tom97c4s

I need to replace all 4 tires and I am trying to decide which brand to go with. I have not done any events but I might next year. Tirerack seems to be pushing the SO-3's vs Pilot sport rib and Pirelli. But it seems that in the past this board does not like the SO-3's, so I am confused on what to do.

Adrienne

I've had 1 set of S03's and two Pilot Sports on my daily driver with some track. The P.Sports lasted me about 6 months in the rear and were quite slippery. My S03's are still going strong after 12 months (albeit 2 track days less). The S03s are far superior in my opinion.

stedge

I like them, but I have not been on the track with them, either.

mac993

I've had my SO3's for 1 and a half and am very happy with them. The wear has been great and the wet and dry grip is very good. The only problems I've had was in the first month or so the tramling effect (following the grooves on the freeway) was pretty bad. But after a little wear that went away.

ceboyd

I love S03s but have not yet had them on my 993... (very happy with them on my VW though ...and they were impressive to me because they remained complient after a hard track day (or 2 or 3) of use in normal street use!

swftiii

I've had the SO3s on my 993. I've had them for about 3 years and 20k miles. I just replaced the rears and the fronts look almost new. I didn't buy these for the track b/c I have another set of wheels with track tires, so I was looking for something that would last and has good all around traction. I've been very pleased with these and I have had Pirelli PZeros and SO2s. They are fairly quiet for Max Performance tires and as stated above they have been lasting a long time for me.

-Skip

paradisenb

I have them on the 993 I recently bought. I was wandering if you guys/gals tires flat spot. Mine seem to do it quickly, then I get a shimmy in the front end. Strangely enough it happens at 40mhp and 58mph. Anyone have same experiences? My S02 on the 911 aren't as bad.

jrgordonsenior

I have used S03's for the past 1 1/2 years on my 993 on 17" cup rims. They have about 7k miles on them and they looked new until last weeken when I tracked them...Actually you can't tell I beat them up for 2 days. I recently got 18" rims and put SO2A's on them. They only have 100 miles on them so it's really to soon to draw any comparison, but they don'y feel quite as sticky but again, it's only 100 miles or so.
JRG

dld

I've been using SO3's on my 993 for street and I love them. Seem to get around 7000 miles or so. No track time. Great in the wet. Very mild alignment. I use a different car and tires for track.

ddl

TroyN

I did experience this on the fronts, but only when I was running 32PSI cold. I'm now running 33 and it's helped a lot. My shimmy was only at about 50 and only when cold.

The "official" line from Porsche is to use tires with N ratings, which means that Porsche was involved in development or testing (not sure which or both). I've been told several times that you can get behavior like wandering or strange handling if you go w/o N rated tires, but who knows. Next time I'm going with Michelins!

Anir

The S-03's are somewhat maligned on this board, because they do not offer optimum dry performance - which is paramount to many of us. For example, I run R-compound rubber on my car in all but the coldest and wettest months.

Having said that, the S-03's are a fine all-around compromise tire and a tremendous advance over the state-of-the-art offerings just a few years ago. But, they are a compromise.

24FPS

love my so3's... (had p-zero rosso's which were scary in the wet) put about 17k miles on the so3's & they're wearing evenly & hold very well in the wet too. my ¢2.

btw: what's the 'deal' @ tire rack tom?

speedread

I've had my So3's on my 996 C2 since spring, and used them for daily driving and extensive track and autocross. In the heavy rain on the track they were excellent. In the dry they wobbled and my time was slower until I wore down the tread some. I 'm not crazy about them for track or autocross, but they've been fine for daily driving. Kelly Moss Racing suggested Pirelli PZero Corsa next time, though this will diminish the daily driving advantage.

tom97c4s

SO-3 from Tire Rack for a set of four is $992 shipped.

It looks like no one mentioned any big negatives, besides not getting max performance in dry. I don't think I am bringing my car anywhere near its max and on occasion I get stuck in the rain and my Pirelli's are scary in the wet.

Thanks for all the input. I guess I will order a set today.

tchanson

I've gone through several sets of S03's and have also found them to be a great all around tire.

That being said, I think I'll try a set of the new PS2's next time around.

Some comparison test charts from the Tire Rack below.

Tim