Continental Tires

Donald of Orland Park , IL August 13, 2009

Last year I bought a Pontiac GT (new) Coupe. The car is fine, the tires are something else! They are Continental Tires ContiTouringContact they are the worst tires I ever owned. The traction is extremely poor. In snow, rain, cold weather and even warm dry conditions you can spin the tires without even trying. Its a shame I have to buy new tires for a new car to keep myself safe. I never owned Continental Tires before and will never own them in the future

Barbara of Renovo, PA August 10, 2009

My husband & I bought a new 2007 Escape with Contintal tires. We have 21, 000 miles on the tires and live in a rural area and don't drive long distances or in a reckless manner. We have the tires rotated every 3,000 miles when it's serviced.

We noticed a a thumping noise over the past year and my husband had the tires checked each time we took it for servicing. Nothing was found, but he became so annoyed with the noise, he made an appointment last week and they said 3 of the tires were cupping, but didn't mention this to him when he had the vehicle serviced in June. He asked about replacements, but was told they are not guaranteed as they were original to the vehicle. They recommended replacing the tires which would have cost between 429 and 579 to replace the 3 tires with brands other than Continetal tires. The other recommendation was to have the a 4 wheel alignment, which was done today. The service dept said there was no guarantee that this would correct the problem but should help with the noise.

We plan on keeping the car for another year, but the next car will have different brand tires or no deal. We learned a hard lesson and will NEVER get a car with Continental tires. My husband was told that if he had purchased the tires new, they would be guaranteed. Now does that make any sense all all? With all the talk about safety, you would thing tire problems would be right up there near the top of the list. Obviously not!

Jeffrey of Pocomoke City, MD August 6, 2009

Bought new Honda CRV November 2008. Have maintained air pressue as required, rotated tires at 10,000 miles, drive very easy in rural setting. I am the only driver of this vehicle. At 14,331, the tires are worn down to treadwear indicator. This is the second bad episode with Continental tires. Bought new Mazda Tribute, 2005, within 18 months the tires were so loud you could not hear the radio at moderate volume or the passenger conversation. I WILL NEVER OWN ANOTHER SET OF CONTINENTAL TIRES!! If they are OEM on new vehicle I will insist that they be removed before the deal is finalized. I do not understand why quality auto manufacturers install this inferior product on what otherwise is an exceptional vehicle. I have heard the saying, "NOT WORTH A CONTINENTAL", which was derived from worthless colonial currency. The company was named appropriately.

Frank of Huntsville, TX August 5, 2009

Bought a new Pontiac G5 for my daughter to use at college. I was driving the car when the tread separated. The tires only have about 24,000 miles. I have been driving for more than 40 years and have never had a tire do this.

virgil of queen creek, AZ July 31, 2009

i bought a truck with continetal tires. the truck had 2,500 miles on it and the tires looked like they already had 25,000 miles on them. 2 of the 4 tires blew the treads out long before their life should have been up. they are garbage!!! thank goodnes my wife and children didn't have an accident!

michael of franklin lakes, NJ July 19, 2009

tires are terrible.my wife continuously has flats ,bent rims and is always replacing tires.mercedes says this is normal for this car

Larry of The Villages, FL July 16, 2009

Wolfgang is not the only one complaining about Continental tires. My daughter bought a new Chevy TrailBlazer in 2006 equiped with Continentals. So far 3 of the 4 have had blowouts of their sidewalls. Luckily they have not had an accident. Has anyone else had this problem?

Wolfgang of Margate, FL July 16, 2009

Bought a 2006 Mercury Montego in early 2007 from the local Lincoln/Mercury dealer.Car had 7500 mi.on it with 4 Continental tires.After about 2mo. in our possession the car developed humming noises at the right rear side.Sounded like the wheel bearing was going.Noise really got worse when hitting any speed above 45 mi./hr.Put up with noise for about another month until it got to be unbearable.Took the car in to the local Lincoln/Mercury dealer.Explained the problem to the Service Rep.who looked at me a little skeptical and stated that wheel bearing don't wear that fast on a new car.Inspected the tires and after rubbing her hand across the left rear tire came up with a hand-full of little rubber pellets from the tire.Defective Continental tire! Dry Rot!After going around with her with a few good arguments (I thought)such as why does Ford put on substandard tires on a brand-new Mercury product dealer relented after explaining that tires on a new car are not under warranty and said 2 new tires have to go on the car.

I have to pay for one tire and dealer will pay for one tire.Also I have to pay for a wheel alignment.I felt the alignment was unnecessary but I was behind the proverbial 8-ball-- no alignment, no tires -good bye.Drove the car out with 2 new Continental tires on the car.Cost to me: 1 wheel alignment and 1 new Continental tire.

Now the wheel bearing noise is not too bad and the car is driven for another 5000 to 6000 miles but humming noise is gradually coming back.Again back to the Lincoln/Mercury dealer.This time I by-pass the Service Rep. and go directly to the Service manager who who humours me and test-drives the Montego.

Yep, the noise comes from the tires.. his opinion.Thank you very much..Back to square One.Crabby Continental tires ..wheelbearing noise.. humming and whining is now with us(me and my wife)permanently.That is one dealer who will not see me again in his showroom for another car. We put up with the noisy tires for another 8-9month.It gets to be embarrassing when we have friends riding with us.Finally the corker came last week when we went to my granddaughter's soccer tournament in Naples, Fla.We drove on Alligator Alley from Ft.Lauderdale to Naples.(about 110 miles)and the humming,singing noise of the tires got so bad(you could hardly hear yourself talking to each other in the Montego) that we were mentally exhausted on the return trip.

We ran to a local reputable tire dealer and explained the noise problem to him. Ah,yes... it is your tires.. Continentals maybe? He put the car on a State-of-the-art wheel alignment machine(Electronic wheel alignment with computer screens) and I saw how much the wheels were out of alignment.The right rear tire was so much out of round it was useless to keep it on the car.Original lousy wheel alignment by the Lincoln/Mercury service Dept..

We bit the bullet and had 4 new Yokohama tires installed, balanced and aligned and sh.t- canned the 4 Continental tires. Now, there is peace and quiet in the Montego.. quiet as the proverbial church mouse.

In conclusion, I will never ever buy another car with Continental tires on it.If a dealer has them on the car he either puts on different set of tires or it is good-bye in the show-room. For those individuals who read this and have Continental tires on their car or truck, run ..don,t walk to your tire dealer,bite the bullet and replace those Continentals as fast as you possibly can.I will not deal nor talk to Continental tires.

Victoria of Penfield, NY July 10, 2009

Regarding my previous post about the Continental 4x4 Contact tires which were the original tires on my 2007 Honda CRV and are currently worn out and dangerous at 33,000 miles and 31 months into the lease. I spoke with the dealership again. They say they did not offer a warrantee on these tires.

My question is, why are car manufacturers putting substandard tires on their new cars? And how is it these cars score well for safety? Isn't the WHOLE, car considered? The organizations who test these cars, do they only test new cars? Do they not consider that safety and longevity of the vehicle and its parts are important to the consumer for the long run and not just in the first few months of ownership? Do I, as an informed consumer, have to research not only the new car but all the various components of the car and the other manufacturers? I am not sure who to be more angry with; the car manufacturers who apparently cut corners or the tire manufacturers who know they make a sub-standard product and sell them "in bulk" to car manufacturers. The dealerships are not really to blame. However, now they are trying to sell me replacements tires which ARE warranted for 65,000 miles.

I am leasing this vehicle for 42 months, so the tires will outlast my ownership. I don't know why I find this so insulting but I do. I purchase a vehicle in good faith, truly believing I have done my homework and researched the kind of car I need etc. I am responsible and make my monthly payment, obey the various laws of the road but I have on tires which may "bubble", rapidly wear out, or burst at any time despite my diligence. This is the last time I will buy a vehicle with the factory tires on it. I will also base my purchase on the type of tires on the vehicle and the dealerships' willingness to modify the tires without extra cost. I urge others to do the same. As a consumer, I always feel like I am "behind the eight-ball" and that I am being scammed. Every time something like this happens, I realize how realistic my paranoia is. As a consumer please tell me what I can do to assure the products I purchase in good faith, are sold and made with a commitment to quality.

Victor of Fontana, CA July 10, 2009

Purchased a new 2005 Volkswagen Jetta with Continental ContiProContact size 225 45R17 tires in August 2006. In late 2007, we noticed cracks in the tires around the area where the tread meets the sidewalls. Took back to the dealer who referred us to a tire dealer who replaced with 2 Continental tires of the same brand and size at a prorated rate. The 2 replaced tires were the only ones showing cracks. Early in 2009, we noticed the same type of cracking on the 2 other Continental tires. Since they were worn, I replaced them with Yokahama tires of the same size.

Last night, my daughter had a blowout on one of the 2 remaining Continental tires. Very scary for this father and more so for my daughter. Coincidence? Maybe. I strongly feel that these tires warrant an investigation. Is this the same company that had the big issues with the SUV tires for the Ford Explorer?

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