Bill Wagner

Well, it's that time again....my tires are shot and I need a new set. I seem to be getting about 15K miles on tires. My last set lasted longer than the rest. They were Dunlop SP Sport 5000's. Ironically, I HAD to get them because my previous Yoko AVS's surprised me during an inspection when the rears were worn through to the belts at about 12K miles, and it was either get these or don't drive the car.

In any case, I was looking at the tires on Discount Tire Direct and came across the following low priced brands:

Nitto
Hankook
Falken

I'm not familiar with any of these. Are they any good? I don't think any of the local tire stores stock these things.

Syd B.

Bill, I can't tell you much about the Nitto or Falken brands, but here is a Car & Driver write up on Hankook from a recent tire test that they completed. http://www.caranddriver.com/article....&page_number=9

I hope this helps.

jimq

I had Nitto's on my car when I bought it. Rode nice and were not to loud. Had the side wall blow out of a rear with 50% tread left ruining my wheel by the time I could stop.

Christer

Personally I tend to buy premium brand tyres only, although I have had Falkens on a BMW I used to own and they were OK. It depends on how you drive your car and whether you buy into the 'the tyres are the only thing keeping you on the road' kind of thinking...

Syd B.

I agree with Christer. There's not many things that can effect (good or bad) the ride of your car like tires, especially if, like most Porsche owners, you partake in an occasional spirited drive. Driving habits and budget restraints have to be considered, of course, but with today's tire technology, a great set of performance tires will maximize the fun factor in driving your Porsche.

Heirsh

I had sub-par tires on a previous car years ago. My wife was in an accident in the rain with them. She almost died.

Don't skimp on tires, no matter the car.

greenjt

Also maybe look at Fuzion made by Bridgestone. I recall reading some good things about them.

ga2ryc

I put the fuzions on my 93 c2, not real noisy,good grip, and thru discount tire here in TX, about $550. for the set of 4

C4Russ

I've got some Hankooks on a Mazda 3 commuter car. They are a 205/50-16. They are much better then what I had anticipated. I bought inexpensive tires for that car as it's a commuter and cheap trumps all when just driving to work each day.

They've been very quiet, reliable, predictable grip in the wet or dry. They are wearing very well and I buy them again in a heartbeat for that car.

All the said...I don't drive the Mazda hard. I never dive into corners or wait for the last second to apply full binders or hang out the rear end in a turn. I also never plan to just due to the nature of the car. I would think that if you simply drive your Porsche rather then doing any track or spirited driving, you may enjoy the tire and cost benefits.

If you're going to drive the car as intended, I'd buy the best tire you can afford. Porsche understands the tire is the most important connection in the car and specifies tires to compliment the car. While I'd say many of today's inexpensive tires could be equals to the 1990 era's best tire, I'd still want to know I've bought a tire that others have already proven to be a good match.

warmfuzzies

I had Falkens on the front when I bought my car, like wood, no feel and no grip either, just my two happenth worth.

kevin

Chris M.

I looked into an "off" brand tire when I replaced my rears; Fulda I think and they were exactly half the cost of the Pirellis I went with. BUT, they also had exactly half the tread-life rating which means by the time you pay for 2 installations you've spent more.

c

Colin 90 C2

Bill, I like the Yoko AVS 100's. They are almost as cheap as the off brands and they handle great.
12,000 miles on a set of rears is pretty good.

Bill Wagner

Thanks for the info, guys.

This is the second time excessive treadwear has snuck up on me a week before the car's due for inspection. This means that instead of ordering what I want I'll likely get stuck buying what's in stock at local tire places, and if any of these names came up, I wanted to know what they were. The other option is to order from Tire Rack or Discount Tire Direct and just not drive the car once it goes out of inspection, which is something I don't want to do.

FWIW I put Kumho Ecsta Supra 712s on my 300ZX and I've been pretty impressed with them EXCEPT for all the noise they generate (now with about 20,000 miles on them one of them sounds like a bearing failure at about 20mph).

What do you guys think of the following:

BF Goodrich g-Force Sport
Dunlop SP Sport FM901
Yokohama AVS dB S2
BF Goodrich Traction T/A VR
Dunlop SP Sport 2000E

I would really like to get about 30K miles out of a set of tires. Is this even possible???

hawk911

I think 30K on a tire is pipe dreams given you can't rotate the tires. The compounds used on decent tires prevent long life, unless you let Granny drive the car for all 30K. I'd be happy with 15K or 3 yrs, or more on either measurement.

BTW- I have Kumo Ecstas, which will more be put on again. They are VERY noisy.

Christer

Out of that lot, I would go for the AVS's. Not from personal experience but because I have heard quite a few positive votes for them over the years....FWIW