Tests – · none yet Owners 60 · 14 reviews
Head-to-head
Updated
Continental Cross Contact A/T vs Sumitomo Encounter AT — Compared
Relative Score (0–100): the weighted average of the categories below, each 60% road tests and 40% owner reviews. Based on 0 + 0 road tests and 14 + 26 owner reviews. How we score
Encounter AT is ahead, 71–62
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Tests – · none yet Owners 71 · 26 reviews
Category by category
Relative Score per category, 0–100. Open “Why this score” for the tests and owner ratings behind it.
-
64
Dry
Encounter AT +973Why this score
Source Cross Contact A/T Encounter AT Professional tests (TWG score) ≈ 66 (est.) ≈ 71 (est.) Reviews found online 62 75 Cross Contact A/T: 60% × 65.5 (est.) + 40% × 62.2 = 64
Encounter AT: 60% × 70.7 (est.) + 40% × 75.2 = 73
No road tests of dry for Cross Contact A/T. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.40).
No road tests of dry for Encounter AT. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.40).
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64
Wet
Encounter AT +1175Why this score
Source Cross Contact A/T Encounter AT Professional tests (TWG score) ≈ 66 (est.) ≈ 74 (est.) Reviews found online 63 77 Cross Contact A/T: 60% × 65.7 (est.) + 40% × 62.5 = 64
Encounter AT: 60% × 73.6 (est.) + 40% × 76.5 = 75
No road tests of wet for Cross Contact A/T. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.56).
No road tests of wet for Encounter AT. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.56).
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53
Snow
Encounter AT +1669Why this score
Source Cross Contact A/T Encounter AT Professional tests (TWG score) ≈ 60 (est.) ≈ 69 (est.) Reviews found online 41 68 Cross Contact A/T: 60% × 60.4 (est.) + 40% × 41.3 = 53
Encounter AT: 60% × 69.2 (est.) + 40% × 67.8 = 69
No road tests of snow for Cross Contact A/T. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.33).
No road tests of snow for Encounter AT. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.33).
-
65
Comfort
Encounter AT +469Why this score
Source Cross Contact A/T Encounter AT Professional tests (TWG score) ≈ 68 (est.) ≈ 69 (est.) Reviews found online 60 69 Cross Contact A/T: 60% × 67.6 (est.) + 40% × 60.4 = 65
Encounter AT: 60% × 69.1 (est.) + 40% × 68.7 = 69
No road tests of comfort for Cross Contact A/T or Encounter AT. The test half is the tested tires’ average (69): owners’ comfort ratings barely follow the road tests.
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–
Noise
No comparison68Why this score
Source Cross Contact A/T Encounter AT Professional tests (TWG score) – ≈ 67 (est.) Reviews found online – 70 Encounter AT: 60% × 67.3 (est.) + 40% × 70 = 68
No road tests of noise for Encounter AT. The test half is the tested tires’ average (67): owners’ noise ratings barely follow the road tests.
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65
Treadwear
Encounter AT +166Why this score
Source Cross Contact A/T Encounter AT Professional tests (TWG score) ≈ 65 (est.) ≈ 66 (est.) Reviews found online 64 66 Cross Contact A/T: 60% × 65.2 (est.) + 40% × 64.4 = 65
Encounter AT: 60% × 65.7 (est.) + 40% × 65.9 = 66
No road tests of treadwear for Cross Contact A/T. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.31).
No road tests of treadwear for Encounter AT. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.31).
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62
Handling (owners)
Encounter AT +971Why this score
Source Cross Contact A/T Encounter AT Reviews found online 62 71
Scores at a glance
| Category | Continental Cross Contact A/T | Sumitomo Encounter AT |
|---|---|---|
| Relative Score | 62 | 71 |
| Dry | 64 | 73 |
| Wet | 64 | 75 |
| Snow | 53 | 69 |
| Comfort | 65 | 69 |
| Noise | – | 68 |
| Treadwear | 65 | 66 |
| Handling (owners) | 62 | 71 |
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
Less important
NotLessNeutralImportantMost
Less important
NotLessNeutralImportantMost
Only one of the two tires has a score here, so this weight changes nothing in the head-to-head.
Neutral
NotLessNeutralImportantMost
Less important
NotLessNeutralImportantMost
Recomputed
Headline score
62
/ 100
Cross Contact A/T
71
/ 100
Encounter AT
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 Cross Contact A/T
Pros
- Excellent on-road comfort and handling with acceptable noise levels
- High potential longevity and mileage for many users, with sets lasting upwards of 50,000 to 80,000 km/miles
- Competent dry and wet performance on paved surfaces
Cons
- Susceptibility to punctures and fragile sidewalls reported by some drivers
- Rapid, premature tread wear experienced by certain users
- Poor traction and spinning issues in winter conditions such as snow and ice
Tire B Encounter AT
Not enough owner reviews yet to extract themes.
Specs side by side
| Attribute | A · Continental Cross Contact A/T | B · Sumitomo Encounter AT |
|---|---|---|
| Category | All-Terrain tire | All-Terrain tire |
| Vehicle type | SUV and 4x4 | SUV and 4x4 |
| Sizes available | — | 15 |
| Rim diameters | — | 16″ – 20″ |
| Tread depth | — | 13/32″ |
| UTQG | — | 660 A B |
| Treadwear warranty | — | 60,000 mi |
| Sidewall | — | Blackwall |
| Max pressure | — | 51 psi |
Which one should you actually buy?
62
/ 100
Continental Cross Contact A/T
71
/ 100
Sumitomo Encounter AT
Winner: Sumitomo Encounter AT — better snow, wet and dry. It leads or ties in every category we score. Continental Cross Contact A/T rests on little evidence so far (0 tests, 14 reviews), so read this result as provisional.
Pick tire B
You drive through snowy winters
Sumitomo Encounter AT scores 69 vs 53 on snow.
Pick tire B
Your priority is wet-weather safety
Sumitomo Encounter AT scores 75 vs 64 on wet.
Pick tire B
You want the most grip on dry roads
Sumitomo Encounter AT scores 73 vs 64 on dry.
Pick tire B
You enjoy sharp, responsive handling
Sumitomo Encounter AT scores 71 vs 62 on handling.
Tire A · Continental Cross Contact A/T
Tire B · Sumitomo Encounter AT
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Cross Contact A/T or Encounter AT?
Which is better in the wet, Cross Contact A/T or Encounter AT?
Sumitomo Encounter AT, 75 vs 64 on our wet score.
Which grips better on dry roads, Cross Contact A/T or Encounter AT?
Sumitomo Encounter AT, 73 vs 64 on our dry score.
Which is better in snow, Cross Contact A/T or Encounter AT?
Sumitomo Encounter AT, 69 vs 53 on our snow score.
Which is more comfortable, Cross Contact A/T or Encounter AT?
Sumitomo Encounter AT, 69 vs 65 on our comfort score.
Which lasts longer, Cross Contact A/T or Encounter AT?
Neither, by our numbers: 65 vs 66 on the treadwear score, within 3 points.
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