Compendium of Tire Reviews: Please sticky

Goodyear Ultra Grip Ice update... see a few posts above for part 1.

 

I ran them through my calibrated test puddle (well, sorta calibrated - it's just really consistent on rainy days) and they do much better than the stock tires or the Blizzak WS-45s on my old car. No hydroplaning, and much less resistance felt.

 

Spent almost an hour in slush the other day... As noted above, these are much better in slush than the stock tires. They didn't get squirrely until much higher speeds (like 60 vs 40). I had no incidents, but I think they inspire too much confidence.

#1) What tire are you offering for review (size, model, type (summer, A/s, winter, race, etc), price paid, miles driven on tires, etc): 2nd set, BFGoodrich g-Force SPORT | 215/45/17 | Summer 340 AA A | $500+/- | mi???

 

#2) What is your geographic location: SO CAL

 

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

 

#4) Percent of highway vs. city driving: 70/30

 

#5) Tires used previously: RE92[almost got me killed] / BFGoodrich g-Force sport

 

#6) Your review and personal comments: Being going on mountain roads about 2-3 times a week faithfully for couple months now. I believe this is the best summer tire for the money; as I do more handling/steering mods (full coilovers, LCA offset bushing, steering rack bushing, front strut tower bar, RSB...etc) , I get an even better idea of how well these tires grip. And they should last you over a year if you don't abuse it like i do.

 

http://www.uploadfile.info/uploads/92e48f90e2.jpg

No, no, and, um, no. The first is a streetable track tire, the last is an all season, dont know about the middle cheapo you ask about.

 

Since you're not asking about comparable tires, and you're thread-jacking, why dont you do some reading about tires in the forum first, and then start your own thread, listing the things you want out of a tire, because you obviously dont know what you're looking for.

 

Tire number 3 is a summer tire, not an all season.

 

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires.jsp?tireMake=Kumho&tireModel=ECSTA+SPT&vehicleSearch=false&partnum=05VR5KU31&fromCompare1=yes&place=1

 

If you're going to be rude (for no apparent reason) you should at least be correct.

This past weekend was my first experience in the snow with these Kumho ASX's.

 

They were fantastic in the snow. Better than the 92's.

Tire number 3 is a summer tire, not an all season.

 

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires.jsp?tireMake=Kumho&tireModel=ECSTA+SPT&vehicleSearch=false&partnum=05VR5KU31&fromCompare1=yes&place=1

 

If you're going to be rude (for no apparent reason) you should at least be correct.

 

LOL OWN3D!!.. i've asked questions like RaGe did when I was new to fourms and some people like this foo would post a worthless comment trying to power trip hoping to gain self-respect. YO MR. KNOW IT ALL, feeling better about yourself??? maybe... felt some self esteem there???

agreed the post to you can be taken as a bit harsh. but i believe the concern is that your comments were not on the topic of this thread. could the comments in the other post have been more kind...yes, but here's where we are. back on topic now:

 

Folks,

 

I think it's a good idea to have one thread with all tire reviews for our cars, like NASIOC does it. There are tons of reviews in here, but I think the information will be more useful for everyone if it is located in one thread.

 

Please Sticky so that folks may have all tire info along with Keefe's great Wheel/Tire FAQ. For all posts, please answer the following questions. (I'm still rocking the stockers, so I can't post any helpful info at this time). thanks

 

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

 

#2) What is your geographic location:

 

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

 

#4) Percent of highway vs. city driving:

 

#5) Tires used previously:

 

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

 

I'm probably missing something here, but if RaGe asks about the three tires, isn't that like asking someone to post the 6-point info on the three tires? Not consistent with the thread? Anyway:

 

1) BFG GForce KDW2, 225/45-17 Summer UltraHighPerformance. They were around $125 from Tire Rack. I've driven around 6,000 miles on them.

 

2) Located in Southern California, near twisty canyon roads, twisty Santa Monica Mountain ridgelines, creative on ramps and off ramps and them stinkin freeways (and not too far from the Sierras).

 

3) No track driving. Business and recreational driving.

 

4) 20% City 45% Freeway and 30% mixed

 

5) I had only the RE92s on the LGT. I agree with the consensus - they enhance all the bad qualities of the OEM chassis.

 

6) These tires are very sticky (especially compared to the Pirellis, Michelins, Dunlops I've had in the past). I've had the KDW1s on my other car (SVT Contour) since I got it (on my third set). The Tire Rack tests are very positive about their dry adhesion and response and I agree. Their rain stick is also incredible. I feel very safe in the rain with them. They are very resistant to hydroplaning (I've taken them progressively to north of 80mph in a driving rain storm with standing water and they stayed glued) and they stick well in the rain. No snow experience but wouldn't expect too much. They last well. I've gotten around 45,000 on the KDW1s and will see how the KDW2s hold up. Their biggest downside is noise. They have a bit of howl to them. Most of the time this doesn't bother me. I attribute this to being a sticky tire that lasts a long time (or maybe they're just a little noisy). I shopped the Kumho Ecsta SPT and the Avon Tech M500 at the same time (the Tire Rack guy said the General Exclaim UHP tested well initially but dropped off quickly; would be curious about the experience on this, but I'll be sure to search it first) each of which sounded pretty good. In the end, I just wanted to try the new version of the KDW.

Time to update on my LM-25s:

 

1) B'stone LM-25 performance winter, 205/50/VR17 on the stock 17x7 rims. bought used with abt 1000 mi on them, and you don't want to know how good a deal I got . I now have 5500 mi on them.

 

2) New England location - we've had cold, rain, snow, a little ice, and up to 70 F temps here, so this tire has surprisingly seen it all this winter. Mix of highway, high speed and curvy crappy roads laid out 250 years ago and paved as an afterthought. Lots of potholes and road imperfections, but the hwys are smooth as glass, in parts anyway.

 

3) LOL I track these all the time! j/k. standard road driving on this commuter

 

4) Mix of abt 60 % backroads and 40 % hwy

 

5) Had the craptastic RE92 on these rims for abt 10k mi. Then I run the FANtastic RE 050A in 225/45/ZR17 on BBS RK 17x7 rims for summer.

 

While the LM-25 is better than the RE-92 in EVERY way, including dry grip at 70 F (this is likely to reverse itself as you get into truly warm temps, so dont get the idea that the LM 25 is a decent all-rounder), the tire is not up to the standard of the RE 050A in _any_ of the ways I was hoping it would be. Specifically I am referring to ride quality, noise (loudness over road imperfections), and bump damping. Hit a bump, you feel it with these tires, almost as badly as you will with the RE-92. Turn in is quite good for a performance winter, so no complaints there. Cruising ride comfort is fine - the tire is definitely firmer than the RE92. Finally, the tire is a little floaty, not much of an improvement in this regard over the RE 92

 

What I am impressed with: Cold traction! In both dry and wet, the LM-25 has excellent grip for a winter tire. Below 20 F or so, it is still good when the roads are dry - you can push it, although I dont push very hard in these conditions. Wet grip just above freezing is just fine, confidence inspiring, although again, I dont push in these conditions. Snow grip is quite good too - the tire does find purchase in the snow, I've run it as deep as abt 3 inches and no probs. I have not seen significant slush with these tires.

 

Not impressed: Ice traction. It may not suck, but it ain't good. This is a V rated tire- I would not get a V again, but these sort of fell into my lap, so I'm stuck with them. I don't like the poor ice traction - and this is one reason to get winter tires.

 

The VERDICT: These tires are excellent overall, but I wouldn't recommend them. The reason is that I want a winter tire that has good ice traction; the most dangerous thing you'll encounter. Second, I'd prefer a less boomy ride over road imperfections, minor point. It's pretty firm for a winter tire.. In every other way this is a very good tire, and if you dont care about ice at all, then I'd recommend it.

Okay, here's another review : These tires were run on my RX-8 for winter. This is very similar to the above review on the LM-25, but bottom line is I think the TS810 is a better winter tire.

 

1) Continental ContiWinterContact TS810 (CWCTS810 for short) performance winter, 225/50/HR17 on Mazda 3 5 spoke stock 17x6.5 rims. I now have 4500 mi on them.

 

2) New England location - we've had cold, rain, snow, a little ice, and up to 70 F temps here, so this tire has surprisingly seen it all this winter. Mix of highway, high speed and curvy crappy roads laid out 250 years ago and paved as an afterthought. Lots of potholes and road imperfections, but the hwys are smooth as glass, in parts anyway.

 

3) LOL I track these all the time! j/k. standard road driving on this car. Do take the occasional corner, um, a little faster than is perhaps advised.

 

4) Mix of abt 40 % backroads and 60 % hwy

 

5) Comparing directly to the LM-25 above. Generally speaking, this tire felt a little more secure in conditions where there was some form of water on the road near or below freezing. This is H-rated whereas the LM-25 is V rated - that has something to do with it, but not all IMO. This compound on the ts810 is a good balanced winter compound. Dry performance is very good, wet performance is great - you dont really notice that its wet out when above 35 F. Snow performance is good - better traction than the LM-25. Ice seems a little better but here it is difficult to really draw a comparison. The reason is that my RX-8 is brand new, and RWD, so if I felt even the slightest hint of lost traction, I'd slow down, not wanting to meet a tree with the lovely ass of my car. In the LGT, I'd slow down, but it felt like the limit in icy conditions with the LM-25 was lower - I'd feel all four slip. But I'd let them slip more when driving the LGT than I'd let my wheels slip driving the 8. OTOH, very little understeer obseverd with the 8 under these conditions, so I tend to think that I'd slow down more than enough to keep the rears on the road than was necessary. Tehre was one occasion where I was at a stop sign on an incline, and my car was sitting on ice. I could not move :\ and needed a push. Not going to take away points for that.

 

What I am impressed with: Cold traction! In both dry and wet, this tire, like the LM-25, has excellent grip for a winter tire. Below 20 F or so, it is still good when the roads are dry - you can push it. Wet grip just above freezing is just fine, confidence inspiring, although again, I dont push in these conditions. Snow grip is quite good too. Slush okay.

 

Not impressed: Um, tough to say. I'd like better ice traction, but for this I think I need to go to a full-on snow tire like the blizzak REVO. No thanks, not at this time

 

The VERDICT: These tires are excellent and I recommend them. The grip is fine considering conditions, under all conditions. The ride is very smooth and also very quiet.

 

This is what I expect out of conti's. I like these tires a lot and will probably purchase again. We'll see how they perform when worn in about 3 yrs.

 

Updated my reviews in post 19

#1) Bridgestone Potenza RE050A Pole Position 225/45/17 on stock wheels - Summer tires - price paid ... well, I got the buddy deal. $529 out the door with mounting, balancing. I opted to skip the Road Hazard program this time since I learned Firestone won't prorate the use for 4 new tires if you need to replace them all. I figure I'll take the money I saved and hope I never have to use it.

 

41,800 miles on car at time of new tires

 

#2) Minneapolis, MN

 

#3) Standard city driving, Commuting, Some aggressive leisure driving.

 

#4) Probably 50/50 highway/city driving

 

#5) Coming fresh off of Blizzak LM-25 winter tires and of course had Stock RE92 last year

 

#6) Early review. Bought these tires this morning. The 80 degree temps we saw on Monday convinced me I couldn't keep running the Blizzaks any longer into the spring and I'm just barely convinced it isn't going to snow anymore.

 

The first thing I noticed is how square the tires look on the wheels. I was worried about them being flared by using a 225 tire on a 7" wide stock wheel. The tires have nice and firm sidewalls, there is some tramlining on deeply rutted roads where I hadn't noticed any tramlining on the Blizzaks. The steering response, handling, and steering feeback is excellent. Today is rainy and wet, so traction is currently un-tested, but initial impressions seem to indicate they hold just fine in the wet. No signs of hydroplaning. The other thing that's great about these tires is how QUIET they are! They have a variable width tread block so that at cruising speeds, the treads don't cause a droning because the variable tread block width creates a variable pitch. Cool stuff. More updates to come.

 

6/12/07 - *** Edit: Ignore noise comments in this update, see below *** 3500 mile update. These tires have become obtrusively noisy. So much so that I've had 4 people comment on it in the last two weeks. One of them being my mother who doesn't normally notice such things, another being a buddy with an S2000 running Bridgestone S-02. They still handle and brake great, but unless I can find a way to quiet these suckers down, I'll be looking elsewhere on my next set of tires. It could be a tire pressure related issue, but it doesn't seem to be having an effect so far. I'm really hoping I can figure out how to get these closer to the sound level they were when I first had them mounted because they were so quiet then. I don't understand how in a short 3500 miles they've become so damned loud.

 

7/6/07 - 5,000 mile update. These tires are still silly quiet!!!! Turns out I had a bad rear wheel bearing and it sounded like tire noise from all over. As soon as the wheel bearing was replaced, all noise went away and it sounds like a new car! No issues with the tires whatsoever. Will be driving 400 miles this weekend so I'll have a good chance to see how they compare to the same drive I did last weekend.

 

8/22/07 - 7,500 miles. Tires rotated at 49,400 miles on Odometer.

 

9/29/07 - 9,000 mile update. Still happy with how quiet these tires are. After the tire rotation, they were riding really harsh. After two days, I found the monkeys at the shop just rotated the tires front to back, but didn't bother to adjust pressure, so I was riding about 36f/39r. Re-adjusted to 44f/41r, and currently running 41f/38r. Having firmer pressure in front seems to be crucial to a smoother ride for these tires. I'm still very happy with how connected they feel to the road and how quickly they set in turns. It really took out all of that floaty feeling I was always spooked by with the stock rubber - and that isn't just because of tire pressure, the tires feel better at MFG Recommended pressures also. I'm still thrilled with my purchase on these tires and recommend them to anyone looking for a max performance summer tire.

 

11/9/07 - 11,500 mile update. 53,200 miles on car and retiring these for the winter, going back to Blizzak LM-25 for snows. The RE050A PP has been a great tire all summer. I've played with tire pressure on these and run them anywhere from the Subaru recommended 35/33 up to 44/41. I like the firmer pressure, but ride can be a tad harsh. They seem to offer the best compromise around 39/36 or so. I still think these tires are very quiet, very responsive, and nice and sticky. I can't wait to get them back on the car in the spring (after ski season).

I just put on some toyo proxes yesterday afternoon. I've been looking for a reason to ditch the bridgestones, so after the four patches in one, and two in another, I decided to upgrade. I'm in Az, haven't had a chance to really test them out, but the ride quality is 100% better, and they look a lot better to. I stayed with the stock size, and payed $120 a tire.

After my mishap last night I have decided to get new tyres. The stock tyres I have are the Bridgestone Potenza 92C with only 5,000km on the clock. They are crap in dry as well as in snow.

By reading the above posts it looks like Goodyear Ealge F1 GS-D3 (215/45 ZR17) is the answer. Any further comments in this regard will be appreciated. I will post photos of the rim damage I sustained in the photo section.

Thanks.

After my mishap last night I have decided to get new tyres. The stock tyres I have are the Bridgestone Potenza 92C with only 5,000km on the clock. They are crap in dry as well as in snow.

By reading the above posts it looks like Goodyear Ealge F1 GS-D3 (215/45 ZR17) is the answer. Any further comments in this regard will be appreciated. I will post photos of the rim damage I sustained in the photo section.

Thanks.

Are there reasons not to go with a 225/45-17 size? For me the extra tread width was worth the slightly taller sidewall. I also think it looks better. But curious if anyone sees reasons to the contrary.

After my mishap last night I have decided to get new tyres. The stock tyres I have are the Bridgestone Potenza 92C with only 5,000km on the clock. They are crap in dry as well as in snow.

By reading the above posts it looks like Goodyear Ealge F1 GS-D3 (215/45 ZR17) is the answer. Any further comments in this regard will be appreciated. I will post photos of the rim damage I sustained in the photo section.

Thanks.

 

Not to take this thread way too off topic (you may want to post your question elsewhere), the F1's are summer tires. If that is what you are looking for, go ahead. If you need A/S tires, I can recommend the 960AS. There is a whole thread in here dedicated to them, and my lengthy review in this very thread.

 

Happy trails.

Not to take this thread way too off topic (you may want to post your question elsewhere), the F1's are summer tires. If that is what you are looking for, go ahead. If you need A/S tires, I can recommend the 960AS. There is a whole thread in here dedicated to them, and my lengthy review in this very thread.

 

Happy trails.

 

please let him get the F1's so he can screw up his car again- maybe THIS time it might be the tires' fault.

Are there reasons not to go with a 225/45-17 size? For me the extra tread width was worth the slightly taller sidewall. I also think it looks better. But curious if anyone sees reasons to the contrary.

 

doesn't make that much of a difference. go with whatever you want-no reason not to

#1) Hankook W300 IceBear (225/45-17), High Performance Winter Tire, $140 each mounted w/ lifetime free replacement and balancing at Discount Tire, 10K winter miles to date...

 

#2) Currently Colorado, but also used in Ohio

 

#3) Simply communting and playing in parking lots with these

 

#4) 60/40 Hwy/City now, 25/75 in Ohio

 

#5) RE92s

 

#6) These were better than the RE92s in all areas. I do not feel the RE92s were bad by any means, but I did not expect the increased dry performance that these provided. (Even up to 80 degrees F) They have better hydroplane resistance than the RE92s, and stiffer sidewalls. This means that there is a slightly stiffer ride. Wear is good and I think that 25K winter miles is possible with these. Snow perfomance is almost as good as Nokian WRs when new, and better than older WRs. Ice is so-so, but this is a performance winter, not a studded tire. Overall I would gt them again, but I think I will be testing out some Dunlop's instead next winter.

 

#1) Hankook RS-2 Z212 (225/45-17), Ultra (?) Performance Summer Tire, $125 each mounted w/ lifetime free replacement and balancing at Discount Tire, 11K summer miles to date, but sold to a friend...

 

#2) Currently Colorado, but also used in Ohio

 

#3) Communting, canyon runs, and a long trip cross-country

 

#4) 60/40 Hwy/City now, 25/75 in Ohio

 

#5) RE92s, W300 IceBears

 

#6) These have an amazing amount of grip vs. the RE92s or the W300s. The turn-in is crisp enough that I truly have to adapt to them. I find that I can increase max cornering speeds by almost 100% of any posted speed. From experience w/ the previous Azenis (Not the 615s) I feel these are 95% as good in the dry, and infinitely better in standing water, resisting hydroplaning quite well. They are about as stiff as the W300s (stiffer than the RE92s) but make more noise. At 11K miles I think they will last about another 6-8K miles. They definitely have gotten louder as they have worn. If I was looking for an Auto-x tire, this would be it. Since I have R-compuounds now, I am moving on to the Goodyear's below...

If there is a mod with balls, it'd be great if you could walk through this thread and delete all of the posts not on topic.

 

 

done

re-opened - keep it on topic and I'll toss out infractions like candy at Halloween

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

 

Continental SportContact 3s, 225/17/45, summer performance, $735 installed and balanced on BBS RKs, ~1,300 miles so far

 

#2) What is your geographic location:

 

West Simsbury, Connecticut

 

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

 

DD, no events

 

#4) Percent of highway vs. city driving:

 

50/50 - it's ~22 miles to work on secondary roads, but have frequent trips to Boston, MA area (~120 miles each way)

 

#5) Tires used previously:

 

RE-92s (OEM), Hankook Icebear W300 (205/50/17, this winter)

 

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

 

Great tires. Only used in wet and dry, as Icebears on stockers are for winter.

 

Much quieter than either prior tire. Better gas mileage than either prior tire (~1.5-2 mpg better than icebears).

 

Much stickier, better braking, no squeal on corners that previously strained the RE-92s - drive through instead of slide through. 2x posted limit is good rule of thump for most turns without stressing tires.

 

While I was looking at the Goodyear F1GSD3s, they would have been higher priced, and I think, more likely to be louder due to tread design.

 

I'd recommend them to willing to spend more for something other than the korean manufacturers - which I haven't tried, so I won't knock.

#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, 1K 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) Well, I increased in width about .5-.75" per tire, so the extra grip on these vs. the Hankooks could easily be attributed to that. They are much quieter than close to worn-out RS2s, that is for sure. In the rain, I have not found their limits, but I have not pushed them as hard as the dry. In the dry, I have not found a corner yet that can't betaken at more than double the posting. Much like most people say, 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. Are they worth the price...

 

I did get to try these in snow. I wish I didn't, but my snows will not fit over the brakes. I made it home driving VERY slow. My only possible problem came in the 4-wheel drift I had to do up the driveway to get in the garage

THEY ARE NOT SNOW TIRES

^ Thanks for that update, praedet.

 

Now, the question for you, my brother Ted, is whether you think these would be a worthy "investment" over the RS2s, when it comes to rain.

 

I know you haven't pushed as hard in the wet (and honestly, who would!?), but given that I'm nowhere near as spirited a driver as you are, how would you rate, say, the straight-line hydroplane resistance of the RS2s versus the GS-D3s, especially at either normal surface-street speeds or even at slightly-over-legal highway speeds?

 

So far, in a straight-line faced with DEEP puddles, these are better. Add to that they are quieter and will last at least 2x as long, and the F1s are pretty good But, they are roughly 2X more expensive

^ Thanks for that update, praedet.

 

Now, the question for you, my brother Ted, is whether you think these would be a worthy "investment" over the RS2s, when it comes to rain.

Very pleased with the street performance of my F1's in the rain.

^ Thanks, gents.

 

Looks like I might actually just pony-up the bucks for the F1s, after all, since safety w/baby-Anna in the car is of utmost priority.