Given
60%
while driving a
Kia Motors Rio
(205/45 R17) on
a combination of roads
for 1,000
spirited miles
I'm driving a Kia Rio 1.4 Hatchback in Brunei. The roads are quite bad, very uneven with occasional potholes. Bought a used car and it came with almost worn-out Bridgestone Turanzas. Unsurprisingly, the Linglongs perform worse than the worn-out bridgestones. The purpose was to fit cheap tires for daily duties so it serves the purpose.
Dry Grip - Decent but not confidence inspiring. Turn in is slow and it's not progressive, no warning it could just under steer but mind you this is under very hard cornering that one shouldn't be doing in a Kia Rio anyway. Steering feel is a bit vague and doesn't communicate well when you load up the tires. For daily running and occasional heroics around a roundabout or back roads, it's fine. But it's definitely not a sports tire.
Wet Grip - Average and definitely not confidence inspiring. Straight line aquaplaning risk is moderate. Can comfortably cruise at 80 to 100kmph on rainy highways. It does get a bit sketchy when you hit patches of standing water, you do tend to feel like you lost steering. Currently do not possess enough courage or suicidal thoughts to push any harder. I would take it easy on these tires in the rain.
Comfort - Recommended 100%. These tires are brilliant is this aspect. It's very low road noise compared to bridgestones and they round off potholes and undulations very nicely. It says sport master but it's definitely a comfort master.
Overall - it's fine for a daily runner who's objective is to just drive comfortably for cheap. Do not expect any sort of sporty driving characteristics from the tire. I cannot tell how it will wear yet but probably won't last long. But it's so cheap, wear doesn't matter anyway. If you prioritize driving fun and wet driving safety, it's better to upgrade to a better brand. But if you are tired of life, your car and just want to spend less as possible for you to get from Point A to Point B, this is the tire for you.
Why didn't I buy some other tire.. honestly :\