205/40 R18 - Best summer tyres 2025 - market overview, tests, reviews
Table of contents:
Best summer tyres in tests (2025)
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Continental PremiumContact 7
Continental did it again with the PremiumContact 7. It’s an incredibly well balanced tire with just the right wet and dry grip and above average mileage. Since it’s launch in 2023 it got nothing but the best results in the tests, the only downside being it’s premium price.
- Short braking distance on wet roads
- Exceptional handling on the wet
- Great handling on dry roads
- Short braking distance on dry roads
- High drive-by noise levels
| Rank | Year | Organization | Size | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 2024 | Automotorsport | 235/55 R18 | Test winner |
2 | 2024 | Autobild | 225/55 R17 | Exemplary |
1 | 2024 | Autozeitung | 225/45 R17 | Test winner |
1 | 2024 | ACE | 225/45 R17 | Highly recommended |
1 | 2024 | Vibilagare | 215/55 R17 | - |
1 | 2024 | ADAC | 215/55 R17 | Good |
1 | 2024 | Sportauto | 215/40 R18 | Test winner |
2 | 2024 | Autobild | 205/55 R16 | Exemplary |
1 | 2024 | Autobild | 205/55 R16 | - |
5 | 2023 | Autobild | 225/45 R18 | - |
3 | 2023 | Autobild | 225/45 R18 | Outstanding |
2 | 2023 | ACE | 225/45 R18 | Highly recommended |
1 | 2023 | Tyre Reviews | 225/40 R18 | Test winner |
1 | 2023 | Tyre Reviews | 205/55 R16 | Test winner |
1 | 2023 | Autoklub ČR | 205/55 R16 | - |
Bridgestone Potenza Sport
We really like the new Potenza Sport, as it’s more sporty and dynamic than the usual tyre in this category, but still perfectly usable and safe for everyday driving, which makes it unique. It’s rolling resistance, mileage and overall comfort are also on a good level, except for a slighty higher noise.
- Exceptional handling on the wet
- Short braking distance on wet roads
- Great handling on dry roads
- Short braking distance on dry roads
- Excellent steering response on dry roads
- High rolling resistance/high fuel consumption
- High drive-by noise levels
| Rank | Year | Organization | Size | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
4 | 2024 | Autobild | 265/35 R19 | Good |
1 | 2024 | Autobild | 225/55 R17 | Exemplary |
3 | 2024 | Autobild | 235/55 R19 | Good |
5 | 2023 | Tyre Reviews | 225/40 R18 | Recommended |
5 | 2023 | Automotorsport | 255/45 R20 | Very good |
3 | 2023 | Gute-Fahrt | 235/35 R19 | Good + |
2 | 2023 | Autozeitung | 235/35 R19 | Test winner |
4 | 2023 | ACE | 225/45 R18 | Highly recommended |
6 | 2023 | SportAuto | 225/40 R18 | Very good |
2 | 2023 | Autobild | 225/40 R18 | Outstanding |
3 | 2022 | Tyre Reviews | 255/35 R19 | Recommended |
6 | 2022 | Autobild | 245/40 R19 | Good |
3 | 2022 | Sportauto | 235/35 R19 | Very good |
5 | 2022 | Autobild | 225/45 R18 | Good |
1 | 2021 | Autobild | 265/35 R20 | Exemplary |
Michelin Pilot Sport 5
The Pilot Sport range from Michelin is now almost legendary, with the Cup variants being the fastest road legal tyres available. But the ‚ordinary‘ Pilot Sport 5 not as spory as it’s name suggest - it’s incredibly well balanced, with the priority being low rolling resistance and high mileage over sporty handling. It’s still a Michelin tire, so higher price is to be expected.
- Great handling on dry roads
- Short braking distance on dry roads
- Short braking distance on wet roads
- -
| Rank | Year | Organization | Size | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
2 | 2024 | Sportauto | 215/40 R18 | Very good |
2 | 2023 | Tyre Reviews | 225/40 R18 | Highly recommended |
3 | 2023 | Autobild | 225/40 R18 | Outstanding |
2 | 2023 | Autobild | 225/45 R18 | Outstanding |
3 | 2023 | ACE | 225/45 R18 | Highly recommended |
6 | 2023 | Autobild | 225/45 R18 | - |
5 | 2023 | Autozeitung | 235/35 R19 | Highly recommended |
1 | 2022 | Tyre Reviews | 225/45 R17 | Test winner |
Firestone Roadhawk 2
Firestone, the affordable brand belonging to the Bridgestone group, has a fresh addition to their lineup - the Roadhawk 2. And it seems like it’s set off for success - it offers the Bridgestone’s ENLITEN technology, which makes the rolling resistance and mileage exceptional for a budget tyre and it combines it with safe behavior on wet and dry.
- -
- -
| Rank | Year | Organization | Size | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
5 | 2024 | Autozeitung | 225/45 R17 | Highly recommended |
Cars with 205/40 R18 tyres
205/40 R18 tyre test Personalize
Best tyres in your size
Dry
1.
Continental PremiumContact 7
93%
2.
Continental PremiumContact 6
85%
3.
Bridgestone Potenza Sport
81%
4.
Michelin Pilot Sport 5
73%
5.
Pirelli P ZERO PZ4
72%
6.
Hankook Ventus S1 evo3 K127
70%
7.
GoodYear Eagle F1 Supersport
70%
8.
Pirelli Cinturato P7
70%
9.
Falken Azenis FK520
68%
10.
Falken ZIEX ZE310 Ecorun
67%
Wet
1.
Continental PremiumContact 7
83%
2.
Uniroyal RainSport 5
81%
3.
Michelin Pilot Sport 5
78%
4.
Bridgestone Potenza Sport
77%
5.
Pirelli P ZERO PZ4
72%
6.
Continental PremiumContact 6
71%
7.
Falken Ziex ZE310 Ecorun
68%
8.
Hankook Ventus S1 evo3 K127
62%
9.
Goodyear Eagle F1 SuperSport
61%
10.
Pirelli Cinturato P7
60%
Comfort
1.
Falken Azenis FK520
73%
2.
Uniroyal RainSport 5
71%
3.
Pirelli P ZERO PZ4
67%
4.
Hankook Ventus S1 evo3 K127
65%
5.
Falken Ziex ZE310 Ecorun
56%
6.
Pirelli Cinturato P7
56%
7.
Continental PremiumContact 7
46%
8.
Continental PremiumContact 6
40%
9.
Bridgestone Potenza Sport
38%
10.
Michelin Pilot Sport 5
37%
Economy
1.
Michelin Pilot Sport 5
75%
2.
Continental PremiumContact 6
69%
3.
Continental PremiumContact 7
61%
4.
Hankook Ventus S1 evo3 K127
60%
5.
Dunlop SP Sport MAXX RT2
59%
6.
Pirelli Cinturato P7
56%
7.
Falken Azenis FK520
51%
8.
Uniroyal RainSport 5
51%
9.
GoodYear Eagle F1 Supersport
46%
10.
Pirelli P ZERO PZ4
40%
This is a preview of our comprehensive tyre test. The full test includes:
Detailed property breakdowns
Interactive sorting and filtering
Side-by-side comparisons
Did you know ...?
205/40 R18 doesn't belong to the most popular dimensions for summer tyres - there are 17 tyre models available, which can be compared to 205/65 R15, 190/50 R17, 205/75 R16. Let's break down the sizing - 40 is height of the tyre, which is calculated as 40% of the tyre width (205mm), which means the sidewall height has 82 mm. The wheel diameter is R18, which means it fits to a 18 inch/457.2mm diameter wheel. The total circumference of the tyre is 1951.56 mm, which is very similar to 185/65 R15(1952.5 mm), 195/55 R16(1950.61 mm), 190/50 R17(1953.44 mm), 235/40 R17(1947.16 mm), 160/60 R17(1959.73 mm), 215/45 R17(1964.44 mm), 205/45 R17(1936.16 mm). There are multiple speed indexes available for summer tyres in 205/40 R18: V(240km/h), W(270km/h), Y(300km/h). The same goes for weight indexes: 82, 86.
205/40 R18 tire tests
| Tyre size | Organization | Year | Type | Designation | Winner | Best value | Tested tyres | Vehicle |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tyre size | Organization | Year | Type | Designation | Winner | Best value | Tested tyres | Vehicle |
Runflat
There are 6 runflat variants available.
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