gearFX

I may be in the market for new rubber soon and am considering alternatives to the OEM tires, such as the Nitto 420S, Hankook Ventus RH06, or Pirelli Scorpion Zero Asimmetrico.

Can people who are running (or have run) these tires please comment here? I'm mostly interested in the following 4 characteristics:

1) Dry traction/performance
2) Comfort (are they more sensitive, have too much feedback, or soft and vague?)
3) Noise
4) Treadlife/wear
5) How the 3 tires mentioned compare to each other (if you have happened to run some of each brand)?

Thanks!
Ben

mlm0505

I recently went with the Hankook Ventus RH06 275-40-20...
I too debated over many different options and at the end I had considerable feedback from enough trusted sources to feel confident about the Hankooks...
In short, Ive been very happy with them... no complaints except letting the girlfriend drive the CTT and her curbing the 20's and messing up the sidewalls...
see my resonses to your ?'s below...


1) Dry traction/performance
- Very good so far...solid feel but not the most grip you can get, especially compared to a super-soft N-rated option. THere's no question that they are a harder compound and therefore less grippy, but they are still adequate for all I am comfortable with doing in a 5,000 lb SUV...I drive quite spirited 75% of the time...that's the point, right?
2) Comfort (are they more sensitive, have too much feedback, or soft and vague?)
- Overall, very comfortable...I have found them far smoother than any 18" wheel/tire combo, and actually just as smooth or smoother than the stock Diamaris...
Definitely not too soft...as i mentioned above they are a harder compound. But not too hard either...After about 1,000 miles you learn their feedback and I have been quite confident with their comfort in both lazy and aggressive driving. I got far more comments about the ride quality from passengers after the putting these on.


3) Noise
- Very minimal...nothing compared to my 18's, but too be fair, they are Pirelli Ice and Snows, so bad comparison, but I have never once even thought to really pay attention, which means there isnt enough noise for my concern and I hear every rattle and bump out there.

4) Treadlife/wear
- Great so far with about 7,000 miles....this is where the harder compound comes into play...for the sacrifice in grip (which was minimal and acceptable to me), the treadwear has been even better than expected...in fact, wear at this point is still barely measurable. also, this is the most evenly wearing set of tires that I have had, which makes sense because the car tracks better with these than any other I've tried.

5) How the 3 tires mentioned compare to each other (if you have happened to run some of each brand)?
Can't compare to the others mentioned, but I did have the Diamaris...no question they were grippy, but their life was atrocious. The car was not realigned between the tire swithc, and the Diamaris tracked worse, wore unevenly, and wore fast...and I am **** about tire pressure and correcting pulling...
compared to my Pirelli Ice and Snows....well, that;'s just not a reasonable comparison...I absolutely love and cherish my snows when in the snow...but I already cant wait to get back into my 20's with the Hankooks.

Becuase these have such a long life, i dont think I will need to buy another set of tires while i have this CTT, especially when running snows for 5 months a year...but I would definitely consider these again on my next ride and i dont hesitate to recommend them...

gearFX

Thank you very much for the detailed response! That's exactly the kind of information I am looking for. Hankook is rising to the top of my list (unfortunately it must be on everyone else's too, because most places are saying they are on backorder for a couple weeks. Probably worth the wait though.)

Anybody else care to comment?

capt601

i too have been considering the Hankook's. I have heard other good things from other owners regarding the Hankooks. There numbers are all at or above the Porsche tire numbers, but they just have not paid Porsche to have them mad an "N" tire. you will have ohers say only put Porsche "approved" tires on your vehicle. I really think that is a misnomer, and just hype between Porsche and the tire manufacturers. This after discussing with a tire manufacturer exec on a previous occassion. Let's see, we can set up a deal with Porsche and sell the tire for $300+ or sell the same tire for $150?
Think about it, if they developed a tire just exclusively for Porsche, they are marketing to a very small audience. Yeah, with these tires we would have to replace them more often, but there are only so many Cayenne's, 997's, etc. on the road. versus fords or Toyotas. So do you really think for the extra extra $150-300 you pay for Porche approved tires, they are making a special tire for Porsche? Me don;t think so. R&D is a little more expensive than that. i am pretty sure that Porsche does not go out and test drive those tires for hundreds of thousands of miles to see if they meet there standards. it is just a business deal.
So, we should purchase Porsche approved tires which may last us 12,000 to 20,000 miles or get non-porsche tires that will easily last double the miles at half the cost. Who is the sucker here? I f I was a tire manufacturer I would love to get my tires Porsche "approved" so I could tap into some of that wasted money by consumers.
and yes, I have read the page by tire rack.com - remember they are in the tire sales business and can only benefit by selling a $400 tire versus a $150 tire.

If Porsche approved tires are so great, why are not other car manufacturers requiring either Porsche approved tires or there own approved tires? I don;t believe Mercedes, BMW, Ferrari, Lambo, Ford, etc... have any approved tires. Maybe all of the marketers knew how "mod" happy us Porsche owners are, and like to spend extra money. Gee, most Porsche owners probably are in a higher income bracket so of course they can buy a Porsche " Approved" tire at double or triple the price. Great marketing tool.

and thanks for your response above MLM0505, nice summary of the tire.
did you two also consider "N" tires - BMWbig6 and MLM0505?

gearFX

Thanks for the reply capt601. Yes, I did consider N tires too, but am looking for better value than what some of the other "approved" tires offer.