2023 Tires reccomendation for 16 wheels, 1986 911

[How2]

Hello

Am ditching the telephone dial 15s and moving to 16's on the 911, 1986 Carerra (non turbo) The options I see are from Tire Rack. There is no budget limitation

I live in a dry climate and am looking for what the latest view is on tires for street.
No auto cross or time trials. I do live in a twisty road area.

https://www.tirerack.com/tires/TireSearchResults.jsp?tireIndex=2&autoMake=Porsche&autoYear=1986&autoModel=911+Carrera+Coupe&autoModClar=&frontWidth=205%2F&frontRatio=55&frontDiameter=16&frontSortCode=44950&rearWidth=225%2F&rearRatio=50&rearDiameter=16&rearSortCode=45750&performance=ALL

What is the word these days?

H2

[dg567]

What width fuchs are you going with?

[Locker537]

Do you intend to drive the car in freezing temps?

https://grassrootsmotorsports.com/articles/track-tire-buyers-guide/

I'm on my third or fourth set of Direzza ZIII as a good compromise between cost, performance, etc. You said no track or AX, so honestly...any of the 200tw would be good.

[How2]

Hello

I am going to close to stock width for the 16's. Don't think ultra HP stickies are needed.
Maybe an All Season tire would work for me

Freezing temp in a dry climate?

BTW what kind of mileage are you getting from the hoops you have?

[Locker537]

Beats me on mileage. I kill them on the track before they wear due to road miles.

Tires are so good nowadays though. I still think the 200tw are great all around tires unless you are driving in sub freezing A LOT.

[darrin]

How2 -- where are you located? I live in Denver, CO, a VERY dry climate that also has freezing temps. I'm currently running Yokohama ao52 200tw tires as my summer tires and am really enjoying them so far. They'll be coming off the car in October, as it's simply too cold around here over the winter for me to even think of taking them out. I've heard a lot of good things about the Michelin PE2 tires, which are Porsche recommended (carry a Porsche designation).

Also, what width Fuchs are you going with? I upgraded my factory 16x6 front and 16x7 rears to 16x7 front and 16x8 rears and am very happy with the results (tires sit a bit flatter on rims, which helps performance-wise and sit a bit closer to the fender lips, which looks great to me.

Finally, my new ao52 (205/50-15 front and 225/50-15 rear) tires are mounted on a new-to-me set of 15" Fuchs (15x7 up front, and 15x8 in the rear), feel a significant power boost vs my 16" wheelset due to both the lighter weight of the 15" tire/wheel combo and the smaller diameter of the sizes I used. FWIW

[Matthew_VA]

I had a set of Toyo Proxes R1Rs (200-treadwear) on my 911SC and they were awesome! I was really impressed with the traction they provided--ran them on 16 x 7 & 8s Fuchs. Put about 5000 miles, including several weekend rallies on mountain roads, on them in 10 months and not one complaint and still a lot of tread left. I felt they provided very good traction in the rain as well and was very pleased with the steering response overall. They also have an arrowhead tread pattern that looks really sharp.


With that said, for my recent acquired '84 3.2, I just ordered a set of Bridgestone Potenzas RE-71RS (another 200 TW), which were introduced in the US Market last spring. Several friends recommended them and reviews have been positive so very excited to get these on and see how they do. A bonus is they are currently discounted via mail in rebate!

[Marko888]

I’ve been super happy with Continental Extreme Contact Sports. TW is 340…got 15k miles out of the rears, expecting 25k or more on the fronts. Great in the dry, great in the occasional rain storm, and run pretty quiet. I don’t do any track events, but try to push a bit in the twisties on the road. Excellent street tire…saw them on a LOT of different 911’s at Luft 9.

[Alex599]

I’m extremely happy with my Contis extreme contact sports. I just put them on last week and it completely transformed the car. Very sticky. They’re stiff but comfortable.

[Mr. Merk]

I always preach to put the tires on that fit the vehicle and use.

My 911 gets the stickiest tire available, because its a sports car and gets driven as such.

My 2wd truck gets highway tires because that's where it gets driven.

The off road rig gets the most aggressive mud terrains.

Our Cayenne Turbo S gets the best performing all-season tire available because its gets driven hard all year long.

[harv666]

I put the Michelin pilot a/s 4 on last year and they are incredible in all climates. This is the tire that was developed for the new vette. It's an all season, not expensive and looks good, the Pirelli that porsche once used is so old and tired in terms of materials and design, they do not drive anywhere near as good as these do.

[grb008]

Also using conti extreme contact sports. transformed car from the all seasons.

[r_towle]

Michelin makes a special 16 inch tire, offset widths, for the 911/928. Great tire.

[OldSpool87]

I have the Conti DWS on my wagon and love them. The Falken RT660 is a great performance tire. I drive to the track, run sessions as drive home with no drama in either prt of the day.

[darrin]

Originally Posted by r_towle

Michelin makes a special 16 inch tire, offset widths, for the 911/928. Great tire.

These? - have heard great things about 'em https://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires.jsp?tireMake=Michelin&tireModel=Pilot+Exalto+PE2&frontTire=055YR6PE2N0&rearTire=25YR6PE2N0&vehicleSearch=true&fromCompare1=yes&autoMake=Porsche&autoYear=1986&autoModel=911%20Carrera%20Coupe&autoModClar=

[HarryD]

I am a fan of the Continental ExtremeContact Sports for everyday (non freezing weather) use. They were great in my 911 for everyday use, Autocross and HPDE. To be a bit more competitive in AX I switched to Toyo R1R tires which are a bit more harsh and noisy but suit my current use plans better. My C300 has the Conti DWS Tires which are great also.

[r_towle]

Originally Posted by darrin

These? - have heard great things about 'em https://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires.jsp?tireMake=Michelin&tireModel=Pilot+Exalto+PE2&frontTire=055YR6PE2N0&rearTire=25YR6PE2N0&vehicleSearch=true&fromCompare1=yes&autoMake=Porsche&autoYear=1986&autoModel=911%20Carrera%20Coupe&autoModClar=

Yup

Much better grip and performance , good all around street tire. I don’t need to drive the 911 in the winter.

[kach22i]

Originally Posted by How2

Hello

Am ditching the telephone dial 15s and moving to 16's on the 911........

I did the same thing on my 1977 911 targa two years ago.

Very pleased with the GENERAL GMAX AS-05 all-seasons on the 911 and my Infiniti G37X Coupe.

On the 911, worlds better than Goodyear Eagle all-seasons, and a slight resemblance to the old Yokohama ES100's I used to run a long time ago (summer only) in that there is some stick to the road.

Downsides are they can get a little lumpy if sitting more than a few days, but they smooth right back out when warmed up.

Overall, going from 15's to 16's plus the Generals shocked my wife with their ride, she was happy - wife approved.

On the 3,800lb AWD Infinity all is good, smiles all around except in the worst conditions of ice/snow and cold rain - then I'm glad I have AWD, ABS and the restraint and experience of a 62 year old commuter that just wants to get there and back safely.

The downside on the Infinity is the thread is looking close to the end at only 30,000 miles, but they were fun miles if you know what I mean. Lots of curvy roads on the back-roads to work.

EDIT: UPDATE 6/11/2023

On my Infinity G37X Coupe, Discount Tire is getting me a manufacturers credit on 3 of the 4 tires because they are worn out at 30,000 miles in lieu of 50,000 miles. I'm switching to Michelin Pilot Sport All Season 4 to see if I have any better luck at $175-ish more on the set of four tires.

Thinking back on the short-lived life I used to get on the summer Yokohama ES100s that stuck like glue, I don't recall getting such a generous credit before (close to $300).

FYI The Cooper Tire manufacture warranty is pretty much worthless, but many of their tires are made in the USA, so there is that.

I expect on my Porsche the General Gmax AS05's will age out before they wear out, I just have so many plans to be working on it.