AQUAPLANING

ON THE WET HANDLING CIRCUIT there was a sense that the Michelin was less able to maintain grip in the faster corners, so it’s no surprise that it finished third in the lateral aquaplaning test, which averages the residual lateral acceleration measured at a number of speeds between 60 and 90kph (37-56mph) in 5mm of water. The surprise is that the Continental is only fractionally better than the Michelin.

The standout performance came from the Bridgestone, which made it an aquaplaning clean sweep. It recorded the strongest resistance to longitudinal aquaplaning too, though by a lesser margin, this test conducted in 9mm of water and measuring the speed the tyre can attain before it over-speeds by 15 per cent. As in the curved test, Continental was second and Michelin third.