If you have invested in a luxury sedan or sport sedan, and there’s just something missing in the way it rides, you should check out the wheels and tires you are riding on.
Here’s the problem.
Traditionally, people (including auto manufacturers) thought of luxury cars as being royal coaches. They wanted ultra-smooth rides and never feel a bump in the road again. But then these luxury cars, like the BMW 7 Series, started dropping 600+ horsepower engines under the hood and suddenly the luxury car was no longer a coach, it was a performance ride.
Today’s luxury car buyer is likely to want the smell of leather, all the technical toys, and a 24-way power adjustable seat with a hot stone massage function, but they’ll also want to go zero to sixty in 4.5 seconds or less. The standard 18” wheels wrapped in All Season rubber are not going to satisfy the desires of the driver who wants it all.
Enter the Ultra High-Performance Tires for Luxury Cars
Ultra-High Performance (UHP) tires have been around forever but they were mostly mounted on sports and performance cars. Today you can find them on luxury rides as well as muscle cars. UHP tires are engineered differently from standard tires to provide better grip, cornering ability, and most importantly, they dissipate heat much faster than standard rubber. They are rated to 147 mph.
They do increase performance. Acceleration and braking both benefit from the better grip. They are engineered to endure the increased torque resulting from the larger engines and increased Gs involved in carving a corner. The UHP “Summer” tire has no competition when it comes to grip and traction both in dry and wet conditions. The “Winter” tire for luxury cars (which is only available in larger sizes) does well in snow and ice but not on dry roads and they are incredibly noisy. The “All Season” version is the compromise that many people, particularly those leaning towards comfort versus performance, tend to go with.
UHP tires are your best bet to get both performance and comfort for your luxury ride. They are pricey, particularly if you buy them from the dealer. Fortunately, you have online options that can save you a significant amount.
We know you only want the best so here’s a recap of the best UHP tires as rated by Consumer Reports.
