Vredestein Ultrac Vorti Plus vs Nokian PowerProof: For the best comparison of these 2 high-performance summer tires, the same tire size of 225/40/18 and the same car (and weight) were chosen. We often credit a ride’s quality solely to the features of the vehicle and overlook the performance of the tires attached to the car. However, this is a mistake since tires significantly impact a ride’s quality, safety, and comfort.
Instead of that, these tires were tested to evaluate their wet and dry traction, rolling resistance, noise levels, aquaplaning resistance, and other critical parameters using reliable experiments.
Examine the treads on these tires closely. They hold the key to knowing which to choose. In fact if you visit my "tread design" page, picking the right tire would never bother you.
Nokian is a prominent brand in the tire manufacturers industry. Headquartered in Finland, Nokian is famous for producing high-quality winter tires. However, in recent years, there has been a surge in the popularity of their summer tires.
Nokian Powerproof is their max-performance summer tire designed for passenger cars, SUVs, and 4X4s. A well-priced tire with a good reputation in the market, we decided to review Nokian Powerproof to let you know if it is suitable for you or not.
On the other side, originally a Dutch Tire Brand, Vredestein today is a part of the Indian Apollo Group. Where their top tire the Vorti Plus first appeared time on the classic Ferrari Breadvan racing car. The tire replaced the Vredestein Ultrac Sessanta.
Powerful cars require a high level of precision when it comes to precision and grip at high speeds, so proper traction and handling is a must-have for safety. And both being UHP (high performance) tires were developed for this purpose. So they have the best traction values and amazing steering responses.
Both tires offer great asymmetrical tread contact patches as well and their rigid sidewalls that translate into amazing steering capability especially around corners.
Both models boost superior braking performance as well with the tread’s optimal siping details. With the siping pattern and tire compounds create amazing braking distance values ensuring safety.
Let’s compare them in detail.
Table of Contents
Dry Traction Comparison
A crucial performance variable when it comes to overall traction on dry asphalt is measured by braking distances. Dry traction reflects the grip and control of the tires on dry asphalt (roads).
Both of these tires, in fact, all of the UHP tires have the traction rating of A. The difference in braking distance between A and E-rated tires could be as much as 30%.
When tested, the Nokian Powerproof exhibited decent dry traction with a better short dry braking distance. The tire features an innovative dual-zone safety technology designed to provide drivers with the best combination of dry and wet properties.
This dual-zone safety feature plays an important role in improving the tire’s dry traction, even when the vehicle is maneuvering or brakes are suddenly pressed. For this reason, we found its capacity to grip dry surfaces at a slow or high speed to be better.
Statistically speaking, on dry surfaces, the Nokian PowerProof covered 34.6 meters to break from 100kph to 0kph. Where the braking distance was 36.8 meters for the Vredestein Ultrac Vorti plus. Nokian takes the lead here.
Vredestein Ultrac Vorti however was able to beat Nokian on the dry handling tests and completed a lap in an overall good time. This thing gives it an unusually big lead over Nokian. Some enthusiasts even call it the king of dry handling.
The handling time for the Nokian Powerproof was 96.1 seconds compared to Vorti Plus 95.5 seconds, making Vredestein better in handling on dry surfaces.
For Nokian Powerproof, a slight wheel spin was noted when the vehicle was driven at high speed, despite its logical steering feature designed to facilitate high-speed lane changes.
Because their sporty performance was not very impressive, we would not highly recommend sports driving Nokian Poweproof on dry tracks.
We also noted the tires tended to understeer a little on dry surfaces since their soft sidewalls can negatively impact road feedback. While it performed well around corners and exhibited decent dry grip, we found its steering not to be as precise as its counterparts.
On the other side, the Vredestein Ultrac Vorti gave a very nice sporty feel to it.
It is a tad stiffer on the shoulders and sidewalls, whereas the central strip is much wider which helps in dry braking and handling. It uses new high-traction tread compounds which include silica and raisin mixed with multi-purpose polymers to ensure maximum grip and braking performance on dry surfaces.
It just leaves you wondering at times whether the tire is going to grip or slide, but the steering response and the speed makes it a very enjoyable tire
The tire was also more resistant to heat when compared. Giving an overall better dry handling.
Wet Traction Comparison
Vredestein was once known to be the king of wet as well. But this tire did not live up to the expectations for most tire enthusiasts. As impressive as this tire’s performance in the dry is, it comes with this side-effect if you will.
It is nowhere close to its competition with regard to wet traction.
Nokian PowerProof took 37 in meters where Vorti + took 52.8 meters to go from 100 kph to 0 kph. Nokian is better here by a huge margin.
The tire just doesn’t meet the standards that we have come to expect from Apollo Vredestein. Some enthusiasts would argue that this tire has been over-engineered to provide the best dry braking which has left it lacking in the wet braking department.
On the other side the Nokian Powerproof performed exceptionally well in wet conditions as its dual-zone safety feature came into play. The good wet grip and wet handling of the Nokian tire help increase the driver’s confidence on wet roads, allowing you to drive at a high speed.
The Nokian Powerproof displayed good cornering on a wet surface too.
Speaking of handling times, the tire exhibited good handling capabilities here as well. While it had a tendency to understeer slightly and delay the steering response, a decent grip combined with wide grooves and dual-zone safety made it simpler to handle, allowing the driver to feel confident.
The Vredestein Ultrac Vorti plus was also able to maintain an average result here.
The handling time for the Nokian Powerproof and the Vorti Plus were both same 95.5 seconds. So it’s a tie here.
Overall, Vorti Plus has less road grip when compared. Where the Nokian tire exhibited good enough traction on wet roads (With slight oversteering sometimes.)
And for the wet handling. They both performed almost the same. With the Nokian taking a lead sometimes.
Comparing Rolling Resistances
Rolling resistance is one tire factor that can affect a vehicle’s fuel consumption. The lower the rolling resistance, the less fuel is required, and fewer carbon emissions generated. The difference in fuel consumption between A and E-rated tires could be as much as 6.5%. For an average passenger vehicle, that’s around 0.55 L per 100 km.
When compared. Nokian does it better. The Nokian Powerproof was designed to provide safety, quality, and sustainability. The company’s claim to focus on sustainability and improving rolling resistance and fuel economy was well-founded. When tested, the rolling resistance of the Powerproof was recorded to be better. This makes the tire a more economical option as lower rolling resistance means better fuel economy.
For Nokian PowerProof it is averaged around 8.5 kg/t where Vorti Plus experiences a rolling resistance of 9.6 kg/t. Showing Nokian has better rolling resistance.
The Vredestein Ultrac Vorti is designed for extremely high speeds and fast cornering. It’s designed for performance. Especially on dry surfaces.
Although it is built with a blend of polymer and resin and has a significantly large apex base, that helps reduce rolling resistance, they didn’t prioritize it much.
Still the Apex base stabilizes the tire when turning corners and stiffens up the sidewalls, thereby minimizing the twisting of the tire by the high load that it feels while making sharp turns. The stiffer build of the tire ensures that the tire ends up getting less deformed while going down the road, resulting in a minimal amount of energy loss.
If you prefer economy more than the performance. Nokian is a suitable option for you. The Nokian Powerproof with its impressive rolling resistance, makes the tire a good option for those on a tight budget because of its improved fuel economy.
Comparing Hydroplaning/Aquaplaning
The Nokian Powerproof were designed to improve the hydroplaning resistance of the Nokian tires. This claim was not well-founded as we did not find its hydroplaning resistance to be at par with its counterparts.
Two tests were performed to check the hydroplaning resistance of the Nokian Powerproof; the straight aquaplaning test and the curved aquaplaning test. When tested, a float speed of 72 km/h was recorded which meant low resistance and a remaining lateral acceleration of 1.9.
Despite the Powerproof’s good tread life and wet grip, its hydroplaning resistance was not as strong.
The float speed of Vorti plus averages arround 75 km/h with the lateral acceleration in curved hydroplaning of 2. Compared to Nokian PowerProof’s float speed of 72 km/h and 1.9 remaining lateral acceleration in curved aquaplaning. This make Vorti Plus slightly better.
But this does not mean that the Vorti Plus did well here.
The Aquaplaning test didn’t do this tire any favors.
When compare with other UHP tires, both tires did a decent job in the straight test with Vorti slightly better but when it came to curved aquaplaning tests, they were furthest from the leaders.
For Vorti Plus the same design that makes it amazing at dry handling, makes it below par when it comes to aquaplaning.
The inner construction of the tire consists of a layer of rayon which helps make the tire durable, but slippery and shifty at the same time which makes this tire prone to Hydroplaning when the conditions get really wet. Even though the tire has deep grooves to get rid of the water, they really don’t make any difference when the tire moves laterally through corners.
Noise and Comfort Comparison
Exterior noise level is measured in decibels (dB) and compared with the European limits introduced in 2016 for the exterior tyre noise.
Nokian Powerproof tires proved to be one of the quietest tires on the market. When tested, an external noise of 71 dB was recorded. However, the tires did provide a very comfortable ride especially in the beginning stages of its use.
Compare to the Vredestein Ultrac Vorti plus external noise of 72.4 dB on asphalt, the noise level of Nokian PowerProof tires averages around 71 decibels or dBs. So on the paper, Nokian is quieter.
Vredestein Ultrac Vorti isn’t the noisiest tire, but it is one of the noisier ones if compared with some of its competitors. Its stiff treadwear combined with the deep grooves can make it a bit noisy especially on the highway. Air gets compressed inside the grooves of the tread and the deeper the grooves, the more air volume, the noisier the tire. If we talk about the noise the Vredestein Ultrac Vorti plus made an external noise of 72.4 dB on asphalt
Comfort-wise this tire is second to none, it scored the same as some of the best tires in the market like the Michelin pilot sport 4 and Bridgestone Turanza T0 50 on the comfort scale.
Treadwear Comparison
For Nokian, the treadwear did not prove to be one of the stronger suits of the Nokian Powerproof tires. They come with a tread depth of 8mm. The tread depth indicator present on the tire is a useful feature that can be used to check the thickness of the tread and change the tire when the tread is wearing low.
The tread features an appealing design and allows better road feedback. One of the reasons the Nokian tires have a good grip on wet and dry surfaces is their reasonable tread.
On the other side, Vredestein did better.
Tthe Ultrac Vorti plus has a high-traction tread compound with an asymmetric pattern that delivers great results in dry conditions. The central rib that goes all along the tire has diagonal slits that improve steering response and precision. The outer shoulder, which is much more rigid, wider, and low-void than the inner shoulder, is responsible for providing enhanced handling whereas the inner shoulder has much more void and is designed to aid wet traction and handling. Moreover, the tire has deep grooves that allow the water to flow through the contact patch and build up resistance against aquaplaning in wet conditions.
The tire itself is made with two different compounds: rayon and nylon. The rayon layer helps build up tire strength and durability, whereas the two layers of nylon are there to provide the high-speed capability. However this makes the treadwear quite sensitive to temperatures under 20 degrees F, so make sure that whenever you take these tires in the snow give it around 24 hours to return to at least 40 degrees F, otherwise the treadwear will wear out very quickly.
Conclusion
Overall, the Nokian Powerproof proved to be good tires exhibiting excellent performance on dry and wet surfaces. However, despite being maximum performance tires targeting high-performance cars, their sports performance was not as impressive as expected.
They are also recommended for electric and hybrid cars and feature innovative specs such as the dual-zone safety feature which makes these tires worth their value. These high-tech features make the ride safer, more stable, and easier to handle.
Being summer tires, we were not surprised to see that the Nokian Powerproof did not perform well in mud or snow. So, if you live in a muddy area, we would not recommend you to buy it.
And for the Vorti Plus, if you’re an enthusiast and like to push your tires to the limit, this might not be the best option for you. Even though this tire will give you top-notch handling, speed, and precision in the dry, it won’t be able to cope with the pressure when the conditions are wet. The top-notch dry handling and speed do make this a fun tire, but you have to ask yourself whether it’s worth the risk or not.
Verdict:
Both of these tires will work perfectly fine for your daily use. But based on the tests we saw. The Vredestein Tire was better when it comes to Dry Handling and Straight Aquaplaning. On the other side, the Nokian provided less rolling resistance and better dry and wet braking distance values. It was quieter of the two as well.
Overall, it comes down to your preference. We would recommend Nokian if you are looking for the overall best value for your money when compared to the two. As its amazing performance values (in this price range) are good enough.
On the other hand, if you need one of the best dry handling and price is not such an issue. You should go with the Vorti Plus.
