Goodyear Vector 4Seasons tubeless tyre

The Goodyear Vector 4Seasons Tubeless Complete tyre – as opposed to the Tube Type – is surprisingly quick and supple for something that is also robust enough to deal with all the grit and flint being washed out of the verges this time of year. Its new design makes it a step above the rest too when it comes to tubeless capability.

On the market, you'll find tubeless tyres that don't necessarily need a sealant to keep them inflated, although the majority are tubeless-ready (TLR or TR generally), which have more porous sidewalls that need a sealant to, er, seal them.

Goodyear has launched a range of tyres called 'Tubeless Complete' as a kind of middle ground. Using a multi-compound material layer to the inside of the casing means that they don't use up so much of the original input of sealant to plug any tiny gaps in the tyres' construction, and they maintain pressure for much longer.

Using the recommended 40ml of sealant for this tyre size before the initial inflation didn't see any bubbling through the sidewall, and the tyre had lost about 10% of the 80psi pressure the following morning.

Throughout testing, I was probably topping them up once a week, similar to a clincher with an inner tube.

Goodyear has also tweaked the bead design to create a Dual Angle Bead which means it is compatible with standard hooked rims and also the completely flush hookless rims that are starting to make their way through to road/gravel wheels.

Fitting the tyres was an easy affair, with them popping on both the Token DHuezz wheels and a set of hookless FFWD gravel wheels that had just arrived for testing.

These tyres have been created to work with a 19mm internal rim width which the majority of disc brake wheels are using these days. This means that when they are inflated, they measure up the same size as the sidewall states.

Many tyre widths are still based on 17mm rims, so tend to come up around 2mm wider when fitted to a modern rim, something to take into account if you have limited frame clearance.

A non-tubeless clincher version – the 'Tube Type' – is also available.

The Vector 4Seasons makes up part of Goodyear's Ultra High-Performance (UHP) line-up, which focuses on optimising low rolling resistance and weight, and, in the Vector's case, dealing with year-round road debris. It's quite a difficult balance to achieve but Goodyear has done a good job. (Neil was impressed with the new Eagle Sport, too.)

The tyres have been fitted for the majority of the testing period to my Kinesis T2 which, thanks to its mudguards, pretty much only ever goes out in the rain. The Vectors have proved themselves to be highly durable in all sorts of horrible conditions, and punctures haven't been an issue.

The Dynamic:Silica4 compound has a tacky feel to it and grip levels are very impressive, giving loads of confidence in fast bends or when tackling roundabouts while keeping up with the flow of traffic.

It works just as well in the dry too. The Vectors have a very similar feel to some of the better summer race tyres in the corners and they aren't far off in the rolling resistance stakes either, they're just a bit weightier that's all. Not that you notice that extra 150ish grams in the real world.

As their sidewalls need to be less porous, many tubeless tyres don't have quite the same feel as a standard clincher, but the Vectors are surprisingly supple which aids comfort and, more importantly, means you get plenty of feedback from the road.

I've ridden about 400 miles on this pair so far and wear rates are looking pretty good, although it's way too early to tell for sure. If anything shows up as I carry on riding into the winter, I'll be back with an update.

The Vectors are available in four sizes: 25mm, 28mm, 30mm and 32mm. The first two have an rrp of £52 while the wider two are £57.

That means these 28mm versions come in a smidge under one of the benchmarks, the Continental Grand Prix 4 Seasons, and I'd say the Goodyears have the edge on ride quality.

The Vectors are undercut by the Michelin Power All Season tyres at £47.99, which Simon found didn't quite deliver the 'summer tyre' ride of the Goodyears, but those were the 25mm size – we do have some 28s on test at the moment – full review to come.

Liam highly rated the Vittoria Corsa Control TLR G2.0 tyres and they scored very well across all of the aspects that the Vectors have going for them – but they are £69.99!

> Buyer’s Guide: 22 of the best winter tyres

Overall, if you like plenty of grip and speed throughout the year without really sacrificing durability, then the Goodyear Vector 4Season is a very good tyre choice. There are cheaper solutions out there if you're happy to sacrifice a bit of suppleness or speed, but I'd rather not.

Verdict

Excellent durable and puncture-resistant wet weather tyre with the performance of a summer one