I was extremely impressed with these tires. They came fitted with the car, and still have 2mm of legally usable tread, so this will be the final season on them. I live in the Alps in Austria so summer tires are used mid April-October, and designated winter tires are used throughout winter. I drive through the twisty mountain roads with zero room for error, as well as on long high speed straights, so there is no option to risk tire grip failure at any point. Even in torrential downpours of rain, these contisportcontact2's stay planted. I've never seen resistance to aquaplaning like these offer. They do not "track" grooves in the road or "ride up" on uneven surfaces. The sidewalls are very soft, allowing for a smoother ride. The turn-in is sharp and predictable when you consider the softness of the sidewall. I believe the soft sidewalls are a major contributor to the incredible grip these tires have.
Super hot motorways and broken tarmac in Italy, sustained top speed on the autobahn in Germany, near-zero visibility rain on French highways, and tight hairpin turns in the Austrian alps, these continentals have never let me down. They even held surprisingly well in dirt/grass, if that matters for anything. For the conditions I drive in, one single slip of the tires in an emergency maneuver can become disasterous. When these continentals are (rarely) pushed past their limits, there's not much noise or vibration, simply a progressive and predictable failing of grip. There's no dramatic On/Off feeling which comes with cheaper rubber. This means that the driver gets a second chance to "save it" after grip is compromised. That single detail is a requirement for me.
Tread life is an acceptable weak point for me. These tires are used only 6 months out of the year, so they legally "expired" long before the tread wore down. Aquaplaning resistance has been maintained despite tread wear. Aged tires have maintained their grip very well. There are no dry rot cracks, chips, cups, tears, or chunks of rubber coming off. Date of manufacture is 10 years ago!
Tread depth as new was 11mm, while the newly available replacements from Continental come with 9mm, I believe. If the Sportcontact2's were still available, I might go for them again rather than the new Premiumcontact6.