diff --git a/packages/playwright-core/src/client/browser.ts b/packages/playwright-core/src/client/browser.ts
index be47ddeb51..10cac4d0f9 100644
--- a/packages/playwright-core/src/client/browser.ts
+++ b/packages/playwright-core/src/client/browser.ts
@@ -80,7 +80,7 @@ export class Browser extends ChannelOwner<channels.BrowserChannel> implements ap
   }
 
   async _innerNewContext(options: BrowserContextOptions = {}, forReuse: boolean): Promise<BrowserContext> {
-    options = { ...this._browserType._defaultContextOptions, ...options };
+    options = { ...this._browserType._playwright._defaultContextOptions, ...options };
     const contextOptions = await prepareBrowserContextParams(options);
     const response = forReuse ? await this._channel.newContextForReuse(contextOptions) : await this._channel.newContext(contextOptions);
     const context = BrowserContext.from(response.context);
diff --git a/packages/playwright-core/src/client/browserType.ts b/packages/playwright-core/src/client/browserType.ts
index 8776aeb1e7..1932d6e2d8 100644
--- a/packages/playwright-core/src/client/browserType.ts
+++ b/packages/playwright-core/src/client/browserType.ts
@@ -18,7 +18,7 @@ import type * as channels from '@protocol/channels';
 import { Browser } from './browser';
 import { BrowserContext, prepareBrowserContextParams } from './browserContext';
 import { ChannelOwner } from './channelOwner';
-import type { LaunchOptions, LaunchServerOptions, ConnectOptions, LaunchPersistentContextOptions, BrowserContextOptions, Logger } from './types';
+import type { LaunchOptions, LaunchServerOptions, ConnectOptions, LaunchPersistentContextOptions, Logger } from './types';
 import { Connection } from './connection';
 import { Events } from './events';
 import type { ChildProcess } from 'child_process';
@@ -45,11 +45,6 @@ export class BrowserType extends ChannelOwner<channels.BrowserTypeChannel> imple
   _contexts = new Set<BrowserContext>();
   _playwright!: Playwright;
 
-  // Instrumentation.
-  _defaultContextOptions?: BrowserContextOptions;
-  _defaultContextTimeout?: number;
-  _defaultContextNavigationTimeout?: number;
-
   static from(browserType: channels.BrowserTypeChannel): BrowserType {
     return (browserType as any)._object;
   }
@@ -93,7 +88,7 @@ export class BrowserType extends ChannelOwner<channels.BrowserTypeChannel> imple
   async launchPersistentContext(userDataDir: string, options: LaunchPersistentContextOptions = {}): Promise<BrowserContext> {
     const logger = options.logger || this._playwright._defaultLaunchOptions?.logger;
     assert(!(options as any).port, 'Cannot specify a port without launching as a server.');
-    options = { ...this._playwright._defaultLaunchOptions, ...this._defaultContextOptions, ...options };
+    options = { ...this._playwright._defaultLaunchOptions, ...this._playwright._defaultContextOptions, ...options };
     const contextParams = await prepareBrowserContextParams(options);
     const persistentParams: channels.BrowserTypeLaunchPersistentContextParams = {
       ...contextParams,
@@ -236,10 +231,10 @@ export class BrowserType extends ChannelOwner<channels.BrowserTypeChannel> imple
     context._browserType = this;
     this._contexts.add(context);
     context._setOptions(contextOptions, browserOptions);
-    if (this._defaultContextTimeout !== undefined)
-      context.setDefaultTimeout(this._defaultContextTimeout);
-    if (this._defaultContextNavigationTimeout !== undefined)
-      context.setDefaultNavigationTimeout(this._defaultContextNavigationTimeout);
+    if (this._playwright._defaultContextTimeout !== undefined)
+      context.setDefaultTimeout(this._playwright._defaultContextTimeout);
+    if (this._playwright._defaultContextNavigationTimeout !== undefined)
+      context.setDefaultNavigationTimeout(this._playwright._defaultContextNavigationTimeout);
     await this._instrumentation.runAfterCreateBrowserContext(context);
   }
 
diff --git a/packages/playwright-core/src/client/fetch.ts b/packages/playwright-core/src/client/fetch.ts
index 58928532ac..8bae02e21c 100644
--- a/packages/playwright-core/src/client/fetch.ts
+++ b/packages/playwright-core/src/client/fetch.ts
@@ -57,30 +57,29 @@ export class APIRequest implements api.APIRequest {
   private _playwright: Playwright;
   readonly _contexts = new Set<APIRequestContext>();
 
-  // Instrumentation.
-  _defaultContextOptions?: NewContextOptions & { tracesDir?: string };
-
   constructor(playwright: Playwright) {
     this._playwright = playwright;
   }
 
   async newContext(options: NewContextOptions = {}): Promise<APIRequestContext> {
-    options = { ...this._defaultContextOptions, ...options };
+    options = {
+      ...this._playwright._defaultContextOptions,
+      ...options,
+      timeout: this._playwright._defaultActionTimeout ?? options.timeout,
+    };
     const storageState = typeof options.storageState === 'string' ?
       JSON.parse(await fs.promises.readFile(options.storageState, 'utf8')) :
       options.storageState;
-    // We do not expose tracesDir in the API, so do not allow options to accidentally override it.
-    const tracesDir = this._defaultContextOptions?.tracesDir;
     const context = APIRequestContext.from((await this._playwright._channel.newRequest({
       ...options,
       extraHTTPHeaders: options.extraHTTPHeaders ? headersObjectToArray(options.extraHTTPHeaders) : undefined,
       storageState,
-      tracesDir,
+      tracesDir: this._playwright._tracesDir,
       clientCertificates: await toClientCertificatesProtocol(options.clientCertificates),
     })).request);
     this._contexts.add(context);
     context._request = this;
-    context._tracing._tracesDir = tracesDir;
+    context._tracing._tracesDir = this._playwright._tracesDir;
     await context._instrumentation.runAfterCreateRequestContext(context);
     return context;
   }
diff --git a/packages/playwright-core/src/client/playwright.ts b/packages/playwright-core/src/client/playwright.ts
index 50ccb0c1d9..f13af6b1f9 100644
--- a/packages/playwright-core/src/client/playwright.ts
+++ b/packages/playwright-core/src/client/playwright.ts
@@ -22,7 +22,7 @@ import { ChannelOwner } from './channelOwner';
 import { Electron } from './electron';
 import { APIRequest } from './fetch';
 import { Selectors, SelectorsOwner } from './selectors';
-import type { LaunchOptions } from './types';
+import type { BrowserContextOptions, LaunchOptions } from 'playwright-core';
 
 export class Playwright extends ChannelOwner<channels.PlaywrightChannel> {
   readonly _android: Android;
@@ -37,7 +37,13 @@ export class Playwright extends ChannelOwner<channels.PlaywrightChannel> {
   readonly request: APIRequest;
   readonly errors: { TimeoutError: typeof TimeoutError };
 
+  // Instrumentation.
   _defaultLaunchOptions?: LaunchOptions;
+  _defaultContextOptions?: BrowserContextOptions;
+  _defaultContextTimeout?: number;
+  _defaultContextNavigationTimeout?: number;
+  _defaultActionTimeout?: number;
+  _tracesDir?: string;
 
   constructor(parent: ChannelOwner, type: string, guid: string, initializer: channels.PlaywrightInitializer) {
     super(parent, type, guid, initializer);
diff --git a/packages/playwright/src/index.ts b/packages/playwright/src/index.ts
index 89a63a6cba..5966bd6c95 100644
--- a/packages/playwright/src/index.ts
+++ b/packages/playwright/src/index.ts
@@ -231,21 +231,15 @@ const playwrightFixtures: Fixtures<TestFixtures, WorkerFixtures> = ({
     if (debugMode())
       (testInfo as TestInfoImpl)._setDebugMode();
 
-    for (const browserType of playwright._browserTypes()) {
-      browserType._defaultContextOptions = _combinedContextOptions;
-      browserType._defaultContextTimeout = actionTimeout || 0;
-      browserType._defaultContextNavigationTimeout = navigationTimeout || 0;
-    }
-    playwright.request._defaultContextOptions = { ..._combinedContextOptions };
-    playwright.request._defaultContextOptions.tracesDir = tracing().tracesDir();
-    playwright.request._defaultContextOptions.timeout = actionTimeout || 0;
+    playwright._defaultContextOptions = _combinedContextOptions;
+    playwright._defaultContextTimeout = actionTimeout || 0;
+    playwright._defaultContextNavigationTimeout = navigationTimeout || 0;
+    playwright._tracesDir = tracing().tracesDir();
     await use();
-    playwright.request._defaultContextOptions = undefined;
-    for (const browserType of playwright._browserTypes()) {
-      browserType._defaultContextOptions = undefined;
-      browserType._defaultContextTimeout = undefined;
-      browserType._defaultContextNavigationTimeout = undefined;
-    }
+    playwright._defaultContextOptions = undefined;
+    playwright._defaultContextTimeout = undefined;
+    playwright._defaultContextNavigationTimeout = undefined;
+    playwright._tracesDir = undefined;
   }, { auto: 'all-hooks-included',  title: 'context configuration', box: true } as any],
 
   _setupArtifacts: [async ({ playwright, screenshot }, use, testInfo) => {