BC

7 years is in its face, ridiculous, but anyway.

Dunlop durezza star spec z1

hacker-pschorr

Different strokes, tire threads are like oil threads......
But to say "Ferrari people" don't care about cost is nonsense. I know plenty of Ferrari owners, they are just as price conscious as any other car enthusiast. Especially with tires that can add up quickly if you drive hard since the super grippy tires do not last very long (my father got less than 5k miles on the rear Michelin's with his 355).
Sure every car group has a handful of platinum card wavers who don't hesitate to blow money on anything, IMO that's not the norm.

If these guys had unlimited disposable income to blow on the best handling tire out there, I guarantee you none of them would be running Hankooks. They would be using something like a Potenza RE-11, Goodyear Eagle Supercar tire etc.... Whatever tire(s) are used to break records at the Nurburgring.
For most people, these tires are beyond their limits or nerves on the street so they would be a waste of money. So a compromise is made to pick a tire with "good enough" handling that will last longer than one summer that don't ride like a dump truck.

I know a couple people that have run Toyo Proxes RA1's on the street (it's a DOT Comp tire). That the type of tire a person would buy who has unlimited funds for the ultimate grip. Especially in a desert climate where is almost never rains. You will probably go through them like a drug addict in an opium field, but the car will be glued to the road.

Hell, Magnus Walker runs Hoosier A6 race tires on the street in Southern California!!!


Not everyone in Ferrari-land is in love's the Hankook's either:

http://www.ferrarichat.com/forum/360...ook-tires.html

http://www.ferrarichat.com/forum/fer...v12-tires.html


I'm not trying to say the Hankooks are bad tires or that your opinion is wrong, but to try and say they are the best handling tire, cost no object.... I'm simply not buying that.

I have no doubt they like them over Pirelli tires. I've never been a big fan of those either.

KenRudd

More data points:
My 86 with 'Kooks is a daily driver. Sun, rain, sleet, slush, including NC winters ( meaning occasional dips to the teens, but not Vermont conditions.) So I have plenty of time where the tread is colder/harder than optimum.
I don't drive it in actual snow.
I have added 7,900 on it with 'Kooks since March.
Never had an issue with Hydroplaning, even with the 295's in the rear.
Never had an idiot in front of me out brake me, in fact, never even hit ABS in any on road situation, including panic stops to threshold.
Tires are progressive and predictable in cornering, even when getting near the limit on exit ramps.
The tires are quiet, noticeably more than my Kuhmos or Bridgestones
I have run them on the track in dry conditions ( CMP ) They are not nearly as good as NT-01's but very drivable.
Still have a lot of tread left on them. I don't think I am near to even halfway through tread life.

Captain_Slow

deleted

Lots of good objective, subjective, measurable, and unmeasurable reasons to buy any brand of tire one desires. I also weigh how often I drive my car. No sense replacing expensive tires due to age well before wearing them out.

Nicole

The price difference between the Hankook and the Bridgestone S-04 Pole Position is $80 for the set of four. I don't mind spending $80 extra on a quieter and more sticky tire.

My main concern was the load rating. It sounds like you guys are comfortable with the 91 load rating of the S-04 PP's front tires. In that case, the choice has been made.

Nicole

True. But the 928 is hardly ever driven these days. When I had the Saab, I would sometimes take the 928 to work on Fridays (or when I felt like). But since I have the electric chair, which costs next to nothing to operate and has all the modern amenities, the 928 gets less attention. Besides, there have been other priorities here in the past 2 years (mainly career and the ongoing remodeling at the house).

However, it still puts a smile on my face every time I enter the garage, and perhaps I will make a more conscious effort to take it out in the coming months. With new fluids (already done) and new tires (coming), it should be fun again.

Bigfoot928

I can't make any references to tire noise... like I could hear tires in my 928... ever.... LOL

Nicole

I recently drove a 91 928 with about 27k miles and stock exhaust. It's soo nice and quiet. And now that I'm used to "gliding" in the electric chair, I'm seriously considering putting the stock muffler back on my 928.

So, here is my public service announcement for the day: Electric cars mess with your senses!

Alan

Yep and at the rate you are driving it you will never wear them out before they timeout - so the whole tread wear issues is moot!

I'm sure they are a great tire - the S-02's & S-03's were a great driving tire - only the tread wear and slight loss of grip towards the end of their life bothered me much. They were still notably better to the very last mile than the Continental ContiSportContact's they replaced.

Drive to Phoenix to put miles on it...!

Alan

BC

Driving an electric car while the 928 is in the garage with the same tires for seven years - and it's "too loud".

We all have different levels of "enthusiasm" but that's just sad. Sad for the car. Sell it and drive off into silent oblivion.

Fogey1

Nothing wrong with quiet 928. It was designed as a gentleman's express, not a replacement for the Mustang that sounded so cool when one was 19.

And I don't know which electric Nicole has, but there's a lot to be said for ALL the torque at 0rpm, especially in the city.

I guess I am a fogey.

will

TexasDude74

Tesla's are nice cars and a very different experience. I've driven about three dozen of them, and still can't get use to them. At this point in my life, I couldn't imagine owning one. But, I'm a believer of the old "Never say never" thing.

Nicole

Found out that one of the local WheelWorks stores has a road force balancer, so I ordered the PPs through them. Should be put-on next Saturday. Yay!!!

That would make for a nice road trip. I fly there frequently - to change planes. I rarely get-out of the airport.

Nicole

When the 928 came-out, it was so different that only a few saw its influence on the future. Most thought it was a crazy, ugly and expensive fad, and they kept buying chrome ladden, highly trimmed-out dinosaurs. Today, we know better - the 928 still looks and feels surprisingly fresh.

The current new wave is more technology driven. The Tesla is in many ways what the 928 was in the 70ies: a radically different way of getting around. The difference is that technology moves much faster than design, and design today moves faster than it did in the 70ies. We'll see how long the Tesla stays fresh, but for the time being, it represents to me the level of change that the 928 brought in the 70ies. For that very reason, I like both.

But there are other electric and ICE powered cars I like as well...


Funny thing when driving electrically: You take-off at the light, and effortlessly leave everything else behind you. Some think you are racing them, try to catch-up, then shoot past you (usually far exceeding the speed limit). Same at the next light.

It happened tonight with a primer grey Camaro, but is not limited to such types of vehicles.

Captain_Slow

For those still interested in tire options. I have put about 100 miles on the new Hankook Ventus S1 Noble 2 tires:

225/40/18 up front.
265/35/18 in rear.

Some had asked about cornering ability, and others may be just as interested in ride quality and noise level. These are All-season tires, so low temperature traction is worth mentioning. My drive today started at 30 degrees F and by the time I returned the temperatures was 33 F.

The drive included rough roads breaking up due to freezing and thawing (not yet pot holes), curvy rural roads and interstate cruising.

RIDE: VERY SMOOTH. Not more than a mile down the first road that's getting a bit broken up my wife spontaneously says "The car isn't rough anymore". A huge improvement. I suspect the sidewalls are a bit more flexible than the Continentals in the back and the Michelin Pilot Sport A/S up front. The ride has been transformed beyond expectations, but exactly as reviews by owners describe on TR site and in the TR testing. Very nice.

NOISE: VERY QUIET. I could hear a bit of noise from the rear, but noticeably less than with the previous Continentals. Couldn't hear the front tires at all.

HANDLING: Handling is slightly less crisp/sharp/up front compared to the Michelin Pilot Sport A/S. Might be described as relative increase in understeer - but it's very slight.. This is probably another indication of a bit more flex in the sidewalls. Not a concern for me as handling is still very impressive (especially in the cold) and the improved ride quality is ideal for a GT car and a trade-off I happily accept. These tires ride so smooth and quiet.

GRIP:VERY STICKY, even at these low temperatures. I was taking tight 25 mph curves at 40-45 mph. Sticks like glue. No squealing or sounds of being even close to the limit of adhesion. A few weeks ago in similar conditions I was testing the cold weather grip of Continental summer tires in the rear (these are also 90% worn). Of course not a fair test, but I wanted to know what to expect. Lots of wheel spin and squealing (pulling away from stop lights after shifting down to 2 then back to D to force a 1st gear launch and higher revs in 1st and 2nd.). Tried the same today, on the same roads/curves and at the same stoplights, no slip and just a bit of noise revealing the tires were working to hang on. But they did...very well.

TREAD WEAR: Too soon to tell, but others have had very good tread life.

SUMMARY: I didn't want the drive to end, but had an appointment later in the day. So took it out again this morning to run it a little harder off line and in turns than my wife likes...just smiling the entire time. Very pleased. These tires are just as the TR tests describe - an impressive value with little compromise. Want quiet? CHECK...Smooth ride? CHECK... Great handling? CHECK. All-Season CHECK. Plenty of Grip? CHECK. Affordable? CHECK. $700 got them to my door in two days.

NOTE: The previous wheels were BBS LM's. The Hankooks are on 18 inch Panamera 5-spoke take-offs. A bit heavier. Not sure how much slight increase in weight might affect handling, if any.