RS + Continential's = bad in the wet ?

[Gnat]

Is it just me or is the wet weather performance of the continential's below average?
I'm assuming recent RS's have all the same;
18inch Continential SportContact 2 225-40's

We only recently got decent rain in Perth and seems I get way too much slip / slide on acceleration and cornering.
No, not on inital "greasy" surfaces directly after first rain, but after a good dose (plus traffic) that clears the roads.

In my run of the mill Vectra with some above average Michelin's I could throw the car around with confidence it seemed ...........
Less confidence with the RS

[Damo105]

I'm not overly impressed with the Conti's on my RS. I find them OK when cornering in the wet, but take-off is a different story. On a wet or greasy road they break traction quite easily. Even in the dry if I take off with any sort of gusto they'll break traction and I get the horrible shuddering from the front end.

[Rosie]

I've only had my RS a week, so the tyres haven't even been worn in yet. No two make of cars are the same when it comes to trye testing and reviewing. What I can tell you is that I had Conti's on my old car. They were quiet, provided good grip in the dry, reasonable to above average grip in the wet. Of course the reason some tyres are quiet is that they are a softer compound, so wear faster than noisier ones like Michelin for example, which last forever but are hard and noisy.

I still felt the Conti's weren't all they were cracked up to be so when they were due for replacement I did the usual homework and came down to either the GT Radial, or the Good Year Excellence. The GT Radial didn't come in my size, so the choice was pretty much made for me, and I'm glad that was the case.

The Good Year Excellence lived up to its name. No tyre is a true all-rounder, but I'm mightily impressed with the Excellence. In the US tyres are required by law to have a DOT Code from which the manufacturing plant can be identified. No such luck in Australia. While all Conti's these days bear "Engineered in Germany" they do not say where the actual tyre was made. The Good Year Excellence are marked "Made In Germany".

With our speed limits and my driving needs I simply don't need to fork out a lot of my hard earned on tyres that are rated way in excess of my needs. The W speed rating on the Excellence is more than ample to my needs at 270 kph. I don't think I'll be needing the 300 kph Y rating on the Conti's. Certain of it actually. The car won't do 270 kph let alone in excess of 300 kph!

[K1W1]

With our speed limits and my driving needs I simply don't need to fork out a lot of my hard earned on tyres that are rated way in excess of my needs. The W speed rating on the Excellence is more than ample to my needs at 270 kph. I don't think I'll be needing the 300 kph Y rating on the Conti's. Certain of it actually. The car won't do 270 kph let alone in excess of 300 kph!

But you must keep your tyres correct as per the plate fitted to the vehicle. You might only ever drive in 50kph zones but if the plate says that you need V rated tyres for example then in most states you will have to have V rated tyres to be legal. The load rating is also important and needs to be considered when buying tyres.

[Rosie]

But you must keep your tyres correct as per the plate fitted to the vehicle. You might only ever drive in 50kph zones but if the plate says that you need V rated tyres for example then in most states you will have to have V rated tyres to be legal. The load rating is also important and needs to be considered when buying tyres.

K1W1,

Is the tyre speed rating on the actual Compliance Plate. I've had a look at my tyre placard (inside the fuel cap cover) and only the basic sizes are listed 225 45R 17 & 225 40R 18. The speed rating designators are not shown on the placard.

I don't know about WA where Gnat is, but in NSW the RTA permits lower speed rated tyres provided there is a sticker on the windscreen.
http://www.rta.nsw.gov.au/registration/downloads/vsi/vsi09_rev4.pdf Take a look at page 5. First time doing the link thing. Hope it worked.

[Rosie]

Further to my last message. Something still didn't seem right, so I had another look at the RTA notice. I'm in Sydney now, but am originally a country boy, and know that mud and snow tires needed in winter aren't that highly speed rated.

The sticker I mentioned is only needed "If the speed rating of the tyres specified for your vehicle is less than 140km/h you must not fit tyres with a lower
speed rating."

The load rating, as K1W1 rightly says cannot be lower, but in NSW there is no issue substituting 225 40R 18 92Y tyres with 225 40R 18 92W's. There's only a 30kph speed differential, and the load ratings are the same at 92 (630kg).

[spellbound]

Is it just me or is the wet weather performance of the continential's below average?
I'm assuming recent RS's have all the same;
18inch Continential SportContact 2 225-40's

We only recently got decent rain in Perth and seems I get way too much slip / slide on acceleration and cornering.
No, not on inital "greasy" surfaces directly after first rain, but after a good dose (plus traffic) that clears the roads.

In my run of the mill Vectra with some above average Michelin's I could throw the car around with confidence it seemed ...........
Less confidence with the RS

I am running the conti's , now done 20,000k and like them , but i did have to adjust my driving when i first got the car , coming out of a liberty 3.0r , i tended to hoof too hard coming out of corners , and doing this in the wet was a bit hairy .

Iam now running 190 kw 400nm ecu up grade , but have learnt to be carefull out of corners and in the wet .

But on a dry rural B road they are magic for grip .

[Diesel_vert]

Is it just me or is the wet weather performance of the continential's below average?
I'm assuming recent RS's have all the same;
18inch Continential SportContact 2 225-40's

We only recently got decent rain in Perth and seems I get way too much slip / slide on acceleration and cornering.
No, not on inital "greasy" surfaces directly after first rain, but after a good dose (plus traffic) that clears the roads.

In my run of the mill Vectra with some above average Michelin's I could throw the car around with confidence it seemed ...........
Less confidence with the RS

Low profile tyres increase grip but are more tricky/snappy at the limit, because there is less warning, since the tyre sidewall has less "give". If this causes the driver to have less confidence in the car, then you can't push as hard, and hence not be able drive as fast.

As for the Sport Contact 2, they're pretty old hat. It's been superseded by the Sport Contact 3, which has been superseded by the Sport Contact 5 (gives you an indication of how old the design is).

Continental tyres are also not renowned for their "feel", which also hampers confidence when pushing. However, it is said that this has been improved in the SC5.

[Gnat]

Thanks guys.
I pushed the contis in the dry again today and have come to the conclusion the sooner they wear out, the better !!
They give up way too early.

Going to something I know sticks like **** to a blanket, good Michelin's.
Pretty sure I'll be importing some Pilot Sport 2's or better still, 3's

If I can't get the correct 92Y (pretty sure I can), then I'll have to see what WA wants!

[brad]

Going to something I know sticks like **** to a blanket, good Michelin's.
Pretty sure I'll be importing some Pilot Sport 2's or better still, 3's

If I can't get the correct 92Y (pretty sure I can), then I'll have to see what WA wants!

PS2 are a slightly better "drivers tyre" than PS3 but I think you'll find the michelin Pilot Super Sport is a step better.

[Gnat]

PS2 are a slightly better "drivers tyre" than PS3 but I think you'll find the michelin Pilot Super Sport is a step better.

Yeh, noticed the PSS seemed well received, but they are a little harder to find.

My summary of the Conti's: Awesome Car + Spirited driver > Tyre Capability
I want more grip, even if the wears not great.

[brad]

tirerack. Michelin Australia will make you wait months (mate was told 8 weeks by Michelin AU & had his tyre in 5 days from Tirerack)