Continental AG is a major automotive supplier for tires, chassis, electronics and other major components. Its tire division is the world’s fourth-largest tire manufacturer despite its name not having the same popular ring as Goodyear, Bridgestone or Michelin. Continental is a distinctly German tire brand and even when it was acquired in 1998 for nearly $2 Billion, it was by a German company called Schaffler Group.
Today, Continental tires are associated with premium brands and are the factory-installed (though not exclusive) tire for brands such as BMW, Porsche, Mercedes-Benz and Maserati. If you drive something fast and upscale, there’s likely a Continental tire for it. But Continental also provides original and replacement tires for brands such as Ford, General Motors and Volvo. There is a wide range of tire sizes and specs that are available as “Conti’s” (as they are colloquially referred to by some of their owners). We’ve presented five of our favorites across several performance categories.
- Continental ProContact XT : Best All-Season Tire
- Continental VikingContact 7 : Best Winter Tire
- Continental TrueContact Tour : Best All-Season Touring Tire
- Continental TerrainContact A/T : Best All-Terrain Light-Truck/SUV Tire
- Continental ExtremeContact DWS 06 : Best Ultra-High Performance All-Season Tire
No tire can deliver maximum performance in every measure, but an all-season tire like the ProContact XT is plenty adequate for most conditions. It’s a terrific tire for crossovers, SUVs, sedans and wagons, and it delivers in most dry and wet conditions. There are other tires that are more optimized for dry conditions, but what the XT gives up in the dry, it more than makes up for in nearly everywhere else.
- Tons of grip in most conditions
- Quiet, comfortable, efficient
- Great value and long treadlife
- Some competitors have better dry grip
- So-so snow performance
As the adventurous name suggests, Continental designed the VikingContact to handle winter driving in Nordic regions. It’s easily one of the best winter tires in all manner of wintry conditions. The downside is some road noise and a harsh ride over potholes, but this tire puts all-weather/all-condition grip above all else—and that includes road feel.
- Terrific handling in snow
- Impressive traction even on ice
- Inspires confidence in poor weather conditions
- Noisy and numb driving feel
- You’ll feel every inch of a pothole
- No treadlife warranty
All-season touring tires are among the most popular tires for good reason. They offer all the advantages of the ProContact XT, but with higher performance dynamics that make them more than just a typical all-season tire for a car or SUV. These tires get the job done in different conditions, but they are designed with performance driving in mind. We’re not saying they are Ultra High-Performance tires, but they can provide spirited driving.
- Long treadlife (backed by a long warranty)
- Some of the best wet braking performance
- Competition has shorter stopping distance in dry weather
- Pricier rivals have better dry cornering
This is a specialized performance tire meant for dirt, gravel, and all manner of unpaved roads, but the TerrainContact A/T also rides on pavement in relative comfort. This tire won’t be ideal if you have a dedicated off-road machine. If you only hit the trail a few times a year, the TerrainContact A/T won’t punish you the rest of the time you’re on the road.
- Impressively quiet for an A/T tire
- Long treadlife, especially on the highway
- Great value for what it offers
- Not designed for serious off-roading
- Middling performance on snow and ice
Many UHP (Ultra High-Performance) tires are good in one area and usually falter in another. For example, they might provide terrific cornering grip, but once there is a puddle on the ground, they feel like slick racing tires that can lose traction. That’s not the case with the ExtremeContact DWS 06, which does all things well. We’re not saying you can go out in three feet of snow, but you could take these tires to a track in the summer and make a winter cross-country trip with them, even in light snow.
- Incredible dry weather performance for an all-season tire
- Terrific wet performance
- Comfortable and quiet
- Shorter tread life than other UHP all-seasons
- More expensive than most all-season tires
METHODOLOGY
In order to determine the best tire for your vehicle, we considered the products most accessible to the widest swath of consumers in the U.S., which also includes performance, price, and value. We also considered a broad range of end-user ratings and evaluations by multiple testers.