tires

[LL - NY]

If you're looking for all out dry/wet street tires, you will have to add the
Dunlop Direzza Z-1's to the list. Same class of tire as the Falken RT615, BS
RE01R's, being run by members of other forums on RX8's and WRX's and they're
finding that they have a bit more to give than the RE01R's in track
conditions, and have the same wet performance at the BS's, which makes them
better performers than the RT615. Ride isn't as nice as the BS's however. TR
seems to concur.

I am running Nokian WR G2's ATM on the Saabaru. Surprisingly good in the dry
and wet, VG on sticky or deep snow and slush, but quite mediocre on powder,
no matter how deep or shallow. Got the opportunity to verify that again
during last Friday's storm.

As for the GY F1 GSD3, for the price, I think an excellent tire. On the
street, an excellent tire. At the track, either I've become way to used to
R-rubber, or the TR review was a bit too much of a superlative, but at a
very wet Divisionals event two seasons ago, I took the chance and ran them
for one run in standing water and although predictable, they were not grippy
at all (read, slow). Switched to the DOT-R's, and immediately gained 4
seconds on a 48 second course, with more controllability. Still standing
water. And there is (other than the two required circumferal grooves) no
visible tread pattern. In terms of cold performance, the GY's got dicey
around 37 degrees in the wet on the street (had to wait a week for my WR's
to show up).

Taka didn't mention that he's also driven Falken FK451's on my UrS. They are
VERY grippy, quiet tires but the carcass seems a bit more touring oriented,
so they aren't as responsive as I was hoping they would be, but their
successors (the FK452) may be of worthwhile alternative if someone is
looking for a very high performance quiet tire (they're multiple steps above
a touring tire, but they seem to have a decent ride and did I mention that
they are quiet?), i.e. have a good part of the fun, but keep the misses
happy. These tires are also summer only.

As for Kumho's, I've had the Ecsta Supra 712's on my 200Q. Similar opinions
as peeps have been saying about the 711's, but for the $$$ not a bad deal.
They do get noisy as they wear. FWIW, many on the Saabaru list are EXTREMELY
happy with the Kumho ASX, although when I do eventually have to replace my
Goodyear F1's I'm considering the BFG SuperSport A/S, which impressed the
reviewers at Road and Track to the point that they claim it has
revolutionized the UHP all season market.

LL - NY

On 2/24/08, Taka Mizutani <t44tqtro at gmail.com> wrote:
>
> I've pretty much heard unequivocally that Michelin tires are the best in
> terms of quality from many shops that run the range from medium and
> heavy-duty truck tire places to places that run mostly race cars and
> sports
> cars.
>
> Michelin PS2 have been the most civilized summer tire that I've driven in
> a
> long time, compared to the following:
>
> Bridgestone RE-01R
> Falken RT-615
> Continental SC2
> Bridgestone RE-050 (don't know the variant)
> Bridgestone RE-070
> Yokohama A-046
> Dunlop SP Sport Maxx (this was close in terms of noise and comfort, albeit
> brand-new tires)
> Michelin Pilot Sport
> Michelin MXX3
> Sumitomo HTR-ZII
> Bridgestone RE-040
> Dunlop SP 9000 (these vary depending on if they are German-made versions
> or
> not)
> Goodyear F1 GSD3
> Yokohama AVS Sport
> Dunlop SP 8000E
> Yokohama AVS Intermediate (these were very good, but eclipsed a long time
> ago in terms of treadwear and performance)
> Bridgestone RE-71
>
> I'd run the PS2s over all of these unless I wanted an all-out dry
> performance tire at the expense of any other considerations. For that
> purpose, I would run either Bridgestone RE-01R, RE-070 (if avail. in the
> appropriate size) or Falken RT-615. I would also pay the price premium for
> the Michelins- I'm very happy with my current set on the V70R.
>
> I'm running RE-01R on the Miata and RE-070 on the STi.
>
> BTW, none of these tires is really any good at temps below 38-40F,
> borderline deadly if it's that cold _and_ wet and/or snowy.
>
> I run Nokian WR for winter tires, will switch over the STi and the Miata
> to
> WR G2 when the current tires need replacement.
>
>
> Taka
>
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