RAZR SHARP
WHICHEVER mud-terrain you choose you’ll be making on-road compromises, and in some instances they’re big compromises that stretch stopping distances or lower the limits of adhesion through corners. The trade-off, of course, is more comfortable and capable off-road touring with less chance of a puncture.
Assuming you’ve made that decision, it’s the Maxxis Razr that performed best in our tests – keeping in mind that we didn’t test the off-road side of the equation. Instead, we focused on which tyres made the least compromises on-road. The decent grip in wet and dry made the Maxxis a solid performer in all disciplines, either leading or doing very well in each category. It was a clear winner, with the sharp pricing helping extend its lead over its quartet of rivals.
Second place went to the Bridgestone Dueler, the most expensive tyre we tested. It was its performance in dry braking that inched it ahead of a tight middle pack. Less impressive was cornering performance, something that only just kept it ahead of hard-charging competitors.
Rounding out the podium was the Kumho Road Venture MT51. While it slipped occasionally in the wet cornering, it regained points through dry bends and dry braking. That the Kumho was respectably quiet was a bonus.
Next was the Bfgoodrich KM3S. While it didn’t lead any of our testing disciplines it put up a solid performance in all, albeit at a premium price. If reputation counts for anything, it should back it up with solid off-road performance.
Bringing up the tail in this test is the Sunwide Huntsman. While cornering efforts were respectable, the Huntsman was off the pace with braking – a critical aspect of any off-roader, especially when heavily laden. It was especially noticeable in the wet, where the tyre skated along the wet road metres beyond where others had pulled up.