Continental Tires in Pittsburgh

Where Continental fits.

Continental has been engineering tires in Hanover, Germany since 1871, and it's one of the German Big Three alongside the world's other top manufacturers — a pedigree that shows up most clearly in its role as a major original-equipment supplier for BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Audi, and Porsche. That OE relationship pushes Continental's engineers toward a specific set of priorities: low rolling resistance for fuel efficiency, precise steering response, and wet braking that doesn't fall off in the rain, all without the premium sticker price Michelin or Bridgestone commands for similar performance. TrueContact Tour 54 is the clearest expression of that philosophy. It uses Continental's EcoPlus Technology, a tread compound engineered specifically to reduce rolling resistance — the energy lost to tread deformation as the tire rolls — which translates into a small but real fuel-economy gain over a standard touring tire, alongside consistently strong scores in wet-braking comparison tests at its price point. It's a tire built for drivers who put a lot of miles on the odometer and want every one of them to cost a little less at the pump without sacrificing wet-weather safety. ExtremeContact DWS06+ — the initials stand for Dry, Wet, Snow — takes the opposite performance angle, using X-Sipe technology — deep, aggressively-angled sipes that open under braking and cornering loads — to deliver genuine ultra-high-performance grip in all three conditions the name promises. It's become a perennial favorite for sport sedan owners who want track-day cornering ability on Saturday and a safe commute through a Tuesday snow squall without swapping tires. TerrainContact A/T brings the same balanced, on-road-biased engineering to SUVs and light trucks that want some all-terrain capability without sacrificing the ride quality a family vehicle needs every day, while PureContact LS is Continental's grand-touring line and a common OE-match replacement for Lexus, Acura, and BMW models that came from the factory on Continental rubber. Continental prices itself as the value alternative to Michelin and Bridgestone — usually 10 to 15 percent below those premium brands for a comparable line, while still out-performing Goodyear or Cooper on wet braking in most independent tests. It doesn't have Bridgestone's dedicated studless winter tire or Michelin's absolute tread-life numbers, but for drivers who want European-engineered handling, strong wet-weather confidence, and better fuel economy than a standard all-season, without paying full premium-brand price, Continental is consistently the tire we point people toward — especially owners of German import sedans looking to match or beat their factory-fitted rubber.