I've been researching C4S tire options since the rears are in need of replacement. The fronts are fine with a lot of tread left on them. Any thoughts on mixing and matching brands front and back?

I've always replaced a full set on my cars so I've never really thought about this before and it seems strange to consider putting Bridgestones (or whatever brand) on the back with Michelins (or whatever brand) on the front. Any concerns with wonky handling or anything else? Should I just replace them with whatever brand is in front and then worry about researching options when I replace the set?

-Eric

 

not an issue mixing brands really as long as they're similarly rated and max performance. And it's the summer as well for now.

Other possibility is to order all 4 tires new now, and keep the front two as spares. But I personally would mix and match front to rear as long as the tread is about equal.

 

It's customary to replace the rears with whatever brand is in front. Mix and match might lead to vibration.

 

The car currently has PS2s at all 4 corners. The fronts have a decent amount of tread left. I'm just trying to decide whether or not I should replace the whole set with an alternate brand, get a couple of PS2s for the rear or, alternatively, pick up a couple of Advan 08s or similar tires for the rear (i.e., mix and match).

-Eric

 

Please Explain

 

This is the debate I'm looking for.

I've had a lot of people say exactly what is being said in this thread: "You should know better, just get a pair of PS2s for the rear" and "mixing and matching is fine as long as they're the same type of tire."

So, which is it and why?

-Eric

 

If just driving on the street, mixing tires will not be an issue as long as you replace each axle set...
If tracking the car the different grip levels of the tires can wreak a bit of havoc. This could either be seen as an issue or a new learning curve for car control! :-)

On the cheap end of the spectrum, hankooks are great, after installing a set on the rears just recently, I was very pleased to find that they seem to be much quieter than the tires they replaced (sumitomos). I will be replacing the fronts as well with the hankooks shortly, and then will have a matched set again, keeping the purists happy! (fronts are dunlops and outlive 2 sets of rears...)

 

This is like debating politics, religion or brand of oil.

Do what you feel comfortable with. Do you like to experiment and think for yourself or go by the book and do only what the manufacturer recommends?

I'm a maverick and pretty obstinate. I'll generally do things contrary to what others and authority recommends. By far it usually works out for the better. I don't believe in one size fits all and like to customize everything to my own needs. I believe manufacturers make things to work OK for everyone and not exceptional for anyone. I think I can do better on most things to suit my personal needs.

Go with your gut!

 

Different tires, even tires of the same make with different amounts of wear, will give different levels of grip. So long as the car is being driven well within the limits of grip, you'd never notice the difference. The issue is at the edge of traction, when you're panic stopping, or hit a corner too fast for conditions, and one of the sets of tires loses grip while the other still has a little grip left. This isn't necessarily a problem- it's a rare condition when front and rear lose grip at *precisely* the same time- but it can lead to unpredictable behavior if the weather changes and your car suddenly goes from understeer to oversteer!

Conventional wisdom when replacing with the same brand/model is to put the newest tires on the rear, as they will almost invariably have more grip than worn tires of the same make/model under all conditions and keep the car understeering nice and predictably. With different type tires on front and back, though, you can never tell. Sticking with tires in the same performance class helps reduce the risk, but different tires have different characteristics at different temperatures and in different wet weather conditions, etc- those awesome grippy tires may be great in most conditions and give you lots of confidence, yet may stiffen more than your other set at colder temps and surprise you when you least need the surprise.

At the end of the day, it's your call. If you're specifically talking about RE11s in the rear and PS2s in the front, I think the risk would be minimal, but you can never eliminate it completely.

 

Here is the "by the book" recommendation. I happen to follow the "book" for all of my cars that any family member drives or rides in. I learned about this recommendation before I purchased the 996 but because of cost I did consider other options. In the end I decided to follow my gut and follow the book. So I can be of no help with actual experience of mix and match or the use of non porsche approved tires. I do not track my car at this point but I do drive anywhere from mild to wild and I decided not to contribute to any risk of the item that keeps my car on the road.

"It is recommended that only matching tires be used on Porsche vehicles. Since many Porsche vehicles are fitted with differently sized tires on their front and rear axles, this means matching the tire make, tire type and N-specification. If a vehicle was originally delivered with N-specification tires that have been discontinued and are no longer available, it is recommended to change all four tires to a higher numeric N-specification design appropriate for that vehicle. Mixed tire types are not permissible."

"It is also important to know that while Porsche N-specification tires have been fine tuned to meet the specific performance needs of Porsche vehicles, the tire manufacturers may also build other tires featuring the same name, size and speed rating as the N-specification tires for non-Porsche applications. These tires may not be branded with the Porsche N-specification because they do not share the same internal construction and/or tread compound ingredients as the N-specification tires. Using tires that are not N-specific is not recommended and mixing them with other N-specification tires is not permissible."

What I do have experience with is thinking that I only needed winter tires if I drove in the snow. I quickly learned that it is not about "snow" tires it is about tire compound and temperature. In cold weather my summer tires have as much grip as a hockey puck. I do use "n" spec winter tires as well.

 

I have sumis on the rear and Dunlops on the front and have no issues, vibration, handling, or otherwise. I don't track my Porsche, but I do spirited driving with my 911 everytime I drive.

 

I just put some Extreme Contact DW's by Continental on my car. Something over 1k is what it cost. Tires can't be beat in the rain since they look to be pretty much the same as racing tires for the rain. The original track tests had them beating out some of the big name summer tires even in dry conditions.

I'm not even past the break in or 100m yet and I dumped the old front tires even though its just like you where the fronts were good for another year.......maybe. I do know right now the tires sound quite plus they seem to ride nicely. Others have tried them and they aren't super expensive like some of the name brands the conti tire beat during track tests. I saw the test in a magazine more than a year ago but could never find the story online.

I noticed when taking the tires to be mounted that they were made in the Czech Republic and Portugal. I'm not sure if they are the USA specs or european tires. Next time out I'll have to check for DOT markings. I'll be real happy if they are euro specs.

Here's a guy doing a personal test of the dry wet snow DWS version of extreme contact's. He says they aren't bad if you want to run the tires all year round. They are ultra high performance besides pretty good in the snow.

http://www.eurotuner.com/techarticle...s/viewall.html


Keeps a mustang on the road when wet so they can't be that bad

The tire was actually developed in europe by Continentals european division. It was selling really good so the parent company brought it over here. Continental doesn't play sales like other companies do high performance tires. They make industrial and car tires and even put tires on military vehicles during WW1. Performance tires are just a drop in the bucket for them which is good because it keeps the price down.

Anyway only snow cruising I see is in Afghanistan. We outlawed that miserable stuff in Hawaii except for on top of the mountains past the 9,000 foot mark. Good luck figuring what to do. Some go for extra rims of the beater variety and put snow tires on them if they want to cruise in the Pcar during snow season. The DW is dry wet while the DWS is dry wet and snow in case you don't know the lingo. I wouldn't use the DW's in snow since the center tread is slicks and the outer isn't too far from it.

Good luck shopping.

 

To the OP.

You think the front tires are good because they have lots of tread?
Is you car still in transit?

Do you know the date of manufacture on the front tires?
I believe you car has been in storage. If so for how long?

If your tires are over 5 years old and have been sitting (even in a climate controlled storage facility) I would replace all 4. You'll be glad you did.

If you don't intend to track your car, there are some very resonably priced tires out there for the 996.

 

Hopefully your "new" C4S will come with it's owners manual so you can see for yourself what the "recommended" tires are including maximum tread depth variation between the tires to prevent problems with the AWD differentials. I believe it is 2 or 3/32" diff between all tires. Also summer only tires are dangerous to drive in sub 40 degree temps.

 

The April, 2011 TSB with Porsche's recommendations for tires for the C4S is available on www.renntech.org.