gleamingred944

Hi all,

I'm looking for advice on summer tires for an '86 944 NA. My current P215/50R16 Bridgestones are getting stiff with age and need to be replaced.

My primary wants are good cornering at highway speeds (I drive a lot of small curvy roads and love them) and adhesion on wet slick asphalt.

Any recommendations?

krystar

i'm diehard fan of using autox/track tires heh.

currently on falken azenis rt615's. will try out hankook ventus rs2's next time.

tk's944

If you have to have good wet traction hankook ventus rs2's are your best bet.

aben8057

+1

ccaarmerciill

I had bridgestone potenza's pole position... But I'm running 9.5 in the rear, so that might help. But those things stuck to the pavement GREAT, they just didn't last too long the way they made me want to drive.

gleamingred944

Thanks for the suggestions. Any comments on the tread life of either the hankook or falken? Both prices are lower than I expected for a top tire - I'd like them to last for 20k miles or so (3 years the way I drive).

krystar

i dunno how crazy u drive or how many driving events u attend. my friends that autoX and DE regularly, azenis/ventus last them about 2 seasons. but they cars are also their daily drivers so I'm sure they put more than 20k miles.

this is end of my second season on my azenis and I don't drive crazy at all. mine still have more than 50% tread.

Ben951S

I like my Yokohama AVS ES100s... Good reviews at tire rack too.

ELLSSUU

Ditto.

gizmozoid

I've tried the Hankooks and used the Falken's on an old Acura. Great for aggressive street driving, but the Hankook's didn't last very long on the track. My impression was that they couldn't take the temperature , and I actually started losing chunks off the tread shoulder after a couple 20 min sessions.

I'm on Potenza Pole Positions too now, and I love them. They're great on the track and street. I don't expect that they'd last 20k miles though. I had Michelin Pilot Sports too, fantastic tires, but so expensive, I couldn't afford to replace them with another set. If you're not tracking, Bridgestone RE92's are good at a reasonable price, last 20-30k, and handle well.

ELLSSUU

Ditto.

fbgh2o

I am not sure that your tire size makes sense. Do you mean 225/50/16 which is the correct size for 16" wheels? Or do you mean 215/60/15 which is the original wheel size for the 944 N/A

If the former is the case, the General Exclaim UHP is a good choice and superb value. I had them on a set a wheels for my 951 that I just sold. I realy liked the wet traction, but the sidewalls are a little softer than other high performance tires. Makes for a great ride, but turn in is not quite a crisp as some people like. Knowing the roads around Ottawa, they are pretty decent for what you are doing. Treadwear rating is great.

You can also look at Fuzion ZRi. I have seen many great reviews of the tire and it too is also a great value tire. I have them on my Subaru and have no issues with them.

Finally Dunlop Direzza Star Specs have had excellent reviews.

gleamingred944

"I am not sure that your tire size makes sense. Do you mean 225/50/16 which is the correct size for 16" wheels? Or do you mean 215/60/15 which is the original wheel size for the 944 N/A"

215/50/16 were on the car when I got it. They are within 3 mm diameter of the 215/60/15 you mention, so I presume that a PO switched to lower profile same tread diameter same width. Anyway, I've got 8 top quality R16 rims, so am not about to change them. Are you saying I should be putting 225s on them?

I've been reading a lot of negative comments about Bridgestone recently, particularly anti S03...

fbgh2o

Yes that would be my suggestion if you are running 8" wheels on all four corners. You will find the tire selection and options much better too.

gleamingred944

"i dunno how crazy u drive or how many driving events u attend."

I don't even think of driving 'crazy' on the street, but when no one else is around I do enjoy curling around tight 2-lane road corners at closer to the speed limit than a riced Civic could ever dream of :-)
No track events. So, it seems the Azenis will last me fine.

I'll have to check on whether there's room for 225 width, seeing the car was designed for 215. And they would have to be 45 profile to keep tread diameter within range of original...