well, at 25,000 miles the stock bridgestones are officially racing slicks. i will be getting new tires in the next couple weeks, and have been doing some research on tires available, and have narrowed it down to a couple choices. i have heard lots of great things about the hankook ventus v12, but the summer traction, and limited treadwear seem to be drawbacks. the other tire i am looking at is the continental extremecontact DWS. i did not find any reviews of this tire for the MS3 when i searched. anyone have experience with this tire? i am planning on going with the stock size on the stock rim
continental extreme contact DWS?
- Thread starter SBSPEED3
- Start date
I just went through the same thing - at 27,000 miles of very spirited driving and some tracking of the car, the RE-050A's were shot, and slippery even when dry (not like racing slicks), my 60 ft times were climbing, not getting better. They were downright frightening to drive anywhere in cold weather - like bananna peels.
I did the same research and almost chose the Conti you are considering. I concluded that an all season would be my choice too, given that even here in the Deep South, we do get some cold weather and the Bridgestones were turning hard as a rock at any temp below about 45 degrees.
You've probably already been here:
http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tests/testDisplay.jsp?ttid=119
I was not able to find a good source for the Contis and had good experience in the past on other cars with Pirelli tires. There is a Pirelli dealer here that's been around for decades so, I know I have someone local to turn to if there are problems.
So, I went with the P Zero Nero A/S in the stock tire size. The Conti's may be a bit better according to some of the individual comparison charts at the above site, (wet performance of the Conti's when driven aggressively was very impressive) although the Pirelli edged out the Conti overall. Depends on what factors are most important to the individual driver. If you are still undecided or if the price differential is too much, depending on your source, I can tell you that I was surprised at the performance of the Zero Nero's so far, especially in the wet, even on warm days, and the Conti's may be even better.
I'm prepared to lose a tenth in the quarter in exchange for the cold and wet weather performance for my daily driver. I don't run the car on autocross or road racing, so I'm not concerned about giving up some performance there.
If I hear of anyone running the new Conti's I'll pass along their point of view. Should be a very good tire. Ultra High Performance All Season Tires have come a long way toward closing the gap with summer only performance tires, IMHO.
I did the same research and almost chose the Conti you are considering. I concluded that an all season would be my choice too, given that even here in the Deep South, we do get some cold weather and the Bridgestones were turning hard as a rock at any temp below about 45 degrees.
You've probably already been here:
http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tests/testDisplay.jsp?ttid=119
I was not able to find a good source for the Contis and had good experience in the past on other cars with Pirelli tires. There is a Pirelli dealer here that's been around for decades so, I know I have someone local to turn to if there are problems.
So, I went with the P Zero Nero A/S in the stock tire size. The Conti's may be a bit better according to some of the individual comparison charts at the above site, (wet performance of the Conti's when driven aggressively was very impressive) although the Pirelli edged out the Conti overall. Depends on what factors are most important to the individual driver. If you are still undecided or if the price differential is too much, depending on your source, I can tell you that I was surprised at the performance of the Zero Nero's so far, especially in the wet, even on warm days, and the Conti's may be even better.
I'm prepared to lose a tenth in the quarter in exchange for the cold and wet weather performance for my daily driver. I don't run the car on autocross or road racing, so I'm not concerned about giving up some performance there.
If I hear of anyone running the new Conti's I'll pass along their point of view. Should be a very good tire. Ultra High Performance All Season Tires have come a long way toward closing the gap with summer only performance tires, IMHO.
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speedsports
Member
- :
- Mazdaspeed 3
Good thread, I'm currently in the same boat. My tyres are beginning to fade after 25,000. I consulted Mr.BOOM from the boards here. He works for a BIG (AND EXTREMELY RESPECTABLE) tyre manufacturing company, so his opinion was higly valuable (at least in my book) BTW, he does NOT work for any of the tyre maf. he recommended, so take that as you will:
I told him that I didnt want to spend more than 140 on tyre, and I didnt want anything aggresive since I was going to have my stock set of wheels wrapped in some sticky stuff for trackdays/autoxs...
anyways, here's what the man wrote:
Summer
1. Bridgestone Potenza RE760 Sport ($139 ea. on tirerack) - Bridgestone makes pretty good stuff, and everything I have read on this tire says it has really good dry handling and good enough wet handling. Wear probably isn't the best, but if you want good grip it would be the way to go.
2. General Exclaim UHP ($95 ea. on tirerack) - this isn't a bad choice if you're looking to go cheaper. Grip isn't quite as good as Bridgestone, but wear should be a little bit better.
3. BFG g-Force Sport / Kuhmo Ecsta SPT ($135 / $106) - these tires are pretty much the same, good wet & dry grip...bad road noise & comfort.
All-Season
1. Continental ExtremeContact DWS ($130) - if you want to go All-Season...this is the best option by far. It's a fairly new tire line, so it has the latest and greatest technology. It will have a lot better wear than the summer tires, and the only noticable grip drop-off would be near the limit. Comfort will also be noticably better than the summer tires.
I told him that I didnt want to spend more than 140 on tyre, and I didnt want anything aggresive since I was going to have my stock set of wheels wrapped in some sticky stuff for trackdays/autoxs...
anyways, here's what the man wrote:
Summer
1. Bridgestone Potenza RE760 Sport ($139 ea. on tirerack) - Bridgestone makes pretty good stuff, and everything I have read on this tire says it has really good dry handling and good enough wet handling. Wear probably isn't the best, but if you want good grip it would be the way to go.
2. General Exclaim UHP ($95 ea. on tirerack) - this isn't a bad choice if you're looking to go cheaper. Grip isn't quite as good as Bridgestone, but wear should be a little bit better.
3. BFG g-Force Sport / Kuhmo Ecsta SPT ($135 / $106) - these tires are pretty much the same, good wet & dry grip...bad road noise & comfort.
All-Season
1. Continental ExtremeContact DWS ($130) - if you want to go All-Season...this is the best option by far. It's a fairly new tire line, so it has the latest and greatest technology. It will have a lot better wear than the summer tires, and the only noticable grip drop-off would be near the limit. Comfort will also be noticably better than the summer tires.
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- 2007 MS3
You might want to read this.
http://www.caranddriver.com/reviews...res_take_on_the_michelin_ps2-comparison_tests
http://www.caranddriver.com/reviews...res_take_on_the_michelin_ps2-comparison_tests
Good article, Mid Life. I think OP is shopping for an Ultra High Performance A/S. I know I was.
But if I was looking to get a summer tire, your article would be my starting point. I'd probably also give a strong look at Bridgestone's new RE-11's for a summer tire, although there's not much review info out yet on them and I don't think they have ramped up production on our stock size yet either.
But if I was looking to get a summer tire, your article would be my starting point. I'd probably also give a strong look at Bridgestone's new RE-11's for a summer tire, although there's not much review info out yet on them and I don't think they have ramped up production on our stock size yet either.
I just bought some contis extreme dws for my ms3, they are rolling on RX8's rims though.
Overall, I am very pleased with them. I don't care about quartermile times & autocrossing, I'd rather be safe and have the peace of mind than be a tenth of a second faster. I live in Wisconsin where its cold, snows, rains, & where Brett Farve is hated. So i definitely wanted a very good all season tire. I have had the tires for about 3 months now with about 5 k miles on them.
I have to say I noticed a big difference in ride quality between the contis and stock bridgestones. Its alot smoother and you don't feel every bump on the road. But of course, the bridgestones are extreme perf. summer only tires.
I agree with tire racks review. The grip in the rain has been good. Snow has been good as well. Don't get me wrong these don't perform like snow tires. I still lose grip if i hit the pedal but they handled the snow fairly well for normal driving. As far as road noise, they are quieter than the stock bridgestones as well. For the price (139 on tire rack) & performance, you can't go wrong.
What really led me to buy this tire was that its previous model, Conti Extreme Contact had great snow performance reviews, so I knew this company had a good reputation for this line of tire. For me, snow performance, then rain, is the most important.
I also attached pics with the tires on my Rx8's
Overall, I am very pleased with them. I don't care about quartermile times & autocrossing, I'd rather be safe and have the peace of mind than be a tenth of a second faster. I live in Wisconsin where its cold, snows, rains, & where Brett Farve is hated. So i definitely wanted a very good all season tire. I have had the tires for about 3 months now with about 5 k miles on them.
I have to say I noticed a big difference in ride quality between the contis and stock bridgestones. Its alot smoother and you don't feel every bump on the road. But of course, the bridgestones are extreme perf. summer only tires.
I agree with tire racks review. The grip in the rain has been good. Snow has been good as well. Don't get me wrong these don't perform like snow tires. I still lose grip if i hit the pedal but they handled the snow fairly well for normal driving. As far as road noise, they are quieter than the stock bridgestones as well. For the price (139 on tire rack) & performance, you can't go wrong.
What really led me to buy this tire was that its previous model, Conti Extreme Contact had great snow performance reviews, so I knew this company had a good reputation for this line of tire. For me, snow performance, then rain, is the most important.
I also attached pics with the tires on my Rx8's
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thank you for all the replies! i live in northern california, and snow is not so much an issue, but i would like to have something with better traction in the wet. as i do not autoX or race the car i am not too concerned with ultimate traction, at the same time i do not want prius tires. i am beginning to lean more towards the continentals over the hankooks. thank you for the replies
RajputSmurf
Member
- :
- 2008 MS3 Cosmic Blue
I've had a set of the Conti DWS on for about two months now and like what I've seen so far. It's not my daily driver and we're having a REALLY mild winter so no snow and not all that much rain but the wet that I have driven in has been no problem. No question that they're better in the wet than the stock Bridgestones and given that the stock tires are lethal in snow I have to think these can only be an improvement. No appreciable noise differences either positive or negative.
speedsports
Member
- :
- Mazdaspeed 3
I LOL when i read the "lethal in snow". I couldnt get my car out of my street this morning. Absolutetly no traction whatsoever...
well i ended up with the continentals over the hankooks. so far i am pretty happy with them. ive driven about 400 highway miles on them so far, and have noticed that they are much quieter than stock bridgstones. havent pushed them yet or had them in the rain, but i would imagine that wet traction will be much better than the stockers. i definitely notice the softer sidewall though, if i turn the wheel suddenly, it feels like the car takes a second to catch up with the steering input. i never noticed this with the stock tires. does the softer sidewall have anything to do with the all season vs summer? for those with these tires what pressure do you have them inflated to? im wondering if upping the pressure a bit would help.
my only minor complaint so far is this softer sidewall because it affects initial bite a little. im not planning on autox with these tires, and they do feel good in corners, it just took a little getting used to. overall im happy, and glad to have all seasons for the rain.
my only minor complaint so far is this softer sidewall because it affects initial bite a little. im not planning on autox with these tires, and they do feel good in corners, it just took a little getting used to. overall im happy, and glad to have all seasons for the rain.
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- 2007 MS3
Your observations are interesting. This is a quote from the Tire Rack review.
What We Liked: Reasonable road manners and good overall traction
What We'd Improve: small reduction in tread noise and a bit faster steering response.
Apparently their experts agree with you.
What We Liked: Reasonable road manners and good overall traction
What We'd Improve: small reduction in tread noise and a bit faster steering response.
Apparently their experts agree with you.
All season Contis always seem to have a bit slower steering response, but then again they seem to rate better in the snow than other all season tires. So maybe that's what you give up with this brand. I also noticed the slower response once I got rid of my summers on the MS3 and put on the all-seasons. That and a bit more hydroplaning on wet roads as compared to the summers.
A note of warning: once your tread gets down to about 4/32", the tires will nearly be worthless in the snow, as I have experienced this winter in Pittsburgh. With 4/32" tread and a bit of snow on the ground, I could barely make it up hills, and braking was atrocious. That's probably why winter tires have the tread wear bar at 6/32". I switched to winters last month (made a world of difference), and will likely go back to summers for the warmer months, and ditch the all-seasons once and for all.
A note of warning: once your tread gets down to about 4/32", the tires will nearly be worthless in the snow, as I have experienced this winter in Pittsburgh. With 4/32" tread and a bit of snow on the ground, I could barely make it up hills, and braking was atrocious. That's probably why winter tires have the tread wear bar at 6/32". I switched to winters last month (made a world of difference), and will likely go back to summers for the warmer months, and ditch the all-seasons once and for all.
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- 2007 MS3
You won't be the first guy (or the last) to put winter rubber on the stock rims and get a second set of nicer rims and put summer rubber on those.
