Tom F

I have a set of D40M2's on my '83 Targa, which are finally worn out. I am disappointed that Dunlop no longer makes them, because they were my favorite all around tire on the torsion bar equipped 911. Can anyone say whether the SP8000s are comparable? Can anyone recommend the closest thing available today?

I am big into decent ride and low noise, by the way. For instance, I drove a car with the Yoko AVS sports recently, and I did not like them at all - too noisy and harsh. I have a dedicated set of wheels and tires for autocrossing.

Thanks in advance!

P.S. For those who read my earlier post about the contamination in my fuel system, I did an a flow test on my injectors and found over 100% variation, from the lowest to the highest. I put in a spare set of injectors, and the difference went to under 15%, a little more than the 10% that Porsche allows. (I measured a rate of around 225 cc's per minute at full load position.) The car is running well now, though I have a lingering concern about latent CRUD. We'll just have to see how it works.

Bill Gregory

Tom,

I know what you mean about the D40M2's. I had them on my SC and they were a great tire. When I got new tires for my C2, I went with the Bridgestone S03's, and would recommend them. Better stick in the dry, good in the rain, and I can't say that road noise stands out in my mind. Another reason for picking them was I wanted a newer tire that would likely be around in 4 years when I had to replace the rears. If you want to read a gaggle of user comments, visit the Tire Rack web site.

addictionms

I have a set of SP8000 on one of my cars, they are smooth and low on noise, but are lacking in grip compaired to the Toyo Proxies RA1s I have on my other car, also smooth and even less noise. how much grip are you willing to give up for long life of you tire? Toyos last about 10K miles, and the dunlops have lasted me about 20K miles.

I drive pretty hard, almost every time I take the car out I have it drifting in the back roads of northern CA. So your mileage may be better.....

zzopit

I had the D40M2s on a previous car (BMW) and currently have a set of 8000s (16") on my 84 Carrera. Considering the price vs. other ZR tires I am quite happy with them. With about 1000 miles, they show no wear and the ride is firm/tight and quiet.

These are probably one of the better values in ZRs unless you go to the Kumhos or Falkens or other smaller brand. Go with them... <img src="graemlins/a_smil17.gif" border="0" alt="[blabla]" /> <img src="graemlins/a_smil17.gif" border="0" alt="[blabla]" /> <img src="graemlins/a_smil17.gif" border="0" alt="[blabla]" />

Bill Gregory

[quote]<strong>I have a set of SP8000 on one of my cars, they are smooth and low on noise, but are lacking in grip compaired to the Toyo Proxies RA1s </strong><hr></blockquote>

The RA1's are r-compound rubber - they better have more grip! I know several racers that like to use them as rain tires, too.

david914

Like yourself, I was forced to switch to something else after my D40M2's were gone. I ended up with the SP8000's and couldn't be happier. They have a little more grip and are much better in the rain. For the money, the 8000's get my vote! <img src="graemlins/beerchug.gif" border="0" alt="[cheers]" />

Geoffrey

I use Dunlop tires on almost every car I have. When the D40M2 were unavailable, I switched to SP8000s. I didn't notice any major difference between the two and got approximately 10,000mi out of each set (on a C4 Corvette). Great price performance. I briefly tried a set of Bridgestones and went back to Dunlops.

richard glickel

My '87 was originally shod with Dunlops. Have used Bridgestones almost exclusively since then (briefly had Goodyear's top of the line, they sucked).

Currently running Bridgestone SO-3s, terrific tires. Left them on the car for last month's driver's ed at Lime Rock Park because of rainy conditions. They were very good. I don't comparison shop, so I'm guessing they are a litle more expensive than the Dunlops, can't say for sure.

Richard
'87 Carrera-3.6L <img src="graemlins/yltype.gif" border="0" alt="[typing]" />