VW Tires

Initial Review, 56,000 Miles on Tires
November 07, 2012

I purchased these for my Honda Accord Coupe V6 after the O.E. Michelin's wore out.
I drive about 35,000 miles a year and have been very pleased with them. They didn't last as long as Michelin's but I am still able to drive to work in light snow conditions and have never hydroplaned since I put them on the car.
Michelin's I would never leave the house with as little as 1-2" of snow.
Accord has 126k miles and I am ordering a second set of the Continental Extreme DWS. (this set lasted 56K )- could probably get a little more out of them if we weren't headed in to winter.
They are a little louder than I prefer but it's an excellent tire in wet and
snow conditions.
Also 0rdering these tires for my wife's VW Passat.
Very happy with Continental DWS. Between the two cars I'll have ordered three sets in
18 months.

Initial Review, 4,000 Miles on Tires
October 22, 2012

I've got these on my VW GTi and Volvo 850. I would say that these perform as expected, except in just normal rainy situations. I have a supercharged VR6 and I know that I can't expect to accelerate hard on these, but in stopping situations it lacks some grip that I thought should be there. On both the Volvo and VW you have to be careful not to jab the brakes or the wheels will lock up and slide. So, you have to get used to how they respond on slightly wet surfaces. Other than that, the ride is great, and the traction in the snow is amazing. I live in a hilly area and I have no issues navigating to my destination, especially in deep snow.

Initial Review, 15,500 Miles on Tires
October 29, 2012

Car: Seat Leon 1,6 Reference
I know that I buy this tyre as a oversized tyre for my car. But? The first experience was: wow! What tyre! This tyre has a very good and nice grip on a dry surface, with fantastic steering response. You can feel every move of your steering. This tyre is not a tyre for more than 60% city drivers because, in that case, you should consider to buy some cheeper tyre. On the open road and on the highway, you can feel that this tyre is not some entry level tyre. On your steering wheel you have "safety feel" and you don't need to worry that you will lose your grip in some "heavy situations" on the road. A several times, I go a little bit to fast in the curve on the road, and I have a feeling that only tyre saved me from the Crash (dry conditions). I must notice, that I'm not a sport driver, and my Seat Leon have only 100HP. So, I write this rewiew only for the tyre and my experience.
In wet conditions, I didn't have any "The Situation on the road", but also I feel a plenty of safenes feeeling.
Also, I must say, that this tyre is a powerfull in brake situations. No mether how strong you will make a brake, this tyre will be under control and they will no lose the grip.
I spend three seasons with this tyre (5000 miles per season) and I can recommend this tyre for sure. Because of my personal curiosity, I will try something else, but this tyre is one of my favorite.

NOTE:I could not choose my real car (Seat Leon 16V reference, 2005), so I choose VW Golf as a similar car of mine.

Initial Review, 2,000 Miles on Tires
October 14, 2012

These tires came on my 2012 Camry SE V6 and I have to say, so far I'm pretty impressed with these tires for them being factory spec. I was a little concerned about how they would perform being low profile tires and especially after reading some of the ratings of tires that came on similar models, namely the VW Passat and the Hyundai Sonata. Yes I'm talking about the seemingly subpar Hankooks that VW and Hyundai dumped on people. I've never been a big Michelin guy, largely because of the price but I must say these are very good tires, although I do wish that they were an all season performance tire vs a touring tire, but that is something for me to take up with Toyota. I've had these tires for the 2000 miles that I have had the car and I must say, I am very impressed with the feel and lack of road noise that comes from these, since they are low profile tires. The performace is in line with what one would expect from a company like Michelin. Haven't driven in much other than dry conditions, excecpt for the occasional rainy day, so I don't know how these tires do in heavy rain or snowy/icy conditions. However, if the performance in these conditions is anything like it is in dry, I'm not too worried and I am actually looking forward to that first heavy snow, if for no other reason than just to see how these tires perform.

Initial Review, 10,000 Miles on Tires
October 04, 2012

Got this tires on a VW Golf GTI highly modified with about 550hp. This tires are use 1/3 track 1/3 highway, 1/3 city.
They are great, much better than the previous R-S2, seems to last a bit less, but the handling diference is much better. I would think that the next level for this tire would be in the semi slick side. The price is awsome for what you get.
Maybe the problem would be the handling in cold, if this tire is cold, it would not handle as good as if it would be warm.
This tire help me improve a lot my lap times at the track, and let me break later and take the curves faster.
For a tire like this I would expect worse handling in wet than it has, I was suprised when I use it on wet, but if your are going to use it with rain or wet pavment, I will recomend you search for another tire.
I will recomend it, and buy it again...

Initial Review, 50 Miles on Tires
October 06, 2012

I just got these tires for my Honda accord. I have had them in the past on a 2001 VW Jetta and loved them.
The tires are quiet, handle well and are just what I would expect from a premium tire. Thanks

Initial Review, 1,500 Miles on Tires
September 16, 2012

These tires were installed about 2 months ago and are a huge improvement over the Potenza Grid 019s they replaced. They are installed on a set of GLI Eight Rex 17" wheels. The Potenzas had just over 15k miles on them and were so loud at speed that it was difficult to have a conversation in the car. The Generals are whisper quiet at speed and have awesome wet and dry traction. They give great steering response and feel, although they are a little squidgy when you push them hard through corners. My fuel economy has improved over the old Potenzas, too (27 mpg vs 26 mpg). Did I mention how quiet and smooth they are compared to the Potenzas? So far, they are definitely a good fit for the Jetta, and should be for any MKIV VW, considering how the suspension in a MKIV can destroy a crappy tire in a matter of months.

Initial Review, 2,500 Miles on Tires
September 15, 2012

These are the Best Summer Performance tires I've owned so far. I do about 140 miles a day in my commute which consist of winding mountain road, interstate and city driving - so had a chance to explore those tires in various environment. My front drive VW GTI APR stg2+ with about 280 hp puts big demands for traction and those tires deliver. Handling and braking is excellent with good feedback and response. Be careful on the initial brake in - they are very slippery out of the box.
I was also very surprised with their quietness and bump absorption. Much better than Pirellis P-Zero Nero. The only complain about them is that milage is down by about 12% so you'll be paying more at a pump. I guess they stick too well to the road....
Updates will follow as the miles pile up....

Initial Review, 500 Miles on Tires
September 14, 2012

PROS:
Strong grip (dry AND wet)
MUCH quieter than the OEM tires

CONS:
City MPG seems less (time will tell)
235/45/18 wasn't available at the time of sale (thou is now).

REVIEW:
Being in AZ, I went with summer tires as I don't go up north in the winter and if we do, we can take the VW with all-season tires. I have been very pleased with these tires and has been a very welcome change (if for road noise only) from the OEM tires.
The grip has been impressive (dry & wet) ... the wet grip is amazing for a summer tire!
I will have more to report back as the miles add up but very happy with my purchase.

Initial Review, 5,000 Miles on Tires
September 08, 2012

If you live in a state with all 4 seasons and cannot spend the money for summer and winter tires, this is the tire for you. After my experience with these tires, I believe that summer only tires are only for the occasional track driver. These tires are the best tires I have ever owned. They perform especially well on european cars for some reason. I have a friend with a VW with the same tires and they are great on his car as well. I have a rear drive only BMW and it drives great on the snow in Chicago.

Initial Review, 5,000 Miles on Tires
July 09, 2012

VW Diesel wagen. Heavy front end because of the diesel motor weight. I am very pleased with these Continentals at one year and 5,000 miles. They track very well and are quite cruising on the freeways as well as the back paved highways in Wisconsin. I have now moved the car to Poland where most roads are back roads and not nearly as nice as in Wisconsin. However, I remain impressed with this tire. Gas mileage is what I expected with the car, perhaps a bit higher.

Initial Review, 72,000 Miles on Tires
July 02, 2012

I just purchased a second set of these tires (both sets were the V speed rated version) after accumulating 72,000 of trouble free miles on the first set. They have performed admirably all that time with the best combination of all season performance comfort and tread life I have ever seen in ANY brand tire. I did notice a loss of snow traction when the tread was down to its last third of life, but that is to be expected. They make the most of the all wheel drive in my VW Passat. I never thought a tire that delivered such great dry and wet performance would not only have such great tread life but perform so well in winter conditions. The tread has worn evenly on all 4 tires, maximimizing their usefull life. I would not hesitate to recommend these tires and didn't think twice about buying a second set. I am a Michelin fan, but these tires are the cream of the crop even by Michelin standards.

Initial Review, 4,000 Miles on Tires
August 07, 2012

These Sumitomos are my summer tires upon 1997 2.0 GTI's OE VW alloys. Also own winter Dunlop Graspic DS-3's on equivalent Jetta alloys, so no snow report. Tire Rack sourced Koni STR-T struts and H&R coils reveal Sumitomos' dry and wet traction as tremendous. No squawk or slip even in very aggressive dry cornering, and wet grip even in torrential downpours is remarkable. Too early to properly report treadwear, but so far seems as expected. My rating of nines across the board may seem dubious, but I'm an old man who's suffered crap tires on many rides I've owned, and these Sumitomos seem to me the best of today's tire technology. For cheap.

Initial Review, 300 Miles on Tires
July 18, 2012

I bought these for my diesel golf not realizing taking into account the MPG I would lose. I went from a bald factory all season tire to this brand new super grippy Max Summer Kumho. I also went from a 17x7 25lb factory wheel to an 18x8 20.5LB sparco wheel. Immediately noticed lighter steering and ALOT better braking. I don't need to do anything to upgrade my stopping power with these tires now. I'm in the desert, so this review is for all hot dry desert roads in the summer. The car turns on a dime, has amazing traction, and I love everything so far except the MPG. Only had them on 2-300 miles so far. I got the diesel VW for its great MPG, and I think these tires could be cutting my highway MPG from ~40ish to ~35-36MPG. I haven't read anything about the "rolling resistance" of these tires, but if they are so sticky that they are resisting the pavement, then of course my MPG will suffer. I just filled up last night, and I will do a whole-tank comparison and review again in a couple weeks.

Initial Review, 35,000 Miles on Tires
July 03, 2012

2003 VW GTI 1.8T
I purchased these 225/45R17 Yokohama ADVAN S.4 tires based on reviews and their look. I also liked it's made in Japan.
I noticed that they are designed for heavier cars, but decided to try them anyway.
The first ride from installer shop was really bumpy and I was frustrated. I thought I made a wrong decision.
Then I checked tire pressure and found that it was 40psi (!). I deflated them to 30psi and it was a BIG difference. Now ride was good, with race car feeling. Over time, after some wear, tires got a bit softer too.
Driving was really nice experience with excellent cornering. Tires have solid grip and no hydroplaning problem, even now, after 35k miles, when I have to replace them.
Snow traction is kind of bad, but it may be because of my really light car and wide tires.
I am replacing them at 35k miles not because of complete wear, even with my aggressive driving, I could've put 5-10k more, but I punched to rear tires and fixed them myself, using rubbery plugs and didn't want to rotate to front after that. So front tires are down to thread limit and I decided to get a new set.
New set is Continental ....
It's softer and I am missing this race car cornering stability feeling, when car stays flat even when you are turning sharp.
Next time I will by Yokohama again.

Initial Review, 100 Miles on Tires
May 13, 2012

I am not sure what bad reviews could come from using this superior tire.
First; one must ensure that they are using the vehicle recommended tire pressure, my 2011 VW Touareg Sport TDI requires 33 psi front and 38 psi rear.
Second; these tires are so smooth and quiet riding, yet firm and controlled on turns. They also improved the stopping distance over the stock Goodyear LS-2s, which I hated.
Lastly; these tires look to be well made, which I believe that you get what you pay for. They were expensive, but I refuse to purchase cheep tires for my heavy and powerful Touareg. The VW minimal tire speed rating is an H-speed rating, but I went a step better and got these tires in the V-rating with an N1 designator, made for the Porsche Cayanne, a similar family of vehicles!
Bottom Line; these tires are great. They are very quiet, handle extremely well, and look good as well.

Initial Review, 44,000 Miles on Tires
May 16, 2012

This is the third set of these tires on my VW TDI Golf and they are great tires. No problems at all. 45 to 50k per set - consistantly. I drive on curvy and hilly mountain roads of western North Carolina, and I push these tires hard, with no problems. Tires are quiet, virtually undetectable. They move a lot of water - when new, you can't even get them to lift in the deepest water, now almost to the wear bars, and they still do well in heavy rain - very safe in these tires. Snow traction is fair until about 4 to 6 inches, then you're done, no surprise. A little more cost up front, but well worth it in the end.