Compendium of Tire Reviews: Please sticky

[legacydispatcher]

#1) Goodyear Eagle GT P215/45R17. Bought at Discount Tire $560 w/tire warranty. I've driven @ 200 miles on them so far

 

#2) Columbus Ohio

 

#3) Daily Driver (2.5i)

 

#4) 60% Highway 40% Street

 

#5) Yoko Stock 82A's 5 or 6/32 left @ 37500 miles

 

#6) Your review and personal comments (Dry, wet, and snow, if applicable. Also, please compare to other tires used):

 

 

So far I've not driven on these very far but I'm pretty sure I will really like them. The take the rough roads here in stride and feel pretty soft. They are pretty sticky on turns and have got a good aggressive tread for an all season tire.

[LittleBlueGT]

Dunlop direzza Z1 starspecs:

 

Just got them. braking performance seems kind of iffy. It doesn't FEEL as good at braking as my hankook rs2s.

 

but the grip is phenomenal. took a turn off the offramp trying to get it to squeal and it just held on like glue. the RS2s would have complained. the all seasons would have probably let go. just stuck on. no noise, no fuss no anything.

 

like rails. acceleration is okay, braking doesnt feel that great.

 

would buy these again, especially for the price i paid. after rebate, it'd be 600 installed for 225/45/17s.

 

Can you compare them to anything as far as ride comfort and NVH levels go?

[TSiWRX]

Dunlop direzza Z1 starspecs:

 

Just got them. braking performance seems kind of iffy. It doesn't FEEL as good at braking as my hankook rs2s.

 

but the grip is phenomenal. took a turn off the offramp trying to get it to squeal and it just held on like glue. the RS2s would have complained. the all seasons would have probably let go. just stuck on. no noise, no fuss no anything.

 

like rails. acceleration is okay, braking doesnt feel that great.

 

would buy these again, especially for the price i paid. after rebate, it'd be 600 installed for 225/45/17s.

 

^ Cool comparo! It's the price I'm looking at, too.....

 

Question in terms the off-ramp performance Z1s to the RS2s - you said that the latter complained, which, yep, definitely, is something that these RS2s do....but I'm wondering, from what you said above, if the Z1's are more akin to the Kumho MXs - stick and stick and stick, and then breakaway, no audible warning?

[nm]

Can you compare them to anything as far as ride comfort and NVH levels go?

Better than RT-615s. Worse than RE01Rs (For daily use, the RE01R is closing in on "luxury car" tire)

 

I know you don't like the RT-615's but would a different size tire other than 215/45/17 make a difference, you think? Say a 235/40/17?

 

Ralph

I has 225/45/17 which is the fattest that will reliably fit on a wagon.

Many of the problems with these tires had to do with thier abilty to deal with the wieght fo the car. I don't believe a wider tire would do much.

Given that the Dunlops are like $10/tire more trhan the RT-615s, the RT-615s cease to matter IMHO

 

^ Cool comparo! It's the price I'm looking at, too.....

 

Question in terms the off-ramp performance Z1s to the RS2s - you said that the latter complained, which, yep, definitely, is something that these RS2s do....but I'm wondering, from what you said above, if the Z1's are more akin to the Kumho MXs - stick and stick and stick, and then breakaway, no audible warning?

The Z1s will complain when they're about to break and are quite controllable at the limit. That limit is just much higher than you expect.

Edited September 25, 2008 by nm+

[TSiWRX]

The Z1s will complain when they're about to break and are quite controllable at the limit. That limit is just much higher than you expect.

 

^ Good to hear ( no pun intended ). Thank you!

 

That's what I'd like, for a street tire.

 

------

 

And this is for anyone/everyone :

 

How's the Z1's wet-weather handling?

 

Any estimated wear/life?

[nm]

How's the Z1's wet-weather handling?

Pretty darn good. Not as good as the RE01Rs, but better than average fpor this type of tire. Did not degrade as much as I'd expected when the tread wore down.

Any estimated wear/life?

I got 7,000mi out of mine , but there were like 7-9 autocrosses in there.

[LRegvall]

#1) What tire are you offering for review (size, model, type (summer, A/s, winter, race, etc), price paid, miles driven on tires, etc):

Bridgestone Potenza RE 760 Sport 25/45/ZR17 on stock wheels and Cobb 22mm sway bars

Ultra High Performance Summer

#1) What tire are you offering for review (size, model, type (summer, A/s, winter, race, etc), price paid, miles driven on tires, etc):

Dunlop Direzza Sport Z1 Star Spec 215/45/ZR17 Extreme Performance Summer Tire on stock wheels with Cobb 22mm sway bars .

Paid approximately $150 per tire.

I have only driven about 150 miles on these...city streets, winding backroads and interstate freeway.

These tires are probably just as sticky at the 760s if not more, but the big difference is steering response. The Dunlops obviously have stiffer sidewalls and when you give it steering input, the car responds immediately. Nonetheless, despite the stiffer sidewalls, the ride is better than the 760s. For example, rolling up to a 90 degree turn in the city in 2nd gear and not touching the brakes, you can simply crank the wheel and the car turns immediately, tracks tight and does not squeal. The 760s in the same situation felt as if there was a delay and the whole car felt like it had massive body roll. The 760s did not inspire confidence. The 760s did not squeal, but they felt sloppy. I ended up adding some tire pressure 38/36 to frim up the 760s, but they got rather harsh. The Dunlops are running 36/34 and feel like they have much better ride qulaity, are a bit quieter and are definitely firmer in the corners. The Dunlops are sticky as you could imagine. They do not tramline. In the wet, the 760s were a bit slick, but the Dunlops felt stickier in the wet. The Dunlops run on the wider range of tires and you get the surface area of a 225 from a 215. They definitely run wider than the Bridgestones.

 

The Dunlops are one of the newest tires on the market in the Extreme Performance Summer Tire category. for the price of $130-$150 range, these are undoubtedly one of the best tires on the market. Great ride comfort, not noisy, great sticky traction with great steering response. Highly recommended!!!!

 

It seems like the reviews for all ultra high performance tires talk about mushy steering feel, and most extreme performance tires report good steering feel. Could it be the lower treadwear rating (200 vs ~300-340) with a softer tread compound contributes to that? Is there a reason that extreme tires would generally have stiffer sidewalls? Anyone have experience with a longer wearing extreme performance tire?

[TSiWRX]

Pretty darn good. Not as good as the RE01Rs, but better than average fpor this type of tire. Did not degrade as much as I'd expected when the tread wore down.

 

That sounds good to me. Again, thank you.

 

I got 7,000mi out of mine , but there were like 7-9 autocrosses in there.

 

^ I guess I'll need someone else for this particular input!

[nm]

Is there a reason that extreme tires would generally have stiffer sidewalls?

Because extreme perf tires give up some comfort for handling.

[LRegvall]

Because extreme perf tires give up some comfort for handling.

 

Are there ultra high perf tires (with treadwear ratings in the 300s) with stiffer sidewalls? Is the price of stiff sidewalls a 200 treadwear rating (and 10,000 to 15,000 mile tire life)?

[nm]

FWIW, I autocrossed the Re01Rs today

versus the Dunlops

Pros:

Stiffer sidewall allows for lower pressures (yet for some reason is till more comfortable). I'm running like 6-8 PSI less, which is a good thing

Hold up better at full depth. I can barely tell I autocrossed them. They hold up really amazing.

I think they're somewhat more communicative.

 

 

Cons:

heats up slower. On the Dunlops, your first run actually can count. On the bridgestones, the first run is basically heating the tires half way through. For me the first run is throw away because I forgot the course

 

Unltimate grip is similar, except that the lower pressures allows better grip on the RE01-R.

Other characteristics are similar enough to not make a difference to someone like me (as in not very good).

 

Verdict, if they cost the same as the Dunlops, they'd be the choice for the LGT.

However, given that they don't I think the Dunlops are better value for money. this is unless the RE01Rs last quite a bit longer than the Dunlops. If so, I'll be buying RE01Rs next time (or whatever the next hot tire is)

 

Are there ultra high perf tires (with treadwear ratings in the 300s) with stiffer sidewalls? Is the price of stiff sidewalls a 200 treadwear rating (and 10,000 to 15,000 mile tire life)?

Treadwear ratings don't really tell you much at all. They're more of a marking gimmick. And in the performance segment, lower wear rating seem to be a sellinbg point. RE050A Pole positions (NOT RE050A or RE050) are pretty darn decent, and I was on track to do over 20k on them on my older car before it got totalled.

Edited September 29, 2008 by nm+

[Guest]

Interesting. I put the Dunlops on my car few days ago. I was under impression they would have stiffer sidewalls than RE-01R. But inded initial impression is that they are not that much improvement over GY F1-GSD3 I had before. I also went size larger (225/45/17 vs. 215/45/17) and a taller sidewall might contribute to that.

 

I run RE050A PP on the other (stock power wise) LGT. Excellent grip, very quiet. Wanted something more aggressive on the faster one, hence Dunlops.

Edited September 29, 2008 by unclemat

[nm]

Interesting. I put the Dunlops on my car few days ago. I was under impression they would have stiffer sidewalls than RE-01R. But inded initial impression is that they are not that much improvement over GY F1-GSD3 I had before. I also went size larger (225/45/17 vs. 215/45/17) and a taller sidewall might contribute to that.

With the exception of sidewall, the dunlops should be a noticable improvement in grip over the Goodyears. You'll have to push the car further than you thought it could go, but it will go there (I recommend doing this, at least intially on closed course, not an on-ramp )

It took me a few auto-crosses to figure out how much grip the dunlops had v. most other street tires.

The sidewall on the Dunlop is the weakest part of them. It's really soft. Autocross to prevent rollover I was around 50 PSI cold.

My RE01R cold pressure is ~46 PSI hot (don't know cold pressure yet)

[lawl]

yeah i hadnt really pushed the dunlops. can try some onramps/offramps later.

 

NVH- no difference from nitto neogen all seasons. but then again i guess i may have gotten accustomed to the roar from the rs2s. comfort also is about the same as the all seasons. honestly aside from the crazy amounts of grip it didnt feel different at all from the nittos.

[lawl]

i'll update later on after my track day.

 

i'm keeping driving to a minimum for awhile, at least until i find a set of daily driver wheels and tires. the treadwear is killer.

[MarkV]

Hai Guys, It's snowing here in New York.......don't know for how much longer, but am looking to upgrade my tires....from these Wretched RE92's:mad:

 

I have come down to a grand touring tire, the General Tire Altimax HP, and tire rack seems to have a great price on a variety of sizes.....

 

But my real question is....what do some of you enlightened ones think, or know should be a good size to upgrade to...?

 

I tried to read all the threads to just get a feel and it seems that just about if not everyone stayed with same profile range of 45, but the width varied from 215 - 235....

 

I am running low on my re92's, having about 4-6/32's on all the tires and need replacements for this snow season.

 

Any comments will help, thank you much

[doctorbrody]

#1) 225/55/17 Vredestein Wintrac Extreme (Winter) ($180 each) Driven 6000 miles on them so far (2005 OBXT, Stage 2.5)

 

#2) Driving in a nasty New England winter - from NYC to northern Maine, I've used the tires

 

#3) All street driving, no competition

 

#4) 50% highway, 50% backroads and city

 

#5) Tires used previously: Subi: RE92, Yokohama Advan S.4 (great all-season, but not a snow tire) - Landcruiser FJ62: Michelin A/T

 

#6) Compared to my Yoko all seasons, the Vredestein tires (tyres) are a night-and-day improvement in snow. Right now there's two inches of half ice-half slush and I just carved through it like the roads are clear and dry. Stopping distances are much shorter than with all-seasons. The Vreds are V-rated (rare on a true snow tire) and perform just fine on dry, sandy, salty pavement. Can't tell if they're noisy because my exhaust is louder than any tires I've ever heard. Nokian-expensive and even harder to find, but well worth it in my opinion. Purchased at Direct Tire in Peabody, MA.

[PhillyWilly]

Bridgestone RE01R 235/40/18 on 18x8 tarmac 3

 

Bought these tires when tirerack was closing them out and paid $490 shipped. Cant beat it for the money. Put them on this weekend and put about 200 miles on them. They handle amazing. I progressivelly pushed them through some corners and they just kept staying put. Finally got them to slide and it was freaking scary! No warning chirp and didnt slide like normal tires would. Sort of jumped and then grabbed the road again. I didnt expect these to be quiet by any means, but they are much louder than I expected and I now feel every bump and crack in the road. Feels like I went from driving a nice plush car to something with an old worn out suspension. But then I hit a corner and they remind me its worth the extra noise. Sidewalls are extrememly stiff. Running 37/35 psi and noticed no flex. I guess this review is worthless since theyre discontinued but thought I'd share.

[the_3d_man]

Goodyear Eagle F1 GS D3s - 215/45/17

 

I've had these tires for about 10 months now and around 17000 miles. As far as grip and handling go they have been the best tires I've ever had on any car. They have incredible stopping ability and they corner absolutely beautifully. I have no problem gunning it out of any turn and just letting the car sling shot me out of the turn. With the stock RE92s I found myself on several occasions scrambling to get the car back in a straight line after such a maneuver. I have only ever had these tires break loose on me when I was trying to get them to. A quick counter-steer gets the car back in line and glued down again. They are amazing.

 

They also have been pretty impressive in the rain. I haven't had any problems with hydroplaning and they still stop and corner pretty damn well.

 

They are a bit noisier than most tires but I don't mind. I have notice a little bit of tramlining but it's not horrible. (There's a certain section of highway that always gets me on the way home from work)

 

Now the bad part. In 17000 miles I have had some interesting wear patterns develop. On all 4 tires the center of the tread has worn down past the wear bars, but the outer edges of the tires have a little less than half the tread left. I know what you're thinking. I am running too high of pressure. Nope... I have been running about about 35psi front and back. The whole time I've had them. I know a lot of people on here run much more than that too and don't have this problem. I can't complain too much since I got 17000 miles out of a high performance tire, but still it's bothersome.

 

I don't think there's an alignment issue or anything going on here either (besides I don't think it would have caused all 4 tires to wear in almost the same way in the center). I really don't know what caused it. If any one else has had these tires I would like to hear if they had a similar experience.

 

Edit: I was wrong I actually have had them on for 17000 miles (I just went and looked at the receipt for them). So actually not too bad. I can't believe I've driven that much in less than 11 months. Damn...

Edited April 24, 2009 by the_3d_man

[gcoonley]

kumho SPT

 

Atlanta

 

Highways and lots of hard mountain roads. (Dragons Tail & Cherohala Skyway)

 

When I first got rid of the original POS's I tried the Kumho ECSTA ASX. They were a little better than the OEM tires, but not the razor sharpness I was hoping for. I switched them out in a week or two. I switched to the Kumho ECSTA SPT and they were a huge improvement. But still not completely what I was looking for. Then I read where they need to be inflated higher than what you would think. I started running 37 in the front and 35 in the back. This made another huge improvement. I now have the tire I was looking for.

 

I have about 12,0000 miles on the tires and I have not seen any bad wear patterns and I have not seen any drop off in performance. From the looks of the tires,

I probably have another 10,000 miles left on the tires.

 

For the price ($90 each) you cant beat the tire.

(Assuming you have the higher air pressure)

[gcoonley]

Sorry, I missed two pieces of information. They are 225 45 17.

 

Also, these tires don't do anything abrupt in hard corners. Going into a corner to fast and they are very forgiving.

 

BUT. These things will scare the crap out of your if the temperature is below 40.

On more than one occasion. I have had the rear try to pass the front on a curve.

 

Thank god for 4 wheel drive. Just kept my foot in it and let the front end pull through the curve.

 

But what gets me is you get used to hitting a curve or pulling out of a street at a certain speed or acceleration. I would say 70% of limit normally and these will just break loose and cause all sorts of excitement for your morning commute in the cold.

 

Spring and summer are here now so nothing to worry about for a while.

[issai]

#1) What tire are you offering for review (size, model, type (summer, A/s, winter, race, etc), price paid, miles driven on tires, etc):

215/45/17 BFGoodrich g-Force Sport UHP. Paid ~$600 / set @ recent Costco special. Driven few hundred miles as daily driver, most recently 80 miles @ Auto-X

training,

and 20 miles on track.

 

#2) What is your geographic location:

Los Angeles, CA

 

#3) What types of driving events if any (Track, AutoX, Commute , etc):

Commute, Auto-X, track

 

#4) Percent of highway vs. city driving:

70/30

 

#5) Tires used previously:

Nitto Neogen's came with car when I bought it almost 2 months ago. They had maybe 10K of life remaining. Forced to replace due to developing sidewall blister in driver side rear tire.

 

#6) Your review and personal comments (Dry, wet, and snow, if applicable. Also, please compare to other tires used):

g-Force NVH similar to my used Neogen's. Naturally, great dry traction. Noticeably more howling when car is rolling on them. Great grip during braking. Surprisingly great straight & turning wet traction, especially in wet mud on a road course (this was during the skidpad portion of the Auto-X training course). Unfortunately, it seems the mud tore up the "brand-new" look of the tire, with very obvious mottling over any surface which came in contact with the mud slurry. The mottled surface is quite soft and has a texture of gummy eraser rubber. This was on all 4 tires.

 

However, the jury is still out if the tire produces moderate tramlining, or if my center diff is acting up.

 

Again, I took an auto-X training course, so I'm not nearly as aggressive in Auto-X as some others in this thread.

Edited June 3, 2009 by issai

[praedet]

First, the update

#1) Goodyear Eagle F1 GS-D3 (245/40-17), Ultra (?) Performance Summer Tire, $240 each mounted w/ lifetime free replacement and balancing at Discount Tire, 12K Summer miles to date, and about 50 winter miles...

 

#2) Colorado

 

#3) Communting and canyon runs

 

#4) 60/40 Hwy/City

 

#5) RE92s, W300s, RS2s,

 

#6) This is an update to my post from before on these tires: At 12K miles, these were starting to get loud. This could be a two different things, or I have gone soft I have -1.6 degrees of camber in the front w/ 0 toe. They are a good bit wider than my winters. Because I am going to be doing a lot of HIGHWAY miles this summer, I wanted quieter tires. I also have rubbed JUST SLIGHTLY in the rear w/ the 17x8" +46 ET Prodrives when I was fully loaded. I also pay a penalty in gas mileage due to the extra width. So, I got rid of the Goodyears. I will discuss below what I got instead. These were still amazing in the rain, had great dry grip, and looked good in 245s Again, they do pick up rocks more than most tires. They are a better all around tire than any of my previous tires in the summer, and probably almost as good in PURE performance as an RS2 in the same size. They look like they will last another 12K miles. Are they worth the price...

 

The new tire

#1) Vredestein Ultrac Sessanta (225/45ZR17XL 94Y), Ultra High Performance Summer Tire, $165 each shipped and warrantied through Performance Plus Tire and mounted/balancing at Discount Tire, 500 Summer miles to date.

 

#2) Colorado

 

#3) Communting and canyon runs

 

#4) 60/40 Hwy/City

 

#5) RE92s, W300s, RS2s, F1 GS-D3

 

#6) All right, so I went searching for a summer tire that needed to 1) Not rub even with a HEAVY load when mounted on the 17x8" +46ET Prodrives. 2) Be quiet on the highway 3) Be good in the rain 4) Possibly help my mileage. Since I have R-compounds for the track, I don't have to have an all-out street tire. Plus, I will be driving about 1700 miles this summer w/ 800+ lbs in the back, so I was willing to sacrifice. So, I went searching around and found these on some other forums. First off, they are a good bit cheaper, per tire, than the Goodyears. Secondly, they are quieter than the Goodyears EVER were. Thirdly, they are narrower (due to the 225 vs. 245 width ) so they will get better gas mileage, make less noise for the exact same tread pattern, and be less likely to rub. Now the good part. So far pushing them to 8/10ths (about the highest I would EVER go on the road) I do not notice any difference between these and the Goodyears. Even though they are narrower, and cheaper, they are just as good IMHO. That includes in the wet So, I REALLY like them I think these are definitely worth it, and from the reading I have done they will last as long, or longer, than the Goodyears

Edited June 2, 2009 by praedet

[VTGT]

First, the update

#1) Goodyear Eagle F1 GS-D3 (245/40-17), Ultra (?) Performance Summer Tire, $240 each mounted w/ lifetime free replacement and balancing at Discount Tire, 12K Summer miles to date, and about 50 winter

 

I actually drove my Goodyear F1 Asymmetrics in the snow as well, and honestly they weren't much worse than the RE92's haha.

 

Do you think the Discount Tire lifetime free replacement is worth it? Do you only get one replacement tire? Wouldn't that be a problem if the tread depth was significantly different than the other three tires assuming the blow out happened after 2 years of purchase?

 

What is the best long lasting summer tire? I have been eating through summer tires. probably 14-15k from Toyo T1r's (9k from the previous owner). I think I may have gotten 13-14k out of my Goodyear Asymms.

 

I am also debating whether it may be worth just sticking some nice all-season tires on my 18 Prodrive GC05F's that will last me awhile. I just don't know if it is worth damaging them but I figure they could use a refinish by next summer anyways.

 

At least there are some nice all-seasons to choose from: Bridgestone Re960's, Goodyear F1 Allseason, BfGoodrich Super Sport A/S.

 

Decisions, Decisions.

[rporter]

I actually drove my Goodyear F1 Asymmetrics in the snow as well, and honestly they weren't much worse than the RE92's haha.

 

Do you think the Discount Tire lifetime free replacement is worth it? Do you only get one replacement tire? Wouldn't that be a problem if the tread depth was significantly different than the other three tires assuming the blow out happened after 2 years of purchase?

 

What is the best long lasting summer tire? I have been eating through summer tires. probably 14-15k from Toyo T1r's (9k from the previous owner). I think I may have gotten 13-14k out of my Goodyear Asymms.

 

I am also debating whether it may be worth just sticking some nice all-season tires on my 18 Prodrive GC05F's that will last me awhile. I just don't know if it is worth damaging them but I figure they could use a refinish by next summer anyways.

 

At least there are some nice all-seasons to choose from: Bridgestone Re960's, Goodyear F1 Allseason, BfGoodrich Super Sport A/S.

 

Decisions, Decisions.

 

I personally get the replacement warranty, as when I have had flats, they tend to be in the sidewall which is not repairable. DT just replaced one tire I had, no questions asked. I forget the mileage on them, but it was after about a year on summer tires.

 

Long-lasting summer tires? Kind of a contradiction in terms. A good summer tire will not last too long. Nonetheless, a couple of suggestions are the Michelin Pilot Exalto PE2 (I had these, worked well), the BFG KDW and the GY GS-D3 (friends had these, worked well for them).