Tests – · none yet Owners 68 · 25 reviews
Head-to-head
Updated
Continental PureContact LS 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 25 + 1 owner reviews. How we score
Too close to call: PureContact LS 69, Defender T+H 70.
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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.
-
69
Dry
Defender T+H +170Why this score
Source PureContact LS Defender T+H Professional tests (TWG score) ≈ 69 (est.) ≈ 69 (est.) Reviews found online 70 71 PureContact LS: 60% × 68.7 (est.) + 40% × 69.5 = 69
Defender T+H: 60% × 69.3 (est.) + 40% × 70.9 = 70
No road tests of dry for PureContact LS. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.42).
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 0.42).
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72
Wet
Defender T+H +173Why this score
Source PureContact LS Defender T+H Professional tests (TWG score) ≈ 72 (est.) ≈ 72 (est.) Reviews found online 73 73 PureContact LS: 60% × 71.7 (est.) + 40% × 72.5 = 72
Defender T+H: 60% × 72.2 (est.) + 40% × 73.4 = 73
No road tests of wet for PureContact LS. 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).
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67
Snow
PureContact LS +265Why this score
Source PureContact LS Defender T+H Professional tests (TWG score) ≈ 68 (est.) ≈ 68 (est.) Reviews found online 64 62 PureContact LS: 60% × 68.3 (est.) + 40% × 64.2 = 67
Defender T+H: 60% × 67.5 (est.) + 40% × 62.1 = 65
No road tests of snow for PureContact LS. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.37).
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 0.37).
-
59
Comfort
Defender T+H +968Why this score
Source PureContact LS Defender T+H Professional tests (TWG score) ≈ 66 (est.) ≈ 69 (est.) Reviews found online 55 67 PureContact LS: 40% × 66.5 (est.) + 60% × 54.7 = 59
Defender T+H: 40% × 68.7 (est.) + 60% × 67 = 68
No road tests of comfort for PureContact LS or Defender T+H. The test half is the tested tires’ average (69): owners’ comfort ratings barely follow the road tests.
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68
Noise
No comparison–Why this score
Source PureContact LS Defender T+H Professional tests (TWG score) ≈ 67 (est.) – Reviews found online 71 – PureContact LS: 60% × 66.6 (est.) + 40% × 70.8 = 68
No road tests of noise for PureContact LS. The test half is the tested tires’ average (67): owners’ noise ratings barely follow the road tests.
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68
Treadwear
Defender T+H +573Why this score
Source PureContact LS Defender T+H Professional tests (TWG score) · – / 1 tests ≈ 67 (est.) 76 Reviews found online 69 68 PureContact LS: 60% × 67 (est.) + 40% × 68.7 = 68
Defender T+H: 60% × 76.1 + 40% × 68 = 73
No road tests of treadwear for PureContact LS. The test half is estimated from the owner ratings, as far as owners and testers agree (correlation 0.35).
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70
Handling (owners)
No comparison–Why this score
Source PureContact LS Defender T+H Reviews found online 70 –
Scores at a glance
| Category | Continental PureContact LS | Michelin Defender T+H |
|---|---|---|
| Relative Score | 69 | 70 |
| Dry | 69 | 70 |
| Wet | 72 | 73 |
| Snow | 67 | 65 |
| Comfort | 59 | 68 |
| Noise | 68 | – |
| Treadwear | 68 | 73 |
| Handling (owners) | 70 | – |
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
Only one of the two tires has a score here, so this weight changes nothing in the head-to-head.
Recomputed
Headline score
69
/ 100
PureContact LS
70
/ 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 PureContact LS
Pros
- Exceptionally quiet and comfortable ride quality
- Strong wet and dry traction with reliable handling
- Good balance of everyday comfort and long treadlife
Cons
- Soft sidewalls can lead to less responsive or wandering handling during aggressive cornering
- Develops temporary flat spotting when parked, causing morning vibrations
- Poor winter performance, particularly lacking traction on snow and ice despite being an all-season tire
Tire B Defender T+H
Not enough owner reviews yet to extract themes.
Specs side by side
| Attribute | A · Continental PureContact LS | B · Michelin Defender T+H |
|---|---|---|
| Category | All Season | Premium Touring All Season tire |
| Vehicle type | Passenger Car / Crossover | SUV and 4x4 |
| Tread depth | 10/32″ | — |
| UTQG | 700 A A | — |
| Treadwear warranty | 70,000 mi | — |
| Sidewall | Black Side Wall | — |
| Max pressure | 51 psi | — |
Which one should you actually buy?
69
/ 100
Continental PureContact LS
70
/ 100
Michelin Defender T+H
Too close to call: Continental PureContact LS and Michelin Defender T+H are within 2 points overall. Michelin Defender T+H is stronger on comfort and treadwear. 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 most comfortable ride
Michelin Defender T+H scores 68 vs 59 on comfort.
Pick tire B
You want the longest tread life
Michelin Defender T+H scores 73 vs 68 on treadwear.
Tire A · Continental PureContact LS
Tire B · Michelin Defender T+H
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PureContact LS or Defender T+H?
Which is better in the wet, PureContact LS or Defender T+H?
Neither, by our numbers: 72 vs 73 on the wet score, within 3 points.
Which grips better on dry roads, PureContact LS or Defender T+H?
Neither, by our numbers: 69 vs 70 on the dry score, within 3 points.
Which is better in snow, PureContact LS or Defender T+H?
Neither, by our numbers: 67 vs 65 on the snow score, within 3 points.
Which is more comfortable, PureContact LS or Defender T+H?
Michelin Defender T+H, 68 vs 59 on our comfort score.
Which lasts longer, PureContact LS or Defender T+H?
Michelin Defender T+H, 73 vs 68 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