: 66.3 Dry: 8.2 Wet: 8 Subjective: 8 Wet Subjective: 8 Comfort: 9 Rolling Resistance: 9 Noise: 8 Overall: 8.1 Good steering feel and car balance in the dry. Poor dry grip, mid pack wet grip. Read Reviews
6th: Nankang Noble Sport NS20
265/35 R19 3PMSF: no	Total: 56.7 Dry: 6.4 Wet: 8.1 Subjective: 5 Wet Subjective: 8 Comfort: 6.4 Rolling Resistance: 6 Noise: 10 Overall: 6.8 Excellent wet handling and aquaplaning results. Average wet braking, very poor dry braking, dry handling and subjective steering feel. While external noise was low, internal comfort was poor. Read Reviews