Best Tires for 2021 CX-5 Turbo?

[kantry123]

Hi Everyone,

Do you guys have any tire recommendations for Pacific North West area, we have lot of rain.

Any tire recommendations is greatly appreciated

 

[leeharvey418]

Look at 235/55R19 tires. They’ll fit fine, and there are a ton of great options that aren’t available in 225/55R19.

 

[kantry123]

Look at 235/55R19 tires. They’ll fit fine, and there are a ton of great options that aren’t available in 225/55R19.

But do you have a recommendation list by any chance?

Sorry this is my first time buying and wanted to check a starting point

 

[leeharvey418]

Pirelli Scorpion Zero AS Plus 3 and Continental ExtremeContact DWS 06 Plus are at the top of my personal list. It really comes down to what you want your tires to do - Tire Rack’s site will let you prioritize different aspects of customers’ ratings to help you find what best fits your needs.

 

[jadmt]

I am in Montana and really like our michilin cross climate 2’s

 

[ADS-B]

My personal choice is Michelin Cross Climate. From my experience I think they are really good in rainy conditions. A bit noisy after a while but safety first.

 

[N7turbo]

I know I've said this before but testing has shown that the Cross Climate 2 is not the best tire for rain because it lacks the usual channels to prevent hydroplaning. I'm not saying it's "bad", but the better all-season tires perform better in rain. But of course, not as good in the snow.

They have supposedly improved on that for the third version but you'll want to do some research to see how they compare to other options.

I can vouch for the ExtremeContacts in terms of raw performance. You probably won't find a better handling tire for these cars, dry or wet.

 

[gphin]

Hi Everyone,

Do you guys have any tire recommendations for Pacific North West area, we have lot of rain.

Any tire recommendations is greatly appreciated

I've used the Conti DWS 06 previously and they were/are good tires. However, when I recently needed tires for our CX9, I went with the fairly new Pirelli Scorpion AS + 3s based on reviews and price. Have a little over 5k on them and no regrets. Getting good wear, quiet, good handling. You don't need the Cross Climates unless you have to deal with snow. Based on combo of price and performance, the Pirellis are tough to beat. Read the reviews.

Michelin Cross Climate 2 vs Pirelli Scorpion AS Plus 3

In depth analysis of Michelin Cross Climate 2 vs Pirelli Scorpion AS Plus 3 with wet, dry, nosie/comfort, snow, ice, wear & price evaluated.

toptirereview.com

 

[RedBaron]

Pirelli Scorpion Zero AS Plus 3 and Continental ExtremeContact DWS 06 Plus are at the top of my personal list. It really comes down to what you want your tires to do - Tire Rack’s site will let you prioritize different aspects of customers’ ratings to help you find what best fits your needs.

I have both of these tires. The Pirellis on our CX-5 and the Conti's on my CX-50. The Conti's have better handling, but then they are lower profile (20" wheels). Both have much better ride than the original tires on the cars.

 

[GFrosty]

Hi Everyone,

Do you guys have any tire recommendations for Pacific North West area, we have lot of rain.

Any tire recommendations is greatly appreciated

On my own 2016.5 CX-5 GT AWD, I just put on a set of Nokian Encompass AW02 all-weather tires. (Prior set was Nokian WR-G4 all-weather.)

Exceptional in the rain, IMO. Installed the 235/50-19 sizing, so with the shorter sidewall they're a bit crisper in handling. Fairly good fuel economy on highway trips. And with the all-weather compound they're good for 365-day service year-'round.

Same essential compound as the prior Nokian WR-G4 tires. I had those through five winters, though by the end of the fifth winter they began to lose their winter grip. The other four winters were easily handled by the compound and siping. The sipes on these new AW02 tires are fewer than the WR-G4, but I'm hoping they'll be sufficient. Very good cold-weather performance with that compound. Very good in the wet. Excellent in dry/clear hot temps as well.

IMO, for any area that's likely to see frosty or snowy roads a good amount of time through a winter, a decent all-weather compound tire makes great sense. (Assuming you don't already have a second set of wheels/tires for winter use.)

Nokian Tyres Encompass AW02 - Year-round safety in all conditions / Nokian Tyres

The Nokian Tyres Encompass AW02 is a versatile all-weather tire designed to bring drivers year-round peace of mind in all conditions, from summer heat, to spring rain, to winter snow and ice. Exclusively available at Discount Tire and Tire Rack.

na.nokiantyres.com

 

[jadmt]

I know I've said this before but testing has shown that the Cross Climate 2 is not the best tire for rain because it lacks the usual channels to prevent hydroplaning. I'm not saying it's "bad", but the better all-season tires perform better in rain. But of course, not as good in the snow.

They have supposedly improved on that for the third version but you'll want to do some research to see how they compare to other options.

I can vouch for the ExtremeContacts in terms of raw performance. You probably won't find a better handling tire for these cars, dry or wet.

I just drove across north dakota in pouring rain some areas were getting over 2” in short periods and never missed a beat.

 

[ruthrj]

I know I've said this before but testing has shown that the Cross Climate 2 is not the best tire for rain because it lacks the usual channels to prevent hydroplaning. I'm not saying it's "bad", but the better all-season tires perform better in rain. But of course, not as good in the snow.

They have supposedly improved on that for the third version but you'll want to do some research to see how they compare to other options.

I can vouch for the ExtremeContacts in terms of raw performance. You probably won't find a better handling tire for these cars, dry or wet.

These are the two tires I’d consider. I’ve never bought Continentals but the Pro and ExtremeContacts are highly regarded. We get occasional snow on our little Alabama mountain, so the CC2 three peak rating won me over on our RAV4. We’d be ready for a roadtrip to the Gatlinburg or something to see snow there too. We get hellacious rain and knock on wood I haven’t felt them slip or hydroplane yet like other tires I’ve had (stock Toyos on the CX-5, stock Yokohama on my old CX-5 and Goodyear ComforTreds that replaced those, stock Michelin eco tires on our hybrid RAV4). I’ll be getting whatever CC tire is available when my stock Toyos wear out.

You can’t go wrong with the CC2s or ExtremeContacts. Whether or not you’d benefit from the three-peak rating would be the deciding factor for me.

 

[N7turbo]

A lot of reviews rate the comfort of the DWS06 Plus on the higher end, an 8.9 on Tirerack, even. That surprised me but I think my car isn't a good example with the lowering springs, OEM dampers, and 245/45/20 size on a 9" wheel (not stretched, but not squishy by any means). It's not exactly set up for comfort.

 

[cz5gt]

In the car stock tire size 225 55 19 -> Michelin pilot sport 4 A/S if money is not a problem.
Pirelli Scorpion Zero AS Plus 3 is also good option. Those are top tiers. Going mid level there are more options.

 

[leeharvey418]

In the car stock tire size 225 55 19 -> Michelin pilot sport 4 A/S if money is not a problem.
Pirelli Scorpion Zero AS Plus 3 is also good option. Those are top tiers. Going mid level there are more options.

I had a set of the Michelins in 245/50R19. I was very underwhelmed.

 

[N7turbo]

I had a set of the Michelins in 245/50R19. I was very underwhelmed.

Other than that being too wide for the 7" wheels, what did you not like about them?

 

[leeharvey418]

Mounting width range for a 245/50R19 is 7-8.5” and the measuring wheel width is 7.5”. Mount it on an 8.5” wide wheel and it’ll still stick out close to half an inch past the lip of the rim. It’s just one of those sizes that’s designed to fit narrow wheels.

But since you asked about what I didn’t like - it was never great in the wet and just got worse as it wore. Likewise for tread noise. It was decent for grip and steering feel, but not enough so to make up for its shortcomings.

 

[N7turbo]

Mounting width range for a 245/50R19 is 7-8.5” and the measuring wheel width is 7.5”. Mount it on an 8.5” wide wheel and it’ll still stick out close to half an inch past the lip of the rim. It’s just one of those sizes that’s designed to fit narrow wheels.

7" is the minimum recommended wheel width (bead to bead) for 245/50/19 and that is the reason I wouldn't do it. Handling will feel sloppy compared to one which is right in the middle of the range or toward the upper end of the range. It will also look pretty beefy since there is more tire than wheel.

I would not go to 245 tires unless I did a wheel upgrade to 8.5" width.

For the 245/45/20 DWS06 Plus, the range is 7.5-9.0". Since handling is improved by having a tire that is well-supported by the width of the wheel, staying at the upper end is ideal.

Using my car as an example, I went with 245/45/20 for my 20x9 wheels. This specific tire in this size on this wheel will have a section width that is exactly what I wanted to achieve flush fitment on my vehicle with 0 camber at the stock 45 offset. That section width is 9.6" + 0.8" = 10.4". And because you want a tire that is about 1" wider than the bead-to-bead wheel width, I'm right there. Rim to rim they are 10 inches so they are neither pinched nor stretched, but they have zero of the floatiness that the Toyo A36 had on the OEM wheels.

 

[leeharvey418]

Yeah, the compound and carcass design weren’t my issues. I was pretty much all about the lack of longitudinal grooves and the tread block shapes.

 

[docKiwi75]

Hi Everyone,

Do you guys have any tire recommendations for Pacific North West area, we have lot of rain.

Any tire recommendations is greatly appreciated

I intermittently investigated/read/searched for several months and settled on Michelin Cross Climate 2s for my 21 Sig. They've been on the car for almost 2 years now in all conditions, including many snowy trips up the Cottonwood Canyons outside SLC. Without question the best tires I've owned in 53 years of driving. Very little wear, smooth riding, and quiet for me. Lots of freeway/highway miles out West. Of course, all I need to do is take out my hearing aids if anything bothers me.