Continental PureContact LS

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Aug 30, 2004
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Customer drives a 2016 Mercedes-Benz E350 with the 18" wheel option. The OE tire size is 245/40R-18 XL, V-rated.

The customer drives 30K/yr and values longevity over performance. There are very few Grand Touring All-Season Tires in this size and the PureContact LS came up as one of the few options.

Does anyone have experience with this tire?
 
PureContact is a good tire, I put a set on my Fusion and at 62k miles (they were on from 66k to 128k when sold) on them when I sold it, they still had a little over 4/32" of tread. They weren't amazing in snow, but workable. In Cali, if you're where it never snows, it would be a great tire. Quiet ride, decent handling, the only thing that was disconcerting was for about the first 3k miles, impact bumps like rough expansion joints were a little rough. The sidewalls softened up with some miles though, and overall I would buy them again.
 
I have the PureContact LS (V), and replaced a set of Michelin Premier A/S for a V6 Accord in 215/50-17. They are pretty sure footed, with handling similar to the Premier A/S. They are better in snow and slush, and seem to be wearing better too. The Michelins wore prematurely. We haven't had a lot of heavy rain yet, but no discernible hydroplaning at 70 mph on the freeway. Noise is modest, with an occasional loud growl on some grooved payment. Overall very happy with this tire.
 
I have the older Purecontacts in the 245/45/17. The previous owner had put them on my 2011 E350. I think he got about 60k out of them before they went. I have 245/40/18's on my 2008 E350 and those were Michelin A/S 3+. The A/S 3's, came on the car and I think I got about 30k out of them before they went but they weren't new but had good tread when I got them so maybe either 35-40k out of them. Costco has the Michelin's and they usually do $70 off and 1 cent installation every other month or so, a tad under $700 a set the last time I got them.
 
Originally Posted by The Critic
Customer drives a 2016 Mercedes-Benz E350 with the 18" wheel option. The OE tire size is 245/40R-18 XL, V-rated.

The customer drives 30K/yr and values longevity over performance. There are very few Grand Touring All-Season Tires in this size and the PureContact LS came up as one of the few options.

Does anyone have experience with this tire?


I'm also curious as I'm considering these for my mother's GS350 AWD as 3 season tires, she has Blizzak WS80s on a dedicated set of wheels for winter duty. They're very highly regarded on Tire Rack in both the test data and the reviews.

Also considering these (likely next year or this fall) for the GFs GS350 RWD to replace her summer only 19" OE Bridgestone RE50A tires that will likely be due for replacement in another 10k.

Choices are limited for both cars due to OE tire and wheel sizes.
 
I got the customer's approval and pulled the trigger earlier today. They are being installed now:

[Linked Image]


The person drives a lot so we should get some feedback very quickly.
 
I believe this is what we are running on her Volvo. Roughly 1.5 years/ ~12k of usage.

Nothing but good to say about them in just about any condition.
 
Originally Posted by The Critic
I got the customer's approval and pulled the trigger earlier today. They are being installed now:

[Linked Image]


The person drives a lot so we should get some feedback very quickly.


How did the tires balance out and drive after installation?
 
Originally Posted by FlyNavyP3
The Critic said:
How did the tires balance out and drive after installation?

3 out of the 4 tires required less than one ounce. One required 2.5 oz.

The customer allowed me to put some miles on the car. I drove for about 75 miles with the new tires (mainly running errands around town) and they are excellent. No complaints at all. The tires behave extremely similar to Michelin Premiers but with less tread noise and slightly better ride quality. There is also a slight "rim guard" on the sidewall. For a touring tire, I would seriously consider these over the Michelin Premiers due to their lower cost and the potential for longer service life.

Here is a picture of the sidewall in case anyone is curious:
[Linked Image]


Rim Guard:
[Linked Image]
 
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Thanks, Critic. These would have gone on my Corolla except not made in my size. They are on the top of the list for when the dealer radials are done on my Camry.
 
Thanks for the review. I have the Premier A/S on my 08 TL and am considering swapping for these Conti's next time around. The Premier's are on the stiffer side for touring tires however they're exceptionally stable. They give the steering a nice heft and require very little correction at the steering wheel. How is the PureContact LS in this regard?

Originally Posted by The Critic

3 out of the 4 tires required less than one ounce. One required 2.5 oz.

The customer allowed me to put some miles on the car. I drove for about 75 miles with the new tires (mainly running errands around town) and they are excellent. No complaints at all. The tires behave extremely similar to Michelin Premiers but with less tread noise and slightly better ride quality. There is also a slight "rim guard" on the sidewall. For a touring tire, I would seriously consider these over the Michelin Premiers due to their lower cost and the potential for longer service life.
 
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I replaced Premier A/S with these as well, last summer.

I prefer them quite a bit over the Michelins.
 
Ordered up a set of 4 for my Mothers 2013 GS350 AWD in 235/45/18 at the local tire store in Marquette Michigan. Will bring her car in to get them installed when I visit next month. They will be replacing her OE Dunlop SP Sport 5100 Ultra High Performance All Season tires that came on the car.
 
Originally Posted by vinu_neuro
Thanks for the review. I have the Premier A/S on my 08 TL and am considering swapping for these Conti's next time around. The Premier's are on the stiffer side for touring tires however they're exceptionally stable. They give the steering a nice heft and require very little correction at the steering wheel. How is the PureContact LS in this regard?

This one area where the Premiers still excel but not by a significant among. Steering heft with the PureContact LS is lighter but is still significantly more precise than other tires in this class.

Originally Posted by FlyNavyP3
Ordered up a set of 4 for my Mothers 2013 GS350 AWD in 235/45/18 at the local tire store in Marquette Michigan. Will bring her car in to get them installed when I visit next month. They will be replacing her OE Dunlop SP Sport 5100 Ultra High Performance All Season tires that came on the car.

Glad to hear. Let us know how they turn out.
 
Interestingly it looks like the Premier A/S has been discontinued and replaced by Michelin with the Primacy Touring A/S. They are claiming it's the quietest tire in class but used the previous PureContact non-LS for the comparison among the other ones like Cinturato P7, Turanza Serenity, etc. I'm probably done with Michelin for the time being if the PureContact LS is good. Michelin grand touring tires are just too expensive.
 
Update:
8500 miles since the tires were installed. They are still quiet. 8.5-9/32" remaining.
 
My daughter has PureContact with ECO Plus on her Acura and they roll just fine in the snow. Got my wife General GMax AS-05 for her Forte, not intending to run them in snow thou as we have dedicated winters. Those Generals are great tires so far since new and for last 4K miles.
 
I'm running these on my Optima now and only got ~19K miles on them before I'm at the wear bars! They ran great, felt great but worn out FAR too soon. I got mostly even wear across all four tires but I'm NOT a happy camper with how fast these have worn out!

Supposedly, the newer "LS" version of the tires has addressed the fast tire wear issue so they might be worth a try.

FWIW: I rotate balance and do a 4-wheel alignment every 5-7K miles, run them at 35psi and don't abuse the car (daily driver). I had a similar experience with the prior set of tires, the FireStone Indy 500 WIde Oval tires (summer tires) which worn out about to the 22K mile mark.
 
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Originally Posted by WhizkidTN
I'm running these on my Optima now and only got ~19K miles on them before I'm at the wear bars! They ran great, felt great but worn out FAR too soon. I got mostly even wear across all four tires but I'm NOT a happy camper with how fast these have worn out!

Supposedly, the newer "LS" version of the tires has addressed the fast tire wear issue so they might be worth a try.

FWIW: I rotate balance and do a 4-wheel alignment every 5-7K miles, run them at 35psi and don't abuse the car (daily driver). I had a similar experience with the prior set of tires, the FireStone Indy 500 WIde Oval tires (summer tires) which worn out about to the 22K mile mark.


Don't they come with 70K miles warranty? Did you try contacting Continental re this?
 
Originally Posted by dubber09
Originally Posted by WhizkidTN
I'm running these on my Optima now and only got ~19K miles on them before I'm at the wear bars! They ran great, felt great but worn out FAR too soon. I got mostly even wear across all four tires but I'm NOT a happy camper with how fast these have worn out!

Supposedly, the newer "LS" version of the tires has addressed the fast tire wear issue so they might be worth a try.

FWIW: I rotate balance and do a 4-wheel alignment every 5-7K miles, run them at 35psi and don't abuse the car (daily driver). I had a similar experience with the prior set of tires, the FireStone Indy 500 WIde Oval tires (summer tires) which worn out about to the 22K mile mark.


Don't they come with 70K miles warranty? Did you try contacting Continental re this?


Man, I have to look at the actual data as I have found my memory is starting to suck. I got 35K miles on the PureContact tires, not 19K. Sorry folks!

Yes, they have the 70K mileage warranty, but getting them to prorate (and it seems it has to be to one of their tires, not a check) looks very difficult. I rotated a few times myself for example and you are supposed to use one of their dealers (for proper records) to be able to make a claim.
 
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