CX/Gravel Tire Test: Continental Grand Prix 5000 TL 32

NOTE: This Grand Prix 5000 TL 32 mm was tested as a CX-Gravel tire at low air pressures. You can also find a test of the 25 mm Grand Prix 5000 TL in the road bike section.

The Continental Grand Prix 5000 TL might be a bit of a strange tire to find in the CX-Gravel section, but in the 32 mm size, it appears to be quite popular as a semi-offroad tire. If you've been on our website before, you probably know the Grand Prix 5000 TL is one of the fastest tubeless road bike tires yet still offers quite a good puncture resistance and tread thickness.

Continental recently released the Grand Prix 5000 S TR, which will replace the Grand Prix 5000 TL. As I had quite a hard time finding the 32 mm version of the Grand Prix 5000 TL in stock somewhere, it looks like the Grand Prix 5000 TL has gone out of production already. It's very likely a test of the 32 mm version of the Grand Prix 5000 S TR will be coming soon, so this test probably will be mainly used as a reference to compare the TL and S TR versions.

The 32 mm version of the Grand Prix 5000 TL is very similar to the 25 mm version we tested back in 2018. If you need more information about the Grand Prix 5000 TL, you can find that in our review of the 25 mm version of the Grand Prix 5000 TL that we tested back in 2018.

Manufacturer Specifications

Manufacturer Specs
Brand	Continental
Model	Grand Prix 5000 TL
Year	2021
Supplied By	Bought in store
New or Used	New
Mileage	0 km
Price Range	High
Buy At
Manufacturer part number	0101630
EAN	4019238007954
TPI	3/180
Compound	Black Chili
Bead	Folding
ETRTO	32-622
Specified Weight	370 grams
Max Air Pressure (psi)	87
Made In	Members Only
Available Sizes	25-622 (700x25c) 28-622 (700x28c) 32-622 (700x32c) 28-584 (650x25b)

Continental Grand Prix 5000 TL 32 Test Results

Size, Weight, and Thickness Measurements

Size, Weight, and Thickness Measurements
Specified Weight	370 grams
Measured Weight	370 grams
Measured Width Casing	30 mm (un-round)
Measured Width Tread	29 mm
Measured Height	28 mm (un-round)
Measured Knob Height Center	0.0 mm
Measured Knob Height Edge	0.0 mm
Measured Total Thickness Center (excluding knobs)	3.10 mm
Measured Total Thickness Sidewall	Members Only
All size measurements are taken at low air pressure on a 17.8 mm inner width rim.

Rolling Resistance Test Results

Rolling Resistance Test Results
Inner Tube	None (30 ml sealant) (current protocol)	Conti Cross28 (160 gr) (test protocol)
Measured Width	30 mm	30 mm
Rolling Resistance Real tire width in mm: 30-32 = 66 psi/4.6 bar 33-35 = 60 psi/4.1 bar 36-38 = 54 psi/3.7 bar 39-42 = 50 psi/3.4 bar 43-46 = 46 psi/3.2 bar 47-50 = 42 psi/2.9 barHigh Air Pressure (66 psi / 4.6 bar)	Members Only	Members Only
Rolling Resistance Real tire width in mm: 30-32 = 55 psi/3.8 bar 33-35 = 50 psi/3.4 bar 36-38 = 45 psi/3.1 bar 39-42 = 42 psi/2.9 bar 43-46 = 38 psi/2.6 bar 47-50 = 35 psi/2.4 barMedium Air Pressure (55 psi / 3.8 bar)	Members Only	Members Only
Rolling Resistance Real tire width in mm: 30-32 = 44 psi/3.0 bar 33-35 = 40 psi/2.8 bar 36-38 = 36 psi/2.6 bar 39-42 = 33 psi/2.3 bar 43-46 = 31 psi/2.1 bar 47-50 = 28 psi/1.9 barLow Air Pressure (44 psi / 3.0 bar)	16.0 Watts CRR: 0.00480	19.8 Watts CRR: 0.00594
Rolling Resistance Real tire width in mm: 30-32 = 33 psi/2.3 bar 33-35 = 30 psi/2.1 bar 36-38 = 27 psi/1.9 bar 39-42 = 25 psi/1.7 bar 43-46 = 23 psi/1.6 bar 47-50 = 21 psi/1.4 barExtra Low Air Pressure (33 psi / 2.3 bar)	19.8 Watts CRR: 0.00594	24.8 Watts CRR: 0.00743
The CX/Gravel section is a multi tire size section, air pressures have been adjusted to the measured casing width. All numbers are for a single tire at a speed of 29 km/h / 18 mph and a load of 42.5 kg / 94 lbs. Use the formula: RR (Watts) = CRR * speed (m/s) * load (N) to calculate rolling resistance at a given speed and load.

Puncture Resistance Test Results

Puncture Resistance Test Results (higher is better)
Total Puncture Score Tread	53 Points
Total Puncture Score Sidewall	Members Only
Tread Puncture Force Sharp Needle	Members Only
Tread Puncture Force Blunt Needle	Members Only
Tread Total Tire Thickness	3.10 mm
Sidewall Puncture Force Sharp Needle	Members Only
Sidewall Puncture Force Blunt Needle	Members Only
Sidewall Total Tire Thickness	Members Only

Hard Surface Static Grip Test Results

Static Grip Test Results
Wet Grip Average	71 Points
Wet Grip Center	Members Only
Wet Grip Edge	Members Only
Measured Knob Height Center	0.0 mm
Measured Knob Height Edge	0.0 mm
Grip in points = coefficient of friction * 100 CX/Gravel grip test rim width = 23.0 mm
Wet Grip Test and Off-Road Tires (info)

Conclusion

The 32 mm version of the Continental Grand Prix 5000 TL performs very strongly when compared to CX-Gravel tires. It looks like its small size and corresponding low volume are a bit of a handicap when compared to the equally fast Challenge Strada Bianca Pro HTLR that performs a bit stronger at the lower air pressures. When digging into the exact air pressures used for the CX-Gravel tests, the Grand Prix 5000 TL should be slightly faster than the Strada Bianca, even at the lowest air pressures.

Our Grand Prix 5000 TL sample comes with a particularly thick tread as we've measured it at 3.1 mm, while most other 5000 TL's that we've had on the test bench come in somewhere around 2.8 - 2.9 mm thickness. Performance in the puncture tests is also very good, which can be attributed to the Vectran anti-puncture belt and good tread thickness.

Compared to other CX-Gravel tires, the 32 mm version of the 5000 TL version should be a fast choice, but the off-road grip will be very low, and the volume is still on the low side. We're hoping Continental might one day release 35 mm versions of their best-performing road bike tires.

RATING: 5.0 / 5
TEST VERDICT: Highly Recommended

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