gleamingred944

Last fall I got recommendations for Hankook Ventus R-S2 and Falken Azenis. It's time to buy. Hankook has canned the R-S2, and has moved out of my size as well - my tire dealer suggests I ask about the new Kumho Ecsta XS vs the Falken.

100% road driving, no track, love curvy minor (but well paved) roads, wet traction and solid cornering are my top wishes.

Eric_Oz_S2

The tyres you have selected are performanced based dry weather tyres which are usually for combined street/track use. You have listed wet traction as a requirement. Neither of these tyres are great wet tyres. I have the Falken RT615s, and they are mediocre in the wet. My Goodyear Eagle F1s on my other 2 cars outgrip them when its really wet. These tyres also have stiff side walls, and certainly give good cornering capability, but they also tramline a lot over uneven surfaces (at least in 17 inch size).

If I wasn't using the Falkens on the track I would go for the Goodyears, or perhaps the Falken FK452s.

fbgh2o

If you are looking at 17" tires - I recommend the Sumitomo HTZ RIII. Excellent all round performance and great value.

tony4x4nc

I'm running the Ecsta ASX 205/50/17 fronts 255/40 rears now because i'm in Colorado and my car is my DD so I need better snow traction. But my unit is transferring me to AZ when I get back from training and I'm getting the XS's. I have a friend who runs them on his DD/Track car and he loves them.

Techno Duck

I have the XS on my 951 right now, about 1800 miles on them. They are great tires, comparable to the Falken RT615. Have not been able to get them on the track or auto-x them yet but think they will do fine.

Under 40 degrees the tires do not have much grip, at 50+ degrees they are great on the street. In the cold they are so bad that if i am backing up with the steering wheel turned all the way, the front wheels will actually slip across the pavement instead of gripping!

Sidewall is not as stiff as the Michellin Pilot Sports i had on the car previously, but not too soft. Takes the sharpness out of the big bumps. Very stable tread design also like most summer tires, no squirm under heavy braking.

Wet weather grip is decent at full tread depth. Ive driven through some heavy rain and did not have too many problems. They do hydroplane a little in poor drainage areas, as these tires wear down i expect its going to get much worse.

I like the tires alot and cant wait to get them out on the track.

gleamingred944

"You have listed wet traction as a requirement. Neither of these tyres are great wet tyres."

"In the cold they are so bad that if i am backing up with the steering wheel turned all the way, the front wheels will actually slip across the pavement instead of gripping!"

Fatal flaws for my use. Local advice is even worse - the leading performance tire place in town tried to sell me Yokohama s.drive - it didn't take much surfing to put that recommendation to rest!

So, going strictly by wet traction numbers on 1010tires, one of the larger mail order suppliers in Canada, I should be considering Kumho SPT or Hankook HRII ... ?

Fortunately, winter has just returned, so I've got a few weeks extra to work with. Any other thoughts as to what to look for received most gratefully.

Eric_Oz_S2

An Australian motoring magazine recently did a tyre test and rated the Goodyear Eagle F1 Asymmetric as the best overall tyre. The test included wet and dry braking, wet and dry slalom and lap times. I recall that Falken FK452s also did pretty well. The F1s are expensive here in oz, around $400 each in a 235/45 17. You guys don't know how lucky you are with car part prices in the US.

gleamingred944

I'm 16" so the Sumitomo and Goodyears are out. No one locally deals with Falken. But, I located a Porsche group in rural Quebec that drives like I do and most of their members have gone Ecsta SPT. So, I've got them. Will let you know how they do.
Thanks for all the help.

Potomac-Greg

Hankook is supposed to be replacing the RS-2 with another model (RS-3?). The RS-2s are still in stock but I suppose RS-3s are coming. Of course, if you can't get your size it's a moot point. I have RS-2s and I'm very happy on and off track.

gleamingred944

Well, I got the Kumho's and have run them for a few weeks. They have a LOT better traction than my old Bridgestones, especially on rain-slicked roads. But, I'm trying to find out what the pressure should be to run them for best traction, and both Kumho Canada and Kumho USA refuse to even acknowledge my email request!

So, does anyone know of a manufacturer making high performance street tires who will tell me what pressure is likely to be best for 225/45R16 tires with a weight of 360 kg (800 lb) on each tire for traction when braking/cornering at local highway speeds (90 k/hr, 55 mph)?

krystar

i would imagine in the 30-35psi range would be normal. i ran all my tires at about 35psi.

gleamingred944

Well, as a last straw, I tried the European technical site for advice - again, a total refusal to admit that their customers exist.

There is NOTHING more important to tire performance than proper pressure, and makers claiming to make high performance tires should be the first to know it.

I am never touching a Kumho product again. Life is too short to deal with people who don't give a damn about their customers.

By the way, a day's testing on rainslicked asphalt indicates that 26 psi front 28 psi rear seems to give the best braking and cornering stickiness. And, a later test on dry highway at 100 km/hr showed no detectable heating unevenness or overheating at these pressures. Of course, I've no idea what lifetime or wear evenness will be because Kumho refuses to talk to me. So, that's where I'll leave them for now.

Mark944na86

I recently switched from Yoko AVS Sports to Goodyear Eagle F1s on the front (225/45r17) -- I love them! I liked the Yokos a lot too, but they wore like soft butter.

BTW, Eric, I got the F1s from that discount place I mentioned earlier at about $200/tyre (the best quote I could get locally was about $350...)

By time I paid for shipping and fitting/balancing, it was probably closer to $240/tyre, but still...