Thread: Audi AO tyres whats the difference?

I'm looking to buy a new set of tyres off camskill I was going to go for PS3's but I notice they do CONTINENTAL SPORT CONTACT 2 225/40R18 92Y XL (AO) FR TL (Audi) as well as ONTINENTAL SPORT CONTACT 5's.

What I wanted to know is whats the difference between the normal contact 2's and the AO Audi ones and if the Contact 5's would be a better choice?

Richard

SC2's are not meant to be that good, SC5's on the other hand are meant to be the nuts! As for the AO i have no clue.

stands for Audi only, I have SC3's which are very good and the quietest tyre I've owned, all mine have MO on them (Mercedes only) not sure whether there is any difference between them all

I'm sure its something like its been designed with Audi for the best tyre.

is it something that they came on from the factory sort of thing , I've got no idea either lol

Its to do with the tyre manufacturers producing tyres marked for the brands they fit on as OEM tyres, they do massive deals with car manufacturers to get their tyres on cars and when the deals are agreed they will produce x amount of tyres marked with the manufacturers designation. Most will go to the manufacturer but part of the deal is x amount will made available to the public to buy as replacements. Continental say that the first three sets of tyres on alot of cars will be what they came with from the factory as the owner will want to keep it original. After that the car starts getting to an age where price becomes more of an issue for the tyre purchaser and depending on the owner (if they are even the original buyer at that point) the tyre brand and model starts to become a non issue over price.

Car manufacturers have lots of different idents for OEM tyres, AO is Audi Option, MO Mercedes Option, a Star on the side wall is BMW, N0 N1 and N2 is Porsche.

The tyres are the same the only difference is molds they come from though have the OEM designation, i.e. the SC3 with AO, MO or the star will all be built with the same construction and rubber just the mold has the emblem on it.

ah makes sense now thanks mate

Good answer dandle!

My PS2's are all MO's. Its the only PS2's I could get. No difference that I can notice.

Dandle has it spot on. It's just a marketing / sales ploy. Someone called one of the tyre makers about MO spec tyres and they admitted straight away that 99.9% of OEM spec tyres are identical to none OEM. They said that on ultra high end cars they may make a slight change to the compound (e.g. on a SL63 AMG )

The code also means that there will be ever so slight design change on the tyre to suit the manufacturer. Mostly the design change is the side wall design. For example Honda S2000's use Bridgestone RE050 however they have to be the MZ coded ones as the side wall is much stiffer. It's very noticeable when you drive an S2000 with none MZ tyres.

Originally Posted by LEW1S.W

Good answer dandle!

Agree 10/10 but 'mould' please not 'mold'!

Originally Posted by RobinA3

The code also means that there will be ever so slight design change on the tyre to suit the manufacturer. Mostly the design change is the side wall design. For example Honda S2000's use Bridgestone RE050 however they have to be the MZ coded ones as the side wall is much stiffer. It's very noticeable when you drive an S2000 with none MZ tyres.

I can't comment on Bridgestone but Contis are certainly the same no slight differences at all. If they make a tyre specifically for the model it gets renamed like Sport Contact M3.

Originally Posted by WAFTER

Agree 10/10 but 'mould' please not 'mold'!

Good spot

Porsche-spec N-rated tyres are definiely NOT the same as non-n-rated tyres off the same type, the sidewalls on them are very stiff and sometimes the difference is more than that, different rim protector/sidewall.

I have conti sport contact 5s and i have to say they are much grippier in the wet and dry than my previous PS3s also a bit quieter too, so looks like the reviews on them are bang on

Hi,

First of all AO is the Audi Tyre marking. This means Audi worked with the tyre manufacturer to develop this tyres, and it has been designed with their vehicles in mind.

The Continental Sport Contact 5 is the newer version of the Continental Sport Contact 2. It would be best to take advantage of the newest most recent technology.

Originally Posted by rezulteo

First of all AO is the Audi Tyre marking. This means Audi worked with the tyre manufacturer to develop this tyres, and it has been designed with their vehicles in mind.

It doesn't mean Audi worked with the tyre manufacturer at all. It means they both have done a deal for the tyre manufacturer to supply Audi OEM tyres.

Bridgestones RE05A's good but noisy I find. Michelin's are the way to go I think. Very good in the wet I found.

Originally Posted by c_w

Porsche-spec N-rated tyres are definiely NOT the same as non-n-rated tyres off the same type, the sidewalls on them are very stiff and sometimes the difference is more than that, different rim protector/sidewall.

^^^^^ This, having been shown the Michelin tyres and the differences I whole heartedly agree, They are NOT the same.

Kevin

Conti 5 mo laughs at conti 2 ao. Really in a different league.