The latest iteration of the famed Dunlop Sportmax Q line of high-performance track-day tires is here. The all-new Dunlop Sportmax Q5 is a track-day tire that retains street legality while focusing on the highest-possible closed circuit performance. Let’s dig into this made in the USA tire that was developed at Roebling Road Raceway in Georgia, Chuckwalla Valley Raceway in California, and Dunlop’s own Huntsville Proving Grounds in Alabama.
- Dunlop developed the Sportmax Q5 as a hybrid of the Sportmax Q4 and the slick road racing tires it supplies to MotoAmerica.
- Every aspect of the Q5 is updated from the Q4. That means new construction, compounds, profile, and tread pattern.
- The new tread pattern is more sharply defined. There is a larger rubber/pavement interface at extreme lean angles. The Q5’s tire contact patch doesn’t exceed the Q4’s until the lean angle hits 32 degrees, so the Q5 is a tire intended for hard riding.
- The profiles are taller and narrower—front and back. Dunlop tells us that makes for better turn-in, plus improved grip when heeled over due to increased tire compliance. The turning performance of its Intuitive Response Profile is described by Dunlop as “ultra-linear and responsive.”
- The front Dunlop Sportmax Q5 is a new stiffness profile. Less vertical stiffness is combined with more longitudinal and lateral stiffness. Dunlop says this leads to more tire damping and compliance when braking, resulting in better deceleration performance. The new stiffness levels are also supposed to improve general handling.
- The rear Q5 taps into slick technology for its tread strip. Dunlop’s proprietary Jointless Tread Technology comes from the world of racing strips. The tread strip is continuously wound over the tire’s carcass to optimize grip, stability, and flex.
- A new compound for the rear Q5 increases grip in the dry. Dunlop claims the rear Q5 is “much closer to a true race tire compound.”
- Four of the rear Q5s have identical profiles to their MotoAmerica equivalents. The 140/70ZR17, 180/60ZR17, 200/55ZR17, and 200/60ZR17 profiles match the pure race rubber.
- According to Dunlop, the Sportmax Q5 is an easier tire to live with. It warms up faster than its predecessor, thanks to the larger contact patch. Dunlop is good with the Q5 being used at the track without tire warmers.
- Dunlop has made the Q5 available to more riders thanks to five new sizes. If you want a 110/70ZR17, 140/70ZR17, 150/60ZR17, 160/60ZR17, and 200/60ZR17, Dunlop now has you covered at the track.
- The Dunlop Sportmax Q5 can be had from Dunlop dealers and race tire distributors. They’ll start showing up this month, though be prepared to wait until December, depending on your locale. Check with your dealer for pricing, and watch for our review soon.
Dunlop Sportmax Q5 Tire Sizes
Front
- 110/70ZR17
- 120/70ZR17
Rear
- 140/70ZR17
- 150/60ZR17
- 160/60ZR17
- 180/55ZR17
- 180/60ZR17
- 190/50ZR17
- 190/55ZR17
- 200/55ZR17
- 200/60ZR17
