DWS06 fail
 

I really like my Continental DWS06 tires and have had them on other SUVs before with no issues. However either in this size or on my Q7 or my new horrible bad luck I've gotta say I've never ever had so many flats as with this set of DWS06. I bought 4 new tires last spring and have now had two side wall punctures (requiring new tires) and one tread puncture (fixable). It's really horrible. The last time I had to use the spare the shop got the tire rim bead off the groove when they deflated it. So today when I had my second side wall puncture I had to call roadside assist to get a compressor big enough to push the bead back onto the rim so it could inflate. It was super frustrating. Has anyone else had issues with their DWS06's? Maybe these just have really thin or unprotected sidewalls in the 21" size. Rant over. Very frustrated.

Winner Winner Chicken Dinner, same for the 20in size too.. thats why I sold mine off to some sucker before they suffered the same fate.. You got a 2.5 ton vehicle with 35 profile sidewall, practically a performance car tire on a truck, its not going to handle potholes/winter very well if at all.. I would blame it more on your regional roads than the brand of tire.

Did you loose all these tires over the winter months? might be worth considering a smaller winter tire with more sidewall..

+1. I dunno, but the DWS06 looks like a car tire to me. I guess I'd seek out something that's designed more for an SUV assuming you can find something in the right size....or go to a smaller wheel, as suggested. Compare the construction of SUV tires against what you have. I'm sure our Tire Rack rep can guide you in an appropriate direction in finding something with more durability.

FWIW, Nokian and Toyo are both offering "all weather" tires, not all season. They've gotten pretty good reviews.

Tire pressure, too low or too high, can also be a factor.

counter point
 

I am on my second set of DWS's and have only had one issue which was my fault (and the Oregon Highway dept's) I saw a chuck hole too late and although I dodged it with my front wheel the RR wheel hit it JUST right and bent the inner bead on the wheel. I contacted tire rack as the local tire store thought the tire had suffered fatal damage, and tire rack REPLACED the tire free of charge! I will only buy tires from a typical tire outlet if no other option exists. I ordered my last set from tire rack on Sunday and they were on my doorstep Monday morning (I still do not know how they pulled that one off) I am running the stock size recommended for my car (275 X 45 X 20) They do tend to wear faster but who cares when the performance is as good in all conditions as these tires deliver.

The first sidewall puncture was at the beginning of October. The second puncture was this Sunday. Neither had to do with winter as I'm in the SF Bay Area and have not hit the mountains this winter. The first one was a screw in the sidewall. Yesterday's looked like a knife puncture! Just a slit in the sidewall, complete with audible air escaping. Sonsio (which manages Tire Rack's road haz warranty) has been easy to deal with though for the most part, which at $300 a tire is a good thing. In Feb last year I had a destroyed DWS06 also on my winter wheels due to potholes which were directly related to winter up in South Lake Tahoe. That failure I understood. I think all my previous tire good luck just ran out.

I'm lucky enough to have a tirerack warehouse about 20mins away, I can pickup Tires the same day as ordering em and dont have to pay any shipping fees :D

When I was getting my truck tires installed I put the DWS that was on the rim next to the BFG's both unmounted and the sidewall difference was night/day.. with a light love poke I could deform the car tire sidewall easy, whereas the truck sidewall I could put all my weight on a knuckle and any deflection was hardly noticeable.. the DWS felt like it was 1/4 or even 1/8" thick, whereas the BFG was more than 3/4 of an inch.. judging by all the scuff marks on the sidewalls I'd of replaced a handfull of tires this last winter too had I kept the OEM 20's.. We have some really poor road conditions tho, Gas tax hasent changed since the 90's and all new work is being paid for with toll lanes.. I've damaged show only rims on the short 20min cruise to a carshow and then just gave up on having nice sporty wheels.

at 21in you have really no options, all will be thin walled passenger vehicle tires.. and cost/wear are not great either, sadly it seems at least half of SUV's with large wheels I see on the road are running practically bald because the owners trying to get every last mile out of those designer shoes... my advice is drive more defensively, and if you still keep eating tires faster than you'd like then admit defeat to the budget of your local DOT and downsize the wheel and upsize the tire.

luck really has a lot to do with it...
I had 2 range rovers and with my first one (a classic) i took it on the most rugged places I could and never had a single flat in 6 years and 2 sets of tires. Then I was driving down the road in town, hit a small spring JUST RIGHT and it went through a sidewall. Than was 30 or so years ago and it was the last flat I had in any car until the aforementioned chuckhole!

I have had nothing but good luck with my DWS06 tires, much better luck than with the Pirelli tires.