KrazyK

A much better rear would be the Michelin PS2 315 30R 18. Better grip and I think the standard size on GT3?

jordanturbo

Pretty sure the 315 would have trouble fitting on a OE narrow body wheel let alone the potential rubbing issues it would have. Like i said in the other thread, wide is not always the only and best factor when choosing a tire

KrazyK

I think I saw somewhere that C2 guys were running the 315's on the rear. Maybe it was a GT2 or GT3, not sure. Im getting the 315's for the looks and to help with oversteer.

Hal

Where and how are you driving a 996 that you feel the need to further tame "oversteer?"

jordanturbo

That is what I have ben trying to figure out lol. The OP is looking an affordable DD tire for his P-car, he already tossed the idea of OE sized PS2's because of price, I am sure that 315 PS2's would be further out of his comfortable price range. Having a narrow body P-car his options are much more open to affordable tires in stock sizing that will offer better traction than an oversized PS2. In 265/35R18 he can go with a Bridgestone Potenza RE-11, Dunlop Direzza ZII, Yoko AD08, or Hankook RS3 which would provide loads more traction with their tread design and rubber compound than a 315 PS2

KrazyK

I thought he was asking for best grip and performance. I was referring to DRY pavement only. I would think the 315 PS2 is about the best you can get thats not a full-time track tire. Mines not stock and will easily lose traction at the rear in a turn. The front traction is great. If I can do so safely maybe I can post a video of the problem.

My suggestion was dont get cheap on tires. There is no way hes just going to slowly putt around town in a 996. May as well get performance tires to be safe. I was referring to the OEM GT2 tires so I assume they can be fitted on a C2.

jordanturbo

Though I dont agree with the term "luxury tire" for the PSS, PS2 and many other tires as sjfehr described them, he isn't far off the mark. These are not streetable track tires, they are compromised for ride comfort, noise, tread life etc. If you are serious about performance in your P-car, and it is daily driven I would suggest looking at an RE-11, Direzza ZII, AD08, or RS3. If you are serious about tracking and it isn't daily driven I would look at something lie PSC's, R888's or A048's. If you do any research online you will see that semi regular track use for tires such as the PSS, PS2, S04, DW etc do not hold up what so ever.

To me the key isn't getting the biggest tire possible on your car, it is finding the tire most suitable to your application.

As far as GT2 fitment, GT2 is a widebody car, same as the turbo, same as our C4s's, the wheels, offsets, widths and clearances are much different than narrowbody cars. Something like stock GT3 tire sizing would be more applicable. The GT3 has an 18x10 rear and 285/30R18 stock. The GT3rs has 18x11's with 315's but the suspension dynamics of it are quite different from what I hear that help it accomodate the larger tires

KrazyK

My mistake. It was a 99 and they used a 14mm spacer which seems crazy to me. The tires were:
Front: 18 x 8 ET 55 with 235/40 Pirelli PZero Corsa
Rear: 18 x 11 ET 65 with 315/30 Pirelli PZero Corsa

Im sure he could do the same if thats the look he was going for.

DK570

Well, after lots of reading, I think think I've narrowed it down to either Michelin Pilot Super Sports (too bad I didn't have these in the poll) or Sumitomo HTR Z III. I just need to decide if I want to spend the extra ~$400.

darbo

A friend runs a tire shop and tells me the DWS and DW are the best value and they have longer tread wear. I bought 4 in November and 3k miles later I can say they are great. I don't drive in the snow.

targa996

I'm running Sumitomo HTR ZIII 265/35-18 on the rear - still don't have oversteer problems. Understeer is the issue on hairpin turns, autocross, skid pad etc. on the C2. You can modulate that somewhat with the brake and throttle - but I can't imagine 315's being needed - I happy to trade the rear grip for a bit more ride comfort for a DD.

While DOT treadware rating is only a quide - if you divide that by the cost of the tire (plus fitting) you might get an answer of what is most cost effective in the long-term. If you do a small amount of miles per year - you still might be better off with the Sumi's - since you don;t want to be running on tires that are too old either.

I was running P Zero's before - and am happy with the Sumi ....

Hal

I have the Super Sports on my 996 and love them. And about this time last year (late March, early April) Michelin or Discount Tire ran a special that put them well below the price of S-04's. You might want to watch for that again this year.

sjfehr

KrazyK, PS2/PSS is not the end-all/be-all of tires, and it's not very helpful to repeat yourself over and over. PS2 and PSS are good tires, but have tradeoffs like any other. Every single tire on the market has pros and cons and compromises. PS2/PSS are NOT "best grip" performance tires; they're 2nd tier at that. That's not what they're designed to be, though; they're designed to be a low-liability do-everything-OK compromise tire for factories to put on expensive sports cars. The PS2 and PSS are good/very good at everything (wet/dry, hot/cold, low noise, ride comfort, treadwear) but great at nothing, and pricey to boot. Unless you're one of the very few drivers that actually needs that specific compromise (VERY few here), there are better tires. As soon as you wear out the set that came with the car, you're best served looking elsewhere. HRTZIII is extremely popular amongst 996 Rennlisters as it will give you comparable wet/dry and hot/cold performance to a PS2 at a much lower cost with imperceptible (to most) impact to noise and ride comfort.

The BEST tire will vary considerably depending on the driver's needs, geographical area, etc. For instance, Conti DW is fantastic wet, literally best wet performance in any street tire, but gives up dry traction in the process. Would be great if you were in Seattle, but not in Arizona. And while I might recommend AD08 to someone in Arizona or California, I would not recommend AD08 to someone in Wisconsin because of the risk of a cold snap coming up before you have the chance to put on winter rubber. Nor Kumho XS or Hankook RS3 for the same reason. (I'd recommend XS or RS3 above the AD08 anyhow: cheaper for the same performance.) A tire that deals better at colder temps like RE11, ZII or Rival would be a better choice for the OP. Had OP lived in New Mexico, I would probably be recommending something else. But the same properties that make these tires popular for autocross make them popular as high performance daily driving street tires, too.

In short, DK570, I'm sure you'll be happy with either the PS2 or the HTRZIII. Don't worry about the poll: in the end, it's your call, not ours.

rpm's S2

I am very happy with my Conti DWs. Everything with tires is a balance, and this seems about right in terms of cost, wear, and performance. Best thing I have noticed as the rears pass 10k - they are not getting appreciably louder. They also seem to have maybe another 3-5k left in them. My experience with the HTRZIII is very much the opposite. Good tires for sure, but the rears get loud relatively early and stay that way.

KrazyK

Are all these tires stamped "N" specification? If thats even important to the OP.