The German Continental AllSeasonContact 2, now comes with a pretty improved performance compared to it’s predecessor. But how would it hold up against others? Well, let’s find out!
Available Sizes
Continental AllSeasonContact 2 comes in 15 to 21 inches, with sizes having following specs.
- Speed ratings: T, H, V, W and Y.
- Load ratings: SL, and XL.
- Weight range: 20 to 45 lbs.
- Tread depth: 10/32″.
All sizes have the 3pmsf and M+S ratings. And yes, you also get ContiSeal option on some sizes too, (which are ideal for electric vehicles).
Key Takeaway
Overall, the Continental AllSeasonContact 2 is a great tire when it comes to:
- Handling, thanks to its lighter and more rigid structure.
- Wet traction and hydroplaning resistance, due to its effective siping design and V-shaped lugs that efficiently channel water away.
- Noise reduction, featuring an advanced variable pitch design.
Though the tire needs to be improved when it comes to:
- Linear grip, because the void to rubber ratio is significant.
- Impact absorption, where its stiffer rubber compound and less flexible Conti-Seal System lead to a less comfortable ride on rough surfaces.
- Performance on ice, as it lacks the necessary features like interlocking sipes and snow vices.
Construction
The Continental AllSeasonContact 2 maintains its legacy with a directional tread pattern similar to its predecessor.
To fully appreciate the intricacies of the tire’s design, let’s dissect the tread into five distinct segments.
At the heart lies a series of U-shaped blocks separated by spaces that function like in-groove notches.
Here you can also picture the U shaped sipes interconnecting with these notches.
Flanking this central band, the adjacent ribs are characterized by smaller blocks set apart by straight grooves. These grooves extend outward, meeting the dual circumferential grooves that lie at each edge.
Within this area, the blocks are intricately designed with a “plus-shaped” siping pattern.
Moving towards the tire’s outer edges, the shoulder blocks display a straightforward design too, marked again by cross-shaped sipes.
These blocks rest on a secondary layer of rubber which provides robust foundational support, enhancing the tire’s structural integrity.
Compare AllSeasonContact 2 with:
- Continental AllSeasonContact (Its predecessor).
- Pirelli Cinturato All Season SF2
Overall Dry Performance
In assessing dry performance of tires, we focus on two key aspects: Linear grip and handling (which checks the tire’s lateral grip + steering response).
Let’s take a closer look at all of them.
Linear Grip
Let’s begin by exploring the tire’s longitudinal grip.
This aspect largely depends on the tire’s central region, which bears the most concentration of weight pressure when the tire moves in a straight line.
And here, the AllSeasonContact 2 falls short.
Although it features a directional design with closely packed lugs and a rounded contact area, the tire’s central part has significant gaps. And these gaps reduce the rubber’s contact with the road surface.
As a result, the Continental’s tire here trails behind by nearly three feet in performance, compared to its direct competitor.
Handling
The Continental AllSeasonContact 2, coming with a lighter and more rigid structure, consistently delivers top-notch performance, when it comes to handling.
In fact, the tire clocks some of the fastest lap times on average (as seen on tests).
This is attributed to its strategic design features, such as reduced tread depth and minimal tread voids, which significantly enhance all the handling metrics. Let me explain how.
First off, the tire’s lighter weight, (a marked improvement over its predecessor), reduces inertia. And this reduction enhances grip and sharpens steering responsiveness.
Moreover, its firmer composition also aids in maintaining a robust road grip, further elevating steering precision.
Additionally, the shallower tread depth is also crucial as it prevents excessive bending of the lugs during all kinds of maneuvers, (like cornering or braking), leading to more direct and responsive steering control.
However, there’s an area for improvement, particularly in sizes compatible with Conti-Seal or those designed for electric vehicles.
In such variants/sizes, there have been occasional concerns about the steering dynamics. At times, the rapid steering response can cause the front to lose grip, leading the vehicle to slide forward. This can also result in the rear end becoming more prone to spinning, making it challenging to regain control of the car.
Wet Performance
Wet performance depends on how well the tires clear off the road (from water), in front of them as they roll.
And here two main things are to be noted, the tire’s hydroplaning (resistance), and wet grip/steering.
Let’s talk about hydroplaning first.
Hydroplaning Resistance
Hydroplaning occurs when water builds up between the tire and the road surface, preventing the tire from maintaining adequate traction. However, this issue is significantly mitigated in tires with a directional tread pattern.
Take, for instance, the Continental AllSeasonContact 2, which features V-shaped lugs in its design. This pattern efficiently directs water away from the center of the tire to the outer edges, facilitating pretty fast expulsion of water.
And since the tire is slightly more voided up, compared to its predecessor, it demonstrates exceptional hydroplaning resistance, achieving higher float speeds.
This advantage is evident in both straight-line and curved aquaplaning tests (performed with these tires).
Wet Traction
Now, the majority of water is effectively channeled away by the tire’s grooves, (which defines the tire’s hydroplaning resistance), but there’s still some residual moisture which must be addressed to prevent slippage.
And that’s where sipes make their mark.
These sipes act like a sponge, expelling air and creating a negative pressure that absorbs water particles, enabling the tire tread to maintain contact with a relatively drier surface.
And given that, it makes sense why the Continental AllSeasonContact 2 is good with its expertly engineered siping design.
I mean, its curved slits (running) along the length of the directional tread arms contribute to superior traction, placing it above average in its class.
However, caution is advised regarding the tire’s wet steering response.
Now this comes in extreme situations, but it’s essential to steer in a way, as to avoid overburdening the front tires during (harsher) turns or causing the rear tires to spin when exiting a turn.
In other words, there is a slight need for improvement in the tire’s overall balance between understeering and oversteering.
But overall, the AllSeasonContact 2 delivers impressive performance in wet conditions, where it only trails behind the Vredestein Quatrac Pro (which ranks on top here), with a very small difference.
And this goes particularly for wet braking, where the margin is the least.
Overall Ride Comfort
The overall smoothness of a vehicle’s ride is largely influenced by two key aspects: the tire’s ability to offer a quiet ride and its effectiveness in smoothing out road irregularities.
On-Road Noise Generation
Beginning with the aspect of noise, first off you should know that it primarily originates from air movement.
As air passes through the tire, it typically enters through gaps at the tire’s shoulder, causing vibrations against the tread blocks, which results in what is known as tread noise.
Now, directional tires, in particular, are prone to producing more noise.
This is due to their design, which often includes open spaces that allow air to strike the tread blocks with more force, creating significant noise within the tire’s grooves.
However, the Continental AllSeasonContact 2 stands out as one of the quietest “directional” tires in its grand touring all season category.
Despite its design incorporating prominent spaces within the tread, this tire features an advanced variable pitch design with a distinct block structure.
This design cleverly regulates airflow and its impact on the tread blocks.
To dive deeper, here, the subtle geometrical variations in the lugs create a combination of sound waves that can cancel each other out, effectively reducing the overall noise level.
As a result, the tire generates a much lower noise level, perceived as a gentle blend of harmonics and varied pitch tones, (evident in its lower decibel readings relatively).
For Your Info: If road quietness is what you’re after, you should really check out the Pirelli Cinturato AS SF2 (review). Its the quietest tire right now in the AS category of grand touring tires.
Impact Absorption
While the Continental AllSeasonContact 2 excels in noise reduction, it falls short in impact comfort, which is equally significant in determining the tire’s overall comfort performance.
Although the tire does provide a smooth ride, but its stiffer rubber compound hinders its ability to effectively dampen road vibrations.
This limitation affects the tire’s response to both significant impacts and smaller bumps/irregularities.
So why is it happening?
The primary reason behind this is the tire’s less flexible Conti-Seal System, which features a stiffer internal construction. And this coupled with a less pliable rubber surface, you get a ride that feels a little jittery.
And yes, another contributing factor is the tire’s shallower tread depth.
A shallower tread means, there’s less space to absorb and dissipate vibrations before they reach the vehicle’s cabin, leading to a less comfortable ride.
However, it’s important to note that this issue is not uniform across all sizes of this tire model.
I mean, the sizes specifically designed for electric vehicles tend to exhibit these comfort issues more prominently. And in contrast, other sizes, particularly those with Standard Load (SL) ratings, perform well in this regard and do not elicit the same level of concern.
Winter Performance
Now, sure the Continental’s tire here is equipped with the 3PMSF (3-Peak Mountain Snowflake) certification and M+S marking, sets up high expectations for its winter performance.
But let me tell you, it’s just average, nothing really impressive here or anything jumping off the page.
Though it does offer a good performance, where the tire particularly demonstrate amazing traction (measured with g forces).
But this only goes for snowy tracks, and not ice which needs a lot of small biters throughout the tread, which this tire is missing with.
Sure, the tire offers decent siping, but, it doesn’t come with the highly needed interlocking structure (of those sipes), and yes, it’s also missing with snow vices (found on its direct competitors).
On softer snow, however, the tire performs adequately. Its numerous in-groove notches (especially on its U shaped lugs in the middle), and directional tread pattern are effective at moving snow and slush backwards, enhancing the tire’s forward motion and acceleration capabilities.
Additionally, those notches in the tire tread facilitate snow-to-snow contact. This feature is crucial as snowflakes naturally bond to each other, significantly improving steering responsiveness.
This is particularly evident in its performance in slalom tests, where the tire’s agility is showcased as it weaves through a straight line of cones, moving swiftly from side to side.
In summary, while the AllSeasonContact 2 lacks on icy tracks (bringing its overall scores below average), it still demonstrates excellent snow traction and excels in slalom tests.
Fuel Usage & Tread Life
Fuel efficiency and tread life in tires are closely linked to factors like rolling resistance, weight, tread depth, and material composition.
And here, the Continental is just okay.
The tire’s slightly heavier construction tends to increase rolling resistance, as the weightier lugs exert more pressure towards the road (enhancing friction). However, its relatively stiffer rubber composition helps to mitigate this effect to some extent.
How? Well it prevents the lugs from excessive bending (as they are stressed out with the greater weight on their backs), so some energy is conserved and not used up in to heat, or reshaping of the lugs.
Similarly, in terms of tread life, the tire’s harder rubber compound (relatively), takes longer to wear down to the 2/32″ threshold (the legal limit in US).
And here the reinforced foundations of each lug also contribute to the tire’s durability, ensuring that the wear and tear isn’t excessively rapid.
So overall, the AllSeasonContact 2 offers average performance in terms of fuel efficiency and tread life.
However, it’s important to note that these observations may not fully apply to the sizes specifically designed for electric vehicles, which may have different performance characteristics.
For Your Info: Looking for the most fuel efficient grand touring tire? Well, I think you need to check out the Dunlop All Season (review).
To Sum Up
In conclusion, the Continental AllSeasonContact 2 is a very nice upgrade.
The tire’s dry performance, particularly in handling, is pretty great due to its lightweight, rigid structure, and strategic tread design. However, it falls short when it comes to braking.
In wet conditions, the tire excels in hydroplaning resistance and wet traction, thanks to its directional tread and efficient siping. But there a con here as well, where its steering response in wet conditions needs improvement.
In winter scenarios, it performs well on snow but is average on ice.
And while tire is pretty comfortable in terms of noise production, it’s just average in impact comfort department.
And yes, it’s fuel efficiency and tread longevity is also just average, nothing out of the ordinary, comparing others in its category, I mean.
