SimonK

My front and rear tyres are Bridgstone Potenza SO2 pole position. Fronts are still OK but I need a new set at the rear. Tyre shop is out of SO2's but have the replacment tyre which they say is SO3 now. The question is can I mixed the two types or is it not a good idea. I never had a missmatched front and rear tires. Also, what do you guys in USA find to be the best tyre for our cars nowdays?

Swedeboy

SO2 is quite different from the SO3 - wouldnt recommend mixing sets. Amongst enthousiasts the SO2 is often considered superieur to the SO3, however it has been taken out of production.

I assume you are looking for superieur tires for daily use? I have Pirelli Pzeros (Rosso and Nero respectively) on both my 951 and WRX now and very satisified with them - they stick like **** both in dry and wet. Much better than the P7000s and Bridgestone SO3 worn by either car respectively previously. YOkohama AVS & Dunlop SP9000s are also considered to very good current every day tires.

dmoffitt

I'm a _huge_ fan of the s03, over the yoko AVS sport, or the SP9000. they may not last quite as long as some tires, but they grip great wet and dry (I feel quite safe in the wet compared to a lot of tires) and their cost is far lower than anything from michelin or pirelli, at least over here on this side of the pond

SamGrant951

i dont like sp9000's much at all and I previously had RE71's on my 951...when I switched to S03 fronts, there was a huge difference-car felt much better, I get the rears Wednesday. Should be fun

Peckster

I Just picked up some second generation re730s, and they seem pretty good although I haven't been to the track yet. Cheaper than SOs and a great rain tire. Here's a review:

<a href="http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tests/potenza_re730.jsp" target="_blank">http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tests/potenza_re730.jsp</a>

Ethan

I am happy with my RE 730s as well. Good grip in rain also. I will probably stick with Bridgestones in the future. I havent had much luck with the previous Yokos or Dunlops.
-Ethan

ringo951

I have kept Pirelli's on every sports car I have owned till now. Michelin Pilot Sports are the preferred glue of choice now. Much better. Better ride, and traction both dry and wet.

dmoffitt

imo, pilots are CRAP, they stay greasy when the limit is reached (long recovery time), are hard as rocks til warm, and even then they aren't the most progressive tire. ok, so maybe they last a bit longer than say the s03 or sp9000 but tire life vs. handling, i'd rather have tires that wore quicker and were more fun.

pirelli is a great tire, if you have diarrhea of the wallet. not knocking them, but the way i drive / go thru tires, it would NOT be cost effective.

dunlops are ok all round, but dont excell anywhere... can't comment on the re730s

jim944s2

If you're not going to drive at the track, the S03s should be fine (many lapping events don't allow mis-matched tires). Just be aware that you may have some differing grip front to rear.
RE730's are good, some guys don't like them; my friend put on a set & hated them while winning auto-x events (?). Another friend has them on his 944S now and is winning his auto-x category. I bought my 944S2 from 1st guy w/ those tires, I liked them and thought they were very good in the wet (and the car won several more events). I upgraded to the S03s and would say that IMO the S03's are slightly better. Another friend w/ a 951 on Yok AVS sports has driven my car at autocross events, he really doesn't like the AVS's in the rain, they're fine for dry though. He liked the RE730's much better than the AVS's in wet, and he thinks the S03s are far superior to the AVS in every respect.
In my area, the experts agree that S03's are pretty much *IT*.