In everyday life, hardly any of modern crossover owners regularly drive on loose soil or on dirt tracks, corner at full throttle on gravel-covered roads, or ride on steep sand dunes. True, many car owners may fantasize about such a test drive, but in real life they will probably refrain from abusing their cars like that — for obvious reasons. It is only during emergency situations that a crossover may find itself in such conditions where the four-wheel drive and high clearance will help you eventually reach your destination.

In winter, the superiority of the all-wheel drive in combination with winter tires over the front wheel drive is obvious. However, summer also has its moments when the four-wheel drive may come in incredibly handy — for example, during a riverside picnic or going mushroom picking, where you can be confronted with sand, in which most tires get bogged down like in loose snow, and wet grass, on which most tires slip just like they would on ice.

During their new test of CUV tires, which was conducted in size 225/65R17, the experts of the German magazine AutoBild Allrad measured the tires’ traction on four types of surfaces: grass, sand, gravel, and dirt, because it is the grip headroom that ultimately determines how likely you are to get stuck off-road terrain during country rides.

Also, the tires were tested in standard conditions on wet and dry pavement, where a lot of importance is attached to such results as braking distance, well-balanced overall performance, and hydroplaning resistance.

The wet and dry tests were performed at Goodyear’s test facility in Mireval in the south of France. For the second part of the test, which was to be performed in off-road conditions, the AutoBild crew set out overseas to the Diamondblack proving ground in the Texas prairies.

The title of the best CUV tire 2023 according to AutoBild Allrad was disputed by twelve spot-on models in size 225/65R17:

• Aplus A919;
• Bridgestone Turanza 6;
• Cooper Zeon 4XS Sport;
• Falken Ziex ZE310 Ecorun;
• General Grabber GT Plus;
• Goodyear EfficientGrip 2 SUV;
• Hankook Ventus Prime 4;
• Michelin Pilot Sport 4 SUV;
• Nexen N’Fera Sport SUV;
• Pirelli Cinturato P7;
• Toyo Proxes Comfort;
• Uniroyal RainExpert 5.

Off-Road

Gravel Handling. The differences in the tires’ performance on a two-kilometer gravel track were insignificant. The main parameter, by which the tires were evaluated, was driving safety and reliable traction on loose soil. We will only note that Pirelli and Hankook demonstrated the best balance, while Nexen and Toyo showed varying grip on different types of surfaces.

Gravel Traction. After dozens of accelerations, the best tires on gravel were pronounced to be the Michelin Pilot 4 SUV and Bridgestone Turanza 6. Their traction on this type of surface is 15% better than that of the Pirelli model, which came last in this part of the test.

Sand Traction. On loose sand, the best results were shown by the General Grabber GT Plus. The Toyo and Cooper tires were 20% less powerful. But then again, you need to keep in mind that on sand you can significantly improve the traction of virtually any tire just by letting out the air and lowering its internal pressure.

Dirt Traction. As much of a surprise as it could be, the best dirt traction was demonstrated by the cheap Chinese models from Aplus and Uniroyal, which showed results half again as good as those of Pirelli’s.

Grass Traction. After a few futile spins of the wheel, wet grass turns into an unconquerable slippery surface. And here again the victory was scored by the Aplus and Uniroyal. The «outsiders» Cooper and Bridgestone have wet traction 25% worse than that of the leaders’.

Wet

Hydroplaning (straight and lateral). If you hit a shallow puddle at speed, the safest tires will be Michelin and Uniroyal. The weakest hydroplaning resistance and early loss of grip was demonstrated by the Aplus and Cooper tires.

Handling and Lateral Grip. The Michelin model came first in all of the wet disciplines. This tire is characterized by excellent grip, perfect balance, and great road-holding ability. It was closely followed by the Bridgestone Turanza 6 and Pirelli Cinturato P7; the tires with results highlighted in yellow and red, have low lateral grip and less-than-perfect handling performance.

Wet Braking. The Michelin Pilot Sport 4 also set a record with a braking distance under 50 meters. The closest pursuers fall two meters behind, the worst results in this discipline being shown by the Cooper and Aplus models, which need 11 meters more to bring the car to a full stop from 100 km/h.

Dry

Dry Braking. On the whole, all of the tested tires comply with safety standards except for the Chinese Aplus model, which requires almost six meters more of a braking distance compared to Pirelli (34.6 meters).

Noise. The noise emission must comply with the rigorous European standards, and the noise level was measured at 50 and 80 km/h in accordance with the EU regulations. The quietest tire was Goodyear, the noisiest Aplus and Pirelli.

Rolling Resistance and Handling Response. The exemplary low rolling resistance was demonstrated by the Bridgestone Turanza 6, which allows you to save up to 5% of fuel as compared to the Aplus model (came last). Crisp steering response and well-balanced handling performance were demonstrated by three premium brands: Michelin, Pirelli, and Bridgestone. Also, these models score bonus points for driving pleasure.

The Final Standings

Result summary. AutoBild Allrad Summer Tire Test— 225/65R17 Places 1–11. (click to enlarge)

SUMMING UP

In the final standings, five tires at once scored an «Exemplary» verdict. They did not have any obvious issues in any of the wet or dry tests, also demonstrating reliable performance in the off-road series of tests.