Tire Brands?

[sensoryx]

Now that ive finally manged to figure out what sized tires im going to be running, Id like to know more about the brands out there.

How much of a difference does brand make? Im going to head to a tire shop, so thought id get the best advice from all you guys first.
Which brand, in your opinon, are the most reliable and best buy in terms of tires?
What are the top brands and 'over rated' brands? lol

Last question boys , how are Nankang NS2 tires and Kumho Ecsta AST tires?

;)

[OCKlasse]

best tire for the money is the Falken FK452

[stox]

The best tire is the Michelin Pilot Sport PS/2. Sadly, it is also the best at draining your wallet.

[rman]

it all depends on what you want out of your tire.

I recently bought a pair of Hankook Ventus for my pickup truck. Good ride, good grip, and great price.

There are better tires, but for the price the Hankooks are your best bang for the buck. I plan on getting a full set for the 202 in the next couple of months.

[strictlyspeakin]

I recommend Riken Raptor.

The tires came in at around $125 and look aggressive. Handling has been excellent.

Michelin North America’s (MNA) Alliance program has announced a new Riken brand Raptor ZR ultra-high performance tire.

We all certainly recognize Michelin.

[Denlasoul]

I'm using Continental SportConti 2's. Like them alot. Kinda of on the pricey side, but I dont drive much so they will last.

One big plus is the rounded off sidewall. Reduces amount of tire-fender rubbing.

[jnolte]

I am the master or cheap tires becuase my car goes through them like a fat kid goes through doughnuts.

Kuhmos Ecsta= no grip, hit wall totalled car

Kuhmo all season= lasted like 5k miles in the rear seriously!

General exclaim uhp= Really soft sidewall but pretty cheap

Now the expensive stuff:

Dunlop Sp9000: It was okay, blew out fast but had pretty good wet traction

Bridgestone s02: very grippy and soft I like these the best.

Michelin pilot sport: best tires known to man hahha, but you gotta be rich as hell

[97C28O]

Originally posted by jnolte
I am the master or cheap tires becuase my car goes through them like a fat kid goes through doughnuts.

Kuhmos Ecsta= no grip, hit wall totalled car

Kuhmo all season= lasted like 5k miles in the rear seriously!

General exclaim uhp= Really soft sidewall but pretty cheap

Now the expensive stuff:

Dunlop Sp9000: It was okay, blew out fast but had pretty good wet traction

Bridgestone s02: very grippy and soft I like these the best.

Michelin pilot sport: best tires known to man hahha, but you gotta be rich as hell

I have Kumho Ecsta SPT's. I think they're pretty good. There is this mountain that I take to go Daly City, if any of you know, San Bruno Mountain, and there is this pretty hard turn that I go at speeds of 60 taking it. The car feels in control even though my car is not lowered, it's sitting pretty high right now. Now, my old tires came from MB when I bought them, were made in Taiwan some cheap ass tires. There called Feredal Tires. Those, suck so bad. I had to take turns at 30MPH if not the car would slide. Even taking off from a stop sign in semi wet grounds I would skid.

I really wanted to get Toyo Proxes 4 or Toyo T1R's , Falken FK452 but those cost too much for me, maybe in the future.

[sensoryx]

Originally posted by 97C28O
Falken FK452 but those cost too much for me, maybe in the future.

How much is a resonable price for these?

Local stores are quoting me $260.76 for 225/40 front and $354.80 for 255/35 rear, 18"

[rman]

121 ea/ front
170 ea/ rear

That's what I would pay, no more than $10 over on each tire, plus mount/balance. so about $650 ish

[mercdriver]

Love my Toyo Proxes 4's. Quiet, great even in heavy rain and, best of all, the car now handles like its on rails.

Had the Michelins SP's before. Great tires but they were far to loud for me.

[crazy00c230k]

ive been rollin on BFGoodrich KDW's for the past year and i really like them, tread pattern is a bit bold, but dry and wet traction have been great, and they've worn really well also, and they're relatively inexpensive

[RemoLexi]

Michelin Pilot Sport PS/2 sucks for me ... it doesnt stay round always with the vibrations and rebalancing.

General exclaim uhp is a soft tire but when you get it in a low profile it is a little more road feely.

just my opinions.

[Proven Guilty]

dunlop sp sports from tirerack. fast, cheap shipping.

you can even add road hazard insurance which covers unrepairable incidents, like a nail too close to the sidewall.

[OCKlasse]

Originally posted by Proven Guilty
dunlop sp sports from tirerack. fast, cheap shipping.

you can even add road hazard insurance which covers unrepairable incidents, like a nail too close to the sidewall.

Just spend the extra money for the SP SPORT MAXX. I have FM901s up front and they are horrible, but I have MAXX in the rear and they are great!

[VIP_MBZ]

Originally posted by OCKlasse
best tire for the money is the Falken FK452

FK452 is an awesome tire for the money, but I do recognize its faults also. They are very grippy (AA traction) but their sidewall is very soft (dampens the road feel a lot) and most importantly they don't last very long. I kill these in less than 15k miles.

The biggest plus they have for our cars is that they are camber friendly; they are specifically designed to withstand the stress of negative camber.

-Ray

[OCKlasse]

Originally posted by VIP_MBZ
FK452 is an awesome tire for the money, but I do recognize its faults also. They are very grippy (AA traction) but their sidewall is very soft (dampens the road feel a lot) and most importantly they don't last very long. I kill these in less than 15k miles.

The biggest plus they have for our cars is that they are camber friendly; they are specifically designed to withstand the stress of negative camber.

-Ray

biggest fault for me is the lack of stretch :o

[kameraguy]

The tires I have experience with are these. I focused more on dry grip as priority#1, with good wet weather handling#2. Price wasn't a factor but I also didn't buy the most expensive unless it was the best. After asking and researching, I got whatever was available at the time that met my needs through the years...

Toyo Proxies TS-1: loved these. Decent wet weather performance. were originally on my car when I bought it.

Falken 451s: Loved these too. decent wet weather performance. comfortable tire..nice ride comfort. Wore super quick.

Pirelli P-Zero Rosso: LOVED these but wore out super DUPER quick. I think I got like 9,000 miles on the rears and 12,000 for the fronts :p Wet weather was ok.

Pirelli P-Zero Nero M+S: Really loved these...bought them again after the first set wore out. Got a bit noisy after 60% tread left, but grip was pretty consistent through it's life. A great deal imho.


http://img174.imageshack.us/img174/7430/10crw12812ky.jpg
^^Pirelli P-Zero Nero M+S 245/40/17


Bridgestone S0-3 Pole Positions: I adored these. Pretty expensive at the time but the grip was astonishing. Wet weather handling was very good when new...but after 40% tread left I was hydroplanning quite a bit.

Bridgestone RE050 Pole Positions: I REALLY liked this set. Very nice and grippy, a bit better wet weather performance than the S0-3s IMHO. Very good price. I would buy them again. Probably my favorite followed by the Pirelli P-Zero Neros for overall performance and "value".

My most recent set I bought three weeks ago: Bridgestone RE750s. From the reviews I read, they seemed to be a great compromise with great dry grip, good wet weather grip, and tread wear. So far I am extremely happy with dry grip. And they feel a bit more compliant than the RE050s so ride comfort has improved. I'll have to wait till it rains to see how I really like them, but for now they seem really nice.

I wouldn't hesitate recommending these to my friends, especially the Pirelli P-Zero Neros and Bridgestone RE050 PP and RE750s.

[benzboy]

I have the Toyo T1R on my C36, they are an evolution of the T1S kameraguy had and they are an awesome tyre, sidewalls are a good stiffness, dry grip is excellent, and wet grip is amazing.

Awesome price too, best tyre I have ever owned.

[Proven Guilty]

Originally posted by OCKlasse
Just spend the extra money for the SP SPORT MAXX. I have FM901s up front and they are horrible, but I have MAXX in the rear and they are great!

that's what we got on the W208. i LOVE them.

[rman]

try Guardsman tires from SEARS. they are like $29/ea and they last forever.

[allirroz]

Originally posted by rman
try Guardsman tires from SEARS. they are like $29/ea and they last forever.


ROFL.........

but seriously I second Dunlop Sport Maxx...awesome tire

[Logic]

I HAVE USED THESE TIRES NOT ONLY ARE THE QUIET THEY ARE ZR RATED AND M/S RATED... I USUALLY GET ABOUT 15K MILES ON THESE WITH A LOWERED SUSPENSION. I PAID 122.00 FOR THE FRONT (EACH) AND THE REAR WERE 154.00 225/40/18 AND 255/35/18 PLUS I KNOW THE OWNER OF PERFORMANCE TIRE AND WHEEL HELPS WITH THE PRICING :cool:
http://www.vulcantire.com/graphics/tires/ze512.jpg

ZIEX ZE-512 .... Rated #1 ....
According to a leading consumer reporting magazine.

ZIEX ZE-512.... maximizing all season performance.

- M + S rated All-season performance.

- UNI-directional tread design & circumferential grooves for superior wet weather handling.

- Smooth, quiet, comfortable ride.

- Improved rim protection ridge protects expensive custom wheels.

- New multi-radius profile increases contact pressure and low profile styling.

- 30,000 mile limited treadwear warranty for 40, 45, 50, 55 series tires.

- UTQG rating: 360 A-A

- 60,000 mile limited treadwear warranty for 60, 65 series tires.

- UTQG rating: 420 A-A

- 30 Day Ride Guarantee

[VIP_MBZ]

I can second Falken Ziex if you just do casual daily driving. If you are like me however, and like to tackle windy roads and canyons, you will be disappointed. The Falken FK452 offers much better at-the-limit driving, but won't last nearly as long.

-Ray