Proud recent new-owner of a 2010 SV Sport 19 here. Of course, it snowed like crazy here in southern Connecticut, which made me realize that I need better tires for the winter. The car came with the Michelin Super Sport Plus Summer UHP tires (super nice but impractical for winter months).

I've done a lot of reading on this forum (and other forums) about the Continental ExtermeContact DWS, and have a few somewhat unique questions that you guys might be able to help with.

1. People on other forums mention about a "flat spot." What exactly does this mean? I see it mentioned quite often on other forums (e.g. BMW, Acura, etc. but nary a mention here). People mention that they have "flat spotting" issues, but not really a defintion of what that entails.

2. People on other forums mention that the tire's sidewall looks ugly, and that the color is a "dirty black." Is there any truth to this? Again, I didn't really see any comments about ugliness here.

3. Would someone be willing to take a picture of their DWS on their stock 19" rims (or even stock 18" rims)? I am curious as to how it would look compared to my current Michelin Super Sport Plus Summer UHP tires.

Thanks in advance!!

 

flatspotting is basically since the sidwall is soft, it appears as if the tire looks underinflated at times, after sitting overnight. Solely an appearance issue.

I notice that my stock 16" have no "dirty black"...aside from when I drive in the mud or rain or whatever. If I keep the car and wheels clean, I notice no issues.

 

Do you notice any vibration issues? A few other forums mentioned this, as did reviews. Someone even mentioned that they balanced the heck out of their tires but the vibration never went away until he switched to a different set of tires from Bridgestone.

Of course, I am taking into account that their cars have different tire heights, aspect ratios, rim sizes, etc. It's truly not apples-to-apples.

 

I bought my tires 3 days after I bought the car this past January. Have had ZERO vibration issues (it had vibration issues before, bad alignment on the almost-bald tires the PO had on it). After alignment and then new tires, no issues. have had them rotated once already, still no issues at all.

A local forum member has the DWS on his 18" rims and he too has no issues whatsoever.

 

Or wording this another way, the term 'flat-spotting' is used with regard to tires that, after sitting for an extended period (such as overnight or longer) have a tendency to have the part of the tire that was flat against the ground not immediately pop back out to make the tire perfectly round until driven a mile or two. During that time, the flat spot makes a noise each time it hits the ground, and sounds almost like a flat tire.

This has been a problem for many tires going all the way back to the 1950s, but most folks just ignore it, knowing it will go away within a mile or two.

 

^ Yes, this was also my understanding of the term "flat-spotting". From what I have read most tires that have this issue do it when new and it will eventually go away (for good) after further tire break-in.

 

I am at 32,000 mi on my 255/45-18 DWS tires. The flatspotting is a problem with my set. It always felt like the tires were out of balance for the first couple miles. Balancing was an issue on these tires. However, I cant say that this was a problem with tire or the car. I darn near scrubbed one to bald because I neglected to have it aligned when I should have. As far as snow traction, they have been THE BEST set of tires I have ever came across for all-seasons. I have made it through several surprise snow storms/blizzard conditions in Flagstaff, AZ...like 24" of snow that was leaving many 4x4 and AWD vehicles stuck. Absolutely amazing snow traction! All in all, I would buy them again, but I think I am going to get the General GMax AS 03's because General is owned by Continental, they have great reviews and quite a bit cheaper.

The Continentals look pretty hot, IMO. I have never noticed any "dirty brown" color. They look good on mine.

 

Flatspotting is more pronounced in low temperatures environments than warm climates because the tire material stays rigid and less flexible for a longer period of time and it takes longer to heat the tire to make the flat spot goes way.

 

Corolla - I notice you are from Kayenta. I was pulled over for speeding in Kayenta in 1958 on my way to Monument Valley. The policeman was Navajo, as were most residents of Kayenta at that time. When he found I was part Cherokee and lived in Cochise County AZ at that time, he let me off with a warning.

Like you, I was inundated with a surprise snowstorm in Flagstaff. This was back in 1959, and all roads were closed for days. The only restaurant within walking distance was a pizza place, and we had pizza three meals a day for four days.

Like silberma says, the flat-spotting is worse in cold climates. It bothered me when I lived near Grandfather Mountain in the North Carolina Blue Ridge, but has never been a problem in middle Georgia, where I live now.

 

I've had the DWS tires on my Max for about 12k miles/1 year now. No problems -ever. Bought them last winter for the snow and of course it didn't snow! But just had first snow recently and they were amazing.

No discoloration, no "flatspotting", no issues other than some in-balance but that was after a tire rotation and I should bring the car back and and have them rebalance.

 

Silly question - WHERE can I get the 245/40R/19 Continental DWS tires besides Tirerack.com? I'm a n00b and do not know how to dismount/mount new tires by myself.

Tirerack is selling a set of 4 for $960 before $60 in taxes and $47 shipping fee. I'm in southern Connecticut and the only semi-reputable tire place that I know of seems to be TownFairTires (a regional New England chain). They don't even carry the DWS. Meanwhile, TireRack's local installers will charge a mounting fee of $35 per tire, $5.00 TPMS fee per tire, and that comes out to be at least $170 after tax. Total for DWS through Tirerack would be $1237.

I see "Discount Tire Direct" as being another popular online option. They are asking for $1008 for the set of 4 DWS tires, $126 for Certificates of Refunds, and $12 for TMPS Rebuild Fee for $1146 before installation. Seems like they are referring me to the same installer as TireRack, so I'd estimate a similar $160 in installation fees. This puts me at $1306.

For further comparison's sake, TownFairTire carries a set of 4 Michelin Pilot Sport A/S for $1287 which includes computerized balancing. Add in CT sales tax and the total is $1368. Tirerack balances tires at their own warehouses, but their total is approximately $1406 ($1124 for the tires + $47 shipping + $160 installation & TPMS + $71 for taxes).

 

Also, I have the Michelin Pilot Super Sport UHP on my Maxima right now -- am I best off locally selling them used on Craigslist? If so, how much should I ask for them?

Last I checked about a month ago, it had about 3/4th of tread left...worst, worst case, 1/2 tread left. I just hate letting perfectly good tires get thrown away.

 

Are you sold on the dws? If not, check out the mxv4 pricing at Costco. Yes you need a membership but for 40 bucks you can get a better tire IMO and with some of the specials they run for around the same price. Throw in the free road hazard and balancing and
rotation for life they offer and its a pretty good deal

 

I agree with recommending costco, but not so much with the MXV4. All I see for that tire size is the MXM4 which are grand touring tires and arent very responsive.

I would personally go with the pilot sport A/S plus. Great all around all-season tire. Costco is showing them at $284 each + $14 per tire installation. Total = $1192 plus tax.

 

I DO have a Costco membership, but I have heard that the Primacy's, as vball_max mentioned, is not as responsive and can be on the noisier side.

One other reason why I'm leaning towards the DWS is for the cushier ride; I have the Sport Trim and I don't do as much "spirited driving" as I should. I spend much more time in traffic via commutes to work, so I'd be willing to trade off a little cornering/sportiness for a softer, safer ride. I know...I'm lame.

To answer your question, I'm NOT necessarily sold on the Continental DWS. The biggest perk is that they are rated to be the best A/S performer in the snow. Being in southern Connecticut, I am anticipating a nasty wintery season. OTOH, winter is only about 4 months and I'm in a suburban area where they do a decent job of plowing streets.

The Michelin Pilot A/S is tempting because it actually has superb wet and dry traction. It might not be the best in the snow, but again, it's not like it snows everyday in Connecticut. Downside is that people say the Pilot A/S are a little bit rough and can be noisy.

The Pirello Zero's are also tempting, and I think they are underdogs in a sense that they offer a superbly quiet ride, has great wet/dry traction, equal to the Michelin Pilot's in the snow, and TireRack says the only downside is that they aren't "driver-responsive."

Sooooo many choices. Ugh. Help!!

 

By the way, I have 19" rims, so I need 245/40/19 tires. Seems like Costco carries the Primacy's for $451 per tire (), according to their site. No exact model number but it says it's a Summer tire.

 

The price I gave for the pilot sport A/S Plus was for the 245/40/19. Personally, I have only had these tires on my '03 which were 225/50/17, so a much softer profile. They were great on that car......smooth, quiet, and handled great. I never had a problem in the snow.

I always buy my tires from costco because of their lifetime balancing, flat repair, etc. and their great prices.

Also, I am a bit hesitant buying online due to the difficulty in returning them if something is wrong. I ordered a set of contiextremecontacts for my '99 maxima from tirerack. From the day I had them put on, there was a crazy vibration over 40 mph. I had them re-balanced several times at different places and it never got better. I ended up returning the tires. That was a pain in the butt and cost me a lot of money in shipping and balancing fees.



Good luck with whichever tire you decide to go with!

 

Two things--- I had to seriously HUNT to find them in a tire shop on Long Island. I finally found them all the way out East and it was the only set STS Auto had on the whole island! (last year though) don't know the current inventory levels but they were very low last year. So call around in your area to find if anyone has them or can order them.

Regarding TireRack - they are probably better priced than any local shop. I bought from them years ago and put the tire in my car and drove to a shop and paid like $60ish to get them mounted and balanced. It's about the same price as if you bought tires from a local shop. Also, if you can probably prearrange the tires to be shipped directly to your local shop. Call you shop and tell them when to expect them before your appointment.

 

I knew prices varied depending on the tire size. I thought the 245/40/19 was a more common size than my 245/35/20. I bought a set back in March for $740 shipped plus another $100 to have them mounted, balanced and TPMS set.

This is my second set - I bought a set for my previous car as well. The set I have on the Max replaced a set of Falken 452s. Hated them with a passion. Couldn't wait to get my Contis. I've replaced two of them due to road hazards but I wouldn't want any other tire.

However, one of the tires that I looked at before pulling the trigger on these was the General G-Max AS-03. These are rated very high and comparable to the Contis.

 

Comp- i grew up in Trumbull so I know what you are facing as it pertains to the snow. I have run both the MXM4 and MXV4's in the 18" wheel size and found them both to be good tires. The MXM4's are better handling while the V4 is more smooth on rough roads. They are both the same as far as road noise goes and i can see getting at least 50k from the V4's where the M ran only 30k before starting to get close to the wear bars. We did get 5 inches of snow here in atlanta a couple years back and the michelin's did fine especially since the roads are just not plowed here i was impressed. Either way, good luck with your choice

 

While not a max, my son put Continentals on his Subaru WRX? In any case they were unable to balance the wheels and depending upon where the wheels were the car pulled either left or right. He eventually gave up and put Michelin Pilot Sports on and the problem disappeared. Apparently they were unable to figure out which tire or tires were bad. Which brings up the quality issue...

 

That sounds like good times. Ha. I always seemed to have a special talent to brew one of those big blizzards up anytime I took the car. Having a 2010 Tundra at my disposal, it never snowed when I took it....of course. Being sunny and pretty in Ktown doesnt mean much about Flagstaff and vice versa. I suppose I should update my info. I am back in the east. I left Ktown in May. Im sure not much has changed since 1959. Lol.

But yeah...the DWS's kept me outta the ditch many times.

Late,
Trav

 

Anyone know if the Continental PureContact DWS is anything special? Local tire shops here are out of stock. Tirerack is out of stock. I don't have a Discount Tire near me in Connecticut.

 

The tire gets a lot of hype.

On the plus side it has above average (not excellent) dry braking, wet handling dry handling and hydroplaning and wet braking.

On th minus side it has the following negatives:
1. Short tread life
2. An average ride
3. Average ice breaking, snow traction and noise

There are better tires. I would not recommend it for Northern climates

 

What would you recommend for Northern climates? Michelin Pilot Sport A/S Plus? Pirelli P Zero Nero? Bridgestone Potenza RE970AS?

 

The Michelin Primacy MXV4 or the Continetal Pure Contact but make sure you get them in the V speed rating, not the H speed rating. Consumer Reports which performs unbiased testing rated these 2 the best performance all season tires.