bungeejumper wrote:Strange, different tyres seem to suit different cars. My Mk1 diesel Focus went best on Pirellis, which seemed to suit its heavy front end, but it was almost undriveable on Avons, which just didn't grip at all. (The only tyres I've ever returned to the dealer, because they were frightening me. )
My Passat estate got 40K plus from Dunlop SP Sports at the front, whereas everybody else said they were good for only 15K. And my Toyota seems to have lost its tendency for front wheel spin on take-off since I switched to Michelin Primacy 4s. (I think the Cross Climates would be a better choice for Scotland, TBH.)
But Continentals? I've always thought of them as medium to budget, not premium. We really didn't like them on my wife's Polo - they were noisy, and the grip wasn't as good as the usual Michelins. Mind you, ISTR that Continental did go through an iffy patch with a few batches of bad rubber that was too hard. Maybe we just had some of those?
Continental are sold under a bewildering variety of other brand names, including Uniroyal, Barum, Viking and Semperit. Continental Michelin (sorry!) own the Kleber and BF Goodrich brands. And Bridgestone owns Firestone, of course. This British website has a stab at sorting out who's who: https://tyres.rezulteo.co.uk/expert-adv ... ich-group#
BJ
I know from Audi forums (now that I have looked) that the Continental ContiSportContact5s supplied with the Q5 Sports anyway, burn out at around 10,000 miles. I have got 12,500 from mine although the front ones are near enough to being down to no more than 1.6mm. The rear ones are at not far off the 20p test or maybe about 3mm, maybe less. It is apparently soft rubber which gives a great grip but leaves stuff behind all the time. So I am not alone.
Dod