! have you talked to the dealer yet?
Jun 24, 2015, 07:13 PM
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Continental ContiProContact Tires SUCK!!
Thread Starter
Super Member
Joined: Mar 2006
Posts: 771
Likes: 7
From: Waikele, Oahu, Hawaii
2011 GLK350 P1, Multi-media & AMG Pkg; 2010 E350 w/ prem 2; 2018 4Runner SR5 Prem. 4x4
Continental ContiProContact Tires SUCK!!
Anyone else got this problem...both front tires...18" on my AMG wheels....inner and outer tread bands are breaking off small pieces of rubber? Then middle of the tire tread is perfectly fine. I had a 4 wheel alignment done at my MB dealer in October. My PSI is at 30 front...and 35 rear....MB recommended psi. I travel on normal paved roads...to and from work....freeway as well.
I personally have never seen anything like this before, regardless of the type of road conditions.
I've run Goodyear, Firestone, Bridgestone, Michelins, Dunlops, Generals, Federals, Continentals...and again, never seen pieces of the tire breaking off.
Anyone else having this issue with their 18" ContiProContacts?
I personally have never seen anything like this before, regardless of the type of road conditions.
I've run Goodyear, Firestone, Bridgestone, Michelins, Dunlops, Generals, Federals, Continentals...and again, never seen pieces of the tire breaking off.
Anyone else having this issue with their 18" ContiProContacts?
Last edited by PHML; Jan 13, 2012 at 04:41 AM.
MBWorld Fanatic!
Joined: Jan 2011
Posts: 1,747
Likes: 20
From: Central Pennsylvania
2012 S350 Bluetec 4Matic, Diamond White, P2
That looks like the type of damage that comes from underinflation heat build up. You can see from the photo that this did not occur all at once but over a period of time. You can see evidence of underinflation on the side of the tire. It is important to check your tires often and regularly. I would go to a Continental Tire dealer and get their take. They will likely assist you. There is something unique to your tires because I have owned cars with that tire and my only complaint with them was excessive noise as they wore down. It will be interesting to see what a tire dealer says. The damage done does not seem to be the tires fault but a maintenance issue.
MBWorld Fanatic!
Joined: Jun 2009
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1953 300 Adenauer, 1971 300 SEL 6.3, 1975 600, 1978 450 6.9
it also looks like you have been rubbing somewhere and your alignment may be suspect. Is the car lowered?
This isn't a 'Continental' problem and you need to take close look at your other tires.
Take ImInPa's advice and seek out a tire dealer rather than the Mercedes dealer and please report back.
This isn't a 'Continental' problem and you need to take close look at your other tires.
Take ImInPa's advice and seek out a tire dealer rather than the Mercedes dealer and please report back.
Member
Joined: Oct 2010
Posts: 101
Likes: 1
From: Minnesota
S212 2011 Wagon and Wife's 2014 C350 sedan.
When I ordered my car, I requested Michelin tires. US ordered cars cannot spec the manufacturer of the tires. In ROW (rest of world) when ordering you can spec. the tires.
When my car arrived it had Continental Pro Contacts on it. I drove directly from the dealer to Direct Tire and had them put on Michelin Pilot All Season Plus tires. Came with 45,000 mile warranty, free balance, rotation.
I now have 21,000 miles on them and they are still fantastic.
I expect to get over 50,000 miles before i will need to replace them.
It is sad Mercedes puts such poor quality tires on such a great car.
Cheers
When my car arrived it had Continental Pro Contacts on it. I drove directly from the dealer to Direct Tire and had them put on Michelin Pilot All Season Plus tires. Came with 45,000 mile warranty, free balance, rotation.
I now have 21,000 miles on them and they are still fantastic.
I expect to get over 50,000 miles before i will need to replace them.
It is sad Mercedes puts such poor quality tires on such a great car.
Cheers
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MBWorld Fanatic!
Joined: Jun 2009
Posts: 1,800
Likes: 14
1953 300 Adenauer, 1971 300 SEL 6.3, 1975 600, 1978 450 6.9
When I ordered my car, I requested Michelin tires. US ordered cars cannot spec the manufacturer of the tires. In ROW (rest of world) when ordering you can spec. the tires.
When my car arrived it had Continental Pro Contacts on it. I drove directly from the dealer to Direct Tire and had them put on Michelin Pilot All Season Plus tires. Came with 45,000 mile warranty, free balance, rotation.
I now have 21,000 miles on them and they are still fantastic.
I expect to get over 50,000 miles before i will need to replace them.
It is sad Mercedes puts such poor quality tires on such a great car.
Cheers
When my car arrived it had Continental Pro Contacts on it. I drove directly from the dealer to Direct Tire and had them put on Michelin Pilot All Season Plus tires. Came with 45,000 mile warranty, free balance, rotation.
I now have 21,000 miles on them and they are still fantastic.
I expect to get over 50,000 miles before i will need to replace them.
It is sad Mercedes puts such poor quality tires on such a great car.
Cheers
Continental tires frequently get very high marks in tests like here and here.
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Thread Starter
Super Member
Joined: Mar 2006
Posts: 771
Likes: 7
From: Waikele, Oahu, Hawaii
2011 GLK350 P1, Multi-media & AMG Pkg; 2010 E350 w/ prem 2; 2018 4Runner SR5 Prem. 4x4
That looks like the type of damage that comes from underinflation heat build up. You can see from the photo that this did not occur all at once but over a period of time. You can see evidence of underinflation on the side of the tire. It is important to check your tires often and regularly. I would go to a Continental Tire dealer and get their take. They will likely assist you. There is something unique to your tires because I have owned cars with that tire and my only complaint with them was excessive noise as they wore down. It will be interesting to see what a tire dealer says. The damage done does not seem to be the tires fault but a maintenance issue.
Also, at least for my e350, the recommended psi under NORMAL is 30psi front...and 35psi rear. Its printed on the backside of the fuel lid. Maybe 30psi is too low for the front?
Thanks for the tip...I'll look into that.
it also looks like you have been rubbing somewhere and your alignment may be suspect. Is the car lowered?
This isn't a 'Continental' problem and you need to take close look at your other tires.
Take ImInPa's advice and seek out a tire dealer rather than the Mercedes dealer and please report back.
This isn't a 'Continental' problem and you need to take close look at your other tires.
Take ImInPa's advice and seek out a tire dealer rather than the Mercedes dealer and please report back.
Yes...but that is the recommended front psi under NORMAL conditions. What psi are your fronts?
When I ordered my car, I requested Michelin tires. US ordered cars cannot spec the manufacturer of the tires. In ROW (rest of world) when ordering you can spec. the tires.
When my car arrived it had Continental Pro Contacts on it. I drove directly from the dealer to Direct Tire and had them put on Michelin Pilot All Season Plus tires. Came with 45,000 mile warranty, free balance, rotation.
I now have 21,000 miles on them and they are still fantastic.
I expect to get over 50,000 miles before i will need to replace them.
It is sad Mercedes puts such poor quality tires on such a great car.
Cheers
When my car arrived it had Continental Pro Contacts on it. I drove directly from the dealer to Direct Tire and had them put on Michelin Pilot All Season Plus tires. Came with 45,000 mile warranty, free balance, rotation.
I now have 21,000 miles on them and they are still fantastic.
I expect to get over 50,000 miles before i will need to replace them.
It is sad Mercedes puts such poor quality tires on such a great car.
Cheers
Seems odd...maybe I got a bad batch? I only got 11K on the odometer.
MBWorld Fanatic!
Joined: Jun 2009
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1953 300 Adenauer, 1971 300 SEL 6.3, 1975 600, 1978 450 6.9
Very odd. If it were a bad batch then you'd have issues with all 4 tires (I assume they all have the same build date)
This really looks like an underinflation/alignment issue that caused these issues. Just go to a tire dealer dealer and have them evaluate it.
This really looks like an underinflation/alignment issue that caused these issues. Just go to a tire dealer dealer and have them evaluate it.
Thread Starter
Super Member
Joined: Mar 2006
Posts: 771
Likes: 7
From: Waikele, Oahu, Hawaii
2011 GLK350 P1, Multi-media & AMG Pkg; 2010 E350 w/ prem 2; 2018 4Runner SR5 Prem. 4x4
Can you take a pic of backside your fuel lid and post it up? Thanks.
Thread Starter
Super Member
Joined: Mar 2006
Posts: 771
Likes: 7
From: Waikele, Oahu, Hawaii
2011 GLK350 P1, Multi-media & AMG Pkg; 2010 E350 w/ prem 2; 2018 4Runner SR5 Prem. 4x4
Even so, why just the front tires are peeling rubber?
Senior Member
Joined: Feb 2009
Posts: 280
Likes: 8
From: Sarasota FL
2020 E450 Wagon
Front tires wear differently than rears, that's why tire rotations are recommended when possible. In this case it looks to me like excessive toe-in or really aggressive driving. Mercedes delivers C63's with so much rear toe-in that the rears are lucky to go 6K miles. I recommend that you have the alignment checked and documented with a printout. Compare it to the recommended spec's. with particular attention to toe-in. You may be able to dial back some toe without hurting straight line stability.
MBWorld Fanatic!
Joined: Jun 2009
Posts: 1,800
Likes: 14
1953 300 Adenauer, 1971 300 SEL 6.3, 1975 600, 1978 450 6.9
Member
Joined: Nov 2011
Posts: 104
Likes: 2
From: Florida
2019 CLS450 4 Matic 2011 E550
That depends on how bad the camber is on these cars. If the wear is heavy on the inside tread then it's worth the $100 bucks to rotate compared to the cost of replacing the tires IMO.
MBWorld Fanatic!
Joined: Jun 2009
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1953 300 Adenauer, 1971 300 SEL 6.3, 1975 600, 1978 450 6.9
If they are asymetric tires then the inside will stay the inside. The other risk you run is damaging the wheel when removing/reinstalling the tire.
MBWorld Fanatic!
Joined: Nov 2007
Posts: 2,078
Likes: 4
From: NYC
2012 C300 4Matic
ContiProContact tires are some of the worst you can possibly put on a car. There was a thread similar to this one on the C class forum where someone posted a link to reviews - many people have been injured in accidents thanks to these wonderful tires. They are known to bubble and blow out due to pot holes quite often. We had this happen to all 4 of them on our E. All 4. Never had a bubble on any tire on any other car where we live.
MBWorld Fanatic!
Joined: Jun 2009
Posts: 1,800
Likes: 14
1953 300 Adenauer, 1971 300 SEL 6.3, 1975 600, 1978 450 6.9
ContiProContact tires are some of the worst you can possibly put on a car. There was a thread similar to this one on the C class forum where someone posted a link to reviews - many people have been injured in accidents thanks to these wonderful tires. They are known to bubble and blow out due to pot holes quite often. We had this happen to all 4 of them on our E. All 4. Never had a bubble on any tire on any other car where we live.
The Ford explorer came predominantly with Firestone tires. Because most owners had Firestone tires, they were blamed even though subsequent tests showed that the tire brand was irrelevant.
The BMW 5 series with the sport package comes with Goodyear LS tires. Those owners will tell you that the Goodyears are the worst tires ever because they bubble.
The 2008 R32 was fitted primarily with Dunlop tires. Because of bubbling issues, those owners will tell you that Dunlop tires are the worst tires ever.
My 2003 Audi RS6 came with Michelin and Dunlop tires. Because they bubbled, those owners will tell you that Michelin and Dunlop tires are the worst ever.
In all these cases, the problem is the low profile tires and crappy roads in the US. Other tires will have the same problem but since one tire brand usually prevalent, that brand takes all the blame.
Member
Joined: Nov 2011
Posts: 104
Likes: 2
From: Florida
2019 CLS450 4 Matic 2011 E550
They are not asymmetrical they are directional. Yes we know about possible rim damage. You sound like you have incompetent tire stores or dealers where you are. I have been rotating tires like this for years with no issues or damage to my rims.
Senior Member
Joined: Mar 2010
Posts: 290
Likes: 48
From: Florida
2013 ML350, 2019 S560
I would increase pressure to 34 and see if this is resolved. I use 34 on my fronts and they wear well (30K miles on Goodyear F1 summer tires).
MBWorld Fanatic!
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1953 300 Adenauer, 1971 300 SEL 6.3, 1975 600, 1978 450 6.9
None of these are critiques of the people asking the questions. None of us automatically know these things and it is the role of these forums to educate.
Rim damage is rampant in all areas of the country. Many stores still use older equipment designed for higher profile tires that have metal bits intended to touch the wheel when breaking the bead. Accordingly, one has to choose a tire shop wisely or risk wheel damage. In addition, the low profile tire itself can be damaged during the unmount/mount process. All things to consider when determining if you want to dismount a tire to rotate it. I wdon't think that the costs and risks outweigh the marginal advantage.
If I have uneven tire wear, I'd want to address it with an alignment rather than hiding the problem with a rotation.
