rjlem

Hello all,

My 2023 Q5 came with 255/45 R20 Continental Crosscontact LX Sport tires.

Reviews on Tire Rack are not great, the tires do not seem very crisp to me, what are experiences of others driving these tires?

Not sure if expecting sharp handling out of the Q5 is reasonable or are the OEM tires compromising the handling.

Will most likely swap them out before winter hits Wisconsin, pondering what tire to get.

Option 1 is a three-peak mountain snowflake rated all season like the Michelin CrossClimate2 or the Vredestein Quatrac Pro.

Option 2 is a performance all season like the Michelin Pilot Sport All Season 4 or the Continental ExtremeContact DWS 06, and avoid driving in serious snow.

Option 3 is getting a full-on snow tire and swap over in spring and fall.

Any shared experiences will be appreciated.

SMac770

You're in WI. I assume there's a well defined season of the year for you to have real winter tires. Unlike here in GA. At least something more such that running a UHP all-season year round is probably not the best, unless you have other vehicles for the bad days. Nobody seems to have anything bad to say about the CC2, even in reasonable snow. If you want a year round tire rather than the extra cost of summer & winter wheel/tire sets, I'd think you'd start with that (I never heard of of the other tire, so no idea).

rdA4WtQ5

Option 3 wheels and tires not just tires.
Another benefit of dedicated Winter wheels and tires is that your now only Summer wheels stay pristine with no salt damage.
If your roads get as bad as they do here you are here with potholes you are way better off with 17 or 18 inch wheels for the ride and much less likelihood of damaging your 20” wheels.
A given your car will at least 100% better in snow and ice with a dedicated well rated snow tire.

rjlem

We do get winter here and we have my wife's Kia Sorento with three-peak mountain snowflake rated all season tire that work well in moderate snow.

Both of us are retired so we don't really have to go anywhere if the weather is real bad, if the snow is bad enough, our daughter can drop the granddaughters off here rather than my wife driving them to school.

I have had dedicated winter wheel and tire package4s before for the VWs we owned, but I have a habit of swapping out cars every few years, ending up with a wheel & tire package I don't need and can't find a buyer for is a pain.

Still looking for feedback if the 255/45 R20 Continental Crosscontact LX Sport tires are holding back the handling on my Q5.

My VW Tiguan came with Pirelli Scorpion Verde A/S tires and didn't handle to bad.

I am hopeful that it's the OEM tires that make the Q5 feel a bit numb.

Bernie_schau

I live in winter, so two sets of tires is not an option. My 2018 SQ5 came with 20” wheels I use for summer and I have separate 19” rims that have Michelin X-ice on them for winter.

My summer tires are wearing so I’m also curious what tires people are running? I’ve always used Michelin, but I like the way the Continentals look.

RCPrato

My 18 SQ5 had the same Continental tires as OP, for me I had no complaints but also have a dedicated set of 18" rims and snow tires for winter months here.

Over the winter I replaced the original tires and went with the Michelin OEM equipped tire, expensive but I only use 9 months a year.

If you have another vehicle with the All-Weather rating why replace brand new tires for better winter traction? Or, is it you don't like the Continentals?

My 2 cents is the handling is not great on the Q5/SQ5 with standard coil spring suspension, ride height is really high and a lot of initial body roll when turning. Tires are not going to fix that.

fibrizo

I swapped my Kumho Crugen premiums right away for the CC2. I can say I am happy with that choice and the handling is minorly improved. But make no mistake, I have never felt the SQ5 or Q5 to handle nimbly or sharply. I noticed this when I went from the SQ5 -> Macan. Handling was night and day. Now that I'm back to a Q5e, I've just given up on handling and performance being exhilarating lol because even though the Q5e is faster than the 2.0 Macan I had, nothing about the Q5e makes me want to drive it hard.

rjlem

RCPrato - thanks for the input on the OEM Continentals and overall handling of the Q5.

I was spoiled by my Golf R.

I will likely run the OEM Contis until they need replacing.
I had good luck with the Pirelli Scorpion Verde on my Tiguan (they are not too bad in snow), plus its an "AO" tire.
I hate ending up with snows on Factory alloys when I get rid of a car, too much extra money down the drain.
A set of snows on factory VW wheels is is about $1500.
From what I've seen, same for my Q5 would be almost 1.5x that.

2DaLab

Welp, I was considering a Q5 or Q5e as my next car when I’m done with my A5. Guess I’ll scratch it off the list.

Sandroad

Test drive one yourself, don't rely on the subjective opinion of others. Handling and driving dynamics are very personal; one person's pocket rocket is another person's doorstop.