Panaracer Race A Evo 4 TLC folding road tyre

Panaracer's new Race A Evo 4 TLC Folding Road Tyre is a welcome addition to the lineup. The ZSG compound has excellent levels of grip in both the wet and dry, and when it comes to fitting them tubeless there is very little air loss. They are a tight fit, though, and come up quite narrow on the wheel.

• Pros: A brilliant compound gives loads of confidence in the corners
• Cons: Really tight to fit, especially with a tube

I'm a big fan of Panaracer's latest tyres. I've tested both the Race C and the Race L, which really impressed when it came to grip, but these are the first tubeless Panaracers I've tried.

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Tubeless tyres need to have quite a tough sidewall to reduce porousness and the Panaracers definitely have this. Once fitted, they lost just 5psi in the first 24 hours, and that was before adding sealant. It does make them difficult to fit, though.

Normally when testing tyres I fit them first with tubes, as it should be faff-free, before going down the tubeless route. I could tell straight away that the Race As didn't have a lot of give, requiring a load of thumb pressure to get one side seated, let alone the second side.

With a tube involved, trying to get them onto a 19mm internal rim was near impossible without using a tyre lever. Aborting that, I went down the tubeless route, and while they were still tough to get over the rim edge, at least there was nothing to pinch with the tyre lever.

Once seated, they popped onto the rim easily with a blast from the Beto Surge Tubeless pump, and then after the sealant was added they lost very little inflation.

Once you've fitted them to the bike, all that hassle can be forgotten because the grip is brilliant. The ZSG compound is tacky to the touch and the grip is hard to fault. In the dry you can bung these tyres into a bend or roundabout at stupid angles and speeds and they will just hold on. In the wet you obviously need to back things off a touch, but the grip is still there, and with plenty of feedback you can really feel what the tyre is up to.

It's hedge-cutting season around here, so I was a little worried about how the Panaracers were going to stand up to punctures and the like, but I haven't had any issues at all. Closer inspection has seen no cuts or holes in the tyres for the sealant to deal with.

Tubeless tyres are more expensive than standard clinchers, but even at £59.99 the Panaracers are pretty good value, I'd say.

Continental's Grand Prix 5000 TL is an excellent tyre, but I reckon the Race A Evo 4 matches it on grip, if not ease of fitment. The Conti will set you back £69.99.

> Buyer's guide to tubeless tyres – all your options

Schwalbe's Pro One is one of the best tubeless tyres out there, and is very easy to set up. The Panaracer is snapping at its heels when it comes to grip and rolling resistance, and undercuts its £66.99 rrp.

Overall, once fitted the Panaracers can't be faulted, but if you need to fit a tube at the side of the road there'll be cussing.

Verdict

A pig to fit with a tube, but excellent grip and rolling resistance