Ultra High Performance All Season Tires

[blaze741]

yeh the DWS is a dead topic. moving on. =P

[tito_b0y]

IMO high tire pressure is a crutch for a poorly constructed tire. I had conti DWS on my last car... response and feel was horrid. I ran nearly 10 psi over recommended and was still not happy with them, and at that point they rode more harsh than a tire with stiffer sidewalls.

 

I'll agree they're not for spirited driving in any PSI combo which is why I have another set of wheels with Hankook V12s waiting to be swapped in. But the DWS' are very good in the rain and snow.

[Chris GTO TT]

I'll agree they're not for spirited driving in any PSI combo which is why I have another set of wheels with Hankook V12s waiting to be swapped in. But the DWS' are very good in the rain and snow.

 

They had great grip in all conditions but the soft sidewalls killed it for me. If I'm going to swap wheels/tires it will be for true winter tires.

[08LGT80]

It's not a matter of price, but everything else, meaning it's a sacrifice in winter performance for stiffer sidewalls. In other words the Pilot Sports have stiffer sidewalls but not as smooth(?) or good in the snow.

I basically don't want to deal with swapping tires, having to worry about the next day being in the 20s in the AM and 50s in the PM, etc etc that's why for now I'm staying away from dedicated winters. I am perfectly fine with a jack-of-all-trades sort of compromise as long as the all-season set is one of the best performing but not at a great expense of comfort and especially noise. These GoodYear F1s are absolutely unbearably loud around town. I have about 20K on them in 2.5 years, AFTER they were replaced for me under the silent recall.

 

Have you had experience with both set of tires? I have driven in snow in both sets! Both are as smooth in light snow/ slush! I feel that the dws didn't give me the performance and confidence as the pilot sport a/s plus

[08LGT80]

imo high tire pressure is a crutch for a poorly constructed tire. I had conti dws on my last car... Response and feel was horrid. I ran nearly 10 psi over recommended and was still not happy with them, and at that point they rode more harsh than a tire with stiffer sidewalls.

 

+1

[fishbone]

lol @ every bad review of the DWS on this page

Why is that?

[fishbone]

Have you had experience with both set of tires? I have driven in snow in both sets! Both are as smooth in light snow/ slush! I feel that the dws didn't give me the performance and confidence as the pilot sport a/s plus

I have not had either tire. Experiences like yours, where people had both, are very helpful for me so that I can get a good comparison of them.

I am basing the winter performance aspect strictly on what I have read on Tire Rack and other review sites. They all praised the DWS as being ahead of the pack by a large margin.

[StoplightAssassin]

Why is that?

 

Be careful not to run it too high! I cracked one of my rims with the DWS! Hate that tire!

 

srs? hit a pothole and blaming it on the DWS

 

Initial reaction to Continental DWS i got put on today after 150 miles of driving

 

0____0

 

 

make a quick jolt with the steering wheel and the rear of your car will fish tail a couple left and rights

 

turning into a turn very iffy, once your into the turn and steering wheel is set I feel very confident to accelerate into the turn. Coming out of the turn with a snap of the steering wheel, rear of car begins to fish tail for a half second

 

straight driving very nice, tracks true, quiet, no tram-lining on crack, or crack-sealed pavement and smooth

 

i don't know if I will keep these.

may take advantage of continentals satisfaction warranty and have them put the DW's on

 

tires are 215/45/17

psi is 40/40

stock 08 legacy rims

 

hmm...the car is unstable during emergency maneuver situations? I wonder if it's b/c the silca release compound hasn't worn away yet. He described the first 500 miles with any brand new tire.

 

its official, i'm getting away from the Continental DWS's ASAP

the wind out in Arizona today was gusting around 35 and driving on the highway was bull. The sidewall flexed with every gust and made it feel like i was driving on ice and the car was pivoting left and right on a central axis. The back of my car also wandered with the wind. I do not know if any of you guys fly, but it would be like moving the rudder left and right on an aircraft and yawing. I lost all confidence in my car with these tires

 

:lol::lol: It's not the tires.

[fishbone]

It is the tires if he's experienced the same conditions and the car did not act the same way. Those comments may not be blaming the tire correctly, but if you read some of the reviews on Tire Rack, they are hard to counter-argue. Understeer in turns, feeling insecure due to excessive flexing, etc.

I have no dog in this fight, I'm just trying to pay attention to the relevant reviews/opinions/comments.

Have you run a set? What has been your experience?

Has someone here mentioned some sort of satisfaction guarantee? If they'd promise to take them back if I didn't like them, I'd get them in a heart beat.

[rtbrjason]

I had the Conti Extremes (225/40/18 pre DWS). These tires handled great in dry/wet/snow but the sidewalls pretty much bubbled on every tire in the year or so I had them.

 

I switched to a Conti Extreme DWS (215/50/17) a couple years ago. No sidewall bubbling which may have something to do with the size I chose. These tires have been pretty good for me in the dry/wet, though I don't feel they're as good in the snow as the previous Conti Extremes. They do okay though if you're expectations aren't too high and you take it easy.

 

I will need to replace them before another winter and haven't decided if I will get another set (cheap) or go with a dedicated winter/summer wheel/tire combo.

[fishbone]

The profile on the Pilot Sport A/S Plus tell me they are prone to get noisy, am I wrong?

[StoplightAssassin]

It is the tires if he's experienced the same conditions and the car did not act the same way. Those comments may not be blaming the tire correctly, but if you read some of the reviews on Tire Rack, they are hard to counter-argue. Understeer in turns, feeling insecure due to excessive flexing, etc.

I have no dog in this fight, I'm just trying to pay attention to the relevant reviews/opinions/comments.

Have you run a set? What has been your experience?

Has someone here mentioned some sort of satisfaction guarantee? If they'd promise to take them back if I didn't like them, I'd get them in a heart beat.

 

You can't blame a tire for causing understeer. You're driving the tire past it's limits. Period. They aren't going to grip like a dedicated tire in their designed for operating conditions, but that's what people believe they will do. Blame the internet and ignorant reviewers.

 

I have a set of DWS that I run in the colder months. I have never felt these tires were going to cause me to crash. I've run many on and off ramps with them and never ended up facing the wrong way. My first season I noticed the softer sidewalls. I considered them pleasant after driving on a stiff suspension and tires all summer long. This year I ran them with a bit higher than usual pressures (around 40psi) and no more soft sidewall issues.

[Alfred_Buchi]

The profile on the Pilot Sport A/S Plus tell me they are prone to get noisy, am I wrong?

 

I think I have around 10k miles on mine now, maybe a bit under.

 

They are quieter than my yokohama es100's but that was on a different car and a bit thinner tire so it's hard to compare.

 

They are louder than my aging toyo proxes that were on the car when I bought it. The grip tradeoff in all conditions is definitely worth it to me. I don't find the slight increase in noise noticeable anymore, but initially I did notice they were louder.

 

If you've ever driven an off road tire on the streets in a truck or anything your acceptance of road noise on normal tires will probably go way up haha.

 

I have a very slight exhaust drone with the wagon on freeways anyway so the additional tire noise isn't a big deal to me. Like I said I don't notice it anymore but if noise is your primary concern it might be worth picking something else. I'm so happy with these I'll be hard pressed to try something else next time though.

 

Edit: Reminder - I have zero tolerance for overly soft sidewalls on a car I plan to enjoy driving, so the reviews of the DWS kept me away. For someone who wants a decent good value all around tire that will be fun and still perform in snow it sounds like it's tough to beat it for the price. You can still drive a soft sidewalled tire fast in corners you just have to be conscious of that initiating turns.

[08LGT80]

The profile on the Pilot Sport A/S Plus tell me they are prone to get noisy, am I wrong?

 

they are noisier than the DWS due to a stiffer sidewall

[Chris GTO TT]

My S04 Pole Positions are noisy, but yet still fairly quiet for a summer tire. Then again my Magnaflow exhaust and gear whine from my kartboy shifter bushings drown out all the noise

[scoobydoobie]

My S04 Pole Positions are noisy, but yet still fairly quiet for a summer tire. Then again my Magnaflow exhaust and gear whine from my kartboy shifter bushings drown out all the noise

 

Summer tires, exhaust, shifter bushings. Relevance to this thread not found.

[Chris GTO TT]

Summer tires, exhaust, shifter bushings. Relevance to this thread not found.

 

Just saying that tire noise shouldn't matter too much to most of us on this forum

[fishbone]

The Legacy is not very well sound proofed so I beg to differ

[Chris GTO TT]

Road noise is next to nothing compared to my last car (01 Nissan Maxima)

[BigTDogg MA]

For me my driveline noise is louder than my tire noise, with my Group N tranny mount and Perrin shifter bushings. But just coasting with the car in neutral, I get very little road noise from my Pirellis

[downtoearth]

Bringing back the DWS topic

 

I don't have time to switch them before my trip he with finals and everything *facepalm*

 

BUT

 

I'm sitting at discount tires having them check for radial pull...

[TJS]

I got my 07 SpecB in the winter of 2011, and spring couldn't come fast enough. But I was massively dissappointed in the RE050a's when I finally got the summer rubber on. Yes they were sticky, but I also found them noisey, hard, and I had to stay on my toes if even the slightest bit of water hit the ground. For the type of driving I do, I went with the Pirelli PZero Nero All-Season. Here's the review I wrote last summer right after getting them:

 

So the RE050A's on my car still had lots of tread, more than 50% left. But I have been really unhappy with the rain performance and highway characteristics. I decided on some Pirelli PZero Nero A/S tires in the stock (215/45/18) size. I just got them on yesterday, so haven't tried them in the wet yet, but took a nice long drive out to my cottage last night and so far I'm really happy with them.

 

The drive involves getting out of the city, a nice tight cloverleaf, 10 minutes on the perimeter highway and then a higher speed offramp to the main highway. Then an hour and a bit of highway cruising on constantly varying pavement grades and conditions, and a lower speed but tight winding drive down a Baghdad-grade potholed service road to my actual cottage.

 

The weather was beautiful, so so far I only have dry conditions to judge by, but these tires are terrific. Still sharp in the handling department, but much quieter and smoother on the highway, regardless of pavement type. Dodging potholes and bombing down cloverleafs and exits is just as much fun as the old RE050A's. I know there are those that prefer a dedicated summer tire and at the limit they may be superior. But I don't track or autocross my car,and in the real world, for me, a UHP all-season just makes more sense. It'll take a while to try them in a few other situations, but as of right now they are highly recommended.

 

Since then, they went through the rest of the summer and into the fall, and due to unseasonably warm weather up here, I've had them back on since late-March (month early WOO!). They are simply fantastic tires. Buttery highway ride, wet or dry, and I find the on-center steering feel to be actually better than the RE050's, which felt dead on-center. Very predictable, and when I need to hit a fun road (which is tough to find in a big flat prairie like Manitoba) they bite just fine. I feel totally confident in all conditions on these tires.

 

Honestly, if you're not autocrossing or tracking a car, especially a softer, more comfortable car like the Legacy, I'm not sure why you NEED a dedicated summer tire, especially with the quality of some of the latest UHP all-season's on the market. The Conti DWS, PZero Nero A/S, even the older Michelin Pilot Sport A/S, all great tires. And in my case, in Winnipeg, I can put my "summer" wheels/tires on in early April, and if we get a freak May snowfall (don't laugh, it happens here) I'm not completely screwed getting to work in the morning, a UHP A/S tire is passable as a temporary measure.

 

As for the ones I chose, I like these Pirelli's so much, I'm pondering dumping my Blizzaks (with 50+% tread left) for some SottoZero's for next winter.

[Alfred_Buchi]

Personally I love my all seasons for what they are - and they perform great for what they are intended for... But they don't touch a dedicated UHP summer tire with a 240-300 treadwear rating for dry performance.

 

In socal where I live if I didn't snowboard I would be on summer tires year round. As it is I am considering getting summer tires for 8 months out of the year and saving the miles on my all seasons for "winter" here. Just a tough decision since wheels + tires are so expensive.

[jhawk222]

So far I'm actually enjoying my DWS. They are actually my three season tires. In the winter I'll put my blizzaks back on!

[....]

I've got about 1,000 miles on a set of RE970AS and they are fantastic. This is my first set of UHPAS tires, so take this review for what it's worth. With that said, I can't think of a thing I would want this tire to do differently. Loads of grip wet or dry, firm sidewalls, and great handling. I've yet to find their limit in the twisties, and I'm very confident in them at high speeds. Noise isn't that bad, either.