littlepotato

Has anyone had experience on using PureContact with EcoPlus Technology.

This product has got good reviews on Tirerack.

The OEM Michelin really sucks, really bad wet traction and makes big noise on most of the roads in the city.

Thank you !

Mr Marco

Buying Continental?
Spend the extra $120 and get the DWS. This is a great handling little car. Don't comprise on tires. In the long run you'll hate the performance and wish you had spent more.

mrgold35

I am on my second set of Conti ExtremeContact DWS on my RDX. I also was looking at the Pure contact as a replacement once the DWS get a little worn. I would like to find out if the PureContact have a thicker sidewall, do they help/hurt mpgs, and how well they wear compared to the DWS?

I was only able to get under 40,000 miles from my first set of DWS on the RDX compared to over 50,000 miles from the OEM (noisy) Michelin tires. We put around 20,000 miles per year on the RDX. The Conti DWS had a higher treadwear rating compared to the OEM Michelins. I figure the extra tire wear is mostly because of the sh-awd, the way I drive, and a little with the tire compound. I have the Conti DWS on my TSX and the DWS symbols are still on the tires after +45,000 miles. I do all rotations, cross rotations, tire pressure, and alignments on schedule for both vehicles.

I will go for the PureContact if I can get more real world treadlife compared to the DWS.

sonny@tirerack

The PureContact has very similar wet traction to the DWS. The dry traction and steering response are not quite as good (as is to be expected comparing grand touring to ultra high performance). Ride comfort and noise is better on the Pure. I have yet to drive the Pure in the snow but early reports are that it does quite well in the snow, much like the DWS.

littlepotato

I'm having DWS on my RDX as well, good performance tire.
But now I want to trade the grip for ride comfort and noise.

Hope PureContact with EcoPlus won't disappoint me.

littlepotato

Thank you !

I have narrowed down my choices for grand touring tires to Bridgestone Turanza Serenity Plus and PureContact with EcoPlus.

I have ordered the Pure because it is lighter.

However, I am suspecting if the Pure is firm enough to cope with the awful and scary road condition in New York City.

Acomp182

Let us know how the Pures are. I am looking to purchase them for my RDX and I'm also from NYC.

reddogTL

I just purchased the PureContact's with Eco Plus in 235/45/17 guise on my 08 TL/w Nav.
So far, I have put 350 miles on the PureContacts.(about 80 miles per day)

I had the DWS on a prior 07 TL that was totalled. I had only 6-7k miles on those DWS and the insurance company wouldnt let me take them off so they were lost. Here's my thoughts:

1) The Continental DWS is the quietest and "kushy" of the 3 tires. It absorbs the road noise and bumps the best. It also had the least amount of tread noise.
2) The DWS at stock PSI was the most unstable at highway speeds. It was too mushy and made the car have a floating feeling that at times is uneasy. 3-4 PSI over stock helped mitigate this but I believe it was due to its soft sidewalls.
3) The DWS was outstanding(for an all-season tire) in the snow and slush. Still wasn't as good as a dedicated winter tire but its definitely in the top of the class for all-seasons.
4) The PureContact's resolved this issue. It has a beefed up sidewall and is more stable. It's stiffness and tread compounds also apply to its Low Rolling Resistance label.
5) As a result of #4, you feel more bumps in the road and has a bit more road noise than the DWS, however, it's still quieter than the Michelin HX MXM4's that came with the car.
6) Unfortunately we have not had snow yet here in NJ so I cannot comment on their winter performance. However, I noticed that it has a less agressive tread pattern than the DWS but it still has those little "teeth" in all the tread groves that allow it to bite into the snow. I expect the PureContact to still be a lot better than the shitty Michelin's.
7) Fuel economy - OEM and DWS were about the same. I've only had the PureContact for 350 miles and the onboard computer is reporting 27mpg with 90% highway driving. I think its still too early to tell but i had 1,300 miles clocked on the Michelin's before the last time I reset the trip computer and it was averaging 26mpg again with 90% highway driving. Unfortunately it's not an apples to apples comparison because this week our temperatures have dropped into the 20s and 30s and now im using the remote start more on my car. But just based on this alone I believe the PureContact's have added 1-2mpg over the stock Michelin's since the temperatures are colder(lower PSI) and I'm using remote start(more idling).
8) PureContact's have a better warranty, 70k miles, so I expect them to last longer than the DWS. If you go through the DWS reviews on tirerack i saw quite a few people complaining about their tread life.

In all honesty, I dont think you can go wrong going with either of these tires. They're both good tires and offer a good balance for all seasons. I too flip flopped when shopping for tires. You just have to decide what your priorities are. If you dont mind sacrificing a little road noise and harshness for a more sporty tire that gives slightly better fuel economy then go with the PureContact's. If not then go with the DWS. They're pretty close in price on Tirerack. Like $3-4 difference per tire.

wifesRDXtech

Had Conti DWS s for 30 k miles started to get really noisey on the last tire rotation. Have the Conti pure contacts now much quiter tire seem to have a stronger sidewall only have a few thousand miles on them but any issue I will report back.

Actually I do have a shimmy will have the wheels rebalanced and hopefully will solve that issue.

MardiGras

How have the Continental PureContact w/ EcoPlus been treating you folks?

Please provide any feedback regarding dry, wet & snow traction, handling, steering response, noise, etc. Thanks!

b123

+1 also curious about these.

wifesRDXtech

Hey Guys,

I have about 4 k miles on these tires, they are much quieter then the Conti Extreme DWS , this is my wifes car and she drives it mostly but when i have driven it it seems pretty responsive , not as soft of a side wall like the extreme dws . Haven't had a chance to drive it in the snow or pouring rain cannot give any feedback on that. I do keep the tires inflated to 35 psi for a firmer response.

Will let you know if i encounter any issues when i rotate the fronts to the back in about 2000 miles.

rossmo

Had this same dilemma (Conti Extreme DWS vs. PureContact w/Eco).

I read many review (sooo many!) and kept reading that the Extreme DWS were the best All-Season tire in snow and wet weather, but they were not as good in dry weather. (Soft sidewalls, boaty steering at mid-high speeds, and high road noise). This was consistently mentioned across every review. Also mentioned was the 50,000 mile warranty, but research showed that 25-30,000 miles was more likely.

The PureContact are almost identical in qualities, but they give up a little of that snow traction for more responsive steering in dry conditions. They still maintain equal wet weather traction, but gain better dry performance, and reduced road noise. (I guess this can be expected as the PureContact tires are Grand Touring class, and the ExtremeDWS are Ultra High Performance class). The PureContacts have a 70,000 mile warranty.

It all depends on what you're looking for. For me, I established that even though we've had a LOT of snow this winter season (North NJ just outside NYC), I don't want to sacrifice dry weather or highway handling in order to be prepared for *potential* snow. If I wanted to do that, I'd just get dedicated winter tires.

I went with PureContacts w/Eco Tech and had them installed on the car yesterday. Can't wait until after the 500 mile break in period! SO much better than the stock Michelins already...

Bimmer4me

I just bought and installed the pures on my 07 rdx and they're much quieter than the previous Michelin mxv4 s8 tires that I had on the car. The pures ride nice and quiet, handle dry conditions well but I haven't passed the 500 mile break in period yet or driven in wet/winter conditions. So far I'm loving these tires, lightweight and helped to achieve losing 9.4 lbs per corner in conjunction with some andros lighter weight wheels.

Bimmer4me

Btw , with some price matching skills I was able to get discount tires to sell for $640 shipped

Mr Marco

Eco plus? You get what you pay for.

catnippants

Hi Folks...long time no see. Well, it's time for another set of tires. I've had the Conti DWS on my '07 since '11, and while they handled well and did great in the snow, the treadlife was less than spectacular for me. I only got about 25K out of them. At this point, I'm considering these new Pures....but would like some opinions on them vs the Bridgestone Duelers. Any thoughts? I've had good luck with Bridgestone in the past, just not sure whether I should stick with Conti. Treadlife, road noise and wet/snow performance are top priority for me - but still sticking with all-seasons. Any thoughts?

Thanks,
Mike

NBP04TL4ME

Sub'd for opinions. Been looking at these for the Mrs' ES350.

Continental also has a $70 prepaid Visa promotion going on right now.

RockyMountainRDX

Just replaced my Alenzas after 34,430 miles. They were just about to the wear bars, and started getting noisy. Mounted up the Pure Contacts and have been extremely happy. Drove over Teton Pass early in the morning after a late season snow storm and they handled extremely well. I had just removed the Blizzaks only a few days before and was still very impressed with the handling of the pass on a packed snow covered road. So for very happy with this tire.

Pocketman

I've been leaning toward the Continental DWS for my 2008 TSX, but the "soft sidewall" comments cause some concern. TireRack recommended the PureContact, but the "Grand Touring" is causing me some concern because I don't want to spoil the car's handling characteristics. Spec and review wise, both tires are better than the OEM, which were GT, so this shouldn't be a concern. QUESTION: Are the handling characteristics of the low profile V rated Continental PureContact tires up to the task of spirited TSX driving?

wifesRDXtech

Have about 7 k on pure contacts rotated them no issues I like them better than the DWS for every day driving . Haven't driven them in heavy snow to comment but great in the rain.

NBP04TL4ME

I did put these on my wife's ES350 and have about 4500 miles on them. No worries or concerns at this point. The ride a lot smoother than the OEM Michelins which we only got 23K out of. Haven't had them in the snow yet, but am not expecting any issues as the Conti ExtremeContacts on my daughter's Accord performed great. Some folks as well as the rep at Tirerack said they can be a little noisy, but we haven't experienced that yet.
We have also seen an uptick in our MPG with the PureContact.

Dude ZXT

I've put 2 sets of these on my car in 2 years, but that's not all. They seem to have very soft sidewalls, since the slightest brush with anything will cause the sidewall to split, requiring tire replacement.
Within a week of installing the first set, I barely brushed a curb with the passenger rear, going very slowly around a turn, and the sidewall sprang a leak. Continental automatically has a 1-year or 2/32" road hazard warranty, so that tire was free.
A little more than a year later, I had another brush with something and had to pay for that one, but it was still within just about 2/32 of the rest of the tires on the car. My car is AWD, so having more the 2/32 tread difference would require replacing all 4 tires.
Two years after initial install, the same tire apparently had a pothole or some other impact damage the bands and it developed a nasty bulge. Due to the fact that a new tire would be more than 2/32" from the oldest tires, I had to put a new set on. Within 2 weeks something just barely left a mark on the inside of the tire, but it caused the sidewall to split. Hopefully the 5th tire & the entire 2nd set will last longer; at least it will be another free replacement, though I'm not sure I'll stick with these when it's time to replace them, again..

MardiGras

Not sure??? I'd avoid them like the plague after all that hassle.

NBP04TL4ME

So just about a year later (see my initial thoughts in post #22 above) these tires are performing well. We have about 18K total on them and other than being a little noisier than I'd like they are doing all we have asked of them. Absolutely no issues with the horrendous Winter we had this past year. MPG is still very good and handling (such that it is in an ES350) is good. Regular rotation and no abnormal wear and certainly none of the issues Dude ZXT has run across No complaints from the Mrs. so that is a plus.

rahcu2

Hi NBP04TL4ME,

Would you say the PureContacts are more noisy than the oem Michelin Pilot HX MXM4? Or tough to compare since the purecontacts are on the lexus?

NBP04TL4ME

Not sure I follow your question or this is the answer you are looking for but the OEM Michelins on the ES350 were Michelin Energy MXV4 S8 and probably the worst tire we have ever had. So obviously these aren't the Pilot HX MXM4 you asked about, but we did have these on our Accord. Ironically I replaced both the Pilot HX MXM4 (approx 44k) and Energy MXV4 S8 (approx 23K) about 5 months apart and both cars are now wearing Contis. So I'm not sure I can give you a good comparison between worn Michelins and newer Contis especially between an Accord and the Lexus. What I can tell you is that it seems the ExtremeContact DWS on the Accord seem to be quieter than the PureContact on the Lexus. They both have the asymmetrical tread pattern, but one seems quieter than the other. Hope this helps.

rahcu2

thanks for the insight! it looks like continental released the new ExtremeContact DWS06 which supposedly sacrifices some of the comfort for a more responsive tire.

Would you say the PureContacts are quieter than the Michelin Energy on your Lexus?

NBP04TL4ME

The PureContacts are louder than the Michelin Energy MXV4 S8, but I would take the PureContacts over the MXV4 S8 any day over the week. The MXV4 S8 tires were only one step above bologna skins in the snow.

As far as I have read the new Extreme Contact DWS06 is supposed to be an improvement over the DWS in terms of handling. Lots of folks complained about soft sidewalls and poor turn in. Not sure if that translates into sacrificing comfort or not. I wouldn't have an issue trying the DWS06 next time around. On the fence regarding the PureContact next time around - but this is me. Not sure my wife or daughter notice anything about the tires................

rahcu2

thanks for the feedback!