Tires thread
Rocky Mountain High
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Joined: Aug 2007
Posts: 19,491
Likes: 2,793
From: Kolorado
Gotta love a good tire thread... especially a tire tread thread...
Everyone has their own opinion based on their own individual experience. What works for one person might not work for the next person. To me, the things to consider are as follows:
- What's your priority in a tire: tread life or performance?
- What's are the typical climate conditions where you will be driving most of the time? Hot? Cold? Wet? Dry?
- What's your driving style?
- Will you track your car or keep it on the street?
- What's your budget for tires?
Once you answer these questions, there are a few other things to consider. First of all, your tires are the only connection between your car and the road. The contact patches are small. It doesn't matter how good your brakes or your suspension perform if your tires aren't up to the task. Therefore, I don't believe that it is smart to make compromises on tire quality or to dramatically change tire sizes. These things can negatively impact performance. It's also important to consider the fact that every decision you make has an impact on the way the car performs. If you run an all-season tire (a.k.a. no-season), then your car won't give you optimum performance in any conditions. It will "get by" in most conditions. For some people, that's the right choice. As for cheap tires like Sumitomos, you have to ask yourself why they are cheaper. It may not be easy to answer the question. Is it lower labor cost? Is it less rubber? Is it cheaper materials? Is it R&D by the manufacturer? It's hard to say. No matter what the answer, it's likely that you're compromising something, somewhere with a cheap tire. If your strategy is to buy cheap tires, burn them up and replace them, then something like the Sumitomos might be a good choice for you.
There's not a "right" answer here. Everyone should pick the tire that best meets their decision making criteria.
For me personally, I have come to the conclusion that I want to maximize performance, primarily for street driving at the expense of tread life. For my C4S, the Michelin Pilot Super Sport isn't an option due to sizing availability. Therefore, I continue to purchase Michelin Pilot Sport PS2 N3 tires, and I'm very happy with the decision. I've tried Pirelli P-Zeros and Sumitomo HTR-ZIIIs. I wasn't as happy with either choice as I am with the Michelins. I do switch to dedicated winter wheels and tires in colder weather. I'm currently running Pirelli Winter Snowsport 240 N3 tires.
My advice after that long-winded post is to decide what you want in a tire, research the options that are out there and make the best choice for yourself. The opinions that you get here or on any other board or review are subjective and should only have a small influence in your final decision.
Everyone has their own opinion based on their own individual experience. What works for one person might not work for the next person. To me, the things to consider are as follows:
- What's your priority in a tire: tread life or performance?
- What's are the typical climate conditions where you will be driving most of the time? Hot? Cold? Wet? Dry?
- What's your driving style?
- Will you track your car or keep it on the street?
- What's your budget for tires?
Once you answer these questions, there are a few other things to consider. First of all, your tires are the only connection between your car and the road. The contact patches are small. It doesn't matter how good your brakes or your suspension perform if your tires aren't up to the task. Therefore, I don't believe that it is smart to make compromises on tire quality or to dramatically change tire sizes. These things can negatively impact performance. It's also important to consider the fact that every decision you make has an impact on the way the car performs. If you run an all-season tire (a.k.a. no-season), then your car won't give you optimum performance in any conditions. It will "get by" in most conditions. For some people, that's the right choice. As for cheap tires like Sumitomos, you have to ask yourself why they are cheaper. It may not be easy to answer the question. Is it lower labor cost? Is it less rubber? Is it cheaper materials? Is it R&D by the manufacturer? It's hard to say. No matter what the answer, it's likely that you're compromising something, somewhere with a cheap tire. If your strategy is to buy cheap tires, burn them up and replace them, then something like the Sumitomos might be a good choice for you.
There's not a "right" answer here. Everyone should pick the tire that best meets their decision making criteria.
For me personally, I have come to the conclusion that I want to maximize performance, primarily for street driving at the expense of tread life. For my C4S, the Michelin Pilot Super Sport isn't an option due to sizing availability. Therefore, I continue to purchase Michelin Pilot Sport PS2 N3 tires, and I'm very happy with the decision. I've tried Pirelli P-Zeros and Sumitomo HTR-ZIIIs. I wasn't as happy with either choice as I am with the Michelins. I do switch to dedicated winter wheels and tires in colder weather. I'm currently running Pirelli Winter Snowsport 240 N3 tires.
My advice after that long-winded post is to decide what you want in a tire, research the options that are out there and make the best choice for yourself. The opinions that you get here or on any other board or review are subjective and should only have a small influence in your final decision.
Banned
Joined: Mar 2010
Posts: 7,697
Likes: 31
From: Chicago
Gotta love a good tire thread... especially a tire tread thread...
Everyone has their own opinion based on their own individual experience. What works for one person might not work for the next person.
There's not a "right" answer here. Everyone should pick the tire that best meets their decision making criteria.
Everyone has their own opinion based on their own individual experience. What works for one person might not work for the next person.
There's not a "right" answer here. Everyone should pick the tire that best meets their decision making criteria.
Rocky Mountain High
Rennlist Member
Rennlist Member
Joined: Aug 2007
Posts: 19,491
Likes: 2,793
From: Kolorado
I agree completely.
The same could be said for wheels. Lots of people like 19" wheels or even 20" wheels. I am not among them. That being said, I couldn't care less if somebody wants to put them on their car. It's their car and they should do whatever they like. If they ask about it on the forums, we all try our best to help them understand the trade-offs associated with that choice. For some people, the the trade-offs are worth it to get a certain look. There's nothing wrong with that.
The same could be said for wheels. Lots of people like 19" wheels or even 20" wheels. I am not among them. That being said, I couldn't care less if somebody wants to put them on their car. It's their car and they should do whatever they like. If they ask about it on the forums, we all try our best to help them understand the trade-offs associated with that choice. For some people, the the trade-offs are worth it to get a certain look. There's nothing wrong with that.