I know my dad loves Michelin... Made in the USA patriot stuff... bridgestone is japan and conti is Portugal? I'm definitely trying out some DWS's when the time comes.
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I know my dad loves Michelin... Made in the USA patriot stuff... bridgestone is japan and conti is Portugal? I'm definitely trying out some DWS's when the time comes.
I heard Michelin are made in France ? Maybe they have factories in USA by now.
I'm on my second set of Bridgestone Potenza RE-11s and very happy with them. Found a good Tirerack review that may interest you.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OC83IbX__Gg
This x 1000000. If I put maybe 4-5k miles on a year and garage kept the car most of the time, I'd have Michelin Pilot Super Sports, or maybe Hankook RS3's. . But, since I drive 30-32k a year, I can't afford to replace a $1000 set of tires every season, because they get horrible mileage. That shit is way too crazy for my budget.Quote:
Originally Posted by kayger12
That's why instead I went with a $700 set of Hankook V12's that lasted me probably around 25k or so before one of them blew up, forcing me to replace all four. The timing couldn't have been better; it blew up right when it was winter tire switchover.
In the end, some of us have to make some serious budget vs performance choices, and most of the time the budget ends up winning.
Guy,
I love the RE-11's. I have a set of these as my auto-x and track set. They're still good after 3 years of 95% autox usage, 1% track, and 4% street usage. These tires are amazing in the dry.
They tramline like a biotch though when you hit bumps.
Yep French company but many of their tires are made in the US (probably only applies to us? I'm certain they have many factories in many regions across the globe). At least the ones I looked at had "Made in USA" stamped on them.Quote:
Originally Posted by fredo
[QUOTEGuy,
I love the RE-11's. I have a set of these as my auto-x and track set. They're still good after 3 years of 95% autox usage, 1% track, and 4% street usage. These tires are amazing in the dry.
They tramline like a biotch though when you hit bumps.[/QUOTE]
Love the tires, several track days at Mid-Ohio and Nelson Ledges and a few auto-x's here in Tennessee. Once I got out of the Norther n Ohio checkerboard and into the twisty hills of Middle Tennessee, I couldn't give them up.:)
I love me some Summer tires that are nice and sticky. Currently on Bridgestone Potenza s04 and came from conti dws.
IIRC my SuperSports were made in FranceQuote:
Originally Posted by BavarianZHP
I agree with Bruce. You should invest in the best tire you can afford. If I'm on the highway and the person in front of me slams on their brakes, I want to make sure that wet or dry my tire will slow my car as quickly as possible. As well as hold me on the road if I am surprised by an upcoming corner on a back road. I guess that's how I've always viewed tires. I'd rather have something that will give me the advantage in a "what-if" scenario.
I understand y'all's point with driving so much and spending more on a tire adds up but for me it's worth it for peace of mind. Just sharing my view/opinion on tire selection...
I know I weighed in with an economy answer, but I have to post my thoughts on the "how much tire to buy for your car" discussion:
It doesn't feel like it, but tires are cheap. Of the two major consumables we put on our cars, they're not the big one.
The most expensive tire set (that isn't a racing slick) I can find for our cars is the Michelin Pilot Sport PS2 ZP, at $1,366. They're rated for 20,000mi. In the absolute worst case scenario, we can say you'll go through two sets of rears in that time (as noted by the reduced mileage guarantee when staggered sizes are used), which adds another $802, bringing our total up to $2,168.
Well, in those 20,000mi, given average local prices and my current driving habits, I'll have spent $3,727 on gasoline.
It's just a matter of psychology and framing that makes tires seem so expensive; you have to pay for a whole year's worth (or more) of them up front. If you had to buy gas this way, you'd likely have a heart attack. It's just convenient that we can only hold a tankful at a time, so we end up doling out $40 or so a week - by its nature, we're forced to budget our fuel expenditures.
You might say it's an unfair comparison because gas is something we simply *have* to buy when we own a car. But the exact same thing is true of tires. And for all the money we spend on performance enhancers from aerodynamics to engine tweaks to suspension and brakes, tires are the only thing that actually sticks us to the road. When gas fails us, we slow down and pull over. When tires fail, we risk death. They're more important than gas.
So If we set aside $20 every time we filled up our gas tanks, then we'd have all the money we need for the nicest tires we want when the time comes to change them. And unless we're all going for the absolute most expensive tires on the market, we'll probably have a lot of money left over.
Michelin PSSs are Effin SWEET. Got them for less than a grand, they're extremely responsive, and perform pretty well in the wet. Highly recommended.
I have Michelins PSS on the back and I think they're making a bit of highway noise. Although I think that's kind of expected as they get a bit older, especially because of the cuped design.
Mine are pretty new (don't even have them on right now -> snow tires) but I'll keep a look out for that as they age.
I'm on a set of JOKE ahama avid envigors (not entirely by choice, got two for free) and they are ok at best. Half decent in the dry, reasonable grip, you can tell when they start to struggle. I will say though they are very nice in wet conditions. Pretty slippy in the snow compared to some other tires I've driven with, however good for drifting ;) There are better options out there.
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I'm still very happy with my Kumho Ecsta 4x. They do seem to have less grip in sub-freezing temps and they do flat spot when they sit for two days. But the same is true for a lot of tires. The price to performance ratio is just about perfect for me. When I transitioned into using my ZHP as a year-round daily driver that ruled out summer UHP tires. There's only a handful of A/S UHP tires to choose from and they're all probably just fine for most of us. I take exception to the assumption that because Michelins are more expensive they are more appropriate for our cars or safer. I've driven many brands and types of tires on many cars and truthfully most of them are fine. There are things you like about each and things you don't. I could've afforded to put Michelin PS A/S on instead but I decided not to - the price was almost double the Kumhos. The real-world difference between them does not reflect that.
Tires are incredibly important to the safety of your car. Buy the best you can afford. But don't assume the most expensive is the best for everyone.
^Definitely. I am tempted by the A/S 3s.
We'll see how I'm feeling when the Khumos finally give up. If wear doesn't accelerate I've got well over a year left on them.
Does your car see any usage in the winter at all?Quote:
Originally Posted by kayger12
If not, you should consider summer tires. :dunno
I have it in my head that you don't drive it in the winter. Correct?
It does, but it doesn't see rain or snow.
I thought about going summers but wasn't sure about running them in colder temps even if the road is dry.
You think it's an option?
If you do drive it in the winter then I would say no to summers. They are useless below 45-ish degrees.Quote:
Originally Posted by kayger12
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No dice then. I drive it less, but I definitely drive it.
Thanks to this ringing endorsement by a experienced and knowledgable member, I ordered the DWS yesterday thru our site. :)Quote:
Originally Posted by BCS_ZHP
I was tempted to try the Hankook ventus s1 noble2 based on the comparison table that another member was kind enough to post on this thread; that table clearly showed that Hankook was better than the DWS in some key categories.
However, the # of reviews (~160k for Hankook vs. 33 million for DWS) that formed that study made me pause. More importantly, I rely and highly value the feedback of the members here and so it was an easy decision.
Will post my thoughts later next week once I have them installed.
Thanks again!
Thanks Dood.Quote:
Originally Posted by BimmerRules!
I'm currently in the market for picking up some tires for the staggered set of 68's i have at the house. As such I won't be able to rotate them. I would like to get some decent amount of life out of them and I do not track the car. I drive it fairly spirited on occasion but nothing ridiculous. I have run Kumho's in the past but have noticed that I rarely get more than 1 year worth of use out of them before I have to replace them again. I'm considering the Continental DWS tires but will be slightly more expensive than I'm used to shelling out. Right now i'm debating between the two. I was happy with the kumhos but they tend to decline sharply after a certain amount of mileage. Decisions decisions....
If you feel a bit adventurous why not look at General Gmax ?
Or Hankook Ventus ( the number 1 on tire tack I forget exact model code)
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I had a 2001 330ci with sport package as a DD - swapped out the Michelin PS (or POS as I refer to them) with BF Goodrich KDW 2's. I was pretty impressed with the ride, handling, and durability of those tires and would recommend.
If you want the ultimate in a street / performance tire, definitely go with the Michelin PSS. All the Z4M guys run them for DD and track. Amazing tire!
I would avoid the Hankook V12's. I find them unpredictable and not very sticky. Plain old scary in the wet.
DWS just did AWESOME through the snow... passed a few other BMWs without. ;-)
Will,
One year is really fast. My experience is that tier one brands like Michelin, Continental, Dunlop, Bridgestone, etc. are better as DD tire overall. Not only from a wear perspective but also ride and sound quality. Most tier two+ tires give up on these qualities sooner. I found myself replacing Kumhos and Falkens sooner because the got too loud. So I've become a tire snob for the street cars and stick with Michelins. I have used Dunlop Dezzaris (sp) as my dual use tire on my E36 M3. Street and track. I get two years out of a set. That is 7 months of street use and 12-16 track days per year. The cords are showing by the end of year two.
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Thanks for the info. I believe I'm going to go with the continentals
sent from S4
For summer the two makes I use are Michelin Pilot Super Sports (ZHP) and Hankook Ventus V12's (///M)
How do the hankooks hold up?Quote:
Originally Posted by cakM3
sent from S4
I get about two to three season's worth of use from my rear set of Hankooks avg.....depends on how many miles/yr I drive the ///M. This past season I put on less than 4k miles on the ///M and spent most of the season driving my ZHP :)Quote:
Originally Posted by BimmerWill
Since the ///M has lots of torque and I really run the car whenever I take it out, I typically avg about 15 - 20k or so on the tires...
Alright thanks for the info
sent from S4
Update: it's now 1000+ miles on my DWS and count me as a happy customer. I was shocked at the casual confidence it built on me and happily parked the car on ice and snow without hestitation.Quote:
Originally Posted by BimmerRules!
Did I say Conti DWS?
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I know I did...Quote:
Originally Posted by danewilson77
just saw this thread.
michelin pilot super sport for me. they cost more, and i'm quite frugal, but once you live with them for a while you see where your money went.... smiles per mile.
not only do they stick well in both dry and wet, but they wear well, are quiet, compliant enough, and due to their crazy compound they actually stick just as well in the wet at 3/32" as they do when new. oh - and the best part - they are light. very light. and most are made in the US (OE ZHP sizes are).
peter
I have worn my rear sets of Pilot Super Sports down to the cord and yet these tires continued to stick and I was able to hold my track thru tight clover leafs....of course I was unaware that the rear tires have worn down that much....tires have been replaced with a new set of Pilot Super Sports....easily the best set of tires I have ever driven with. Hands down.... :thumbsup
Got a pair of Conti DW put on the rears last Saturday. They replaced Bridgestone RE760 which I still have for fronts. These Contis are quite different. They are quieter, smoother and take bumps better but they seem spongier. Almost feels like I have softer shocks installed. They also are not as stable. A little bit squirelly actually and it feels like they are more to the oversteer side. Don't know if it's the odd tread pattern or the soft side walls causing it.
Don’t any new tires feel a bit more “squirrelly” and “spongy” compared to worn ones? Due to the extra few 32ds of tread? Not saying that you’re wrong about the Contis being a bit softer than your RE760s, just thought I remembered something about new tires’ treads.Quote:
Originally Posted by Dave1027
That could be. Seems these Contis are getting less squirelly as they break in. Just odd that there's such a drastic difference in feel but these are my first tire replacement on the beam.