The Nexen N5000 Platinum is a balanced and reliable choice for diverse driving conditions, excelling in specific areas while requiring attention in others, notably wet performance and ride comfort. Let’s check out this tire in greater details.
Being a tire engineer, my testing with the Nexen N5000 show that the tire, while offers superb steering response and dry handling, struggles with grip and stability in wet and snowy conditions. Moreover, it also needs improvement in the comfort department, though it still offers a quiet enough ride compared to its peers.
Table of Contents
Tire Sizes
The Nexen N5000 Platinum comes in 16 to 20 inches rims, and they have the following specs.
- Speed ratings: H, V and W.
- Load ratings: SL and XL.
- Tread depth range: 9.5 to 10/32″.
- Weight range: 18 to 32 lbs.
- Treadwear warranty: 70k miles for H and V, while 55k for W speed rated sizes.
- UTQG rating: 700 AA.
Tread Design
The N5000 comes with an asymmetric tread pattern, with a typically seen 5 rib structure.
In the middle, the tire features 3 straight forward columns, (forming 4 circumferential grooves), and featuring lateral siping and in-groove notches.
These features are although common on all these ribs, they still change their angles and orientations, (from one another), adding to the tire’s overall gripping efficacy.
Moving towards shoulders, they are slightly different on either sides.
On one (referring to the right in the image), they feature in-groove notches (with offsets), and lateral siping.
While on the other, they feature longitudinal slits with those similar lateral sipes (though don’t have the offsets in the lateral grooves).
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Wet Performance
Wet performance is all about clearing off water from the tread, so the tire’s rubber can effectively meet with the relatively dried up road’s surface.
Now this is done by grooves and sipes.
Grooves define the tire’s overall resistance to hydroplaning, while sipes tell you about the wet grip. Let’s check out both of these dimensions in greater details.
Wet Directional and Lateral Grip
While most of the water is taken out with grooves, sipes come in to action for the remaining left over water particles. And they work by creating a negative pressure, sucking up water particles in their slits, as the tire meets the ground, and then later on spraying them out, as the tire rolls over.
Now, compared to other tires in the category, the Nexen N5000 Platinum does not perform, you can say, exceptionally well in this aspect.
While the tire might seem to have a lot of small slits, or sipes, these are not effective for mainly two reasons.
- These sipes only have a linear design, so they tend to stiffen up as the tire corners sharply, or quickly brakes, or accelerates.
- And with the tire having less silica in its composition, the overall stiffer tread don’t allow these sipes to breath water in and out effectively.
So you end up with tire lacking overall in both wet handling times and stopping efficacy.
Hydroplaning Resistance
Hydroplaning occurs when a tire completely loses all its contact with the ground (as water comes in the way). So one can say its technically the floating of a tire on water.
And since grooves do majority of the water clearing, they define the tire’s overall resistance to hydro or aquaplaning.
In this regard, the Nexen provides efficient water clearance, but since it only does so in the longitudinal direction, its performance in curved flow speeds (tests) is not as impressive.
Pavement Performance Analysis
When it comes to cruising on highways, you want a tire that holds its own, offering a strong, unwavering bond with the asphalt. The Nexen N5000 Platinum steps up to the plate in this regard, impressing with its solid steering responsiveness, grip, and side-to-side stability.
Straight Line Grip
Since this type of grip is directional, it highly depends on the central area of the tread, and is measured by the tire’s braking and acceleration efficacy.
And in the middle, the Nexen N5000 Platinum features 3 continuous running ribs, with in groove notches and lateral siping.
The uninterrupted rib design ensures that the tire’s rubber maintains consistent contact with the road, while the slanted biters, positioned at various angles, enhance braking efficacy.
The sipes in particular although are designed for wet traction, are also helping here as well, as their lateral orientation adheres well to the road during longitudinal (or straight line) movement.
Testing has shown that these design elements come together to offer impressive braking performance, characterized by very short braking distance values (on average), which is on par with its direct competitors.
Handling Grip
The Nexen N5000 Platinum exhibits impressive handling characteristics, especially when maneuvering through sharp turns, thanks to it’s stable and planted shoulders.
The tire features shoulder lugs that are smartly interconnected longitudinally. Sure they may seem divided up by lateral grooves, they are actually mounted on a secondary layer of rubber and are interconnected with ridges in between.
What this does is allow for a greater rubber to road contact, resulting in decent lateral grip.
Moreover, with lateral in-groove shoulder notches, the cornering efficacy is further improved, as those bite in to the surface of the road, creating extra frictional force.
Though keep in mind that this tire giving out amazing lateral traction values isn’t the final piece of the puzzle, as tire’s steering response also plays a pivotal role in overall cornering performance.
Steering Feedback
The steering of the N5000 Platinum won’t let you down, as it delivers commendable performance on the road, characterized by its “particularly accurate” and responsive steering, along with reassuring mid corner-feedback.
Basically with a stiffer rubber compound and a very stable tread pattern, the tire restricts its lugs from flexing too much as the tire navigates corners.
So tread blocks don’t mold and don’t take time to get reshaped, leading to smaller time difference between the driver’s input and the wheels feedback.
Though still there’s always a room for improvement, and for this tire, it exhibits a rigid and, perhaps, overly-linear “feel” (so yes, its subjective).
And this feeling doesn’t change, no matter how you steer.
But don’t get me wrong, the overall handling times with this tire are above average.
Tread Wear
When it comes to tread wear, the Nexen N5000 Platinum ranks as one of the top choices among all-season tires.
The tire comes with an equally balanced design which evenly distributes all its weight, which by the way is not a lot to begin with, thanks to its single ply polyester casing.
And with enhanced block rigidity, the lugs keep their shape, even during high-speed cornering, and braking. This basically helps in two ways.
- Firstly, it generates less heat, a factor that directly compromises tread life.
- Secondly, the tougher rubber composition is more resistant to rapid wear and deterioration.
Now given the emphasis on wear performance of this tire, it makes sense why it gives out the treadwear rating of 700 and offers a warranty of 70,000 miles.
However, it’s important to note that the tire’s speed rating is directly related to its wear rate, (explained here), hence, sizes with a W speed rating have a warranty limited to 55,000 miles instead.
Winter Traction
The Nexen N5000 Platinum with missing heavy-duty 3PMSF (Three-Peak Mountain Snowflake) winter certification, doesn’t offer a good enough job, in all key areas.
The absence of biters and any distinct snow specific features (like snow vices seen on its peers), compromises its grip on icy and snowy surfaces, making it less reliable in such conditions.
And as the tire comes with densely packed longitudinal lugs, with the lack of notches in the shoulder area, you also get a somewhat diminished lateral traction, limiting its overall stability and control.
However, the tire does maintain some degree of directional grip.
This is attributed to its central lugs, which feature in-groove notches allowing for snow-to-snow contact as they accumulate and retain snow particles.
And since this type of contact generates greater friction (as snowflakes are very adhesive to one another), you get slightly better braking and acceleration efficacy (I mean comparing with the tire’s poor snow handling).
Fuel Consumption
The fuel consumption of a vehicle is closely interconnected with rolling resistance generation from its tires.
And this resistance is shaped by a variety of factors that involve the structure and design of the tire’s tread, its rubber composition and the overall weight of its construction.
And the Nexen N5000 Platinum excels in these aspects.
It showcases a design that is not only lightweight but also has closely spaced tread voids, with longitudinally arranged ribs that are streamlined to minimize rolling resistance effectively.
The reduced weight of the tire means that each lug or tread block is under less pressure, further decreasing rolling resistance.
Moreover, the compact positioning of the lugs allows for more even weight distribution, leading to diminished friction as they interface with the road.
In addition, the tire’s utilization of a stiffer rubber compound prevents excessive lug flexing, conserving energy that might otherwise be lost, directly enhancing the tire’s rolling efficiency and contributing to fuel economy.
Road Noise
Road noise in a vehicle largely emanates from the interaction between air particles and the tire’s tread walls. The air (mostly entering the tire through its shoulders), hit around, and the impact of which is what produces the main tread noise.
Regarding the Nexen N5000, it provides commendable noise comfort, exhibiting minimal impact noise and barely perceptible tread vibrato. This results in a performance nearly equivalent to some of the quietest tires in its category.
Note: It could have easily claimed the title of the quietest tire if it weren’t for the presence of varied tones on most surfaces and a subtle, persistent growl, (though this growl is noticeable at only slower speeds).
So what allows this tire to perform so great here?
Well, this is mainly due to its new gen rubber compound and a tread pattern featuring varying pitch design.
Where the rubber compound avoids reflecting noise, thus minimizing in-groove resonance, and the varied pitch design subtly alters the tone production, ensuring the sounds don’t amplify each other.
Overall Ride Comfort
The Nexen N5000 Platinum offers a little firmer ride that can be improved.
It’s rubber compound with low silica density basically don’t offer its tread with the need stretchability, so the imperfections of the road aren’t settled down in an efficient manner.
However, it’s crucial to clarify that this doesn’t render the tire uncomfortable.
I mean, it still manages to absorb bumps adequately, where while the initial impact over bumps might feel slightly sharp, the tire dampens it just as swiftly as it occurs, preventing prolonged disturbance to the vehicle.
To Conclude
The Nexen N5000 Platinum is a versatile all-season tire, notable for its impressive straight-line grip and efficient braking, due to its continuous rib design and innovative siping.
Its dry handling is commendable with stable shoulders providing ample lateral grip and steering feedback.
Though in wet conditions, the tire is somewhat lacking, with its missing interlocking sipes and stiffer tread impacting its overall wet handling and stopping efficacy.
Moreover, its winter performance is also suboptimal, with a noticeable absence of specialized features for snow and ice, resulting in compromised grip.
Though the tire makes up for it with its superb fuel economy, tread wear, and noise reduction.
This is all thanks to its lightweight design, reduced rolling resistance, and balanced weight distribution.
And yes, it also pretty quiet on roads, thanks to its new gen tread compound, though it’s impact comfort performance could use a bump up.
