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Head-to-head Updated

Continental ContiSportContact 5 SUV vs Dunlop SP Sport 01 — Compared

Relative Score (0–100): the weighted average of the categories below, each 60% road tests and 40% owner reviews (comfort 40/60). Based on 1 + 0 road tests and 39 + 897 owner reviews. How we score

ContiSportContact 5 SUV is ahead, 62–56

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Continental ContiSportContact 5 SUV
Tire AContinental

ContiSportContact 5 SUV

Summer

± 6

Tests 76 · 1 test Owners 48 · 39 reviews

Best test result: #1 of 8 in 2018 All Road 265/60 R18 4x4 Tyre Test (dry braking)

Dunlop SP Sport 01
Tire BDunlop

SP Sport 01

Summer

± 8

Tests – · none yet Owners 49 · 897 reviews

Category by category

Relative Score per category, 0–100. Open “Why this score” for the tests and owner ratings behind it.

  1. 69

    Dry

    ContiSportContact 5 SUV +12
    57
    Why this score
    SourceContiSportContact 5 SUVSP Sport 01
    Professional tests (TWG score) · 1 / – tests79≈ 61 (est.)
    Reviews found online5551

    ContiSportContact 5 SUV: 60% × 78.5 + 40% × 54.9 = 69

    SP Sport 01: 60% × 61 (est.) + 40% × 51.1 = 57

    No road tests of dry for SP Sport 01. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.41).

  2. 69

    Wet

    ContiSportContact 5 SUV +14
    55
    Why this score
    SourceContiSportContact 5 SUVSP Sport 01
    Professional tests (TWG score) · 1 / – tests76≈ 59 (est.)
    Reviews found online6050

    ContiSportContact 5 SUV: 60% × 75.6 + 40% × 60.3 = 69

    SP Sport 01: 60% × 59.3 (est.) + 40% × 49.8 = 55

    No road tests of wet for SP Sport 01. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.55).

  3. –

    Snow

    No comparison
    49
    Why this score
    SourceContiSportContact 5 SUVSP Sport 01
    Professional tests (TWG score)–≈ 59 (est.)
    Reviews found online–35

    SP Sport 01: 60% × 59.1 (est.) + 40% × 34.5 = 49

    No road tests of snow for SP Sport 01. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.32).

  4. 53

    Comfort

    SP Sport 01 +1
    54
    Why this score
    SourceContiSportContact 5 SUVSP Sport 01
    Professional tests (TWG score)≈ 64 (est.)≈ 64 (est.)
    Reviews found online4547

    ContiSportContact 5 SUV: 40% × 63.9 (est.) + 60% × 45.2 = 53

    SP Sport 01: 40% × 64.2 (est.) + 60% × 46.6 = 54

    No road tests of comfort for ContiSportContact 5 SUV. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.20).

    No road tests of comfort for SP Sport 01. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.20).

  5. 69

    Noise

    ContiSportContact 5 SUV +8
    61
    Why this score
    SourceContiSportContact 5 SUVSP Sport 01
    Professional tests (TWG score) · 1 / – tests71≈ 66 (est.)
    Reviews found online≈ 66 (est.)52

    ContiSportContact 5 SUV: 60% × 70.8 + 40% × 66.4 (est.) = 69

    SP Sport 01: 60% × 66.4 (est.) + 40% × 52.4 = 61

    No owner ratings of noise for ContiSportContact 5 SUV. The owner half is the owners’ average (66): owners’ noise ratings barely follow the road tests, so the tests say nothing about how owners would rate it.

    No road tests of noise for SP Sport 01. The test half is the tested tires’ average (66): owners’ noise ratings barely follow the road tests.

  6. 43

    Treadwear

    SP Sport 01 +14
    57
    Why this score
    SourceContiSportContact 5 SUVSP Sport 01
    Professional tests (TWG score)≈ 52 (est.)≈ 61 (est.)
    Reviews found online2851

    ContiSportContact 5 SUV: 60% × 52.5 (est.) + 40% × 27.7 = 43

    SP Sport 01: 60% × 60.9 (est.) + 40% × 50.9 = 57

    No road tests of treadwear for ContiSportContact 5 SUV. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.36).

    No road tests of treadwear for SP Sport 01. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.36).

  7. 58

    Handling (owners)

    ContiSportContact 5 SUV +5
    53
    Why this score
    SourceContiSportContact 5 SUVSP Sport 01
    Reviews found online5853
  8. 73

    Efficiency

    No comparison
    –
    Why this score
    SourceContiSportContact 5 SUVSP Sport 01
    Professional tests (TWG score) · 1 / – tests73–
Scores at a glance
CategoryContinental ContiSportContact 5 SUVDunlop SP Sport 01
Relative Score 62 56
Dry 69 57
Wet 69 55
Snow – 49
Comfort 53 54
Noise 69 61
Treadwear 43 57
Handling (owners) 58 53
Efficiency 73 –

Higher is better. The Relative Score follows your weights below; category scores do not change.

Weight the categories that matter to you

Wet grip starts at “Important”. Treadwear starts at “Neutral” here: road tests measured it for at most one of the two tires, so it rests on owner reviews. Move the sliders and the scores update instantly.

Important
NotLessNeutralImportantMost
Important
NotLessNeutralImportantMost
Neutral
NotLessNeutralImportantMost

Only one of the two tires has a score here, so this weight changes nothing in the head-to-head.

Less important
NotLessNeutralImportantMost
Less important
NotLessNeutralImportantMost
Neutral
NotLessNeutralImportantMost
Less important
NotLessNeutralImportantMost
Not important
NotLessNeutralImportantMost

Only one of the two tires has a score here, so this weight changes nothing in the head-to-head.

Recomputed
Headline score
± 6

ContiSportContact 5 SUV

± 8

SP Sport 01

Only categories both tires have data for count toward the headline score.

Pros, cons & observations

Themes extracted from owner reviews found online — not the opinion of TireWheelGuide.

Tire A ContiSportContact 5 SUV

Pros

  • Impressive wet and dry grip with responsive handling
  • Exceptional braking performance in various conditions
  • Quiet operation and smooth, comfortable ride quality

Cons

  • Rapid and premature tread wear, with many users needing replacements under 15,000 miles
  • High price point relative to the mileage longevity received
  • Some complaints regarding road noise as the tires age
All owner themes in the ContiSportContact 5 SUV review

Tire B SP Sport 01

Pros

  • Precise steering response and sharp turn-in
  • Good dry grip and cornering stability
  • Comfortable and relatively quiet ride when new

Cons

  • Noticeable increase in road noise and droning as the tire wears
  • Deteriorating wet weather traction and reduced grip once tread wears below 4mm
  • Rapid or uneven tread wear reported by some heavier vehicle owners
All owner themes in the SP Sport 01 review

Specs side by side

Attribute A · Continental ContiSportContact 5 SUV B · Dunlop SP Sport 01
CategorySummerSummer
Vehicle typeSUV and 4x4Passenger Car / Crossover
UTQG—280 A A
Sidewall—Blackwall

Which one should you actually buy?

Continental ContiSportContact 5 SUV

Dunlop SP Sport 01

Winner: Continental ContiSportContact 5 SUV — better wet, dry and noise. Pick the Dunlop SP Sport 01 if treadwear matters most to you.

Pick tire A Your priority is wet-weather safety

Continental ContiSportContact 5 SUV scores 69 vs 55 on wet.

Pick tire B You want the longest tread life

Dunlop SP Sport 01 scores 57 vs 43 on treadwear.

Pick tire A You want the most grip on dry roads

Continental ContiSportContact 5 SUV scores 69 vs 57 on dry.

Pick tire A You want a quieter cabin

Continental ContiSportContact 5 SUV scores 69 vs 61 on noise.

Tire A · Continental ContiSportContact 5 SUV
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Tire B · Dunlop SP Sport 01
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ContiSportContact 5 SUV or SP Sport 01?

Which is better in the wet, ContiSportContact 5 SUV or SP Sport 01?

Continental ContiSportContact 5 SUV, 69 vs 55 on our wet score.

Which grips better on dry roads, ContiSportContact 5 SUV or SP Sport 01?

Continental ContiSportContact 5 SUV, 69 vs 57 on our dry score.

Which is quieter, ContiSportContact 5 SUV or SP Sport 01?

Continental ContiSportContact 5 SUV, 69 vs 61 on our noise score.

Which is more comfortable, ContiSportContact 5 SUV or SP Sport 01?

Neither, by our numbers: 53 vs 54 on the comfort score, within 3 points.

Which lasts longer, ContiSportContact 5 SUV or SP Sport 01?

Dunlop SP Sport 01, 57 vs 43 on our treadwear score.

How do we compare tires?

Every category score blends two independent signals. 60% comes from professional tire tests (braking distances, lap times, noise measurements), each result compared with every other tire in the same test and newer tests counting more. 40% comes from owner reviews found online, adjusted for how generously each site rates. Both use one scale: the average tested tire gets 70, the best 100. When a tire has only one of the two, the missing half is estimated from the other and the score stays closer to average; with no road test and fewer than five owner reviews it gets no score yet.

Handling is the exception: road tests measure it inside the dry and wet scores, so its own row comes from owner ratings only and starts as less important.

Community buzz from Reddit and forums is shown for context only — it never changes the score. Full methodology