Conti Van Contact Tyres

[Neilos]

Hi folks, I recently posted about catastrophic failure with continental van contact tyres on our beach. First mot today and it’s failed due to a cut on another one of these tyres. Has anyone else experienced issues with these tyres? I’m reluctant to put yet another new one on.

They have worn well. 20k miles and all still at excess 5mm.

Options are- scrap current tyres which are at 20k with exception of 1 which is almost brand new.

Or just change the rears to something else. Keep the best two on the front.

Preference for new tyres would be Michelin cross climates. For mud and all weather grip. And the wider 235 size. We have 215s currently and the ride is quite harsh.

I’ve yet to grasp the pros and cons for SUV/+/Agilis!

Can I put two all season tyres on rear with summers on front? Not ideal probably.

Be good to hear thoughts, cheers.


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[66tim99]

Why not put the new cross climates on the front drive wheels?

 

[Meoncoast]

failed due to a cut on another one of these tyres

You say a cut - if it is a cut maybe it was not a failure of the other tyre but damage ie a cut on the other tyre which caused the catastrophic failure you experienced on the other tyre. There is so much rubbish on the roads these days. Remember Concord was brought down following a tyre failure due to hitting metal on the runway

 

[Neilos]

Why not put the new cross climates on the front drive wheels?

Yes. Prob makes sense. I remember reading somewhere it’s best to have best tyres on rear for skidding. But that won’t get you off a wet campsite any easier! (Unless you have 4m maybe).


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[Neilos]

You say a cut - if it is a cut maybe it was not a failure of the other tyre but damage ie a cut on the other tyre which caused the catastrophic failure you experienced on the other tyre. There is so much rubbish on the roads these days. Remember Concord was brought down following a tyre failure due to hitting metal on the runway

I think that’s likely. Cut or puncture wound then led to blow out. Roads are so bad where we are in north Essex.


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[Lambeth Cali]

Hi folks, I recently posted about catastrophic failure with continental van contact tyres on our beach. First mot today and it’s failed due to a cut on another one of these tyres. Has anyone else experienced issues with these tyres? I’m reluctant to put yet another new one on.

They have worn well. 20k miles and all still at excess 5mm.

Options are- scrap current tyres which are at 20k with exception of 1 which is almost brand new.

Or just change the rears to something else. Keep the best two on the front.

Preference for new tyres would be Michelin cross climates. For mud and all weather grip. And the wider 235 size. We have 215s currently and the ride is quite harsh.

I’ve yet to grasp the pros and cons for SUV/+/Agilis!

Can I put two all season tyres on rear with summers on front? Not ideal probably.

Be good to hear thoughts, cheers.


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We’ve had ours for 4 years and I really like them. They’re just so quiet and we do a lot of motorway miles. I would get them again.

 

[flying banana]

I've got them. I think they're sh1t.Couldn't even get me up hard knott pass last week without skidding out. Tricky road to reverse on. I won't have them again when I've worn them out a bit. Wank

 

[pluc99]

We’ve had ours for 4 years and I really like them. They’re just so quiet and we do a lot of motorway miles. I would get them again.

Look at a picture of the Continental VanContact 4Season. You'll see that the side channels don't connect to the inner channels. This is typical of tires that are made to reduce road noise, but this is at a cost to grip and water dispersal.
Now look at a picture of the Michelin Agilis CrossClimate, where the centre channels connect right to the outside. It disperses water brilliantly and is less prone to aqua planing and has better grip. It will be a noisier tire than the other one.
You can't have it both ways and therefore you need to decide which quality is more important to you.
@Neilos Tires are the important bit of kit that connects you to the road. Ideally you should get a new set of 4 good tires and look somewhere else to save/recover the money. If this is really out of the question, then the better grip tires are always to be mounted on the rear. If you get stuck in mud, place a rubber car mat in front of the wheel that was spinning to extract yourself.

 

[Pollewop]

See for a recent All season tyre test for vans > https://www.tyrereviews.com/Article/2020-Commercial-Van-All-Season-Tyre-Test.htm
Ergo: First > Continental, Second > Goodyear, Third > Michelin… etc.
Tyre preferences are like “wine tasting”: Some like this, others like that…
I tend to read tests and reviews carefully, and make up my mind…

 

[Neilos]

Hi all again. Update to this. The MOT at VW raised that the 3 year old continental tyres were cracking.

So I have one newly replaced one in good condition.

Then 2 remaining at 5mm and 4mm both with signs of cracking.

One failed with cut currently in the boot!

There are fine cracks all the way around the circumference of the tyres within the grooves on the affected tyres. All very odd. If I compare to the much older Michelin primacys on my golf the conti tyres certainly look older.

Having had two tyre failures in the last two months I’m now tempted change the lot. Does anyone have experience of the Goodyear vector 4 seasons? They do an suv version it seems. They’re a bit cheaper than the Michelin cross climates. Also. Struggling to find the cross climate SUV version anywhere. Which I think is the preferred version from reading on here (for wet campsites). Thanks all. Your help and advice is always welcome.


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[Vagophile]

Given all of this discussion, I asked my MoT tester to have a good look at my Cali Continental Van Contact tyres during its test last Friday. The two rear are dated 4815 and the two front 1516.
His verdict? All is well, no splits, cracks, cuts anywhere and no reason to consider changing. As they are ageing, I will be keeping an eye on them, but I'm quite happy with them, although I have not done any serious winter driving.

 

[Lambeth Cali]

A van weighs a lot more than a Golf. I’ve had cracking in the van tyres which was raised at MOT but my van sits still for weeks at a time which is far from ideal. My car is used several times a week.
It’s was Continental that I switched to. Looks good so far after 4 years.

 

[Cameron]

I had no problems with the Conti Vectors other than they wouldn’t wear out ! I switched all four to Michelin Cross Climates primarily to change from 215 up to 235 for better ride quality as they run at considerably lower pressure. Ride quality definitely better on the appalling roads around here. Tyre noise is not offensive they swish a bit on certain surfaces. If I’m being picky they don’t turn in quite so sharply as the 215 Conti …. But it’s not a GTI ! Can’t comment on winter or mud performance yet as not encountered. Purchased via Blackcircles