We have become used to automotive model ranges evolving over the years and even decades but it’s not just the car and truck manufacturers that proceed through this process. Tyre manufacturers do too and one takes a step back to think of a single tyre range that has already progressed to a Mark 7 phase of its life.
This is the Continental SportContact 7, a concept that is specifically designed for high performance motoring. One may think that with fuel prices rising so rapidly, that power outputs would be dropping but that is not true when it comes to performance vehicles. In fact, the opposite is true. As safety factors are escalated, cars have become significantly heavier than before. To counter complaints about reduced performance, the power outputs have been increased. Another trend quite clear to all is that wheel sizes seem to keep rising. Whereas a Ferrari from the 1970s may have used 16-inch wheels instead of 14, these days we have sizes rising to the previously unheard of 20-incher. And now it’s 21, 22 and even 23-inch.
Tyre design
All this power is completely useless if there is insufficient grip between rubber and road and this is where tyre design becomes the vital component. An airbag may never be needed to save your skin but your tyres are doing just this, 100% of your driving time. While the changes to car styling are immediately visible, this is not so with tyre design. The only visible changes are to the tread pattern. This does evolve, especially with regard to high performance cars where the amount of water that has to very quickly be moved out of the way would shock you. This all at speeds of up to and way over 200 km/h. The ratio of water channels area to rubber load area is critical and is only fine-tuned after exhaustive high-speed testing. Tyre ingredients include rubber polymers, silicone compounds and carbon black, amongst others. Continental has a recipe that includes their scary-sounding BlackChili compound.
How does it compare to its predecessor?
The new design is then compared to the previous generation tyre and in the case of the SportContact 7 the results can be broken down into the various important parameters. It was found that the racetrack performance had improved by a full 10%, wet handling by 5%, wet braking ability by 8%, dry braking by 6% and dry handling by 3%. This would be all good and well but the problem with high performance grip is that of wear. Put in financial terms, the softer and grippier your tyres are, the quicker they will wear out and have to be replaced. The SportContact 7 managed an unbelievable longevity score that surpassed that of the SportContact 6 by as much as 17%.
Is it really worth the extra financial outlay?
This brings us to an important factor. Money is always tight and some owners persuade themselves that cash can be saved by replacing their original equipment tyres with cheaper “budget” brands. There are many of these on the market. Most would not be able to notice the difference but as soon as the tyres are called upon to perform at speed or in slippery conditions, they fail dismally. Continental Tyre South Africa replicated this by using the Zwartkops racing circuit and setting up dry and wet areas where cornering and braking could be demonstrated. Employing Mercedes-Benz AMG models with a set of SportContact 7 tyres and comparing performance to identical cars using a budget set of “performance” tyres, the difference was substantial and 100% repeatable. The name of the budget tyres was removed for legal reasons but it should be quite easy to make deductions by looking at pricing and relatively unknown brands.
The range is vast and extends from 18 to 23-inch with widths from 225mm to 335mm. SportContact 7 tyres have been chosen as original equipment by Maserati and Alfa Romeo models, Audi RS and BMW M series in addition to many hot hatch compact cars.
Words: Peter Palm
