Continental lays rubber with its new SportContact 7 high-performance tyre.

Continental lays rubber with its new SportContact 7 high-performance tyre.

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The topic of tyres rarely gets discussed as an essential item in a performance armament. And yet, as far as performance and safety go, it's a car's most important component. Just look at Formula 1; the importance of selecting the correct tyre for the current racing conditions can't be overstated. It adds or detracts from performance and, should something go wrong, it really goes wrong. It's the same for road-going cars.

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Well, mostly…

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Everyday driving, especially in a high-performance vehicle, demands a lot from your rubber and finding that right balance between safety and performance isn't quite a clear-cut, one-size-fits-all kind of situation.

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The tyre in question

The all-new Continental SportContact 7 Ultra-High-performance tyre we recently tested is one of the leaders in balancing the aforementioned safety and performance aspects. It provides good stability in both wet and dry conditions, predictable driving characteristics and plenty of traction even with the traction control dial switched to the off position.

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While not all tyres are equal, the disparity between quality tyres and the cheap around-the-corner variety is simply massive – as pointed out by Continental who partnered with the know-how talents at the AMG Driving Academy. Cue the perfect testing environment to see what exactly Continental's new high-performance rubber can do.

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Comparison and performance

We put the ContactSport 7 up against a considerably more affordable tyre brand, which shall not be named, to see the differences in three different tests. However, in the name of fair testing, I must add that all the tyres had already undergone a week of testing on the track before I tested them. The cheapies, while maintaining good tread depth, were looking battered and showing signs of peeling and wear; whereas the Continentals were still looking strong.

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The first test was the cornering and handling challenge, and to put it simply, the Continental tyres blew my mind. Wielding two identical CLA 45 AMGs – besides the fact that one had the budget tyre for comparison – I chucked both cars into a wet corner at a constant speed of 60 km/h before planting the accelerator mid-corner. The budget tyre stepped out immediately every time you thought about tickling the throttle in a wild and unpredictable manner. The ContactSport 7s, on the other hand, are just committed to gripping. Even if you tried to send the car sideways, it well-near refused to give and proceeded to launch the car out of the corner in a controlled fashion. With enough enthusiasm, you can exceed the grip limits, but it takes a sizeable flick to start a slide.

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The second test was a short sprint slalom race in torrential conditions at the skidpan, this time in two slightly rowdier C63s. Again, each car sports a different set of either the budget or Continental tyre. Despite only being a short course, the Continental tyre was consistently over four seconds faster, but the difference in control is spectacular. The Continentals are predictable and refuse to break traction, whereas the cheap tyres portray an entertaining display of wild sideward action. Okay, in all fairness, the budget tyre did provide a more animated experience, but it concerns me that so many people are sporting these unstable tyres on their performance cars.

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Finally, we tested the capability of the SportContact 7 tyres in high-speed and stressful conditions and they continued to impress me. Launching the C63s was easy with little to no loss of traction at all. My only concern was the way the tyre loads before it enters the corner. However, when you understand that characteristic, it's predictable and rather impressive.

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This loading sensation, says Continental, is due to the utilisation of tech called 'macroblock tread'. It allows the tyre to close tread grooves in corners enabling a bigger, more controlled surface area on the road for a stable and faster cornering capability.

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Along with Continental's sticky compound called 'BlackChili', the amount of grip in these road tyres is simply stately, especially in the wet. As you turn into a corner you can feel the tyre briefly load, but once you are comfortable with the weight transfer you're gifted an immense amount of grip – even in fast direction-changing turns.

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Laying rubber

I have a decent amount of experience with the C63s fitted with Michelin Pilot Sport 4 tyres, which is the closest competitor to the SportContact 7s. Comparatively, I'll say the SportContacts are similar in performance around the track, apart from the minor loading sensation. Where the SportContact 7 tyres are a standout, however, is traction during wet conditions.

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The Continental SportContact 7 is a well-balanced and incredibly safe tyre that's one of the best choices for everyday driving in performance vehicles. Sure, it's not as affordable as the corner-stop variety, but the differences are like chalk and cheese. I'm certainly looking forward to seeing how companies like Michelin and Bridgestone respond to this tyre as companies continually look to push the safety and performance envelope even further. 

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