2012 Street Tire Test | Absolutely Tired

AVON 3D ULTRA SPORT SR RATING 83.5

We found the new Avons to be a huge step up in performance from the old VP2, and were very impressed with their performance. Steering habits were definitely the lightest in the test, with very little effort needed to initiate a turn or change lines midcorner; “The Avons feel similar to wearing the latest ultra-light running shoes,” remarked Bradley. The 3D Ultra Sports were also one of the quickest at major chicane transitions, and steering precision was rated highly by both riders. Overall traction and braking also garnered high marks, with the Avon’s somewhat soft construction feel providing a decent ride on the highway while also handling rough and imperfect pavement superbly.

BRIDGESTONE S20 SR RATING 86.3

Immediately noticeable with the S20 was its incredibly quick break-in and warm-up characteristics; the new Bridgestones exhibited no slippery or squirmy tendencies in the first few miles, and provided surprising grip in the first canyon turns the testers encountered. “Didn’t expect this,” said Bradley, adding that “the Bridgestone felt the best out of the box, with absolutely zero break-in tread squirm.” The S20’s carcass feel is a bit stiffer than most, so highway ride was a bit harsher than the others, with sharper bumps getting felt a lot more. The flip side of that is tire feedback during nearly all aspects of cornering is very communicative — “You always know what’s going on at the tire contact patches both front and rear,” raved Kento.

Continental CONTISPORTATTACK 2 SR RATING 79.0

The Contis were one of the few tires in this comparison that had a consistent feel throughout the duration of the corner, instead of varying levels of tread squirm at different lean angles (often a sign of compound transition) like most of the others. Break-in and warm-up were extremely quick, second only to the Bridgestones (and only just, in Kento’s opinion). Kento liked the SportAttack 2’s steering habits on the CBR600RR, although Bradley wasn’t quite as enamored with them on the 1000. Both felt the Contis were very neutral; not the quickest or most precise, but certainly not the slowest or sloppiest either. Overall grip and bump absorption garnered good ratings, but both riders felt that feedback was a bit numb unless you were on the edge of the tire; “The Contis had good grip and handling,” remarked Kento, “but you had to kind of blindly trust the tire, as you weren’t really sure what was happening at the contact patch.” Bradley complained of tire deformation when it was heavily loaded in dips or large bumps that upset the chassis, zapping confidence.

DUNLOP Q2 SR RATING 92.3

The Dunlop Q2s were, in a word, outstanding. Their performance in many aspects was so good that the few gripes Kento and Bradley could come up with seemed petty in the face of the exceptional grip and handling the Q2s provide. Steering wasn’t as light as the Avons or as easy midcorner as the Bridgestones, but the Dunlops were incredibly linear and consistent through all portions of a corner or transition, and never required additional input to hold a line. Feedback and ride quality were excellent, with just enough stiffness to communicate what’s happening at the contact patch without overwhelming you with vibration or harshness over bumps. The Dunlops tracked straight and maintained traction over numerous pavement irregularities that upset most of the other tires. Simply put, the Q2s inspire so much confidence that they were easy to spot in the datalogging speed graphs. Break-in and warm-up did take longer than most however, and wear rates were on the moderate side — but those are easy tradeoffs in our opinion.