Tests – · none yet Owners 62 · 15 reviews
Head-to-head
Updated
Continental PremiumContact vs Michelin Defender T+H — 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 0 + 1 road tests and 15 + 1 owner reviews. How we score
Defender T+H is ahead, 71–64
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Tests – · 1 test Owners 69 · 1 review
Best test result: #1 of 8 in 2022 Consumer Reports All-Season Tires (tested tread life (miles))
Category by category
Relative Score per category, 0–100. Open “Why this score” for the tests and owner ratings behind it.
-
65
Dry
Defender T+H +469Why this score
Source PremiumContact Defender T+H Professional tests (TWG score) ≈ 66 (est.) ≈ 69 (est.) Reviews found online 63 70 PremiumContact: 60% × 66 (est.) + 40% × 63.3 = 65
Defender T+H: 60% × 68.8 (est.) + 40% × 70 = 69
No road tests of dry for PremiumContact. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.41).
No road tests of dry for Defender T+H. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.41).
-
64
Wet
Defender T+H +872Why this score
Source PremiumContact Defender T+H Professional tests (TWG score) ≈ 66 (est.) ≈ 72 (est.) Reviews found online 62 73 PremiumContact: 60% × 65.7 (est.) + 40% × 61.6 = 64
Defender T+H: 60% × 71.9 (est.) + 40% × 72.8 = 72
No road tests of wet for PremiumContact. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.55).
No road tests of wet for Defender T+H. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.55).
-
–
Snow
No comparison65Why this score
Source PremiumContact Defender T+H Professional tests (TWG score) – ≈ 68 (est.) Reviews found online – 61 Defender T+H: 60% × 67.5 (est.) + 40% × 61.1 = 65
No road tests of snow for Defender T+H. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.32).
-
62
Comfort
Defender T+H +567Why this score
Source PremiumContact Defender T+H Professional tests (TWG score) ≈ 67 (est.) ≈ 68 (est.) Reviews found online 59 66 PremiumContact: 40% × 66.7 (est.) + 60% × 58.8 = 62
Defender T+H: 40% × 68.1 (est.) + 60% × 66 = 67
No road tests of comfort for PremiumContact. 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 Defender T+H. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.20).
-
63
Treadwear
Defender T+H +1073Why this score
Source PremiumContact Defender T+H Professional tests (TWG score) · – / 1 tests ≈ 65 (est.) 76 Reviews found online 61 68 PremiumContact: 60% × 64.6 (est.) + 40% × 61.3 = 63
Defender T+H: 60% × 76.1 + 40% × 67.9 = 73
No road tests of treadwear for PremiumContact. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.36).
-
59
Handling (owners)
No comparison–Why this score
Source PremiumContact Defender T+H Reviews found online 59 –
Scores at a glance
| Category | Continental PremiumContact | Michelin Defender T+H |
|---|---|---|
| Relative Score | 64 | 71 |
| Dry | 65 | 69 |
| Wet | 64 | 72 |
| Snow | – | 65 |
| Comfort | 62 | 67 |
| Treadwear | 63 | 73 |
| Handling (owners) | 59 | – |
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
Neutral
NotLessNeutralImportantMost
Less 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
64
/ 100
PremiumContact
71
/ 100
Defender T+H
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 PremiumContact
Pros
- Excellent dry-weather grip and handling
- Strong longevity and tread life for many users
- High level of ride comfort
Cons
- Noticeable loss of wet-weather traction as the tire ages
- Increased road noise at higher speeds or after significant mileage
- Susceptibility to aquaplaning in standing water
Tire B Defender T+H
Not enough owner reviews yet to extract themes.
Specs side by side
| Attribute | A · Continental PremiumContact | B · Michelin Defender T+H |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Summer | Premium Touring All Season tire |
| Vehicle type | Passenger Car / Crossover | SUV and 4x4 |
| Sizes available | 3 | — |
| Rim diameters | 16″ – 19″ | — |
| UTQG | — | 820 A - B B |
Which one should you actually buy?
64
/ 100
Continental PremiumContact
71
/ 100
Michelin Defender T+H
Winner: Michelin Defender T+H — better treadwear, wet and comfort. It leads or ties in every category we score. Continental PremiumContact rests on little evidence so far (0 tests, 15 reviews), so read this result as provisional. Michelin Defender T+H rests on little evidence so far (1 test, 1 review), so read this result as provisional.
Pick tire B
You want the longest tread life
Michelin Defender T+H scores 73 vs 63 on treadwear.
Pick tire B
Your priority is wet-weather safety
Michelin Defender T+H scores 72 vs 64 on wet.
Pick tire B
You want the most comfortable ride
Michelin Defender T+H scores 67 vs 62 on comfort.
Pick tire B
You want the most grip on dry roads
Michelin Defender T+H scores 69 vs 65 on dry.
Tire A · Continental PremiumContact
Tire B · Michelin Defender T+H
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PremiumContact or Defender T+H?
Which is better in the wet, PremiumContact or Defender T+H?
Michelin Defender T+H, 72 vs 64 on our wet score.
Which grips better on dry roads, PremiumContact or Defender T+H?
Michelin Defender T+H, 69 vs 65 on our dry score.
Which is more comfortable, PremiumContact or Defender T+H?
Michelin Defender T+H, 67 vs 62 on our comfort score.
Which lasts longer, PremiumContact or Defender T+H?
Michelin Defender T+H, 73 vs 63 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