adamo

I was looking to get new tires on my 997.1, and wanted something less expensive for my daily commuting purposes. I don't track this car, so don't need max adhesion at the limit.
Looking around, I came across a local tire shop selling Kinforest KF550 tires, for $599 (CDN). Couldn't find many North American reviews, and the handful I found were on Corvette forums. Decided to take one for the team and try out a set.

Initial outlook is pretty good! They look the part, treadwear is 280 FR / 320 RR. Standard 235/35/19 and 295/30/19 sizes. The ride is much more supple than the N2 Michelins I just pulled off (to be fair, they were 7 years old, and pretty worn out).

I will post updates as I spend more time on them, but initial impressions are pretty favourable.

Gmanscott

never heard of them and IMO why "dummy down" on getting a quality tire period... regardless if just commuting. Please tell me you do DRIVE your 997 in a "spirited way" on weekend or non commute days? I would strongly suggest to go buy the proper speed rated tire from a quality manufacturer and have the confidence you can put your car to task.

Happy Motoring.

adamo

I hadn't heard of them either, but the price was right. At $599/set vs. $1640/set for the Michelins (regular Michelins, not the N-spec tires), if they're total ****e, I don't mind taking the chance. While Michelin (and other tier 1 brands) no doubt spend more on R&D and testing, there is significant money spent on marketing, that you're not paying for with tier 2 tires.

I absolutely drive my car in a spirited manner- but anything at 50km/hr over the limit here results in an immediate license suspension, impound, stunt driving charge, and is accompanied with a fine up to $10,000, so 'spirited, but controlled' is more accurate.

I have driven on pretty much every tire option out there- so far, these seem to feel closest to the Pirelli P700Z or Potenza RE050. The ride quality is surprisingly good, but admittedly, the front end feel/feedback is a tiny bit more 'numb' than the Porsche spec Michelins that were on there. For my application, they seem to be quite serviceable. They're fun, and I won't feel as bad sliding the tail end out with $1600 tires, and going through a pair of rears every summer. Would I take these onto the Nordschleife? Probably not. Are they good enough to drive around Southern Ontario roads? For me, yes. YMMV.

I'm not promoting these tires. I don't work for the company, don't own any shares. Just wanted to share my experience with the community, in case someone else was curious about them, as I couldn't find any info.

lowbee

I see that they are designed in Germany, any markings on where they are manufactured ? C$600 is a steal and if the performance is 90% of the Michelin, I might consider them (I haven't done a burn out in a long time....haha). Try them out in the rain and sub 10 degree C temperature and report back please. PM me which shop you got them from. Thx for taking one for the team. Do they come in 305 width ?

adamo

My understanding is that company purchased techology/had a partnership of some kind with Bridgestone initially, then Continental. I would assume manufactured in China and exported to European and North American markets.

I have a separate set of wheels with proper Nokian winter tires for colder temps, so these won't get exposed to that much- but will let you know what I find in slick conditions, re: water evacuation/hydroplaning, etc.
I purchased these at Toronto Tire, 2133 Royal Windsor Dr #29, in Mississauga.

GoldenGorilla

It goes without saying, but Chinese manufacturers don't exactly have a great track record on "purchasing" technology or building good "partnerships" with western firms. Nor is there much protection or enforcement of outside IP.

That said, tires can be incredibly advanced things or incredibly low tech and still roll. There are lots of ways to cheapen tire manufacturing and it will be interesting how these are performing down the road at 5,000, 10,000 and 15,000 miles. Balance (both initial and after wear), treadwear and performance after some wear have been where I've seen lower quality tires really drop off. It would be interesting to know what was needed for weights initially.

terrencetong168

I have these tires on my Macan for few years in 295/35/21. I believe the continental and michelin are around C$2400/set as opposed to $900/set for these. Since the macan is daily, i have driven with these tires in both dry and heavy rain conditions. Surprisingly, they did pretty well. Took the car through some back road twisties and couple parade laps at Mosport as well. Handling was great!

Quadcammer

I spent about 200 more for a set of Bridgestone S04s and would feel more confident with the quality. good luck with these, maybe they will be a low buck favorite like the Sumitomos HTR Z3

adamo

I'm guessing you spent about $800US? That's the going price in Canada for those up here also. I spent $600 CAD for these, or about $450USD.

Zettinger

The price difference is not that extreme.
I paid $1280 for my Michelin Ps4s in 245/305 X19 sizes around three month ago.
Ebates have me 5%, Credit card 2% cash back and Michlin $100 cash card.

Was in the end ~1100 Dollar with Road hazard protection from Tire rack and free shipping.

That move from Michelin PSS to PS4s was probably the best driving dynamics mod I did on my 997.
Comfort, road noise and GRIP in new levels.
I had to redefine the corner limits on my Porsche what never happened on a car just with a tire change.

I'm a strong believer after I changed the Bridgestone AM branded tires on my Aston Martin to Michelin PS4s.
My Bridgestone are still in great shape and only two years old but I bought a set HRE wheels in 20" (OEM was 19").
Day and night! Same as with the Porsche, new levels in every angle you look at it.

adamo

I'm not arguing that the tier 1 tires aren't better. You will surely get higher levels of grip, reduced NVH, and better predictability at the limits.

To suggest that the price difference isn't that extreme, when one set is $450USD vs $1280USD is almost comical. That's almost three times the price. If that's not a big difference to you, you must be a politician.

Greenchunks

Rough crowd here adamo, haha.

Appreciate you being the guinea pig on these and actually testing it out instead of just pounding into your keyboard about buying the most expensive all the time and always needing only the best for your treasured Porsche. Would love to hear how they wear/compare to other tires you've had in the past over time. That's a crazy low price for all 4 tires, the cheapest on TireRack right now for my car 235/305x19 is $770 USD for Falken Azenis 510 and General G-Max, neither of which has a stellar reputation.

Zettinger

I was looking at this Post:

Where the difference would be $1500 between Michelin and Kinofan.
While $900 are close to the 1100 what I paid for the best tire you can get.


Another Story of my past, I had some Hangcock tires on a Z4 couple years back, was a great tire and I sold my Z4 to my brother in law who lives in VA.
I visited him a year later and he complained that the car handles like **** as of recently, I drove the car and it was terrible.
After investigation, he replaced the rear Hangcock tires with some Chinese tires (265/30r19) what changed the character of the car from sporty roadster to utter garbage.
He said the car handled fine when he got the tires but it went downhill from there.
I can't remember the brand but that opened my eyes.

C4SDayton

Top name tires are definitely superior. There is some truth imo that today's 2nd tier tires can perform as well or better than the OEM from 10 years ago. I don't have a problem with $900 tire sets for the street. I have MP4Ss now. Last set I will have for street use anyway.

adamo

Right, but those weren't the same tire sizes. The stock tire size for the 911 is $450USD/set. If you're going to compare pricing, do an apples to apples comparison.