Tires for 87' 911 - Southern California - I'm confused!!!

[ace123]

Hi,

I've been researching tires for my 87 911. There are so many choices and I'm having trouble making a decision. I've read some other threads but it doesn't match my requirements.

I'm thinking V rating or better, but I've seen some pretty good H ratings too, not sure what i need here.

205/55R16
225/50R16

- Warm temperature driving - ( Los Angeles area )
- Low noise
- No track
- I don't care about tread wear - I don't put a lot of miles on my car
- price point - ideally $150 or less per tire

I looked at Pirelli - apparently they are really loud so they are out.
Michelin seems good, but the are all season which i don't need
Toyo?
Hankook - Ventus V2 concept 2 ?
Yokohoma

I'm mainly looking online. Amazon is better than you would expect!

What do you think? Thanks!!!

[darrin]

Here's a link to performance summer tires in these sizes from tirerack https://www.tirerack.com/tires/TireSearchResults.jsp?zip-code=90001&frontWidth=205/&frontRatio=55&frontDiameter=16&rearWidth=225/&rearRatio=50&rearDiameter=16

I've been very happy with my continental extremecontact dw tires (predecessors to the EXTREMECONTACT SPORT which is well below your pricerange)

Have also heard good things about the Bridgestone RE-11s

Although the Michelin Pilot Exalto PE2 tires are just out of your price range, they are NOT all season and are porsche-certified (which is SUPPOSED to indicate that they're specifically developed for use in our cars) --

[ace123]

Thanks for the info. I'm checking them now.

The Costco tire guy said they were phasing out the Michelin Pilot Exalto tires and the replacement was something else ( can't recall ).

Bridgestone's look pretty cool.

How's the road noise with the continental extremecontact dw's ?

[darrin]

mine are nearing the end of their life and are still pretty quiet -- I really enjoyed them as summer tires, good balance between compliance and handling (for me)

[shaunmbenson]

plus one for Continental DW - I find the noise and road feel to be excellent - canyon carving, long trips, odd track day - great all purpose for me

[ace123]

It's a really good price point on the Continental DW's - ~ $100. I saw the all season on amazon and they are ~$160 which i don't need.

That's a good recommendation Darrin - I'll end up saving some a couple of hundred dollars if I run with it. Sweet!

https://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires.jsp?tireMake=Continental&tireModel=ExtremeContact+Sport&frontTire=055WR6ECS&rearTire=25WR6ECS&vehicleSearch=false&fromCompare1=yes

[Franks89-911]

I got mine at Costco - BF Goodrich Comp 2 A/s for an 89 Carrera - around $90 per tire. Not advertised on the website, you have to go in and ask. They handle really nice, I'm like you, I don't track my car, just drive around on the weekends & give kids joy rides, 2500/yr or less. I took them up to 120mph (the tires, not the kids!) and they handled great.

[ace123]

Looking to greatly improve upon their own current generation ExtremeContact DW tires and stand above the competition, Continental looked at what they could improve and performed comparison analysis to other top-of-the-line performance tires from multiple brands. In side-by-side testing, Continental claims the new ExtremeContact Sport tires were measured to be quieter than the UHP tires from Bridgestone, Dunlop, Firestone, Goodyear, Pirelli, and Michelin.

I think I'm going to have to get these!

[ace123]

Here's a review of the Continental ExremeContact Sport Tires. They say some good stuff about them. Granted - they were given the tires to review.

Continental ExtremeContact Sport Long Term Tire Test: A Worthy Upgrade for Any Car? [Review] - The Fast Lane Car

[ace123]

I drive pretty much the way you do Frank! $90 a tire at costco for bf goodrich sounds good too. Then they can install them as part of the deal I believe. They told me I can bring tires in to them ( can't ship directly ) and then they will mount them for $15 a tire and balance for another $5 a tire.

I'll check that out as well. I think there is a $50 off coupon if you buy 4 at costco right now for bf goodrich

[911obgyn]

I drive in southern cal and the big comp 2s are perfect, low noise, treadwear is ok and for the occasional rain are pretty good.

[Canada Kev]

I'm currently running the Continental Extremecontact DWs and am quite happy with them. They're great in the rain, quiet on the highway and are far more comfortable that the Dunlop Direzzas I had previously (though also not as grippy in more extreme cornering).

I hope the new Conti EC sports live up to their hype as I might try a set of those when these are shot.

[Trackrash]

Originally Posted by ace123

I drive pretty much the way you do Frank! $90 a tire at costco for bf goodrich sounds good too. Then they can install them as part of the deal I believe. They told me I can bring tires in to them ( can't ship directly ) and then they will mount them for $15 a tire and balance for another $5 a tire.

I'll check that out as well. I think there is a $50 off coupon if you buy 4 at costco right now for bf goodrich

Costco? I wouldn't buy tires for my mini-van at Costco. Good luck if you take your Porsche or even its wheels to Costco. They were ignorant and disrespectful to me the last two times I was in their tire store.

Don't take a chance that they will sell you look-a-like tires. There is another thread discussing the fact that Costco has Michelin make "special" tires just for them.

What would you do I they didn't have the correct valve stem? Happened to me.

What if they crush your oil lines? Or scratch your wheels?

Costco no way. Spend an extra $5 per wheel and do it with a tire store with a good track record with Porsches.

[dwelle]

the last place i look to save money on ANY car is the tires.

they're sort of important...

[Franks89-911]

Originally Posted by Trackrash

Costco? I wouldn't buy tires for my mini-van at Costco. Good luck if you take your Porsche or even its wheels to Costco. They were ignorant and disrespectful to me the last two times I was in their tire store.

Don't take a chance that they will sell you look-a-like tires. There is another thread discussing the fact that Costco has Michelin make "special" tires just for them.

What would you do I they didn't have the correct valve stem? Happened to me.

What if they crush your oil lines? Or scratch your wheels?

Costco no way. Spend an extra $5 per wheel and do it with a tire store with a good track record with Porsches.

I had a very good experience at Costco. Of course, I only took the wheels there, not the whole car. But the staff was courteous, everything was done well & timely, and the tires were literally factory-fresh, having been manufactured 3 weeks before my install. And I got the full 45k warranty on all 4 tires, even though with 2 different tire sizes, the warranty is supposedly halved.

By contrast, my dad a couple of years before he passed went to a supposedly reputable "specialty tire shop" here in ATL that advertised "experience with Porsches" and did "high speed on-car tire balancing" and all that other fluffy stuff. They sold 3+ year old Michelin Pilot Sports to a 78 yr old man which failed on me well within a 6 year window, while driving at night in a sketchy area of town which made it extra fun. And the car drives & handles better with the Costco BF Goodrich tires than it ever did with the "genuine" Michelins mounted by the "specialists".

Everyone's experience is different, I know, and it depends on what you need and how comfortable you are with a big box store. Some of the "Costco hate" on here seems like it may not be justified. I just wanted new shoes on my baby to take my kids & buddies out and maybe my wife on the occasional date night, and my expectations were exceeded & the price was right for a car where I can't even get a dadgum oil change done w/a mechanic for less than $100.

[David 23]

Do some research on the Tire Rack website. They have lots of information as well as test results and comparisons of tires within categories. At the price point you mention, you can get some very good tires. My experiences with Yokohoma, and Bridgestone on Porsches have been great. Bridgestone RE11 seems to be the overwhelming choice for performance in the sizes you need. Dunlop DZ 102 and Firestone Indy 500 are also highly regarded if you want more mileage and a bit less performance.
I would never take wheels to Costco for tires on a Porsche. Yes, I buy groceries etc. there, love the store, but tires/balancing for my Porsches, uh.... no.

[MARISOL78sc]

Bridgestone re-11

[ace123]

I'm thinking I'm down to these 3. They are very similar in price (~$100) -the Michelin is a little pricier ~$130. What do you think?

Conti Extreme Contact Sport
https://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires.jsp?tireMake=Continental&tireModel=ExtremeContact+Sport&frontTire=055WR6ECS&rearTire=25WR6ECS&vehicleSearch=false&fromCompare1=yes

Michelin Pilot Sport AS3+
https://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires.jsp?tireMake=Michelin&tireModel=Pilot+Sport+A%2FS+3%2B+%28W-+or+Y-Speed+Rated%29&frontTire=055YR6PSAS3PL&rearTire=25YR6PSAS3PL&vehicleSearch=false&fromCompare1=yes

Conti ExtremeContact DWS
https://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires.jsp?tireMake=Continental&tireModel=ExtremeContact+DWS+06&frontTire=055WR6DWS06&rearTire=25WR6DWS06&vehicleSearch=false&fromCompare1=yes

[bigel]

+1 on the Conti's...I run them on my sedan and they are very quite and handle well.

But, why are you concerned about road noise in a 911?? Who can hear anything over the engine noise???

[DWeg1998]

Those are good choices Ace. I would eliminate the All Season DWS as it doesn't handle nearly as well as the Conti summer tire and you don't have a need for a cold weather tire. That Michelin is an All Season as well but has been said to handle as well as a Summer tire, unlike the DWS.