Daddio

Per comments in this forum, Fuzion ZRi tires appear to be well thought of and a good choice for a Porsche 951.

However, since the Fuzion ZRi is a "summer" tire, what about all-season tires that are also suitable and recommended for occasional snow driving or unexpected black ice conditions?

Has anybody here yet tried Avon MTech 550 or other such all-season tires?

And, are "summer" tires truly safe for winter driving conditions?

awilson40

I installed my Fuzions right before one of our few snow and Ice storms.
I was very inpressed with the traction. My old tires were Potenzas and would not hook up at all
but the Fuzions are great , dry, wet snow or ice.

Daddio

Thanks, Andy, that's really good input to have in making an informed decision about new tires.

Around here (Pacific Northwest) we obviously get our share of rain, but also unpredicted black ice, packed ice, and snow. As sadly experienced by one of our guys on a British Columbia mountain highway several months ago, these conditions can occur with no warning whatever.

To become better informed, I've been reading the TireRack information, and Googled for further insight on that. Reportedly, Consumer Reports and others think highly of the TireRack methods and objectivity.

The Fuzion ZRi is generally well liked, although some posts on the Bimmer forums reported otherwise.

So, any futher insights or comments about the BEST tires for the 951, esp. in poor driving conditions, would be most welcome.

Matt H

An all season tire is a tire that is great at nothing. The US is the only market in the world where all season tires are sold.

All season tires are not great for dry grip and they arent great for snow/ice. If you need a tire that is good in both of those conditions you need two sets of tires. A summer tire and a winter tire.
__________________
Best Car Insurance | Auto Protection Today | FREE Trade-In Quote

Daddio

Thanks, Matt, for your insight: 'Jack of all trades and master of none' is a common lament.

However, perusing Google for info on the Avon Tech M550, and comparing their objective* data that TireRack presents, one might surmise that even though all-season tires, the Avon Tech M550 or the Pirelli PZero Nero ain't too shabby in the wet & dry cornering and stopping department, even compared to very good "summer" tires like the Fuzion ZRi. All of these tires have very high speed ratings. Please Google the various comments and see what you think. The Fuzion ZRi has earned a good reputation here on Rennlist, but some of the Bimmer guys are less enthralled.

Around these parts (WA State/British Columbia) road conditionis can change pretty quick, before one can dash home for a quick change of wheels/tires. Just ask Nize about his little scrape near Kelowna a couple of months ago, and you'll get the picture. Black ice is no fun, either.

Therefore, a versatile all season tire may be worth considering, so I respectfully request the insights of fellow 951 folks in choosing new tires for my car.


*Objective data include wet & dry slalom and lap times, braking distances, and G-force figures, meassured on their track by trained drivers in a BMW.

Subjective data include buyer surveys and anecdotal eviidence, such as BillyBob's seat-of-the-pants estimation of how his Buick "feels" with Brand X. Though useful, such anecdotal evidence may be less pertinent than more scientific measurements by professionals. OTOH, if such professionals are paid to sell tires, maybe their objectivity is imperfect. BTW, Consumer Reports says TireRack runs a pretty good analytical show.

KuHL 951

I think what it all comes down to is no tire is perfect for every possibility. Seriiously does any tire work on black ice? The Avon and Fuzion are both good tires with the Fuzion being priced $16 less in my size. I think a lot of reviewers in forums tend to compare a bargain performance tire with a much higher priced tire they replaced such as SO-3's; the comparison isn't fair. The Fuzions have been one of the biggest surprises I've found in low cost tires since the Bridgestone RE-71's I ran on Miatas. Just my $.02 worth.

Sami951

For black ice (or any ice for that matter) you want studs, and even then there's not going to be that much of grip. Since they're illegal pretty much anywhere else than here, I'd say your best bet would be the Hakkapeliitta RSi winter tire.

Jaak Lepson

I have Fuzio's on mine and the grip is great in warm weather and rain soaked roads. I would recomend a good set of winter tires if you want to drive during the winter months. Nokia or Hakka's are about the best winters.

The Fuzion are also great on the track. I hit Shannonville with only 200 kilometers on new tires and had a bal. They were better than the Toyos and a bit better than the older SO-s' that the car came with. The only cavet would be that they were a bit noisey on the track on hard corners at speed ... could of been the rumble strip .... They were great , no lose of grip and I felt confident driving with them MILES BETTER THAN TOYO's. I would still buy them today as replacements! For the winter ... get winter tires ... especially on our cars!