Best tires for the Ford Contour
Top picks across four categories for the Ford Contour, anchored to the current-generation OEM size 185/70R14. Every recommendation is selected from our 22,000-tire catalog by ranking on UTQG treadwear, mileage warranty, cabin-noise rating, and season class; no commission-weighted reordering.
Daily driver
Best all-season touring
Long warranty, low noise, balanced ride. The one-tire compromise that works for 80% of owners.
Goodyear
Assurance all season 185/70R14
Touring-tuned all-season compound; balanced ride, grip, and tread life for everyday driving.
Falken
Sincera SN201 A/S 185/70R14
Touring-tuned all-season compound; balanced ride, grip, and tread life for everyday driving.
Falken
Sincera SN250 A/S
Touring-tuned all-season compound; balanced ride, grip, and tread life for everyday driving.
General
AltiMAX RT45
Touring-tuned all-season compound; balanced ride, grip, and tread life for everyday driving.
Lowest cost per mile
Best budget
Best price-per-warranty-mile in this size. Trade-off is shorter warranty vs premium options, not safety.
Falken
Sincera SN250 A/S
Lowest sticker price in this size that still meets the OEM load index. Trade-off is shorter warranty vs premium options.
Toyo
Extensa A/S II
Lowest sticker price in this size that still meets the OEM load index. Trade-off is shorter warranty vs premium options.
Nexen
N priz AH5
Lowest sticker price in this size that still meets the OEM load index. Trade-off is shorter warranty vs premium options.
Ironman
GR906
Lowest sticker price in this size that still meets the OEM load index. Trade-off is shorter warranty vs premium options.
Side-by-side
Pick the trade-off that matches your driving
| All-season Goodyear Assurance All Season 185/70R14 | Best budget Falken Sincera SN250 A/S |
|
|---|---|---|
| UTQG treadwear | - | 720 |
| Mileage warranty | - | - |
| Cabin noise | - | - |
| Season class | - | - |
| Type | - | - |
OEM tire sizes by year
What size does the ford contour use?
Recommendations on this page are anchored to the latest model-year's OEM size. Confirm yours against the driver-door placard before purchase.
| Year | OEM size | |
|---|---|---|
| 1995 | 205/60R15 | Year-specific fitment → |
| 1996–1997 | 185/70R14 | Year-specific fitment → |
| 1998 | 205/55R16 | Year-specific fitment → |
| 1999–2000 | 215/50R16 | Year-specific fitment → |
How we ranked these tires for the ford contour
We started with the latest model-year's OEM tire size; 185/70R14; and filtered our catalog of 22,000+ tires to those offered in that exact size. From there, four parallel rankings:
- Best all-season ranks on a weighted score: tire type matches passenger car segment, season is "all-season", premium brand bonus (Michelin / Continental / Bridgestone / Pirelli / Goodyear / Nokian).
- Best budget ranks on cost-per-warranty-mile; the lower the better. Premium brands get no bonus here.
- Best quiet ranks on the EU tire-label dB rating; lower is quieter.
- Best winter filters to tires marked 3PMSF severe-snow rated or all-weather class, with a small premium-brand bonus because winter-compound R&D is capital-intensive.
For sedans and compacts, the all-season touring tire below is the best default; long warranty, low cabin noise, reasonable cost per mile. Switch to the quiet pick if highway droning is a deal-breaker; switch to the winter pick if you see significant snow each year. Use the side-by-side comparison above to weigh the trade-offs against your specific driving; highway-heavy, winter-state, performance-oriented, or budget-constrained.
NHTSA-reported issues for ford contour
Top issue category: Tires (General)
Most reported: Tires (General) (53) · Tread / Belt (7) · Sidewall (2) · Markings (1)
Reported across: 1995 – 1999 (5 years)
What owners described
Blowout or sudden deflation is the most common description, in 12% of these reports. Percentages are shares of the 34 reports covering every model year of the Ford Contour that include a written account; a single report can describe more than one problem, so they do not total 100%.
| Reported problem | This subject | All tire complaints | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| Blowout or sudden deflation | 12% | 20% | 0.6× |
| Sidewall failure | 12% | 15% | 0.8× |
| Tread or belt separation | 3% | 13% | 0.2× |
| Bubble or bulge in the tire | 3% | 6% | 0.5× |
| Cracking or dry rot | 3% | 9% | 0.3× |
| Loss of control, rollover or collision | 3% | 8% | 0.4× |
In owners' own words
Verbatim excerpts from complaints filed with NHTSA about Ford Contour. Reports are published by NHTSA as filed and are lightly cleaned here only to remove intake codes.
WHILE DRIVING 60 MPH HAD A TIRE BLOWOUT, AND LOST CONTROL. VEHICLE SPUN AROUND AND HAD A FRONTAL IMPACT WITH A GROUP OF TREES. UPON IMPACT, DRIVER'S AND PASSENGER'S AIR BAGS DID NOT DEPLOY, WHICH DID NOT PROTECT THE OCCUPANT IN THIS CRASH. PLEASE PROVIDE FURTHER INFORMATION.
THREE OF THESE TIRES FAILED WITH TREAD SEPARATION AND WERE REPLACED. I JUST NOTED THAT THESE TIRES WERE MADE AT FIRESTONE'S DECATUR PLANT WHICH PRODUCED THE RECALLED WILDERNESS TIRES. IT SEEMS THEIR PROBLEMS MAY BE WIDER THAN JUST THE EXPLORER ISSUE.
BOTH PASSENGER FRONT AND REAR TIRES BLEW OUT AT THE SIDEWALL, THE VEHICLE LEFT THE ROAD WAY AND FLIPPED OVER. ONE TIRE BLEW WHILE THE VEHICLE WAS SITTING AND THE OTHER WHILE PULLING INTO A PARKING LOT. THE CONSUMER HAD THE SECOND FAILED TIRE IN THEIR POSSESSION. *JB
SINCE 12-15-99 I HAD COUGAR IN SERVICE 3 TIMES FOR WATER LEAK/ 2 TIMES SHIFT LOCK,LOCKED DOWN BECAUSE OF BRAKE LIGHT FAILURE HAVE COMPLAINED ABOUT REAR BRAKE ELCO NOISE WHEN BACKING UP/ CAR HESITATING AT 50+ MILES AN HOUR /PULLING TO RIGHT WHEN PASSING AND GIVING THE CAR MORE ACCELERATION/CAR IDLING REAL HIGH AND WANTING TO TAKE OFF WHEN YOU FIRST RELEASE THE BRAKE/ THE WINDOWS NOT GOING UP AND DOWN / THE BATTERY EXPLODED/ THE SERVICE WAS TERRIBLE AT GATEWAY THE NOISE IS STILL IN THE REAR WHEELS. THERE IS MORE WHERE THIS CAME FROM THE COUGAR WILL FALL APART/ THE ENGINE OR TRANSMISSION IS A PROBLEM.
Complaints are voluntarily submitted to the NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation and are not verified by NHTSA; they represent owner-reported problems, not proven defects. Counts can be useful as a relative quality signal across comparable tires or vehicles.
Tire recalls & safety complaints for the Ford Contour →
FAQ
What's the best all-season tire for the Ford Contour?
Should I get a cheaper tire for my Ford Contour?
Does the Ford Contour need winter tires?
Can I run a different tire size on my Ford Contour?
Where can I buy these tires?
Last verified 2026-10-07.