Every Day Tires

HarryD · 10-20-2003, 10:41 AM

I thought I posted this but it vanished so....

I am starting to think of replacement tires for my '73. I use the car for everyday drivng with an occasional excursion to the AutoX track. I am aware for ultimate grip my choices are limited due my 15" rims but I am thinking that I do not need ultimate grip so I should be able to find an ok 15" tire to use on my cookie cutter rims.

Currently, I have Toyo Proxes H4 (205/50-15) on the car and they seem ok.

what have others used for this "less demanding" application?

TIA

ttweed · ttweed's Garage

Harry-
For value, I would go with the Falken Azenis or the Kumho Ecsta MX, both avaliable in your current size for < $80 each. For max wet weather traction, since you live in Oregon, the more expensive Bridgestone S03 may be a better solution.

azasadny · azasadny's Garage

I like the Dunlop Sport 9000's, but not for snow - just dry and wet pavement.

JTO · 10-20-2003, 12:17 PM

Hi Harry,

I am replacing my Bridgestone RE-92s (205 60 HR 15) with Pole Position SO3s in 205 55 WR 15.

Troy

dean · 10-20-2003, 03:29 PM

Dunlop SP8000

HarryD · 10-20-2003, 09:17 PM

Thanks. Keep 'em comming. Like I said in my first post, I need a bit of extra grip for AutoX but figure I want to enjoy street driving also. Besides, if I get better tires, I may accidentally

lose my grip on the bottom 10 at AutoX.

chrisreale · 10-20-2003, 11:51 PM

I heard that the S-03 has too flexable of a side wall that allows the tire to roll more. Any experience with this?

RallyJon · 10-21-2003, 06:42 AM

Quote:

heard that the S-03 has too flexable of a side wall that allows the tire to roll more.

Yes and no. I tried 205/55s on my Subaru (carrying ~840 lbs on each front tire) and they were squooshy and awful. On my 911 (carrying ~440 lbs on each front tire) the same size S-03 is quite adequately firm.

The S-03s also have a pretty squirmy tread design. They take at least 500 miles to break in and a couple of thousand to really be at their best.

HarryD · 10-21-2003, 08:13 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by RallyJon
Yes and no. I tried 205/55s on my Subaru (carrying ~840 lbs on each front tire) and they were squooshy and awful. On my 911 (carrying ~440 lbs on each front tire) the same size S-03 is quite adequately firm.

The S-03s also have a pretty squirmy tread design. They take at least 500 miles to break in and a couple of thousand to really be at their best.

Rally Jon,

Intersting. While I have not weighed the corners of my car, nor is it corner balanced, I know the total weight is 2600 lbs. If I assume an approximate 40/60 F/R weight distribution, that gives me 520 lbs on each front tire and 780 pounds on each rear.

I think that moves me towards the "squooshy" range and not a good thing as I do plan to AutoX and that would not be a good thing.

HarryD · 10-21-2003, 08:14 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by JTO
Hi Harry,

I am replacing my Bridgestone RE-92s (205 60 HR 15) with Pole Position SO3s in 205 55 WR 15.

Troy

Troy,

Why the change from RE-92's to SO3's?

JTO · 10-21-2003, 08:35 AM

Hi Harry,

I felt funny about having an HR rated tire on my car that can go 140-ish. I plan to DE next summer. Also, the RE 92 have a cronic balance problem; I can't keep them balanced. So, I have heard good things about the S03s and decided to go with them. At Costco, they cost $125 each, mounted, balanced, valve stems, with warranty. Pretty good price.
Troy

Dantilla · 10-21-2003, 10:06 AM

I didn't think SO-3s were available in 15" sizes.

I have Yoko AVS ES100s on my NARP 944 and have been very happy with them. Street, track and autocross, I'm pretty impressed. Great value.

84 IM Flier · 10-21-2003, 04:55 PM

S03s do come in 15"
Check out the Tire Rack: http://www.tirerack.com/tires/Spec.jsp?make=Bridgestone&model=Potenza+S-03+Pole+Position
Ron

callipygian911 · 10-21-2003, 05:15 PM

i decided to try out yoko es100s on my 911 and they're pretty danged good, but not quite as responsive as more expensive tires. they take an instant longer to react to turns than my michellins xgt's did, but dig in nicely once they "wake up" to the turn. they behave predictably both in turns and during breakaway, which is nice, and i'd say they are more than adequate for street driving and entry level autocross, especially for the price. i looked at ecstas, but the chunking problem scared me, and i heard about other problems with falkens, so i went with the yokos and am happy. i actually wanted to go with a tire that is less grippy than the michellins were since i'm trying to learn about sideways driving. they're actually a fair bit grippier than i was expecting! btw, i had a really bad experience with the tire people at costco (san diego branch) and will never return for service.

ttweed · ttweed's Garage

Quote:

Originally posted by callipygian911
i heard about other problems with falkens, so i went with the yokos

What did you hear about the Falkens? They are the tire of choice for all the Street Tire autox crowd. At $63 ea. for a 205/50-15, they are pretty hard to beat for dry traction. I'd be interested to hear what negatives you heard. I have used them on 2 of my cars and they have worked really well for me.

HarryD · 10-21-2003, 07:56 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by ttweed
What did you hear about the Falkens? They are the tire of choice for all the Street Tire autox crowd. At $63 ea. for a 205/50-15, they are pretty hard to beat for dry traction. I'd be interested to hear what negatives you heard. I have used them on 2 of my cars and they have worked really well for me.

Tom,

I have heard that they ae great dry but watch out in the wet as they have very little grip.

JTO · 10-21-2003, 08:18 PM

callipygian911,

What happened with Costco? I am concerned about letting them mount the tires.
Troy

callipygian911 · 10-22-2003, 11:54 AM

sorry it took me so long to respond.
when i was shopping for tires, i did several searches on quite a few of the usual suspects both here and on rennlist. as i recall, somebody was complaining about them not staying in balance, and some other people piped in with some other less-than-complimentary assessments which i can't remember now. also, only one line of falkens was supposed to be okay, since it was some other tire company's tire simply rebadged. all in all, i decided to just play it safe and avoid any tire with even a little negative criticism. run a search and see what you come up with.
as far as the costco thing, they lied to me about the damage on one of my tires (on my acura), saying that a staple went in and was irreparable, and that i immediately needed a new set of tires and that it would not be roadworthy. it turned out to be bs, that was a year ago and i'm still running the same tires.

ttweed · ttweed's Garage

Quote:

Originally posted by HarryD
I have heard that they ae great dry but watch out in the wet as they have very little grip.

You know, it hardly ever rains here in Low Cal, but last year we seemed to have an uncanny ability to attract cold fronts to our autox dates. I actually had the opportunity to run the Azenis in the rain and they were not the least bit treacherous. They were very predictible and although they were no Hoosier Dirt Stocker, they had reasonable grip in the wet.
YMMV,
TT
pic from the liquid sunshine at the SCCA nat'l tour last spring

HarryD · 10-23-2003, 11:46 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by ttweed
You know, it hardly ever rains here in Low Cal, but last year we seemed to have an uncanny ability to attract cold fronts to our autox dates. I actually had the opportunity to run the Azenis in the rain and they were not the least bit treacherous. They were very predictible and although they were no Hoosier Dirt Stocker, they had reasonable grip in the wet.
YMMV,
TT

Tom,

Yikes... We never get that wet at our sloshcrosses! More of a steady drizzle with a light wetness on the track to keep the oil in suspension

.

Does make for an interesting day tho'. Thanks for the info. I was just reapeting the "urban myth" to see if if had any data to support/reject.