Another bad sidewall
 

Continental Grand Prix 4 Season (32mm)
Maybe 300 miles on it

https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...78a1e4b4aa.jpg

wow almost looks like a manufacture defect?

Does it bulge or is that just a scrape on the mesh covering? I'd check the inside before I gave up on it.

It feels like there is a bulge to it. I'm not taking any chances. I have a new tire that is arriving here tomorrow. I will say that this is the last time I buy Continental tires. I've enjoyed the ride but this is not the first sidewall I've had give out on me. Even the 5000 series seem to get slashed a lot more than usual. I know a lot depends on the roads one is riding but I've just had too many sidewall crack, split and tear... I'm moving on.

I've had the wire pull out of the bead on three Conti's. I don't use them on anything now.

YMMV of course

:thumb:Lots to choose from. I'm apparently one of the few who didn't like Rene Herse tires.

Worst sidewall issue I had was a Panracer Sharkskin road tire. Tried it after buying on a clearance rack. Came down some fairly steep hills and pulled over to wait for a buddy. A three inch rip opened up as I sat there. Pretty scary.

I'd still ride the tire till it gave actual trouble or looked more like it was about to go.

WOW... Even Continental...

We need a good list of all the things we need to check when we get new tires. I usually buy economical tires so I commonly find defects. But I have always relied on Continental to provide very good quality over the years.

When I get a tire now days I go over it visually and then even get the calipers out and take some measurements. I try to find weak spots in the rubber by squeezing it and pay special attention to the bead and bead thickness. I don't expect tire quality to improve much in the future no matter how much we pay for them.

Here is some defects that I found only after mounting a tire and having it repeatedly slip off the rim during a ride.
https://www.bikeforums.net/22308392-post2.html

I wonder if that is why it was on clearance?

The cheap part of me says boot-it but the more rational side says, send it to Continental and ask that they research the failure and ask for a refund or replacement. If they don’t have tires returned…

Sounds like a good reason to not buy wire bead tires in general.

Rene Herse had some growing pains. I thought about getting some for PBP in 2019, but in the end I don't think it would have helped me.
I always thought that Continental sidewalls were easy to damage. That probably had something to do with living in Utah (lota of sharp rocks) when continental were going through their weight weenie stage.

My preferences are VeloFlex and Vittoria.
Conti 5000 rides like their Gatorskin, IMHO; and since I do not live in 'goathead land', one pair is all I will ever know.

Got it at Performance bike. I'm guessing there were some complaints but I had bought 2 sets of Shwalbe Durano's from them on clearance and found them to be the best endurance tires I've ever owned. I ride the Continentals also. My issues with them is pulling the thread out of the axles all the time.

One catastrophic blowout was enough for me to not want to risk riding anything with probable sidewall issues. Sorry about this tire, may be worthwhile to get a refund or claim warranty/mfg defect (if there is one).

that's no fun. been there, done that, don't wanna do it again
https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...203d423b17.jpg
that's a Schwalbe Marathon Winter tire, that I bought used. I only buy new tires now, hehe

In all the Continental tires I have run I haven't ever had these problems and in the many I have sold I did have two sets of GP5000s that had issues from the gate but the manufacturer took care of it same thing with a well out of warranty tire that didn't have a warranty issue with it, it was customer neglect and they were nice and sent a new set of tires just to keep the customer happy. I have a set of Travel Contacts that are nearing 8 years old or so. I do not keep my bikes near any places where they will get damaged like a hot water heater or extreme heat or cold or anything like that. I would reach out to the local shop or authorized dealer you bought them from and see if they can help you file a warranty on it. If you purchased them from a third party not an authorized dealer it is possible you got a non-genuine tire and there is the problem. You could ask Continental to see.

If you find a better set of tires, that is awesome, I generally run Schwalbe or Vittoria these days not due to issues with Conti just wanting to run something different or needing a specific size and style.

WWLD

What Would Larry Do?

Been running Conti road tires for decades without trouble. It is my tire of choice, and graces every bike I own. Simply do not have problems with them.

I have had 3 catastrophe failures of the sidewalls on GP5000 TL in 700*25 on my road bike. I run 700*32 on.the tandem with zero issues.

It is my understanding that the TR S has a stronger sidewall. I have been running one on the rear of my road bike. So far so good.

I have known both, and you, sir are no Gatorskin. Have ridden on 4 sets of Gators and 3 sets of Conti 5000s, tubeless and tubed, and in my very humble opinion, what are you smoking?

that is a GP4S ?

compare that tire - with the tire below


https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...8f3d966f3.jpeg

Are you implying that mine might be fake?

It's certainly very worn, squared off.