ContiPremiumContact 2 wins the summer tyre test organised by Auto Club Europa and GTÜ

• Experts award EU tyre label for the first time and highlight gaps in criteria
• ContiPremiumContact 2 would have been the only one to receive Class A for grip in the wet
• Expert recommendation: "Use extensive tyre tests to make purchasing decision"
• Leading test editorial teams expected to take a critical view of tyre label

Hanover, 25th March 2010. In a test carried out jointly by the Auto Club Europa (ACE) and the technical inspectorate Gesellschaft für Technische Überwachung (GTÜ), twelve summer tyre models, size 205/55 R 16, were put through their paces; at the same time the criteria governing the EU tyre label that will become binding for all manufacturers from November 2012 were applied. In its competitive field, which included four other premium tyre brands, the ContiPremiumContact 2 was the test winner. The tyre experts assessed it as a "balanced tyre with top marks on wet roads and relatively low wear". If, on the basis of these test results, the seven-level tyre label had been awarded, the ContiPremiumContact 2 would have been the only tyre to gain an A, the maximum rating for grip in the wet, and at the same time the maximum rating for rolling resistance - an E. In their evaluation of the EU label, the experts criticise the fact that "important safety-relevant tyre characteristics, such as aquaplaning, are not taken into account". The full tests results have been published in the current issue of the magazine 'ACE Lenkrad' (3/2010).

Commenting on the test result, Alexander Lührs, Press Officer for Continental, said: "We are of course delighted by the fact that our summer tyre has performed so well in this first test, which also takes into account the demands to be met before the EU tyre label is awarded. However, the test demonstrates yet again that tyres are high-tech products and should not be rated according to one single criterion, like refrigerators, for example. With regard to all the safety-relevant characteristics in particular, distinctions should be made with a view to achieving maximum safety on the road." The characteristics displayed by the Wanli S-1063 - by far the cheapest product in the test - were accordingly poor and with its acknowledged weakness in the wet, this tyre would have only been allocated the label class E.

Continental still welcomes the label in principle and hopes that it will help to increase the percentage of premium tyres available and thus automatically improve road safety, which is what the EU is aiming for. However, as only the three tyre characteristics - braking in the wet, rolling resistance and noise levels - are assessed and numerous other criteria are ignored, the far more comprehensive test results published in the relevant motoring magazines and by motoring organisations will continue to serve as the best guide for consumers when it comes to buying tyres. The main criticism levelled by ACE and GTÜ at the current test is the lack of other safety-relevant tyre characteristics in the criteria specified for the label; it describes "inadequately the performance characteristics of a tyre" and it is virtually impossible to use it as a basis for "a sound purchasing decision". In this situation, Continental expects that leading specialist magazines and motoring clubs will take a critical view of the way the label is awarded and that this will go towards a widespread discussion of the safety and quality characteristics of car tyres.

With sales of approximately €20 billion in 2009 Continental is among the leading automotive suppliers worldwide. As a supplier of brake systems, systems and components for powertrains and chassis, instrumentation, infotainment solutions, vehicle electronics, tires and technical elastomers, Continental contributes enhanced driving safety and global climate protection. Continental is also a competent partner in networked automobile communication. Continental currently employs approximately 134,500 in 46 countries.

The Passenger and Light Truck Tires division develops and manufactures passenger car and light truck tires for compact, medium-size and full-size cars as well as tires for 4x4, vans and light trucks. The division produces tires under the brand names of “Continental”, “Uniroyal” (except in the NAFTA region, Columbia and Peru), “Semperit”, “Barum”, “General Tire”, “Euzkadi”, “Viking”, “Gislaved”, “Mabor”, “Matador”, “SIME Tyres” and, in Malaysia, Singapore and Brunei, “Dunlop”. The Passenger and Light Truck Tires division also includes the two-wheel business (motorcycle and bicycle and the retail tire companies with more than 2,200 specialty tire outlets and franchises in 13 countries.