Michelin has launched an upgrade to its XM2 tyre suited for small and mid-passenger cars. Called Energy XM2+, the tyre will be available in 30 sizes starting from early 2020 with rim sizes ranging from 12 to 16in. The prices will start at ₹5,090 which is slightly expensive than the competition but Michelin promises mileage of upto 1.35 lakh kilometres. Which means, you just need to slap on the Energy XM2+ tyres on your Swift or even Creta and they’ll do well for the car’s lifetime.
Michelin says that the tyre offers excellent grip even when worn out to maximum permissible limit and that’s what the company intended to prove with the tests that were conducted in April earlier this year. Michelin outsourced the tests to Applus IDIADA, an independent product testing firm, headquartered in Spain. The Energy XM2+ tyres were benchmarked against Bridgestone B290s. The test result suggested that the Maruti Suzuki Swift equipped with Energy XM2+ tyres managed to stop 2.4m earlier than the other with B290s. The gap increased even further for worn tyres with the distance stretching to 3.3m.
And to verify the same, we were invited to WABCO Proving Grounds near Chennai where the tests were conducted earlier. We were handed over the latest-gen Swifts equipped with worn out Energy XM2+ and B290s. We were put on an asphalt stretch that was being sprinkled with water and asked to sprint to 100kmph before hitting the brakes. The Energy XM2+ tyres’ equipped fared slightly better with lower stopping distance and less drama even. While on the loop which had a slalom circuit and some fast speed corners, the Energy XM2+ tyres with their low resistance proved to be excellent when it comes to road noise. Even at speeds upto 140kmph, the road noise was minimal. However, the grip in corners wasn’t enough and there was a lot of understeer even. But mind you, these are not performance oriented tyres. Michelin offers Primacy 4ST tyres for those looking for performance oriented rubber.
But if you consider the longevity of the Energy XM2+ tyres and the wet grip, they do make sense for buyers who are looking at daily commutes and occasional highway stints in their car.