Continental TrueContact on Honda Fit

[Falken]

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires.jsp?tireMake=Continental&tireModel=TrueContact

I got them in 185/65/R15.

I had a tire blow out on the highway on Friday. I have been thinking of what tires to get on the Fit for a while now, and they were on the last rotation anyway after only 30,000km of use. Surprised how short lived the OEM Dunlops were, and they were starting to handle rough.

These Conti tires seem to be a very go LRR compromise tire with long tread life.

I had them installed where I used to work when I was in school and got a great deal, free installation with a coupon. Total bill including insane Quebec taxes came to $475, so I am very happy about that.

On to my first impressions after 300km of use:

1) They have EXCELLENT road feel. My sidewalls are 1/2" taller in diameter, and that gives a cushier ride, but these tires soak up rough roads like you are riding on a rubber mat placed over the road.

You still feel the bump, but it is really muted in a manner that I never felt before. But it is an excellent ride quality.

On Quebec roads these tires are great, as our roads are really bad. If you live where the roads are great, it might not appeal to you.

2) Straight line traction is excellent. They hook up great.

3) There is some new tire shimmy as the tread is really tall and still has the mold glaze and whiskers and release agents, but I imagine they will calm down.

4)Fuel economy: I think that they will end up being very efficient after they are really broken in after 5,000kms of use. I am currently loosing 1L/100km but the circumference of the new tire is longer. So I am surprised that I am not loosing that much on a brand new tire compared to the old tires that were worn and age-hardened and at their peak of efficiency.

I'll keep you guys posted, but I can only say if you get these on sale and you need tires you will love them.

 

[fdcg27]

If you calculate the proportionate difference in circumference and apply that to the indicated mileage driven, you might find that you aren't losing any fuel economy at all.

 

[Quattro Pete]

Originally Posted By: Falken
I think that they will end up being very efficient after they are really broken in after 5,000kms of use.

Tires take 5k km to break in? What happens after 5k km that makes them become efficient?

 

[Quattro Pete]

Originally Posted By: fdcg27
If you calculate the proportionate difference in circumference and apply that to the indicated mileage driven, you might find that you aren't losing any fuel economy at all.

Yup. With every rotation of a larger tire you are traveling more distance than what the car's odometer thinks you're traveling.

 

[Rolla07]

What size were the originals?

 

[KitaCam]

This chart might help with your calculations.

http://www.rimsntires.com/specspro.jsp

 

[Falken]

The originals were 175/65/R15.

I also just realized that I am using A/C constantly now as we are getting a bit of a heat wave.

MPG is slowly increasing as the tires are heat cycling and wearing in.

So the Eco logo on these tires appears to be legit as I am the type of person that keeps a close eye on MPG.

I also notice that I coast a lot farther so now I glide to lights getting off the gas sooner.

I always coast to lights and stops, and now I notice that I am braking harder as I am used to not coasting so freely.

So I do notice a difference which I am happy about.

Great tires!

 

[Falken]

Using KitaCam's site I calculate a 2% difference in the circumference in the tires.

So that with the AC on means that these tires are already showing promise for being efficient.

The more I drive on them and get used to the extra roll so I don't use the brakes as hard and coast in traffic with better timing the MPGs are trending downward.

 

[Falken]

Pumped the tires up to 40psi to give better road feel as the sidewalls are taller, and it is helping the MPGs go up too.

The ride was very floaty and soft and I got a bit tired of it. The tire is rated for Max pressure of 51 psi, I was surprised! I thought it was a 44 psi tire.

Interesting, the AC consumes 1L/100km as a pretty educated estimate.

I am very impressed with these tires, they seem to have no downsides I can put my finger on.

 

[badtlc]

By AC do you mean air conditioner? If so, AC consumes fuel at a rate per unit of time, not per unit of distance.

 

[sprocketser]

Hey Falken , what s the recommended tire pressure from factory ! If you have more psi , you might take less gas but tire wear will sufer in the middle of tires .

 

[Falken]

I think the weight of the car, and being a gentle driver, with a Treadwear Rating of 800, with a tire rated for 51 psi, I don't think it will affect treadwear.

I was a bit tired of the floaty feel, I needed a bit more air in them. 35psi was too soft and handling was a bit vague. I think Factory is 33psi, but that is for a tire with a narrower sidewall so less squirm.

185/65/R15 is 1/2" taller than the factory 175/65/R15.

Never thought of AC being a function of time, if I run it full blast for the entire tank of fuel I feel a function of distance is simpler to track.

The weather has cooled off a bit, so less AC.

Our gas prices are really high, and these LRR tires don't seem to give anything up in regards to traction that I can tell.

 

[Falken]

The tire does have excellent wet traction as well as dry traction. Fuel economy is as good or better than the old tires it replaced.

I have concluded that these are excellent tires, will not hesitate to recommend them.

 

[Rand]

These seem to be shaping up to to be the new "go to" LRR /long treadlife tire for standard touring market.

 

[Falken]

So the Fuel Economy numbers are in.

Going from Dorion with a bit of city driving to work on Sources blvd, doing 90km on the 20 eastbound:

5.2L/100km was the readout. I reset it after I filled up and headed to work in the morning.

But, I made an extreme effort to be gentle on the car as possible, and just held it at 90km/hr the whole way to Sources, where I do mild city driving to park the car at the company I work at.

Now, the tires are greater circumference than stock, so we can call it 5L/100km.

That is 47MPG.

These are great tires. Swerved to avoid a car in Lasalle today in front of Angrignon park. The guy was pulling out of a condo complex and wasn't going to stop and look.

Car handled great, tires didn't slip at all when I jerked the steering wheel on an extremely sharp left going about 40km /hr.

Great tires.