Onza Preda 700cx23 tyre

Onza is a Swiss brand producing tyres mainly for commuters, BMX and mountain bikes, plus a few road options including this Preda folding clincher. It's a lightweight tyre with impressive performance and good puncture protection, making it ideal for summer training, sportives and entry-level racing.

The Preda also comes in a wire-beaded version, but we're testing a pair of the Kevlar-beaded folding ones here. They went onto a pair of Mavic Open Pros easily, but without being sloppy, and sat nicely on the rim when inflated.

According to the Onza website, the Preda uses a technology called DXT, which stands for Dual Extruding Technology. It simply means the outer part of the tyre consists of two types of rubber: slightly harder on the top of the tyre, so there's less friction and wear when you're vertical on the road; slightly softer on the shoulder of the tyre to provide a bit more grip when you're cornering.

On the inside, the casing is 120TPI, which indicates a medium level of suppleness. (TPI stands for threads per inch; the bigger number usually indicates a more supple tyre, which in turn usually - but not always - indicates a more comfortable ride. Basic tyres are usually under 60 TPI; top-end tyres are 260 TPI or more.)

Several Onza tyres have something called NB1, which turns out to be a "Nylon inlay [to] increase puncture protection and decrease rolling resistance, plus add extra stiffness to the tyre". The Preda goes one better and uses NB2 which, you've guessed it, has two Nylon inlays for even more puncture protection.

With these layers of puncture protection, you might think the Preda would be heavy. But no. On the road.cc scales, this 700 x23 tyre weighs an impressive 205g - putting it in the same weight bracket as benchmarks like the Michelin Pro 3 and Conti GP4000, and slightly lighter than the Panaracer Race A and Schwalbe Durano.

However, I'm not convinced by the claims that a tyre with 'extra stiffness' can also have decreased rolling resistance. Although conventional wisdom may hold that a stiff tyre has less rolling resistance because there's less rubber in contact with the road, I'm with the school of thought that states that stiff tyres have more resistance because they continuously vibrate on all but the smoothest road, whereas supple tyres 'flow' around the bumps.

Having said that, performance doesn't seem to be hampered on the Predas. I've tested a pair during training sessions on the local motor-racing track (cyclists use it in the evening when the cars pack up for the day), and cannot detect any sluggishness compared to other tyres of similar weight and profile I've used in the same conditions. Cornering hard through the chicanes, I've found grip is fine too.

I've also ridden the Predas on local roads. Despite some rough road surfaces, these tyres are comfortable. And on the smaller lanes, where gravel flints and thorns are not at all unknown, so far the tyres have kept all punctures at bay. This is in spring and summer conditions though - I haven't tested these tyres in winter, when there's a lot more debris in the road, but then I would normally ride wider heavier tyres in winter anyway.

The Onza Preda comes in four colour options (black and gray; black and red; black and yellow; black and, er, a slightly lighter shade of black). The retail price is £21.99 for the wire-bead version and £29.99 for the Kevlar-bead version tested here. This isn't a bargain, but it's a fair price compared against £30-plus for GP4000s and £25-plus for Pro 3s.

Verdict

Lightweight option with impressive performance and good puncture protection, ideal for summer training, sportives and entry-level racing.