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Even more grip on snow and ice
The ContiWinterContact TS 850 has achieved a total of 47 test victories across Europe in the last four years. Now Continental is introducing its successor, the TS 860, which can do everything a little better. The KFZ Wirtschaft tested the newcomer in snow-covered Schladming.
Even more grip on snow and ice
During extensive test drives in Schladming, the new TS 860 proved to be a reliable sled dog, keeping even a 16-year-old BMW 318ti safely on track with the traction control switched off. In a direct comparison with its predecessor, the TS 850, the new Continental winter specialist for the compact and mid-range class scores particularly well in terms of safety: when braking on cold, wet roads it is five percent faster, on ice it brakes four percent less quickly, and it is also better when it comes to snow handling, traction on snow and comfort. Mileage and rolling resistance are the same as the successful previous model.
It's the mixture that counts
“The advances are made possible by combining a new tread compound with a newly developed tread design,” explains Holger Lange, head of winter tire development at Continental. The rubber compound called “Cool Chili” with its high silica content ensures particularly good damping and short braking distances, even on wet roads. The flexible polymer matrix increases grip on winter roads. Also new are special high-performance resins that maintain the mixture's cold flexibility even in winter temperatures. In order to be able to brake effectively even on icy roads, Continental's tire engineers have developed the so-called “LiquidLayerDrainage”. When braking on ice, a film of water forms under the tread, which significantly reduces the tire's contact area with the ground. The new technology - an additional water drainage channel molded into the tread block - allows the water to drain away faster than before, so that braking distances on icy roads are shorter.
In stores from autumn
The premium winter tire TS 860, designed for use in Central and Western Europe, will be available from tire retailers in autumn 2016. From the start, 36 items in 21 dimensions for rims between 14 and 17 inches in diameter will be offered, with at least another 20 versions planned for 2017. On the EU tire label, the new Continental winter tire achieves the values C for rolling resistance and B for wet grip. Continental sees good opportunities for the new winter tire in the market. While the demand for tires with a 14-inch diameter is falling and demand for 15-inch tires is stagnating at a high level across Europe at around 20 million units, the Hanover-based company expects demand for 16- and 17-inch tires to continue to rise in the coming years. They also presented other innovations in Schladming:
▶ The Continental WinterContact TS 850 P will also be available in the coming winter season as a special version for all-wheel drive vehicles; it has the “SUV” logo on the side wall.
▶ The ContiWinterContact TS 830 P is designed for particularly powerful vehicles and has approvals from Audi, BMW, Land Rover, Maserati, Mercedes-Benz and Porsche, for example.
▶ The Master-Grip 2 from Semperit for cars with rim dimensions between 13 and 15 inches scores with a particularly high sipe density and wide grooves between the tread blocks of the tire shoulder.
▶ The Speed-Grip 2 for upper middle class, luxury class and SUV vehicles promises high snow performance and good aquaplaning properties with particularly good braking performance on snow and ice.
▶ The winter rain tire MS plus 77 from Uniroyal scores with high aquaplaning safety and good wet grip. The winter all-rounder is in production in 82 dimensions with speeds between 190 and 240 km/h.