Continental Aero 111 Review

Conti’s new AERO 111 tyre is one of the most interesting developments for performance cycling tyres in recent years.

Its compounds and structure almost certainly point us toward the next iteration of the company’s full road tyre range. Will the entire GP6000 (six) range see Continental’s new tread pattern – a series of ‘holes’ that are claimed to reduce drag?

FRONT Buy AERO 111 UK: £80.00, EU: 100.00€, USA: $120.00

REAR Buy GP 5000 S TR: UK, EU, USA

Overview

AERO 111 is an expensive, top-end racing tyre selling for around GBP 80-100. It comes in two widths (700c 26mm, 29mm) and can be used with or without tubes on hooked rims and some hookless rims.

The tyre’s tread pattern is claimed to be aero and reduce drag but only on the front wheel. The effect is tuned at around 30km/h, so most keen cyclists will see the benefits. The drag savings are intended to outweigh the slightly increased rolling resistance over previous models.

The tyre is also claimed to improve stability and airflow in certain kinds of wind conditions.

You might want to pair the AERO 111 with a GP5000 S TR on the rear and if you own a DT Swiss HADRON² Ultimate 625 (20mm inner rim) wheelset you will be reassured that this tyre is designed for your wheel.

Test Conditions

I used a 26mm AERO 111 with a Schwalbe AEROTHAN TPU inner and 100mm stem. The setup worked perfectly on my HUNT 82mm Aerodynamicist front wheel (Width: 27mm external, 19mm internal). I ran a 24mm Conti GP5000S TR on the rear. Hunt recommends 25mm tyres for this wheelset but notes that 23 or 28mm are almost optimal.

I specifically chose to use this wheelset for the test as it is my fastest and also one that is most susceptible to steering issues in crosswinds.

I used both wheels on various rides with my Cervelo R5 (Climber bike) and P5six (TT Bike).

Constraints

My wheels have carbon rim brakes, so my choice of TPU inner was limited to the slightly thicker & heavier kind that doesn’t burst when rims get hot from braking.

The option of the recommended GP5000S TR 28mm rear was limited by frame clearance on my Cervelo P5six but I should have gone wider with the AERO 111 on the front.

Comparisons

I normally use bog-standard GP5000 tyres with either latex or TPU inners, a setup that I love for all my weekly rides. Recently on my TT bike, I’ve been using 26mm Pirelli P-Zero Race TT tyres, which ride well and make for interesting comparisons as they are quite a bit lighter.

Ride Feel

New rubber always feels great. AERO 111 was no exception.

The setup felt as comfy and compliant as my normal GP5000 tyres. I’m sure there is some difference, I just couldn’t feel it. The lighter and softer 2023 Pirelli P-Zero TT tyres do feel a tad softer and slightly more comfortable to ride.

I can’t say that these Conti tyres beat all other setups I’ve ever used to go fast on a TT bike over my regular segments. They could be. Clearly, they have a good rolling resistance (RR) and without a wind tunnel, I can’t compare CdA. They never came out slower than I expected in any tests at full gas.

They do seem more grippy though, noticeably so in the wet. Whilst I’ve not pushed them to the limit, grip does feel better than GP5000 in the wet.

Test Idiosyncracies

Riding with 82mm deep wheels is often a perilous pursuit. When also riding, balanced on aero bars, the steering gets twitchy in above 10mps winds. I would normally change wheels if it’s windier than 15mph.

The AERO 111 *DOES* seem a bit more stable with angled crosswinds. A full headwind or full side-wind made no noticeable difference.

On one ride, I was going well over 30mph (46km/h) down a gently winding hill. Headwinds were around 10mph with a decent yaw angle and the bike felt super stable…until it didn’t. It seemed that the tyre would hold the effect of the wind but suddenly release it, causing noticeable yet minor twitches. Nothing dangerous by a long way, but it felt unusual for wheels I’ve covered thousands of kilometres on. I suspect that the winding nature of the descent caught the constant wind at different yaw angles causing the airflow to stall (is that the right word?).

Continental AERO 111 Weights, Specs and Comparisons

Here are some of the actual weights.

253g (Conti Aero 111) vs 191g (Pirelli non-TR P-Zero TT). I’ve ended up adding a 47g Schwalbe TPU inner whose extra weight comes from its 100mm stem, I couldn’t use thinner ones as they burst with the heat from rim brakes.

If your setup is tubeless and you think it’s lighter, you’ll need to factor in about 20-40g of sealant per wheel plus a 10g valve. The overall system weight is similar.

If your setup uses TPU tubes and disk brakes, you’ll likely be able to get a super light TPU inner for about 20g, considerably lighter than a latex tube (50g). I reckon that’s the optimal setup though I don’t use it (yet), I’ll never use Tubeless just to avoid the hassles it brings.

Continental AERO 111 Rolling Resistance

Conti does not provide RR figures (I asked). Handily, Bicyclerollingresistance recently tested the AERO 111. As you can see in their stats below the AERO 111 performs superbly and is virtually identical to the GP 5000S TR. If you run lower pressures or the narrower tyre, I’d imagine that the results will be predictably similar.

I sometimes find tyre naming confusing. This is a good schematic from Conti explaining the suitability of each of their current GP5000 sub-brands. If you compare other tyres on Bicyclerollingresistance make sure you compare the right model of your existing GP5000 to see the true difference.

Furthermore, not all GP5000 tyres are made equally.

We know of at least two versions of the Black Chili compound [bicyclerollingresistance.com]

The Aero 111 will use the second-generation Black Chili compound…maybe even a newer one.

Conti AERO 111 – CdA considerations

Drag is a systemic issue for performance cyclists. Simply getting a more aero tyre might improve drag in one area but lower it elsewhere so consider your whole setup where possible. That is difficult for regular cyclists to achieve. To a degree, you have to trust what the manufacturers say, so look carefully at their claims.

Here are Conti’s claims: Aero 111

Firstly, Conti claims that 48 vortex generators on the tyre make the airflow stickier to the wheel rim. Other things equal, that’s more aero. It has the effect as shown in the second of these diagrams:

Note: Conti’s images show a tyre that sits slightly wider than the outer rim width of the wheel.

I have a 19mm inner rim wheel whereas the tyre was designed for the 20mm inner rim of the DT Swiss HADRON2. The inner rim width is a key factor determining actual tyre width when inflated. The 19mm inner rim diameter on my wheels probably made the tyre sit much narrower than I expected, ending up slightly narrower than my 27mm outer rim width (I think the outer rim is 30mm on HADRON2).

Strangely the 26mm Aero 111 measures 24.6mm when inflated on Hunt82 Aerodynamicist wheels. So if the wider 29mm AERO tyre came out at less than 28mm it might have been a better choice.

The result is that my tyre/rim interface looks like this. Which I think could be more aero…but it’s hard to know just by looking.

From Conti’s perspective, tests show that at 45 km/h and yaw angles greater than 13 degrees, the AERO111 tyre produces 0-10 watts of propulsive power. Yep, it ADDS power. At 30 km/h, up to 3 watts of propulsive power are produced. That’s quite a bit less but still significant.

Handling

This chart from Conti shows predictable handling at 30km/h across various angles of yaw with the AERO 111. Less so the GP5000.

On the whole, I buy into these tyres giving a more stable and predictable ride based on most of my experience. However, when travelling quite a bit faster, I’m less convinced this is what I experienced. I can’t explain why.

AERO 111 – Key Facts & Claims by Continental

• Based on Continental Grand Prix 5000 TR, with an improved BlackChili compound.
• Available in two sizes: 26-622 and 29-622.
• Hookless-ready up to 72 psi (5 bar)
• Weight 250g (26mm), 280g (29mm)
• Two-layer 2/220 (two-layer 110 tpi) construction
• 48 cavities aka Vortex generators
• Optimised for use with DT Swiss wheels
• Performance improvements claimed even at 30km/h
• Front Wheel only. You only need to buy one.
• Claimed to improve handling by the way it disrupts airflow (reduces steering ‘moment’)
• Claimed to improve the sail effect by the way it disrupts airflow
• Claimed to save 3-6 watts at 30 km/h and 18 watts at 45 km/h when compared to the Continental Grand Prix 5000 ST R. That’s a lot.

FAQs

Q: Would you use this in still conditions or when there is a tailwind?

A: Obviously you can use one but there would be slightly better alternatives

Q: When would you use a designated TT tyre?

A: You would be specifically looking for the slightly better RR and slightly lower weight. Again, probably in still conditions

Continental AERO 111 Review – Take Out

These are obviously exceptional tyres. I’ve tried to nitpick where I can in the main sections of the review as I suspect many cyclists will be seeking small improvements over similar tyres rather than the material performance gains you will get from upgrading to this kind of tyre from a run-of-the-mill one,

Proving the handling benefits, grip and aero gains in real-world riding are harder than the clear stats given for rolling resistance (RR).

RR is slightly worse than that of previous GP5000 models but tyre weights remain similar to before. However, the grip and aero boosts with AERO 111 should trump any RR losses making for a better-performing overall tyre.

This tyre poses interesting questions for a Continental GP6000. Multi-watt RR gains for new model tyres may be a thing of the past unless there is a 3rd generation of Black Chili compound in the offing. The next generation of GPx000 might have to sacrifice small rolling resistance losses for larger aero gains.

Front – Buy Continental Aero 111

• Buy AERO 111 UK: £80.00
• Buy AERO 111 EU: 100.00€
• Buy AERO 111 USA: $120.00

Rear

• Buy GP 5000 S TR: UK, EU, USA

TPU Inner – Not all are RIM brake-compatible

• Tubolito
• Pirelli P-Zero Smarttube
• Schwalbe Aerothan SV20