Michelin Primacy 5 review

As the replacement for the Primacy 4+ that  finished 8th out of 11 in 2023, we expected the Primacy 5 to move Michelin up the table. It delivered by far the lowest rolling resistance, making it the most economical tyre here, but it appears to have fallen behind in other areas. 

Third in straight-line wet braking, 1.8 metres off the best, is a solid result, yet around the wet handling circuit it was seventh and out of touch with the pack, being more than a second a lap behind the sixth-placed tyre. Its grip felt unremarkable and it never seemed to properly key into the surface. But it was very stable and predictable, with the front doing most of the work, which explains the good wet-circle result. Aquaplaning performance was stronger, with solid, mid-pack performances in both tests.  

The Michelin delivered a mid-field result in dry straight-line braking, taking just shy of two metres more to stop than the winner. However, it was last around the dry handling track, being 0.6 seconds a lap slower than the seventh-placed tyre and 1.4 seconds behind the best. In a quality field it lacked positivity, with soft steering response, and it needed to be hustled to give up its best time.

Blackcircles says

“A very popular tyre, rated 4.7/5 overall from over 2,000 reviews. Noted for brilliant grip and handling performance in all weathers.”

Results

Buy the Michelin Primacy 5 from Blackcircles.com…