Been using this tire for a few years in various sizes, 700X25 and 28 for general riding in my zone which is inner mountain paved and gravel roads of the Trinity National Forest. this tire handles all conditions, winter and summer with ease and when in new or newish condition, gives me the best flat and side wall protection in a light weight tire that I have ever gotten. To me, this tires downsides are that it wears fairly quickly on the rear and near the end of it's tread life tends to be more flat prone. Also it is not true to the size listed, being somewhat smaller than advertized in both the 25's and 28's. The GP 4 season does not handle quite as well as the 4000 series but it is way more capable on rough pavement and gravel. I'm sticking with this tire.
Limited mileage (600) so longer term durability is still an unknown.
Size purchased were the 700c x 25mm. No visible wear issues from riding sections of gravel road, hitting broken sections of pavement at moderate speeds (25mph) and some unavoidable road garbage. Purchased these tires for spring riding conditions. Up here that means frost heaved & cracked pavement, washed out sections of road that are gravel patched, remnants of sandsalt from winter, wet pavement. Lowest recommended psi is 95. Have ridden with the front down to 90psi without any issues. I'm relatively light in weight (128 in the spring). On the rims used mounting the tires did not require the use of tire levers. On an identical set of rims needed to use a PrestaLever tire tool to mount a pair of Schwalles.
1st set of clinchers used since the early 80's. Have been a tubular only user since those days. From the 90's have stuck with Cont. Sprinters. The ride quality of the 4S in terms of comfort was better than expected. 25mm allowing lower psi may be the reason. Traction is good under all conditions at slow to moderate speeds and at shallow to moderate angles. Compared to the Sprinters on dry & clean pavement the 4S do not provide the same stick & confidence hitting a high speed & tightening radius curve.
My racing days are long, long over. Just a FGSS cruiser today. These tires fit that need. Comfort after couple hours in the saddle, dependable, adequate traction
and hopefully durable tires.
I am a 52 year old guy who rides year round in northern California. My typical ride is about 30 miles, longer when I can, and I log about 3500 miles per year.
These have become my go-to tires. They have that perfect balance of long wear, smooth, controlled ride, and puncture resistance. They're good in wet and dry weather. I have tried several other road tires - Vredestiens, some Michelins, as well as other Conti's, but these are the goldilocks of tires.
I have had them on for 11 months, and they've got about 3500 miles on them. I did rotate front to back about 1500 miles ago as the rear was starting to wear. They have plenty of little cuts, but have resisted puncture the whole year. This is quite a contrast to all the other tires I've used, which would have been cut through long ago by the hazards these guys have endured.
They are not cheap, but the are a great value. The only minus is that they are slightly less supple & grippy than the best riding road tires, but those tend to wear out in 500 miles. I recommend these ones to every rider who asks.
These went on my aluminum Trek supported touring bike. I have over 1000 miles on them and they hardly look worn-the front still has moulding flash on it. No flats, handles great, easy to fit on my wheels. Excellent in damp and wet weather, too. Can't think of any downsides.
As the name suggests, these are great for spring training. Good low rolling resistance tires. I rode them for several hundred miles at really good speeds. Good for hard pack gravel, but not for the softer stuff. I will put them back on next spring or later this fall to complete the season.
These are the best tires ever. The last tires that I had were the same model and had over 3000 miles on. I put new ones on because I was going on a big ride, but kept the ones I took off. I would not buy any other and I ride in the northwest, rain, bad roads, ice. Have never had a flat.
Perfect traction and weight for racing. Easy to install too.
There isn't much to dislike with this tire. Where I live, the winters are cold and the roads tend to stay wet in the areas where snow melts and runs across them so the GP 4 season's tread compounds and supple case give me more confidence in corners in those cold and wet conditions. The flat protection works great as I get very very few flats. Rocks are a big issue on our forest roads all year and with the side wall protection these tires have, I don't get any flats or blowouts from rock cuts. I ride all year through and have been doing so for the past 28 years and I'm not buying these to be following someone else' idea of a good tire. I have tried many others and the Conti 700x25 GP 4 Season is worth sticking with. I rate this tire at the top of any list.
I use the conti grand prix 4 season tires in the early part of the cycling season. It's my go to tire when there's still a fair bit of winter sand and debris on the roads. These tires also perform very well in wet conditions. By the first week in June I switch over to standard grand prix 4000's.
Love these tires. Great all around tire. High priced but good value when they go on sale.
commute 18 miles per day. Long rides on weekends. Hotter n Hell .
Ride is good wear seems to be good. No punctures for all winter on trash roads!!
Difficult to mount when new.
This is a great, fast-riding, excellent handling light touring tire. Using it on my aluminum Trek for supported touring rides. It's not the cheapest tire out there, but it works for my need and has high puncture resistance.
28mm for winter riding on a carbon cyclocross.
I've ridden these about 5,000 miles in suburban and urban commuting now with a total of 3 flats, two of which were valve problems so not the tires' fault. Also a couple of century rides on them. They're a little expensive but overall a great deal in light of their durability and worry-free performance.
I use these tires for commuting on my rain bike and for longer rides on my dry bikes
This is my go-to tire during the rainy season in Northern CA. Around here we have lots of hills with grades exceeding 10%, sometimes exceeding 15%. On wet climbs where a normal tire would slip when you're out of the saddle, these hold their grip. They perform comparably to GP4000's, with a barely noticeable compromise in weight and rolling resistance. My one compliant about Conti's is weak sidewalls, in the past year (4,100 miles of riding) I've had 2 sidewall blowouts with Conti tires, one with this model and one with a GP4000. However, that's offset by the fact that I've only had a single puncture during that time, vs. the 5 to 10 per year I would experience with Michelin Pro Race tires.
These tires are expensive, there's no two ways about it. On the other hand, I haven't encountered a tire with a better road feel on Portland's roads, which are, this time of year, usually coated by rain. Less harsh than Gatorskins, less wooden than the excellent Ribmos, and more robust than your usual nice slick.
I've also had no problems with excessive flatting (which I've heard other people complain about with these tires), and Portland's street-cleaning budget has been slashed for the past year.
Good value? Depends on what you want from a tire, but I'm happy with the purchase.
(For reference, I do a regular 10-12 mile a day commute, and some recreational riding on the weekends-these tires get a decent amount of use.)
I have ridden this tire for at least two years and have had one flat. Wears and rides well. Would recomend this tire without reservation.
best tires by far. ride 'em all year 'round. all conditions, gravel, dirt, city streets, snow. wear long, ride well. corner well. rarely flat.
I really enjoy this tire in a 28. It improves my overall ride quality since most of my rides are long endurance type. Provides confidence in the long fast descents also.
