Continental Cross Contact LX Sport Review

This tire might not win any customer-choice awards, but it is a factory fitment for numerous performance and luxury SUVs for a good reason.

PROS

Very comfortable
High level of grip

CONS

Short tread life
Passable wet grip
Not as engaging to drive as the grip would suggest

Starting with what not to like about the Continental Cross Contact LX Sport, it’s simple: tread life. It doesn’t take much surfing of customer reviews to discover just how many owners are disappointed with the short overall life of this tire. In fact, many complain it wears our well before 45,000 miles.

The good news is, there’s a reason for it: traction. The tire makes use of a pretty sticky compound with a 480 UTQG rating. As a result, it’s extra grippy and is sure to please those looking for heightened driving dynamics while still retaining all-season capability. (Well, most of it).

At the same time, it’s not overly responsive, which is odd. This is due mostly to the tire relying on the outright traction of the rubber compound with less engineering in the tread design. Still, it does feature a circumferential tread strip that runs just inboard of the shoulder tread lugs, tying them together and helping to maintain cornering composure.

Four circumferential grooves help evacuate standing water, although overall grip in the wet is just passable. Snow performance is quiet low, even for an all-season.

That’s quite a bit not to like about this tire, but there are plenty of positives too. It’s incredibly comfortable, so even models with low profile tires will ride smoothly. Plus, it’s extremely quiet.

There’s also an extremely wide selection of sizes, with many low profile and wide versions, ideal for performance SUVs.

Yet another feature specific to that audience is the built-in rim protector, with the tire jutting out from the wheel to help prevent curb rash to those fancy OEM wheels.

Who Should Buy This Tire?

The Cross Contact LX Sport delivers impressive grip with an extremely luxurious ride quality. We’d recommend it if you live somewhere warmer with not a lot of rain. For most everyone else, if you can sacrifice a little performance and get a lot more tread life, the Cross Contact LX 25 is a better bet.

Continental Cross Contact LX Sport Price

With such a wide selection of sizes and widths, it’s not surprising that pricing for the Continental Cross Contact LX Sport varies significantly. The smaller 16-inch fitments start at around $120 per tire while the largest 22-inch versions retail for over $450 each.

Continental Cross Contact LX Sport Warranty

Continental does not offer a mileage warranty on the Cross Contact LX Sport. It does, however come with a 60 day satisfaction guarantee, plus Continental’s Total Confidence Plan. This includes three years of roadside assistance for a flat tire change or a complimentary tow of up to 150 miles. Plus, in the first 2/32-inch if tread wear, if you suffer a flat due to a road hazard they’ll replace the tire for free.

Like most tires it also comes with a standard limited warranty that covers tire defects. If a tire is found to be defective in the first 2/32-inch of tread life, Conti will replace it free of charge. After that point, they will replace defective tires on a pro-rated basis depending on the amount of tread life left.

Continental Cross Contact LX Sport Sizes

16-inch sizes
215/65R16
215/65R16
215/70R16

17-inch sizes
215/60R17
225/60R17
235/55R17
235/65R17

18-inch sizes
235/50R18
235/50R18
235/60R18
235/60R18
235/60R18
235/60R18
235/65R18
235/65R18
245/60R18
255/55R18
255/55R18
255/60R18
255/60R18

19-inch sizes
235/55R19
235/55R19
235/55R19
235/55R19
235/55R19
235/55R19
235/55R19
235/55R19
235/55R19
245/55R19
255/50R19
255/55R19
255/55R19
255/60R19

20-inch sizes
245/45R20
245/45R20
245/45R20
245/45R20
245/50R20
245/50R20
255/45R20
255/45R20
255/45R20
255/45R20
255/45R20
255/50R20
265/45R20
265/45R20
265/45R20
265/45R20
275/45R20
275/45R20
275/45R20
275/50R20
285/45R20
295/40R20

21-inch sizes
265/40R21
265/45R21
265/45R21
265/45R21
275/40R21
275/45R21
275/45R21
275/45R21
275/45R21
285/40R21
285/45R21
285/45R21
315/40R21
315/40R21

22-inch sizes
265/35R22
265/40R22
275/40R22
275/40R22
285/40R22
285/40R22

Is the Continental Cross Contact LX Sport a Run Flat Tire?

Not all versions of the Cross Contact LX Sport are run flats, but Continental does offer a selection of run-flat options for this tire. To be sure, check that the tire is marked or sold with the “SSR” symbol in the name. This stands for Self Supporting Runflat and means that the tire can travel up to 50 mph for 50 miles or less when completely flat.