Anything better than S-03's??

[Randy Webb]

Any tires better than the Bridgestone S-03's? Maybe the new Goodyears?

This is for a street car. We have wet, rainy weather for 6 months up here and the roads will be wet all the time for 1/2 the year.

Also, I want progressive break-away - so I can feel the limit.


Any thoughts?


And when does Costco run their tire sale on the S03s?

[Schrup]

Randy, the SO-3s have gone on sale at Costco in June for the last two years. I think it's only once a year, about an $80 savings for 4 tires.

[Bill Verburg]

Dunlop-9000s or Michelin Pilot Sports

[tchanson]

Randy,

You may want to also take a look at the new Michelin Pilot Sport PS2, which supposedly is a marked improvement over the original Pilot Sports in wet and dry.

Tim

[Schrup]

Tim, it appears that they don't make those for 15 or 16" wheels.

[BGCarrera32]

Michelin's involvement with 911s in Europe for years and their sponsorship of Supercup would tend to steer me towards them, even if these are only for street tires...

[Halm]

Just priced them on Tire Rack: $124 each, 205/55 x 16. The SO-3's are great looking on early cars and what I had planned on ordering later this week. Now I am not as sure. Anybody running these yet?

[GeorgeK]

The Dunlop SP9000 are *not* good on light weight cars. Wandering steering, too much flex in the carcass.
The Eagle GS-D2 and GS-D3 have worked flawlesly on out 911 and 930. The Yoko AVS sport are like glue, and perform very well in the wet.
If money is no object, Michelin has reintroduced the TB15, but this time with a DOT approval. Pure 80's race tires whch are allowed on the streets...yum!

[tchanson]

Originally posted by Schrup
Tim, it appears that they don't make those for 15 or 16" wheels.

You're correct, Paul. The PS2's are 17's and up only. I've run 17's on various cars long enough now that I overlooked the lack of smaller diameters being unavailable. Tire myopia.

In any event, the initial reviews for the PS2 look promising, although I'm waiting to a see a straight up comparison with the S03's. I've gone through several sets of S03's, and they'll be hard to top IMO.

Tim

[Halm]

Originally posted by tchanson
You're correct, Paul. The PS2's are 17's and up only. I've run 17's on various cars long enough now that I overlooked the lack of smaller diameters being unavailable. Tire myopia.

Tim

To be clear, Tire Rack does list a few 15" and 16" sizes. They are limited, but they do list them.

[Superman]

I just replaced my Michelin XGT Pilot tires with S03's. I had been using the Michelins for about 130k miles. Here is my testimony:

The Michelins are made of a longer-lasting, harder rubber compound (300 treadwear). The S03 is 225 treadwear. This means the S03's will wear out faster. It also means they are stickier. Also, the Michelins made so much noise at autocross that it was embarrassing. They squealed like stuck pigs all the way around the track. The S03's have not made a single peep. And again, they are substantially stickier. That's the good news. The bad news is the Michelins gave more warning. Did I mention that the S03's are WAY stickier?

The Michelin sidewalls are not as firm as those on the S03. This means that the car tended to get upset with on the Michelins. Cornering line trueness and obedience is greater with the S03s.

The Michelins, when new, were very good rain tires. I am told the S03 is an amazing rain tire and I believe that.

All in all, the S03 is about ten times the tire.

[tchanson]

Originally posted by Halm
To be clear, Tire Rack does list a few 15" and 16" sizes. They are limited, but they do list them. That said, looking at the Tire Rack list, I am not sure what segment Michelin is targeting. 2 15", 2 16" and 5 17" tires with nothing bigger than 225 /45.

Strange. The Michelin PS2 spec sheet (a) shows nothing smaller than a 17 for the new PS2 and (b) shows a 245/40/17 as the largest, not a 225. The Tire rack shows the same info here.

I guess the segment they're targeting is me, since I currently run 225/45/17 and 245/40/17 S03's, which appear to be readily available PS2 sizes.

Tim

[Bill Verburg]

The Dunlop SP9000 are *not* good on light weight cars

Oh Really could have fooled me

You can't compare the old XGT w/ the Pilot sports, totally different tire.

I would have recommenrded the PS2s great tire but limited range of sizes.

[RoninLB]

Originally posted by Halm


. Now I am not as sure. Anybody running these yet?

I don't have the experience to compare them to other HP tires on the track or street..

anyway, I just got my second set of the S-03s. The faster I go the more relaxed I become riding on them. They are much more stable at 80mph crossing thru Colorado with high winds than the RE-71s. I rode them in the rain till they were worn down to the wear bars on the hy at 70-80mph consistantly for the last few thousand miles and their rain grip supprised me. The first set returned 20k miles till the wear bars at Only cross country driving speeds. actually the ride itself was over 19k mi. Sized at 205-55-16 X4.. they are also relatively quiet.

[Halm]

FWIW, I am now getting entirely different size availability depending on what size I seach for at Tire Rack. If I look for 204/55x16, I see 2 15's, 2 16's and 4 17's. If I seach for my wife's S4 (235/40x18) I see nothing smaller than 17's and up to 21's. Go figure!

[Bill Verburg]

Tire Rack doesn't always have or list all the available sizes.

[Superman]

I had some of the "old" XGT Pilots which were a (yawn) plain-'ol passenger car tire, but then the tread pattern changed. The tires I have been using lately are the "new" XGT Pilots, which have a treat pattern very reminiscent of most of today's high-performance tires. You know the long, curved channels. Another similarity is price. So, I agree that the S03 is a far better tire, and I accept the notion that the Pilot Sports are a notch above the XGT. But it sure looks to me like the XGT Pilots were intended to be pretty high performance tires.

You know, another thing I have heard about even the Pilot Sports is that their performance when cold or cool is disappointing. I have heard they are a far better tire on a track in California in the sunshine, than they are in damp, rainy Seattle with 40-degree ambient temps. Of course that would be the case, but I have heard their performance against other comparable Ultra-High Performance tires is equivalent at temperature, and not equivalent when cooler. I have reason to believe the S03's are going to perform better in the cooler weather we have here.

[kstylianos]

Track junkies use Toyo Proxes TIS's as a dedicated wet tire if needed. They are a street tire (not R compound) that are outstanding in the wet and hold their own quite well in the dry.

The local tire shop that shoes all the local PCA race and DE junkies fitted me with the T1S's after turning down the RA1's for the street. Said for the price that they were the on par if not better in the rain than the S03's.

Check Tire Rack for feedback.

[anthony]

What do you guys think about tires that cost 1/2 as much as the SO-3s? I'm thinking of the Kumho 712, Kumho ASX, or the Yokohama AVS ES100.

[efhughes3]

I love my S03's, they are superb in the wet (& dry)!