Sponsored by The Tire Rack

[mike5809]

Hi All!

I am sure this has been discussed in some fashion before so please forgive me [and spare the search comments ] but my stock RFTs are needing to be replaced and I am looking for the best replacement tire.

I have Style 193M wheels on a 2011 M-Sport xDrive Coupe. I am looking for stock sizes or +1 (235/265).

My main point of interest is treadwear and winter weather grip. I do not track the vehicle or drive hard around corners or anything - so while grip is important I do not need something like the PSS. I am really looking for a good tire even for the winter so I do not need to buy a winter setup. My car is also lowered (not slammed) - so I know that will increase treadwear but I will be getting a new alignment with the new tires.

I have seen;
- Continental ExtremeContact DWS (and DWS 06): with mixed reviews
- Dunlop Signature HP
- Eagle Sport All Season
- Hankook Ventus S1
- Sumitomo AS
- General G-Max
and a few others.

I am looking for something more on the economical side - somewhere around 600-700 a set if possible. What would you all recommend?

I will probably buy from TireRack as I have purchased a few sets from them before with great experiences each time.

Thanks All

[MetsFan]

I currently have the DWS but I don't know if I'm going to get them again. I bought them two years ago and have driven less than 10K miles on it and two of the tires are down to the wear bars with the other two not too far behind.

[mike5809]

Oh man - that is terrible (in my eyes)! I put 16,000 miles on my stock RFTs and the fronts are at 4/32 and rears 3/32 and I thought that was terrible (mind you I'm lowered and the wear is really on the inside due to camber.

I would be very upset if I purchased a new set and got less life out of them.

Thanks for the feedback!

[Nitrousbird]

From a cost and performance perspective, you are probably better off scoring a set of used OEM rims for the winter and running snow tires (even cheapies), which will perform better than an expensive all-season.

Then put summer tires on your current rims. You would be amazed that with some good shopping, the cost won't be that far off and your performance will be better year round, along with having a set of wheels to take the winter beating and two sets of tires to spread treadwear out on. It also gives you a nice shopping window to buy replacements in the future, as you can have months to wait for a great sale before you need them.

[SLOWER]

Originally Posted by MetsFan

I currently have the DWS but I don't know if I'm going to get them again. I bought them two years ago and have driven less than 10K miles on it and two of the tires are down to the wear bars with the other two not too far behind.

That doesn't make any sense. I have about 25k miles on mine and they are wearing great.

[kisho]

I would recommend you get DWS, they are rated #1 on tirerack for all-season tires. At the price of performance (dry/wet), they have a softer overall ride and perform great in tirewear and in the snow.

As for sizes, you can do 235/40 on the front and 255/35 for the rear.

[mike5809]

Thanks for the insight everyone! Seems like some mixed reviews for the DWS, which seems consistent with other reviews I have ready. Those were my initial choice but I did see some negative reviews which made me hesitant.

I considered having a spare set of wheels with winter tires - I actual did this with my RWD but the wife eventually got mad as I ended up having three sets of wheels / tires in the house at one point So I am trying to just keep one set that will suffice for all driving conditions.

[kisho]

Originally Posted by mike5809

Thanks for the insight everyone! Seems like some mixed reviews for the DWS, which seems consistent with other reviews I have ready. Those were my initial choice but I did see some negative reviews which made me hesitant.

I considered having a spare set of wheels with winter tires - I actual did this with my RWD but the wife eventually got mad as I ended up having three sets of wheels / tires in the house at one point So I am trying to just keep one set that will suffice for all driving conditions.

Then just have one set instead of three. The wife might still get mad but at least it's one instead of three

If you're too scared to get the DWS, then you can go for the A/S 3. However, do not expect these to do as well in the snow as the DWS. The A/S 3 is like a softer version of the PSS and it actually outclasses quite a few of the summer performance tires in dry/wet traction. They have increased tirewear and slightly less performance in dry/wet compared to the PSS.

BTW both DWS are ~700, the older is a bit less for a set. The A/S 3 are at $850 a set. These are before shipping on tirerack.

[mike5809]

Whats the difference between the Continental ExtremeContact DWS 06 and Continental ExtremeContact DWS?

I see the DWS 06 is listed as a new product on tirerack.com for almost the exact same price. Any major differences?

[kisho]

Originally Posted by mike5809

Whats the difference between the Continental ExtremeContact DWS 06 and Continental ExtremeContact DWS?

I see the DWS 06 is listed as a new product on tirerack.com for almost the exact same price. Any major differences?

The DWS 06 is a refreshed version of the old DWS, it's a bit better in each category. They just came out this past May so there aren't many reviews on them. If you give it till, say around September, tirerack should have a comprehensive review on how they match up to the older DWS.

Read this for specifics:

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tests/...y.jsp?ttid=199

[mike5809]

Thanks kisho! I also spoke with Gary at TireRack and have decided I will move forward with the Continental ExtremeContact DWS06

Thanks all.

[kisho]

Originally Posted by mike5809

Thanks kisho! I also spoke with Gary at TireRack and have decided I will move forward with the Continental ExtremeContact DWS06

Thanks all.

No problem, you should be pretty happy with those. I'll most likely pick up some after my current DWS on my winter set need replacing. My only gripe is that they are too soft to get any worthwhile dry performance, though that's only cause my summers are PSS and there's just too much of a performance gap. I'm just greedy

[niquehawk5]

Originally Posted by mike5809

Thanks kisho! I also spoke with Gary at TireRack and have decided I will move forward with the Continental ExtremeContact DWS06

Thanks all.

Good choice, I have these now and love them. Hoping to do the same and avoid the need for a winter setup

[kisho]

Originally Posted by niquehawk5

Good choice, I have these now and love them. Hoping to do the same and avoid the need for a winter setup

Have you ever tried the old DWS? If so how do they compare?

[niquehawk5]

Originally Posted by kisho

Have you ever tried the old DWS? If so how do they compare?

No, I didn't, Sorry. I actually picked these up at a suggestion of a friend and couldn't be happier so far.

[kisho]

Originally Posted by niquehawk5

No, I didn't, Sorry. I actually picked these up at a suggestion of a friend and couldn't be happier so far.

Ah darn. I'm curious if they truly amped up the performance in dry/wet as tirerack showed in their preliminary review.

[niquehawk5]

Originally Posted by kisho

Ah darn. I'm curious if they truly amped up the performance in dry/wet as tirerack showed in their preliminary review.

Compared to the old, I cant say.......what I do know is they are a little softer when cornering hard than some other A/S Ive had and esp RFs but that also provides some comfort as well so there's trade offs to everything. Dry traction has been great, but what Ive been more impressed with is how well it holds in wet, and more specifically when its cold (under 40) and wet. Its definitely one of the better all around A/S tires Ive had. Just hoping treadwear is bearable.

[kisho]

Originally Posted by niquehawk5

Compared to the old, I cant say.......what I do know is they are a little softer when cornering hard than some other A/S Ive had and esp RFs but that also provides some comfort as well so there's trade offs to everything. Dry traction has been great, but what Ive been more impressed with is how well it holds in wet, and more specifically when its cold (under 40) and wet. Its definitely one of the better all around A/S tires Ive had. Just hoping treadwear is bearable.

The DWS is honestly the only A/S tire I would ever buy. It's the only one that offers any sensible performance in the snow. As for treadwear, it can't be worse than the older DWS. There are reports of people going on 80k with the older model.