Continental has launched two new versions of their popular GP5000 road bike tyre, calling the Grand Prix 5000 AS TR the strongest and the Grand Prix 5000 TT TR the fastest in their lineup. While the TT TR is aimed at racers, especially time-trialists, the AS TR model offers more versatility to everyday riders who like the performance benefits of the GP5000 tyres. Let’s look at what these tyres with Kanye West lyric-like claims are made of, then…
Continental Grand Prix 5000 AS TR tyre
Grand Prix 5000 AS TR is a new all-season GP5000, adding some extra protection, grip and longevity to the fast GP5000 road tyre lineup. Even though this is the heavier of the two new GP5000 tyres, it is perhaps more exciting for those who enjoy a little speed boost in everyday conditions and not while racing.
With the AS TR, Continental has paired the speed of the Grand Prix 5000 and the longevity and protection of the Grand Prix 4 Season. The new tyre has a boosted tread pattern, multi-layer overlapping ply construction and additional sidewall protection – although from afar it looks very much like a “regular” GP5000.
Continental use a BlackChili compound which is said to offer a balance of rolling resistance and grip. Conti says it is infused with Vectran Breaker liquid crystal polymers for puncture protection and tear resistance and there is also a Lazer Grip expanding profile structure designed for precise cornering and Active Comfort Technology for vibration absorption built into the rubber.
This model is tubeless-ready and hookless compatible, and Continental says the weights start at 300g per tyre. The tyre is available in widths from 25mm up to 35mm – so plenty of widths even for a commuter bike, and you can choose from black or cream sidewall colour options. One Continental GP 5000 AS TR tyre will set you back 95.99€ (we’re waiting to confirm UK pricing).
Continental Grand Prix 5000 TT TR tyre
Continental claims that the new Grand Prix 5000 TT TR tyre is the fastest. This is the very same tyre that Filippo Ganna used when he broke the hour cycling record last year, and with that performance in mind, it is for sure going to appeal to crit, TT and triathlon racers around the globe.
This tyre was already released last year as a limited edition 25mm option to celebrate the 2022 Tour de France, but it’s now also available in plusher 28mm width. With the 28mm tyre weighing in at 235g, this is a lightweight race tyre designed with speed in mind (the 25mm version is 35g lighter than the equivalently sized Continental’s Grand Prix 5000 S TR).
The tread thickness and construction are intended to reduce the tyre’s material deformation, offering a lower rolling resistance. Continental says the fastest times on the GP5000 TT TR tyres are achieved when you pair the 25mm at the front with the 28mm at the back.
> How to choose the best width road tyres for your riding
Similarly to the AS TR, the GP5000 TT TR features a BlackChili compound and other Continental tyre technologies to make the tyre durable and grippy in all conditions.
The Grand Prix 5000 TT TR is hookless-compatible with up to 21 TSS and tubeless-ready. The tyre is available exclusively in the black sidewall colourway, with an RRP of 108.95€ per tyre.
Both of the new tyres should be available now and you can check all the further details on the Continental website.
51 thoughts on “Continental unveils the “strongest” and “fastest” ever Grand Prix 5000 tyre models”
Tyres have gone up in price
Tyres have gone up in price in what four years from £50 for a premium top of the range item to £100.. that simply cannot be written off by blaming brexit and the price of materials.
It’s bollix.
Adding the word “tubeless” to
Adding the word “tubeless” to a road bike tyre seems to validate a price hike by £20-30. Funny how MTB tyres aren’t priced as crazy despite all being tubeless compatible and requiring much more materials….
The amount of material in the
The amount of material in the tyre is pretty much irrelevent. The type of material plays a part, but ultimately it R&D and manufacturing costs.
Road tyres need to deal with much higher pressures that an MTB tyre, so the contruction needs to different, and I’d imagine the R&D needs to be more rigorous.
Does this justify the difference in price? Other than needing to cover those extra R&D costs, there is also a quote somewhere that goes something like ‘I’ll decide how much something is worth, based on people are willing to pay’.
joules1975 wrote:
I concur.. however I’d argue against R&D costs. These for Conti would be an ongoing operational cost and unless a completely new product which requires additional human resource and or new testing equiptment or machinery.. clearly in this case none of which would apply then ‘R&D’ costs should not factor.
We are talking about a pro
We are talking about a pro level tyre here. A tyre the hour record was broken on. There are cheaper tyres out there if you aren’t needing the margianal gains these tyres offer. I’m using Hutchinson Challengers, good all weather tyres that are less than £30 each. I’m sure the GP5000 All Seasons would be lighter and get me to work a few seconds quicker. but I’ll pass.
Pro-level means nothing in
Pro-level means nothing in context, as at the ‘Pro-level’ they used the same £50 tyres as I did a handful of years ago.. History tells us that the ‘only’ justified expensive tyre were ten year old matured hand crafted by Belgium hobbits in darkened caves tubulars at the ‘pro-level’.
I brought a couple of £70 Conti tyres the other month and felt sick about it… now it seems the goal posts have just been moved again.
We’re led to believe that a £50 tyre now costs £90 (not the hour record one, the other one) and we should be pleased about it.
I know ‘capitalism’ and ‘if peope will pay it’ and all but the % increase seems a bit of a mickey take even with Brexit and material costs taken into account.
peted76 wrote:
GP4000’s had an RRP of £60 – £70 10 years back prior to brexit but were being sold online for half that. Brexit happened then they weren’t.
Plus inflation / Sterling wobbles / pandemic etc etc and here we are. Luckily there’s plenty of cheaper options out there
Just to counter your fake
Just to counter your fake news, you can buy a pair of gp5000s for 60 quid, or 30 quid a tyre.
The ones that are expensive are the 28mm variety favoured by overweight cyclists – the 25s (and 23s) are reasonable. Tubeless has always been a scam and more fool you if you have tubeless setup.
The Accountant wrote:
28c tyres are favoured by those on less than perfectly smooth roads who understand that a smoother/more comfortable ride equals a faster/easier ride.
As for tubeless being a scam, plenty of evidence to say otherwise. Are the prices of tubeless tyres a scam? Maybe the manufacturers are taking the piss a bit with the RRPs, but I’d suggest that it’s mainly the power of supply and demand, as evidanced by the fact that 28c versions are in higher demand that 25c versions, so the shop prices of 28c versions are higher. No conspiracy, just plain economics.
The Accountant wrote:
I’ve been running GP 5000
I’ve been running GP 5000 Tubeless since launch in 25, 28 and recently 30mm. I’ve NEVER had a puncture (that didn’t self seal) on them despite riding 4 seasons on them from Mallorcan perfection to the debris strewn winter roads, nay farmtracks of my local area. I’m not overweight and indeed win bicycle races in my age category. I’d say 28 on wide carbon rims is the summer sweetspot and 30mm for winter are excellent for speed and grip on crap wet roads. Tubeless wider tyres are faster, grippier, more comfortable and more reliable, after many years of experience on both systems it’s an easy conclusion for me personally.
The Accountant wrote:
Could you evidence where you can buy them at that price? Otherwise it would seem like you are spreading fake news?
Sure you can just buy them at
Sure you can just buy them at Amazon Germany for euro 33.99 (approx £30) – https://www.amazon.de/Continental-Grand-Performance-Racing-tyre/dp/B07K91B78V/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?crid=3TNJSMDUN4008&keywords=gp%2B5000&qid=1677850275&sprefix=gp5000%2Caps%2C94&sr=8-1&th=1&psc=1
You’re welcome, and I look forward to your thank you note.
£34 including delivery,
£34 including delivery, despite being an Amazon Prime member… and it’s only the 25mm version.
That is not £30 per tyre
Sometimes they are on offer
Sometimes they are on offer in the UK Amazon too (just not at the moment). So if you can’t stretch to the 4 quid delivery, last pair I bought were 55 quid back in August.
I’m not going to carry on doing your homework for you, I passed the challenge with flying colours
The Accountant wrote:
You really didn’t, but I’ll take your word for it and keep an eye out as £55 is a very good price and I’m in no rush as I have way more tyres than I actually need.
Now £48.93… he’s spouting
.
Sir. I doth my cap to you.
Sir. I doth my cap to you.
Pure bloody click bait.
Oh. And I prefer to wear 25 upfront and 28 rear. How would you type me?
Pear shaped?
Pear shaped?
Some piece of work you. I
Some piece of work you. I sort of know your type….someone who never responds to a polite nod or “morning”. The look you give as if you have just stepped in dog shit as you look down your entitled nose at those of us who are not racing cyclists and just out trying to keep fit and for the pleasure of riding a bike. The fool you are that you refuse to acknowledge improvements in tech and your arrogance prevents you from embracing the benefits whilst you rattle your fillings on your rock hard 23s. Move with the times mate and try to be nice.
One might argue if typres
One might argue if typres aren’t sold at RRP then they don’t cost that amount to the customer. Where as now, a £70 tyre actually does cost £70 due to lack of supply and high demand.
It was the joint UK/EU
It was the joint UK/EU closure of a VAT avoidance loophole that did most to eliminate the cheaper prices.
Prior to that anything under £135(IIRC) coming from the EU could avoid VAT making their outlets 20% cheaper automatically for things like tyres.
I imagine the ‘street’ price
I imagine the ‘street’ price will be lower… the GP5000 25mm is £34 on Wiggle.
I imagine the ‘street’ price
[quote=PRSboy]
I imagine the ‘street’ price will be lower… the GP5000 25mm is £34 on Wiggle.
Not the Tubeless version which is still double that
I’ve been really impressed
I’ve been really impressed with Michelin Pro 4 Endurance tyres – a pair of which are currently just £55 at Decathlon.
Seconded – they are an
Seconded – they are an awesome tyre, use them on my winter bike.
Not sure if they are still in active production now though, thought they were replaced by “power endurance”?
The Accountant wrote:
Ah, that may explain why Decathlon are selling them off cheap then!
Jem PT wrote:
They had really good reviews and do ride nicely but I my experience was that they weren’t very puncture-resistant.
They were my tyre of choice
They were my tyre of choice for some years but, as the Accountant says, were superseded long ago. Any ‘new’ ones will be old stock and, depending how they have been stored, may be deteriorating.
Michelin’s nearest current model is the Krylion but it’s as rare as an honest politician.
Could just pedal a bit harder
Could just pedal a bit harder to go faster…
I must admit I’m slightly
I must admit I’m slightly confused by Continental’s naming strategy. Why is everything a GP 5000 now? I’m sure it used to be the GP 4000/5000 had a single “focus” – i.e. a high end road racing tyre. If you wanted an All Season tyre (a bit more robust/grippy) you bought the GP Four Seasons, and if you wanted a TT tyre (lighter and faster) you bought the GP TT.
The GP4000 was never a high
The GP4000 was never a high end road racing tyre, because it was a clincher, and the pros all ran tubulars. It’s only recently that the pros are moving over to tubeless, and it’s only recently that Conti have made tubeless road tyres, so it’s only recently that the GP5000 has become known as a top end race tyre. Before that, both were just brilliant, fast tyres for weekend warriers.
In marketing terms, these two new tyres makes a lot of sense. The GP 5000 is a very well recognised branding, with everyone knowing that a tyre with that stuck on the side is going to be a fast tyre. If I was Conti, I’d want to capitalise on that, which would need to be through selling more tyres, and thus a growing range of tyres with that branding.
But this isn’t a massive range expansion. There has been a TT version of the GP4000 or GP5000 for some time, so it makes sense to make a TR version of that. And then, why not a tougher version for those who want to go fast on less than ideal roads or compacted gravel that would/could result in punctures if running the standard version of the tyre.
Maybe these new 5000 AS tyres
Maybe these new 5000 AS tyres are a spiritual successor to the Grand Prix tyre which was more robust than the GP 4000/5000 tyres?
Also shows that the confusing naming strategy from Continental is not a recent thing!
and I thought we were getting
and I thought we were getting strong and fast rather than strong or fast….
€95 for a single tyre. Is
€95 for a single tyre. Is that a typo?!
I’ll stick with the Corsa
I’ll stick with the Corsa Control for all season tyres…..Conti are massively over rated. And over priced.
Bollox
Bollox
I’ve tried them all. I’d never leave home without my Conti 4 seasons.
Doubt I’m paying 90 quid for one of these new fandangles though. I only pay 80 quid for the wife’s 4wd tyre.
Wow, you lot really are a
Wow, you lot really are a bunch of toxic pricks.
If you don’t like GP5000s or can’t afford them, shut up with the moaning and buy something else.
Pot00000000 wrote:
Wow, you seem nice
Im lovely, but every week,
Im lovely, but every week, every product it’s the same old moaning and bickering. FFS go ride your bikes.
Pot00000000 wrote:
You are correct. The tone on road.cc at the moment is very sour.
The people are revolting.
The people are revolting.
They must be beaten until their mood improves.
You could always stop
You could always stop scrolling at the end of the article and avoid the comment section. No-one is forcing you read other people’s posts (or add a pointless, shitty reaction to them) so it seems you’re just as much of a prick as anyone else.
Do you have an opinion on this news item?
As a cereal offender, your
As a serial offender, your opinion isn’t valid.
edit for autocorrect stupidness ?
Ta.
Ta.
And then this one.
And then this one.
Better than being a cereal
Better than being a cereal killer ? I suppose ?.
That’s a little Frostie…
That’s a little Frostie…
Auto correct is a little
Auto correct is a little flaky
I’m sure that when I started
I’m sure that when I started serious cycling mid 80’s there were folk paying similar money for the very best tubular [or tubs if you can remember those]. Admittedly they were track racers and the TT brigade but still. If you don’t want to pay it, don’t.
“This model is tubeless-ready
“This model is tubeless-ready and hookless compatible.”
Great work – not made it at all clear if they can be used with hooked rims – press release was copied and pasted.