2009 AMS Summer and Winter Tire Test

We might now be into 2010 but we've found not one, but two excellent tire test from 2009. It seems while we've been keeping an eye on the German magazines ADAC and Auto Zeitung, Auto motor und Sport has somehow slipped under the radar. What's more, like all the German car mags they've done a rather excellent job of testing both summer and winter tires in 2009!

As always the testing was typically German [thorough] and they tried each of the tires in just about every situation possible. One nice touch is AMS have rated the summer tire scores separately for dry and wet performance, giving you the ability to select a tire depending on the type of weather you're used to, or your own personal priorities. Better yet, during the winter tire test they've tested the rubber on snowy, wet and dry roads, and also thrown a couple of all season tires into the mix giving a really nice picture of how winter tires could perform year round.

We'll summarise our thoughts under each set of results. If you'd like to skip straight to the winter results click here

Summer Tire Test

Tire	Wet	Dry	Total	Comments
Bridgestone Turanza ER 300	88	89	177	The overall winner is the Bridgestone Turanza ER 300. It excells during the braking tests and has ggreat handling characteristics in all conditions
Goodyear Opti Grip	88	82	170	The Goodyear Opti Grip follows the test winner Bridgestone Turanza ER 300 just seven points behind. Extremely stong during the aquaplaning tests.
Michelin Primacy HP	74	96	170	The Michelin Primacy HP stands out for its excellent handling characteristics with high steering precision, good comfort and low rolling resistance. It's wet handling lets it down
Continental Premium Contact 2	87	82	169	The Continental Premium Contact 2 is a great all round tire. It misses out on the podium due to limited comfort and high rolling resistance
Hankook Ventus V12 Evo	74	95	169	The first of the midrange brands, the Hankook Ventus V12 Evo proves an extremely strong all rounder on par with the 4 top brands.
Pirelli P7	85	84	169	The Pirelli P7 lands only in the second half of the field. Although it offers a very good, sporty handling in wet, his loud road noise and the high rolling resistance are anything but beneficial.
Dunlop SP Sport Fast Response	82	85	167	The Dunlop SP Sport Fast Response shows a very precise handling on wet and dry, as a good wet traction. It's weaknesses are braking and aquaplaning.
Nokian V	77	89	166	The Nokian V is characterized by its good wet and dry handling. It has very little road noise but suffers from long stopping distances and moderate aquaplaning results
Vredestein Sportrac 3	81	84	165	The Vredestein Sportrac 3 strengths include the good aquaplaning behavior and precise handling characteristics on dry roads. Long stopping distances and severe understeer in the wet prevent better placement
Firestone TZ 300 a	73	84	157	Average handling and comparatively high road noise
Fulda Carat Progresso	77	80	157	Fulda Carat Progresso is sensitive to aquaplaning and has poor braking performance
Kumho Ecsta HM	64	84	148	Good handling characteristics on dry roads, in wet weather driving but is spongy and the braking distances are too long

Summer test conclusion

A strong result for the 4 "big brands" (Bridgestone, Goodyear, Michelin and Continental). Hankook has excelled in yet another magazine tire test by placing only a few points behind the big names, it really is a testament to the quality of the Hankook Ventus V12 Evo and in particular, it's dry weather handling. Slightly disappointing results for Nokian and Vredestein, but with such a small spread of points covering the top 10 they've still punched extremely well for their price point.

On to the winter tire test results >>