I just got the DWS's and couldn't agree more. They are so mushy. Probably due to tread squirm and overly soft sidewall. I hope they get better as they wear. I also feel the tire itself has an overall lack of grip, regardless of the treadsquirm and soft tirewall (ie, steady state cornering). I hope this is just due to the release compound and will also improve with wear. EDIT: This has gone away, so I assume it was just due to excessive release compound.

In all honesty, I really wish I gotten a different tire, like the Kumho ASX. The DWS's totally ruined the gokart like handling that the old OEM tires had. I know they are a brand new all season tire, but I had a set of Potenza RE950's on a different car that would blow the DWS out of the water in performance. I find it very hard to believe that the DWS's are considered an ultra-high performance all-season tire, and even worse that it is #1 in the survey.


On the plus side, they make the car MUCH more comfortable to drive than the run flats. With the lowering springs and crappy NJ roads, I was afraid of chipping my teeth when I had the run flat tires. Now it's not bad at all.

-Scott

 

205/55/16 is run by several mini owners here with no issues expressed. Its not a size I can promise to fit due to its tall diameter. MPAS+ 55 series would outhandle 50 Series ECE DWS in dry.

 

This is one of several factors. Full tread depth blocks flex more than the firm short ones you removed. The rubber is soft due to not having heat cycles in them yet.

These tires have a satifaction based trial period. You CAN get out of them, and into something else. Did you order from Tirerack?

UHP is designated by speed rating, its not subjective.

There are many unanwsered variables in survey data, Check out my blog on it.

Part 1
&
Part 2

This is part of the trade-offs in tires. Like life there are comproises.

Speaking / emailing with me may be your best insight on what works best for you. Whats is good for the gander is not good for every goose!

Alex

 

Hi Alex,

Thanks for the info.

I originally ordered them from TireRack but they were on 6-8 week back order. Ended up ordering them from Tires-Easy.com and cancelling my TireRack order.
Is the satisfaction trial period a TireRack only thing? I've never heard of it, and I usually order all of my tires through TireRack.


What is the difference between UHPAS and HPAS?

-Scott

 

Its a Contiental policy See the box at the bottom

UHPAS = included speed ratings Z, W , Y, & (Y) .
HPAS = Includes speed ratings of H & V
PAS = includes speed ratings S & T

Alex

 

This thread counldn't have come at a better time for me....

I currently run the Kumho ASX 215/45 -17 and have been very pleased with them except, I only got about 25K out of them, and they were pretty weak in the snow. Now normally, we don't get all that much snow so I can deal with it, but now that they're getting close to the wearbars I've noticed they're a real handful in rain too.....

So I was strongly considering the Conti DWS as my '09 Clubby came with Conti runflats and I was very impressed with how well they got around in the snow last winter, although being runflats meant I took them off as soon as the weather cleared and put my Kumho's back on.

I do track my car 2 or 3 times a season, so it is somehwat important how they handle, the rest of my drive time is mostly hiway so I'm looking for quiet and smooth - both of which the Kumho's did exceptionally and the Conti's are well regarded for.

What to do.......

 

The tires seem to have gotten better with some use. I think there must have been a lot of release compound or something (way more than what I'm used to) as the tires just slid every time I turned when I first got them, now they grip very well. The mushiness is still there but not as bad. Probably will get better as the tread wears down. These tires have pretty tall tread to handle the snow.

-Scott

 

typical new a/s tires. are you new to these? i would have expected that change/break in right off the bat. after about 500-1000 miles you'll get the "real" experience the tires are capable of

 

Agreed, a few heat cycles makes all the diffrence!

Alex

 

1000km update:

sorry to say but I can't wait to get these tires off my car. While they do have many positive qualities and I think they are overall a great tire, in my opinion they are simply not suited to my driving style and on my vehicle. The sharp handling feeling I had before (even with the Alpin snows) is almost entirely gone, the car feels directionally twitchy and unstable at highway speeds, and when cornering the tires give the sensation of moving around before settling far too much for my liking. While they do feel very surefooted once you have committed to the corner, any further steering input results in more squirming.

I think I gave these a fair shot, and maybe I would feel better about them after 5000km or so, but at this point I want that crisp handling feeling back and I don't think I could stand another 1000km, never mind 5000.

This is just one person's opinion, your experience with these tires may be entirely different; considering the glowing customer feedback/ratings the DWS is getting, maybe it is just me. I have learned a lot thought this, the primary thing being that all-season tires all seem to be biased one way or the other; some are better in the snow, some are terrible in the snow but great in the dry etc. I think maybe I should be looking for a tire that is more biased to wet & dry handling, with some small capacity for winter; after all I do have a dedicated set of snows.

cheers

greg v.

P.S. they do kick *** in the wet though.

 

Man, I couldn't disagree more. I love the tires for their ride quality, quietness and overall improvement in handling of the Mini. Stepping down from the Conti runflats was a good idea for us. My wife keeps bragging to all her retired lady friends how much she loves the car since I put the tires on them.

Like you said, it's all personal. With these tires, it's a totally different feeling ride, which suits us perfectly.

We're running the 215/45-17, so that may be the difference for our likes and dislikes. The 17 has a shorter sidewall and may be the difference in ride and handling quality.

 

hey Gunner

I read your post before and was thinking to myself that the DWS would be perfectly suited to your ride criteria, as they do soften up the ride far more than they take away from the handling, and they sure are quiet. Some of that pleasant ride quality did go away once I put the pressure up to 38psi though. Did I mention they were great in the wet?...

As you stated, different strokes for different folks; if I had a larger touring-type vehicle I would not hesitate to put the DWS tire on it in a heartbeat, but I just miss being able to chuck my Mini around like I used to. However, I don't want anything as harsh (and slippery...) as the run-flats that were on my MCS when I got it; that was a bit much. Also, I am running 16's as opposed to your 17's, and again as you stated that probably makes a difference for sure.

Again, I want to emphasis that this is a great tire, just not for me and my style of driving and what I want out of my Mini. Opinions will vary from individual to individual.

cheers

greg v.

 

One thing I noticed. I had adjusted the front struts for full negative camber when I was at the track, and left it like that. After just under 1000 miles on the DSW's I'm starting to like them. I just recently put the camber back to stock and now the tires squeel like pigs again going into turns.

ggv, Maybe you should add some more camber and see if you like that.

-Scott

 

this is interesting. now that the tires are clearly broken in to be that unstable. i'm guessing a bit of it comes down to rim size in your situation. 16's are a lot more squirmy than 17's. i'd guess the only thing that would be as rigid on 16's as your runflats are probably going to be more runflats. have you thought of looking for new wheels for new rubber?

i'd like to hear from more people with this tire on the 17's. that 215.45.17 my plan. are you an aggressive driver gunner? have you played much with the tires?

 

I have a set of the previous generation Contiextremecontact tires on my 2004 R50 right now and I have to say, I am really impressed with them! I ran the Hankook Ventus RS-2 beforehand, and the grip was definitely there on that tire once they were heated up. No matter how hard I drove that tire, I felt like the Hankook would slip. Now, with the new continental tire, I expected the performance of this tire to be equally as bad. After the break-in period, my tires have really shown that they can handle some serious cornering! I was even doing some spirited canyon driving and ran through a spot of gravel and debris much faster than I should have mid corner (yes, I should have prob. not been going triple the rec. speed through a corner) and the rear end started to step out a bit. Even then, the car had enough grip to stay on the road. The even bigger plus to this tire is the cold weather handling. As the temps get colder up in the mountains, the continental feels as if it grips better than when it is warmer outside! My Hankook tire was nearly un-drivable at any time in the mountains at night.

Overall, for the money I am happy with my purchase. I have even thought of picking up another set just to have when these wear down! Continental makes a great product imho. I like the softer sidewall due to the fact that the feedback feels more true and I can really put my limit on my car, whereas every time I roll with a tire with a stiff sidewall and gobs of grip, I end up pushing my car past its limits, resulting in damage. :(

To those of you who want:

1. Improved grip and handling
2. All season reliability
3. Affordable pricepoint

I would say this tire is a great choice. Sure, it won't give the performance of some of the other guys, but I feel like the tire itself is safe, secure, and fun!

 

I agree what size tires are you guys running that they feel mushy?? 16's or 17's? how tall is your sidewall 50, 45 or 40?

 

Quote:

Originally Posted by jrcsh6

i'd like to hear from more people with this tire on the 17's. that 215.45.17 my plan. are you an aggressive driver gunner? have you played much with the tires?

Like I've said a couple times, this is my wife's Mini and she does not do slaloms, rallys, etc. I ride all the time unless it's raining. I've done some twisties; Hwy 33, Mulholland Rd, Decker Cyn to the coast and it does good when pushed. She likes the Mini and has parked the Lexus outside and the Mini has taken over her space in the garage.

She has the 17" wheels with 215/45-17 DWS's and the car drives totally different. For her, it's a great tire. We live in SoCal, so snow and rain don't happen often, but the kids like in Tahoe, so when we visit we're prepared.

 

I think the shorter sidewall plays into the feel of a UHPAS tire as well. 215/45/17 will not feel as squishy as the 205/55/16 tires do. That is partly why I still roll my S-lites rather than my Holeys, the tire options are there for what I need

If the DWS is made in the size that I run on the S-lites for the next year, when I burn through my existing continental tires, I will probably work on picking up a set.

 

I have a MCS 2008. Tire size 205 45 17, use with 41 psi. DWS 1200 miles. Replaced OEM Conti Runflats with 35,000 miles primarily highway driving and two trips to the Dragon.

These tires seem to be better in all respects except that steering not as tight as runflats due to flex in sidewalls. Increased tire pressure helped quite a bit.

Hope this helps,

MR BULLY

 

I have 4 brand new DWS tires waiting to be mounted in my garage in 205/45/17 size. Will give an update once I get them mounted.

 

You'll love them. We do. We got the 215 and notice no difference in handling but the ride is sssssssmmmooooootttthhhhhh.....

 

This thread is timely as I am in the market for my next set of tires also. The DWS is on my shopping list, but a friend of mine is recommending the General Tire Exclaim UHP. He did say the DWS is a great all around tire, but I drive a MINI with a stiffer rear sway bar. So why would I want to compromise all that handling? I kind of see his point.

In Canada, the General Tire Exclaim UHP and the Conti DWS are about the same price. I'm attracted to the Conti DWS because of the wear rating and my local MINI dealer puts them on CPO Coopers. So they can't be bad. But I am a bit leery of the mushy turn-in feel. It seems to be the main concern regarding the DWS.

 

I'm going with them since I now have a 32 mile commute each way to and from work everyday on the highway. I do break up driving the MINI with my truck. But still have to drive it 2 to 3 days a week. I also digger the shorter sidewall on the 17's will keep my handling in the mountains when I go.

 

I like them and can attest to their handling capabilities. I did a drive on Decker Canyon Rd (CA Hwy 23) from the coast highway (CA Hwy 1) to Westlake Village yesterday and made myself carsick. I haven't done that in a long time. Decker was repaved recently and is in great shape. If you're not familiar with the road, look it up on google maps and zoom in on it. It's got twisties. Another nice road is Latigo Cyn road, just a few miles south of the 23. Great motorcycle roads all.

 

I have a stiffer sway bar with adjustable endlinks and lowering springs, still love my Continental All Season tires on the car! They provide adequate grip for my purposes and don't see why they wouldn't work for your car! The wear rating is impressive and I would think the peace of mind these tires provide would be great for those of us in areas where snow and inclimate weather can come from out of no where!