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Yokohama BluEarth-XT AE61 vs Continental UltraContact UC6

Yokohama BluEarth-XT AE61 vs Continental UltraContact UC6

Here are the key stats for the Yokohama BluEarth-XT AE61 and Continental UltraContact UC6 tyres, at a glance.
BluEarth-XT AE61UltraContact UC6
Vehicle SuitabilityLight Truck / SUVPassenger
Driving StyleHighway Rib SummerPremium Touring Summer
SeasonSummerSummer
Release Date20202017
Run Flat?NoNo
Overall ScoreN/A78/100

Pricing

Enter your tyre size below to see the best prices for your specific size (if unsure, check placard on the driver's side door or your existing tyres).

Yokohama BluEarth-XT AE61 vs Continental UltraContact UC6 in Australia

The BluEarth-XT AE61 has been around in Australia for about 4 years, whereas the UltraContact UC6 has been on the market for about 7 years

The BluEarth-XT AE61 is rated for highway rib summer action, however the UltraContact UC6 tyres are classified as premium touring summer.The former is designed for use in 4WDs, SUVs and light trucks, but the latter should be used with regular passenger (non-SUV) vehicles.

Both of these are considered summer tyres. Neither of them are runflat tyres. Yokohama is considered to be a mid-range brand in the tyre market, whereas Continental is a premium manufacturer.

Read on to see how each of these tyres stack up against each other!

How We Reviewed These Tyres

Unlike the Australian government, the European Union carries out standardised tests on all tyres sold in Europe. These tests are carried out in identical conditions, making them a reliable way to compare tyres.

For this review, we use averaged results from tests done on 29 sizes of these tyres by the European Union.

Fuel Efficiency

EU Grade
(A - E)
Compared to an A grade tyre?
BluEarth-XT AE61C0.2L/100km extra fuel consumption. ~$48 extra per year
UltraContact UC6D0.3L/100km extra fuel consumption. ~$60 extra per year

The US Department of Energy estimates that around 25% of the fuel consumption of a vehicle is attributable to the tyres. That's a lot, and it means that choosing fuel efficient tyres can save you quite a bit of money.

The BluEarth-XT AE61 tyres rank a C on a scale of A to E in the official fuel efficiency tests carried out by the EU (they call these rolling resistance tests).

The UltraContact UC6 tyres get a grade of D.

Expect the lower grade tyre to consume an extra 0.1L/100km. This works out to $12 extra spent on petrol per year, based on a typical 12,000 km driven per year.

Here's a graph comparing the BluEarth-XT AE61 and UltraContact UC6 tyres for fuel efficiency (1 = Grade E, 5 = Grade A).

Grip & Handling

EU Grade
(A - E)
Compared to an A grade tyre?
BluEarth-XT AE61AThis is an A grade tyre for wet grip
UltraContact UC6C5 metre greater stopping distance when braking at 80km/h

We'll now take a look at how these tyres compare in terms of grip and handling.

A good measure of this is 'wet grip', which is an indication of how well the tyres will allow the vehicle to come to a stop in wet conditions.

The BluEarth-XT AE61 tyres rank a A on a scale of A to E in the official fuel tests carried out by the EU.

The UltraContact UC6 tyres, on the other hand, get a grade of C.

Expect the lower graded tyres to require about an extra 4 metres to come to a complete stop when braking at 80km/h.

Here's a graph comparing the BluEarth-XT AE61 and UltraContact UC6 tyres for wet grip (1 = Grade E, 5 = Grade A).

Noise

EU Grade
(A - C)
Compared to an A grade tyre?
BluEarth-XT AE61A (68.0 dB)This is an A grade tyre for noise
UltraContact UC6B (71.5 dB)2 times as noisy

Another key factor to consider when choosing a tyre is road noise. Once you're over about 40 km/h, the dominant source of noise you hear is from the contact of your tyres on the road.

There is a surprisingly wide variation in the amount of noise each tyre makes.

The BluEarth-XT AE61 tyres produce 68.0 dB of road noise, which corresponds to a rank of A on a scale of A to C in the standardised testing done by the EU.

On the other hand, the UltraContact UC6 tyres produce 71.5 dB of road noise, which means a grade of B.

Expect the lower graded tyre to produce about 2.0 times as much noise as the higher grade tyre (the decibel scale is logarithmic).

Here's a visual representation of how the BluEarth-XT AE61 and UltraContact UC6 tyres stack up for noise (1 = Grade C, 3 = Grade A).

Comfort

Based on the results of a number of tyre benchmarks, the UltraContact UC6 scores 4 out of 5 for comfort. We don't have any comfort data for the BluEarth-XT AE61 tyres.

UTQG Data

Introduced by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) in the USA, the Uniform Tire Grading System (UTQG), is a system for comparing one tyre product to another on the basis of some standardised tests.

Treadwear

Unfortunately, we don't have any UTQG treadwear data available for either of these tyres.

Traction

The UTQG system measures traction as straight-line braking in dry conditions. The scale is AA, A, B, C, with AA being the best grade, and C the worst.

We don't have any UTQG traction data available for either of these tyres.

Temperature Resistance

The UTQG temperature resistance tests measure how well tyres can dissipate heat that builds up due to friction with the road. The scale is A, B, C, with A being the highest grade.

We don't have any UTQG temperature data available for either of these sets of tyres.

Warranty

Unfortunately, we don't have any warranty information available for either of these tyres.

Comparisons With Similar Tyres

Still on the fence about these tyres? Check out how they compare to other similar tyres on the market in Australia!

Summary

Let's now take a look at the main differences between these two sets of tyres.

For fuel efficiency, BluEarth-XT AE61 score a grade of C, which is more or less average. UltraContact UC6 end up with a grade of D, which is below average.

More important is the wet grip, which gives you an indication of their traction and handling. In this regard, BluEarth-XT AE61 get a score of A, which is outstanding. UltraContact UC6 end up with a grade of C, which is more or less average.

More important is the wet grip, which gives you an indication of their traction and handling. In this regard, BluEarth-XT AE61 get a score of A, which is excellent. UltraContact UC6 end up with a grade of B, which is about typical.

Full Size List (click to show)

Below is a list of all 27 sizes of the BluEarth-XT AE61, and all 19 sizes of the UltraContact UC6 tyres sold in Australia, sorted by tyre width.

BluEarth-XT AE61 Sizes

Size
205/60 R16 92V
215/50 R18 92V
215/65 R16 98H
215/50 R17 91V
215/70 R16 100H
215/65 R17 99V
215/60 R16 95V
215/55 R17 94V
215/60 R17 96H
215/55 R18 99V XL
225/60 R18 100H
225/55 R17 97W
225/50 R18 95V
225/65 R17 102H
225/60 R17 99V
225/55 R18 98V
225/55 R19 99V
235/55 R19 101V
235/65 R18 106V
235/55 R17 99H
235/50 R18 97V
235/60 R17 102V
235/60 R18 103W
235/55 R18 100V
235/55 R20 102V
235/65 R17 108V XL
245/50 R19 105W XL

UltraContact UC6 Sizes

Size
195/55 R16 87H
195/50 R15 82V
205/65 R15 94V
205/60 R16 96V
205/65 R16 95H
205/60 R15 91V
205/55 R16 91V
215/60 R17 96H
215/55 R17 94W
215/55 R16 93V
215/55 R18 95V
225/55 R16 95W
225/50 R17 98W
225/55 R17 101W
235/55 R17 99W
235/45 R17 97W
245/45 R17 95W
245/50 R18 100Y
255/45 R18 99Y
Louis from Tyre Geek

Louis

I'm Louis, an engineer passionate about helping Australians choose better tyres for their vehicles!