Ultra Hi-Performance All-Seasons for "winter tire" use?

[drpahjee]

I'm considering getting either Continental ContiExtremeContact's or Pirelli P Zero Nero M+S for my "winter" (yes, I'm aware that neither is a "proper" winter tire); the reason being that although it snowed alot here in DC last yr., I rarely have to drive on unplowed, fresh snow. Does anyone have any experience w/ either tire in the snow? I realize that the Pirelli is a relatively new tire & as such there may be less feedback, but I thought I'd give it a try. Thanks.

[alee]

AF330i has the Contis and is planning on using them this winter, but he hasn't tried them in the snow yet.

[Gary@Tirerack]

Both are a bit too new to have user feedback in snow. Looking strictly at the tread pattern, it appears that the Conti should do a bit better in the snow. The Pirelli has a clear advantage in steering response as well as dry handling. All about the tradeoffs...

http://www.tirerack.com/a.jsp?a=BN4&url=/tires/index.jsp

[WLN1951B]

I had the same issue.....I live in MD.
I just had the Extremes put on this week on my '03 325i SP (purchased thru TireRack). The tires are not as sticky as the OEM's and that's to be expected but they do provide a comfortable ride and perhaps a little quieter. No snow yet of course so we'll wait and see. Good luck in your decision; jury is still out for me.....BTW, TireRack met all my expectations and I'll be a repeat customer.

[AF]

Like Alee said, that is the route I am taking this year, in the past my winter wheels had 205/50/17 Contitouring (regular all seasons) and they got me through last winter beautifully. I was surprised by how incredible they were in the snow.

This year I am taking a chance and going with a 225/45/17 (wider tire) and going from regular all-season to a high performance all-season.


So far I have ContiExtreme's which I just got but am having a small flatspotting issue so I might end up getting the Sumitomo HTR+'s

I have to tell you the Contiexteme's are 20 times better then the Contisport which makes little to no sense as the Contisport is supposed to be a high performance tire.

The Contiextreme in compariosn, has quicker turn-in, better grip around turns, offers better feedback and better wet traction.

The only thing the Contisport had over it was when initally entering a curve, they settle quicker where the COntiextreme needs a second to settle in and grip.

Now here's the crazy thing, the Contiextreme's I have only have about 125 miles, Imagine how great they might be when broken in . . .

BTW the sidewall design on the Contiextreme is ugly

[HW]

the carcass on the extremes is not much better than the tourings according to a tire dealership that i :confused: :dunno: is that true? :dunno:

i'm thinking about getting them as well.

[HW]

af: are you refering to the sports compared to the extremes for winter use? :dunno: i don't see how even the sport1 can be better than the extremes for summer seeing how the sport1 were designed strictly for summer use. :dunno:

any closeup of the extreme sidewalls?

[AF]

af: are you refering to the sports compared to the extremes for winter use? :dunno: i don't see how even the sport1 can be better than the extremes for summer seeing how the sport1 were designed strictly for summer use. :dunno:

any closeup of the extreme sidewalls?


Ok, last night I took the car through some other curves that I was handling and it's not up to the Contisports on the 30 to 40 mph curves kinda like a slalom, I spoke too early above . . . overall I like these tires 100 times better then the Contisports . . .

These Extreme's offer much better turn in response and for some reason the tires just feel like they grip better except when hitting the upper limits.

So in other words, these tires feel better for up to the 85% limit but when you hit the upper 85% to 100% lmit, the contisports have the edge in holding the road.