slip304 Posted January 12, 2005 Share Posted January 12, 2005 Ok, I'm trying to decide between nitto 555's and dunlop sp sports fm901's. anybody have a first hand opinion on which would be better/worse?? looking at a 225-35-19 summer tire.. thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fbi012 Posted January 12, 2005 Share Posted January 12, 2005 shouldnt you install winter tire now? summer tires will come later. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Th3Franz Posted January 13, 2005 Share Posted January 13, 2005 Why only those two tires? I think you can do better. -Franz The end of a Legacy http://www.youtube.com/th3franz Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chucktoo Posted January 13, 2005 Share Posted January 13, 2005 Pole Position S-03 are great for the Summer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slip304 Posted January 13, 2005 Author Share Posted January 13, 2005 My stock all seasons seem to be working perfectly fine during these winter months. I honestly dont see a point to buying "snow" tires and I dont see a reason NOT to buy my summer tires now and have them ready for spring when the time comes. Some of the reason I've narrowed it down to these 2 is due to size and price so I was simply asking if anyone has first hand experience with these 2 tires, good or bad. Thanks again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kanoswrx Posted January 13, 2005 Share Posted January 13, 2005 Yeah, if you want some good tires look at the S-03's, Goodyear F1 GS-D3's, Michelin PS2's, or Toyo T1's. Those are usually the best rated tires for the summer. I ran the Goodyear's for 2 summers, they were really nice and amazing on the track and at auto-x's. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Xenonk Posted January 13, 2005 Share Posted January 13, 2005 what size are you looking at and the price that you are looking at? There are better tires than those two you mention for just a few dollars more per tire. Is this just for daily driving for the street anyways? You might want a better tire for rain use then. Nittos were developed under Toyo, but the compound are completely different. Dunlops have their strong points particularly per tire model, but it's unfortunate that the compound isnt as sticky as it can be and/or it doesnt match with the life of the tire very well. Keefe Keefe Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
racerdave Posted January 13, 2005 Share Posted January 13, 2005 Dunlops have their strong points particularly per tire model, but it's unfortunate that the compound isnt as sticky as it can be and/or it doesnt match with the life of the tire very well. Keefe That was my experience with Dunlop A2s. Ok, maybe it's not their best tire, but with like 1/2 tread depth left, the compound got way hard and slippery. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slip304 Posted January 13, 2005 Author Share Posted January 13, 2005 I was looking at a 225-35-19 tire to put on my 19x7 rims based on earlier posts about size and fitment, Now I'm being told by discount tire that a 215-35-19 will be more accurate on the speedo?? Is this right? I know tires vary a bit between brands but it still seems that a 215 would look skinny. I"m really just looking for a good performing tire for the summer so I dont need the BEST. I can understand spending top dollar for tires if you plan to race but I do not. Anyways, thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LeGreatOne Posted January 16, 2005 Share Posted January 16, 2005 Personally I would not go to such a low profile tire. If you drive on the street you need tires with substantial sidewalls, otherwise you'll be replacing your alloy wheels frequently. Not only that, but super low profile tires ride like rocks. Think 50 series or 45 series at the narrowest. For a pure SUMMER tire, I don't think you can do better than Bridgestone S03s. They have phenomenal grip in both dry and wet conditions. Like other HP tires, they will tramline, but they provide very light, quick, tossable response, and run on the WIDE side in regard to sizing. No joke! My S03's in 195/50 x 15 were nearly as wide as my Toyo T1S in 215/45 x 15. The S03s are altogether superior to the Toyos, in my humble opinion. They handle better, are just as good in the wet, and have much firmer sidewalls for quicker response and better wheel protection. The S03s have become my favorite summer tire. Don't buy high performance summer tires if you need the tires to last a long time. Most will provide 8,000 - 15,000 miles MAX, and then you'll have to replace them. Additionally, most will harden up if subjected to COLD temperatures, so expect to store them indoors in a heated environment. A COLD garage simply won't do. NONE of the max performance summer tires can be driven in snow. They are entirely unsuitable for cold conditions. Use true Winter tires. Max performance summer tires represent the epitome of tire evolution in regard to performance. However, there are compromises in ride quality, noise, tramlining, cost, wear, and storage requirements. Go to www.tirerack.com and read the Consumer Reviews for tire models that have caught your interest. Tirerack doesn't sell ALL makes/models of tires, but they do sell a lot of brands and the reviews are very informative. Other tire sales organizations also collect consumer reviews. Look for reviews at any tire sales store you find online. Regarding sizing, Tirerack's tire SPECS link will tell you the radius, the size around, of any tire size offered by the particular tire manufacturer. This is very helpful when you want to maintain the same radius as stock. FWIW, my base 2005 Legacy's speedometer seems to read on the high side. A taller tire would probably correct that reading. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
XT6Wagon Posted January 16, 2005 Share Posted January 16, 2005 S03's are horrible for the class/price. I guess they handle a bit better than stuff like kuhmo 712's and whatnot, but there is much better out there for the money than S03's. Like kuhmo MX's, BFG KD, BFG KDW, etc Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LeGreatOne Posted January 17, 2005 Share Posted January 17, 2005 Oh? I'd like to know where! S03's are exceptionally good handling summer tires. Take a look at most stock BMW M3s and you'll either see S02s or S03s, and the S03s are great wet weather tires, unlike the S02s. It's all in what you prefer, however. If you've had "Good Luck" with a particular make/model of tire, you're likely to recommend it. I've driven several different max performance tires, and the S03 is clearly the best of those I've used. We ARE speaking of STREETABLE summer tires. That excludes race tires, slicks, and tires that become slicks in wet weather. There are some popular autocross tires that are not at all suitable as street tires. Not everyone will like ANY summer tire, due to the necessity of changing them out when cooler temperatures arrive. Most tires have good and bad qualities. Use them in the appropriate environment and most will do the job for you. Some though, are clearly superior in their capabilities. The S03 is one of those tires. As they say, "your mileage may vary." Read the reviews and buy what you can afford. If you live in an area where it rains, think of WET weather performance as a priority. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Xenonk Posted January 17, 2005 Share Posted January 17, 2005 I think LeGreatOne has a misconception on what the profile series really mean. Any case, for a pure summer tire, one cannot beat a DOT street legal race tire for summer use (so yes, there are better tires than S03s, dont lock into those tires because Pirelli P Zero Corsas are cheaper and have some of the highest performance per dollar right now on http://www.tirerack.com ). I have a set of 255/35/18 tires that are thicker in sidewall than my 225/45/17 and it's obvious they are also thicker than my 225/40/18 tires. Dont let the number itself fool you thinking a "30" series tires are thin.. the number is part of the width. Unless you are planning to run the same width for a profile comparison, then you have a case. Keefe Keefe Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
XT6Wagon Posted January 17, 2005 Share Posted January 17, 2005 I've driven on most of the tires out there in this "class". The BFG's are unfortunately some of the few I've missed. The s03's flat are out of thier depth. One of the notiable issues I've found is that they have next to no traction under acceleration. I was riding in a wrx with a GT32 turbo kit, and first thing after a 3rd gear pull I asked is... "what tires does this have because it feels like it has S03's" Sure enough it did. The wheelspin present was very telling. It happens even before the engine really comes into boost. Other wrx's with far less torque have also shown these issues. Handling is merely so-so for the class. S02's are certainly better. They also have jack for tread life. A set of S03's with 8K miles looks little better than my 20K mile set of RE-070's. They are quite simply the most over rated tire I have ever encountered. I think far far to many people go from tires that are low budget summers (IE POS allseasons with a "agressive" look to the tread), or from middling 3 season tires like kuhmo 712's. Then they are astonished how much better even the worst of the ultra high performance summer tires are. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LeGreatOne Posted January 17, 2005 Share Posted January 17, 2005 Regarding the profile, sure if you go really wide then you're going to get more sidewall. Going really wide usually means you also have to buy wider wheels or your sidewalls will be rolling over in turns. If you have the wheels and you want monstrously wide footprints, then of course you can go 30 series. Note that we've all seen the bling-bling cars with 20 inch wheels wearing 30 series tires that are NOT wide enough to provide much of a sidewall. THAT'S what I'd advise against. That's the kind of "bargain deal" some wheel & tire sellers are advertising. Too many see that sort of thing on TV, then they see it on a friend's car, and then they go spend their money on such a setup only to find they've bent a wheel within a week's time. My point is that for most typical sizes, you're not going to get much sidewall with a 30 or 40 series tire. If you drive typical city/suburban pavement that's not in the best condition you WILL subject those fancy wheels to damage. On smooth highway, no bumps, you'd not have a problem. How many of us actually have 90% or more smooth highway? Regarding the Pirelli P-Zero Corsas, I haven't tried those. They certainly LOOK good, but Tirerack has only SEVEN reviews of the Corsa and TWO of them complain about the tire cupping. Additionally, Pirelli's own words on Tirerack's site state "The P Zero Corsa is not recommended for driving on extremely wet roads where there is the risk of hydroplaning." The Corsa is a DOT-legal racing tire that may be fine on dry tracks, but clearly can't handle rain. In the Real-World, folks drive in the rain. S03's work in the rain. If you're having difficulty launching S03s perhaps you don't have the right size for the application; could be air pressure, I don't know. It could also be that the tires were stored in a non-heated environment over the winter (very bad for most HP tires.). My turbo Miata stuck like glue with 195/50 x 15 S03s on 15 x 7 inch wheels, and that's NOT an insignificant task given the car is only 2200 lbs and develops about 225 HP at the rear wheels (This is an FM 2 (www.flyinMiata.com) not the underpowered Mazdaspeed Miata, although that is a very nice car.) Additionally, the grip in turns and the response for quick maneuvers is exceptional. As to S02's, they don't have the wet grip that S03's do, but many like them for dry road performance. However, to be more REASONABLE in our biases, let's consider the audience. How many of us will forego all-seasons (if only there were such tires) in favor of changing tires for the season? How many of us expect to take our cars to the track on STREET tires, when we know we can get "use 'em once and then throw 'em away tires" for a good price? I can count THREE tire enthusiasts in this thread. The percentage of people willing to WASTE tires for the pure enjoyment of it is rather small, don'tcha think? I like the S03's. Could they be improved? Sure! But they do enough things exceptionally well, they have firm sidewalls for wheel protection, and they WORK in the wet and in the Real-World. Once again, we all have our biases. These are mine. Do I think Joe average in his station wagon will like S03's? Probably not, because Joe Average wants a long lasting tire that rides extra smooth and quiet. Joe Average is going to go with a typical all-season offering and it will suit his purpose just fine (until Winter comes.) Nothing wrong with that. Choose a tire that suits your purpose. REPORT on the tire! Write a review! Let's share information and opinions here. ...And lest you think not, I DO value your opinions. Others' opinions are what I look for when I research ANY product. I'm much more likely to try a product based upon favorable reviews. Collectively, we become smarter, about everything. PS. I apologize. I did it again. I wrote a book instead of a simple paragraph. It's my nature to be wordy... DO forgive me, please. PPS. Don't forget that the larger the wheel, the heavier it's going to be, and that affects ride quality, handling, and suspension components negatively. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amason Posted January 17, 2005 Share Posted January 17, 2005 I was looking at a 225-35-19 tire to put on my 19x7 rims based on earlier posts about size and fitment, Now I'm being told by discount tire that a 215-35-19 will be more accurate on the speedo?? Is this right? I know tires vary a bit between brands but it still seems that a 215 would look skinny. I"m really just looking for a good performing tire for the summer so I dont need the BEST. I can understand spending top dollar for tires if you plan to race but I do not. Anyways, thanks. This site has a good calculator that lets you compare any two tire sizes, so enter your stock size, and whatever you'd like to compare to: http://www.miata.net/garage/tirecalc.html Also, note that others have mentioned that the RE92 has a relatively narrow tread for it's overall width, so a 215 may well look just fine. My 205/50/17 winter tires look as wide as the 215 RE92's, so there's one reference for you. Andy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
XT6Wagon Posted January 17, 2005 Share Posted January 17, 2005 amason, the RE-92A's on the LGT isn't a normal size. Its a subaru specific one so I'd really really hesitate to use the tirerack sizes for the off the shelf RE-92. I base this on the small fact that ALL of the tires I have so far have been smaller in diamiter than the stock tires. This includes 225/45R17 RE-070's, 225/45R17 pilot sport A/S, 245/40R17 hooisers. Heck the hoosiers were comical as it looked almost like a AutoX civic with the 13" rims and race tires, IE small diamiter and sticking way out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slip304 Posted January 18, 2005 Author Share Posted January 18, 2005 Well.. After much debate here on the board and locally I've decided to go with a 19x7 rim and a 215-35-19 nitto neo gen tire.. Probably NOT the choice of most of you and I can totally respect that but what fun would it be if we all ran the same wheel-tire set up. I have them now and I'm very happy with the over all look. I'll mount em come spring and report back my opinion, good/bad/otherwise. Thanks for all the advice. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Xenonk Posted January 18, 2005 Share Posted January 18, 2005 But I run all of the tire and rims sizes like most of guys do.. When it's my time again to get another set of rims, expect me to get 19x8.5 with a 255/30/19 instead Keefe Keefe Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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