Gents,
Looking for new tires for my driver. 245-50-16s. Looking for good traction (especially in rain), good price, and long treadwear. No snow in N.O. so that's not a concern. Any preferences?
Thanks
I've been running the Kumho Ecsta AST's for about a year now, and have been very happy with them, especially the price! Very good traction, even in the rain, and the wear isn't bad. With the wear that I have experienced so far, about 10-13k on them, I'm expecting to see at least 50-60k out of them. They can be kinda noisy when going 70mph down the highway, but I never cared about that.
I've run BFG G-Force Sports almost religiously on my Fox, I've been through 2-1/2 sets of them over the years. It is an amazing warm weather tire, very good traction and bang for the buck. I believe they are actually used on all the cars at one of the famous driving schools, but the name is escaping me right now. I know you say you don't get snow, but keep in mind these things are NOT meant to be driven in snow. I once got stuck in 1/4" of snow in my driveway when I backed the car out of the garage to move some things around.
As someone that has had probably every brand of tire out there, i believe 100% in economizing with the best. Unfortunately the better tires, cost way more.
So my preferences are no where near the cheapest.
Michelin pilots are my favorite for regular tires.
I also like bfgoodrich G force
Most nitto tires.
With that said, my car spent it's last 3 years as a daily driver on nitto drag radials.
And since then it's been on bfg drag radials.
I like the g force like mentioned above. I am currently running nitto 555s which i am enjoying immensely. I have bought several sets of kumhos and i wasnt a fan. General Exclaim UHPs are supposed to be excellent as well.
^ I was just sayin' kumhos were the best for the buck I've come across. Really, I absolutely loved the old Avon ZZ-2's that were on my wheels when I bought them, but apparently Avon doesn't sell car tires in the states anymore, or should I write tyres. You can still import them from the U.K., but that is very expensive, and I don't know if they are DOT approved anymore.
I went with Fuzion ZRi tipes from Tirerack. This was after a lot of research, looking for good street tires that fit on ponies based largely on which were good in the rain. These replaced my Goodyear Eagle F1 GS-D3 tires for a lot less money and similar performance from testing. Haven't taken them to the track, but they work well on the street.
I have a question a little off topic: Are there any ill effects if I were to have 215-55-r16 tires mounted on my car. I know the recommended/requirement is 225-55-r16 but the only difference is in the wall height correct?
I've used Nittos before. Great tires, but wear quickly. Yokos were great too, but after just a few miles, the grip went away, like someone flipped a switch. I picked up a hunk of steel while crawling looking for an address in an industrial area, and ruined one of my yokos. Decided to try a hankook, TERRIBLE tire. I would never buy them again.
Thanks for all the advice guys.
According to this, you are an inch and a half shorter in diameter on the 215 as opposed to the 225. Your speedo will read fast by 1 mph at 60 mph.
It isn't going to hurt your car to drive with the 215's, although they will be a slight bit narrower if it is from the same tire manufacturer. If it is from a different manufacturer, it could be different. Goodyear's 215 might be equivalent to Firestones 225, for instance.
Thanks 91Twilight. But I'm not worried about my speedometer. It's already 20 mph off at all times. It's something I'll get around to fixing later. Right now my tires are showing radials on the inside cause of bad ball joints. My bro has a set of the 215s that hes giving me. That's why I wanted to know.
I have a question a little off topic: Are there any ill effects if I were to have 215-55-r16 tires mounted on my car. I know the recommended/requirement is 225-55-r16 but the only difference is in the wall height correct?
The first number is width of the tire in millimeters, and the second number is "aspect ratio"- which is a percentage of the width, indicating your sidewall height. So, 55% of 225mm is 123.75mm. 123.75mm is 4.872 inches. 4.872 + 4.872 + 16 = 25.74 inches, which would be your tire diameter. The 215/55-16 would have a diameter of 25.31 inches, so you're less than half an inch different between the two.