FAQ: Which tires work best?

AA wrote:

ABS & TC make noise normally. Most cars with similar systems make the same noise. I like it because it lets me know when the car is going out of control.

Rivieras are not perfectly balanced, but the weight is more evenly distributed than many FWD cars, including Pontiac GTP and Buick Regal. I have never had the rear end swing out. Many things were done to address this, including the rear mounted battery, dual exhausts, and aluminum hood. A 35 lb trailer hitch installed also helps, imo.

Getting back on subject, running good tires can somewhat make up for less than perfect weight distribution, in my experience.

I could not believe how light the hood was when I took it off the car. The gas struts make it feel so much heavier. if only the rest of the car was aluminum, then I wouldn't have to worry about rust.

I'm sure my two twelve inch subs in a ported box sitting in the back helps with my weight distribution.

The thing I do like about the traction control is the fact that it's saving my tires from spinning, albeit at the cost of my brakes (but I do have a lifetime warranty on the pads...).

On summer NAKANG ultra sport 245/45Z/R18 100Y
On winter Goodride SW601 225/60Z/R16 98H


front summer tyres need to be changed.
they look terreble on corners cos cars wheel angles where wrong.
this week on thursday went to a expert who adjusted all wheel angles to factory requaierments. now runs smooth and straight. tyres qill not last longer.

would be a good time to buy 2 new summer tyres now cos prices are -40% off

I just bought a new pair of FireHawk Wide Ovals. These tires continue to do unbelievable things for the handling of the car, but they only last ~35k miles. Still, got a great deal - buy one, get one 50% off.

robotennis61 wrote:

i just bought rims and I'm going to clothe them in, General Grabbers UHP, i know i know they are light truck tires but they are high perf summer tires and do well in the rain(not that it rains in vegas) and last a long time and have excellent handling and grip..... and they look great!

Why not run the exclaim uhps? Since they are actually car tires , and i can barely break them loose from anything other than a dead stop with my mods.

good question tony i just like the way they look.
couple guys run them on some nice mustangs and they agree that the ride is good...

Helloooo everyone.
I know it's been some time (work's been kicking my ass!), but I have a question for you all.

A few weeks ago I had a flat, due to corrosion where the wheel meets the tire. Got it fixed, everything is fantastic again. But it did get me thinking into when I would have to get new tires, what kind would I get?

And so I turn to you guys! I'd love to hear your opinions on tires (current, past, future, bad, good, whatevz!).

Currently I'm running on Michelin Symmetry's. I think they are S rated and work with my stock wheel/cap.

EDIT --- I loooove my Michelin's.

When the corrosion affected my front driver's side tire, the manager at National Tire & Battery (it was an emergency in another state, so I couldn't get to my usual mechanic) tried to sell me on Sumitumo tires that there was a special on. I didn't go for them or fall for the salesman ship, but I'd never really even heard of that brand before.

So any opinions would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks!!
flo xx

PS - mods - I hope I made this post in the right part of the index. If not, I'm sorry!

#1 rule: never listen to the tire salesperson when it comes to choosing a tire. I have tried to learn from them, and they always steer me the in wrong direction (feel a pun coming on?). Whatever they tell you, it's usually different from what another one will say, which is different from what online sources and magazine reviews show. Talk to the salesperson only after you know what tire you want.

I'm a big fan of reading magazine reviews and online articles for info on how different tires perform, and then comparing this to actual reviews written by drivers and racers. Race drivers who use lots of tires know more about how ultra-high performance tires work on their car. Yes, it matters what kind of car they drive. A great source of articles and user reviews can be found at: tirerack.com.

To begin with, decide what you are looking for in a tire. There are several factors, and you can't have them all, but you can have a few:

- price
- looks
- ride quality
- long wear life
- speed rating
- good winter traction
- good wet traction
- good dry traction
- good cornering

There are other factors to consider, but this is a good start. Tires are sorted into classes based on what they do well. A basic way to divide tires is by M&S rating - tires can be rated for mud & snow, or they won't. A mud & snow rated tire will have the letters "M&S" on the side wall. This type of tire is good all year round, but it won't be extremely good for warm weather spirited driving (hard cornering, braking, and accelerating). It will just be 'ok' to 'good' all around, a safe choice.

If you want to step up to something better, you'll probably need to consider a set of tires without the M&S rating. Known as Max Performance, these tires are specifically designed for very good warm weather performance. These come stock on vehicles like Vettes, Porsches, and Ferraris. You'll notice the car will stop, go, and turn much, much better with these type of tires. Some of them are also very good in rain. However, you'll need to change them out for a set of M&S tires when winter comes. A 2nd set of rims makes this much easier.

Assuming you'll get M&S rated tires (90% of cars probably run these), there are further options to consider:

Economy - costs less, and may last a long time, but handling will be sloppy, and you won't get much grip. These tires also typically have a lower speed rating, so be sure to get at least "S", but I recommend "T" to be safe, and "H" if you drive fast a lot on the freeway. It's nice to know your tires are rated for 130 mph if you ever decide to go 95 for a minute or two. I wouldn't do that on "S" rated tires.

Touring - these tires are made for a very smooth, quiet ride. They also look good. They can cost more, and they typically have a very long life. Decent handling, and often very good in the wet. A safe choice, similar to OEM.

Performance - usually a higher speed rating, blockier tread for grip, and firm side walls for better cornering. These tires push the envelope of what can be done within the M&S rating. Can be noisy, and the life may be shorter as the rubber is often soft. Price is usually medium.

Wet - a few options focus on wet weather handling. Get these if you're paranoid about loosing traction in the rain, or if you drive in an area where it rains all the time I see how they might be ok. They can be expensive, though.

Economy - with the advent of hybrid cars, there are special tires that give higher MPG numbers. However, you won't get much performance, as they are specialized only for efficiency.

Winter - there are some options made exclusively for winter traction. Use these only if you have another set of tires for summer.

But...

If you are someone who wants to push the envelope of performance, take the car to the limits of speed, slide around corners with some kind of control, or even race the car on a track or autocross event, only Max Performance tires will do. Driving like this is unsafe, but wearing the right tires will give you an edge, and the car's handling will become much more predictable. Most of tires in this group are expensive, but a few options are quite reasonable. They are usually good-looking, a bit noisy, and don't last long, but they will enable your Riv to do things you wouldn't think possible - in the warm months only, of course. It's really incredible to feel the difference they can make. Just make sure the rest of the car is in decent shape, or you could break something while trying!

Well, most of the points raised by AA are pretty well covered by Bridgestone Fuzions... except the one missing bullet point: Noise.

I bought these because they were as close as possible to the Firestone Firehawks that were on the car when I bought it, and I liked those. Both tires corner like the car is on rails, and have wet grip almost as good as the dry grip. I've honestly never found the adhesion limits, never even made them squeal... and in rain I've only triggered the ABS once or twice.

The ride is fine, the ratings are Traction: A, Temperature: A, and Treadwear is 400 or more... The only thing I don't like is the highway noise. The new Fuzions are louder than the worn-out Firehawks, and you know how sound-deadened our drivetrains are, and how aerodynamically quiet our cars are. At 70 MPH, the only thing I hear is the tires.

If you like Michelin, you probably like soft & quiet...

my 2c. I love my firehawk gt's. Best performance for the buck IMO. And not a dedicated summer tire for those of you without Canadian like winters.

Eldo wrote:

If you like Michelin, you probably like soft & quiet...

My Michelin Pilots were quiet, but NOT soft... I loved them.

ok so i see a lot of people have the firehawks how much did they run and what size should i get for my 16 inch stck chrome wheels as far as handiling and stuff i have the stock aluminum wheels that came on there for winter tires whats a good one for those ie iam in md

Stock size is 225/60 R16.

There are two different Firehawk tires. One is the Firehawk GT, the other is Firehawk Wide Oval (WO). The Firehawk GT is a less expensive all-weather performance tire you can run all year round. The Firehawk Wide Oval is an ultra-high performance summer-only tire that costs a little more and will provide lots of grip, firmer ride, and higher speed rating.

The Firehawk GT would be okay for everyday use with a sportier feel. The Wide Oval would be better for someone who wants to push the limits of what the car can do without needing to worry about tread separation or the tires blowing out (lots of fun on the exit ramps!) Wide Ovals are very popular with Vette owners.

Firehawk GT: $85 per tire
Firehawk WO: $110 per tire

I have Goodyear Eagle F1 GS2 tires in 245/45/18.
They are W rated (168mph) not uncommon for a sportyish tire in 18" They have a good load rating as well.
I think they are the OEM tires used for cobalt SS's and soltice gxp's or something like that.

They are pretty good. Seem to grip pretty well straight and cornering - no trouble in rain - not excessively noisy or rough. I haven't used them in snow yet but I'm not expecting them to be very good in snow. I'll be running my stock wheels in winter from now on though.


What I'd like to ask here, though, is if anyone has any opinions on Falken Ziex ZE-512 or FK-452/451 (more likely than ZE-512). I'm trimming my tire options to what can be gotten in size 255/45/18 and not overly expensive like Nittos. I'm looking for superior summer performance. I'm not really worried about noise or smoothness but I do want them to last more than a year.

Also, is there a good source for cheap winter tires to go on the stock wheels?

I'm looking at Yoko S-Drive for my summer 18" wheels:



http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires.jsp?tireMake=Yokohama&tireModel=S.drive&partnum=445YR8SXL&vehicleSearch=false&fromCompare1=yes

I've never used them, but based on the price, reviews, and tread pattern, I think I'm going to try a set for next year. For winter, Blizzaks aren't that expensive for our stock rims.

AA wrote:

I'm looking at Yoko S-Drive for my summer 18" wheels:



http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires.jsp?tireMake=Yokohama&tireModel=S.drive&partnum=445YR8SXL&vehicleSearch=false&fromCompare1=yes

I've never used them, but based on the price, reviews, and tread pattern, I think I'm going to try a set for next year. For winter, Blizzaks aren't that expensive for our stock rims.

Those look a lot like the AVID H4s's I had. I was happy with those overall.
Looks like they have them in 255/45/18 too, although for $25 more per tire - OUCH!
Those wheels pictures look NICE too! *goes to OZ's website...*



Another thing I've been thinking about is trying something like putting extra grippy nice tires up front and then getting something a little more laid back in the rear. For instance, go with those S-Drives in the front and then get a decent all-season on the back (ideally something less expensive). That might neutralize handling a little bit, yes? If you stick to one brand like Yokohama or Goodyear and get tires with fairly similar looking tread patterns, I think that would be pretty cool. Just no more rotating tires. Basically you just buy new fronts when you wear em out.

That's one way to encourage understeer, which will neutralize the car in a turn, but the end result is you won't have as much grip. It's like putting oil on the rear tires to cause understeer. Instead, the way I like to approach it is to put grippy tires on the back, then work on making the front stick even better through suspension upgrades. By controlling the front end you'll get more neutral handling, and your car grips better all around - imo, anyway.

AA wrote:

put grippy tires on the back, then work on making the front stick even better through suspension upgrades.

I'm taking that as the same logic in the oppsite order. I'm saying make the rear less sticky than the front. You're saying make the front more sticky than the rear. Either way, the same thing is happening. Suspension upgrades on the front mostly increase understeer, don't they? They make the car handle a lot better obviously and it's clearly worth the trade-off of more understeer because if the car is gripping better and understeering, that's better than understeering without the grip.

It's not really the same thing, because 'less sticky' means you slide more. 'more sticky' means you hold the corner better. Understeer/oversteer just indicates which pair of wheel looses traction first.

With regard to how the car slides when it looses grip, yes, the result would be the same, but think about it - when you make any of the tires 'less sticky' the car's grip threshold goes down. Although the car's orientation may in fact be more neutral, you still aren't holding as many G's before the drift. Improving front traction is the better way to correct oversteer, imo.

Front or rear, what has worried me with my advancing age (and the Riviera's and Fire/Bridgestone's very good grip), is how suddenly the car will let go when it approaches the limit... Even when I drive hard enough to scare my passengers, I never get any squeal or slippage from the tires - it's like being on rails.

Some of you have done a little racing - do these car have a gradual breakaway, or a really-bad-day breakaway?

In my experience, it's mostly in the wheel tire combo that determines the grip threshold. The stock wheels with high performance summer rubber (Firehawk WO) gripped extremely well in a hard corner, and like you said never even squealed, then all of a sudden you will loose it. I've done it in the wet, but never actually broke them loose in good weather - they're just that sticky. Once I had the fronts let go when powering through a corner; that was not fun.

When I put on the 18"s w/ 215/45 profile (very thin) I noticed right away the car actually lost some grip. I think it's because the contact patch is smaller now for each tire. But... the transition into a drift is so much more gradual. It makes the car more fun because I can take more chances without worrying about losing control. The irony is, here I am with low profile tires, more forgiving breakaway, and a much firmer ride, but actually not as much lateral grip in the end. I am pretty sure I could improve my autocross times with the stock wheels/tires, and with a more comfortable ride at same time.

Yes, sometimes irony can be pretty ironic...

Thanks for the input. As you know from my ROTM pics, I'm running the factory chrome rims. Also, I should go out and look at the sidewalls again, but after driving them through a winter (and the price I got 'em for) I'm pretty sure these Fuzions are all-season. Except for acceleration spin, they behave almost identically in the rain as in the sun... and that makes me think that they would really have a sudden breakaway if I ever pushed them too hard.

so whats a good all around tire for my stock wheels iam getting a pair of vogue tires for the summer i also was wondering if i can get a lil bit wider on my stock buick wheels (they came off a regal gs)

Eldo wrote:

Front or rear, what has worried me with my advancing age (and the Riviera's and Fire/Bridgestone's very good grip), is how suddenly the car will let go when it approaches the limit... Even when I drive hard enough to scare my passengers, I never get any squeal or slippage from the tires - it's like being on rails.

Some of you have done a little racing - do these car have a gradual breakaway, or a really-bad-day breakaway?

I thought letting go near limits was more due to tires than vehicle. I had a Dodge Lancer ES (Saab-9000-looking thing, with a 2.2 turbo) that I put Uniroyal Rallye GTS tires on. Those were nice tires, grippy, BUT unlike the Telstars (Kelly-Springfield/Goodyear) I had, the Uniroyals let go suddenly at limit. Instead of squealing in a turn they would grip - increasing my confidence - until one day I carved a corner and they chirped (did not squeal, just chirped) and started skittering laterally. That was scary. The Telstars on the other hand squealed way before they'd let go of anything.

Albertj

Time again for a new set of rubbers. (insert condom joke here)

This will be my first time getting tires for the 18's so i need to find something in 245/45/18.
I have been really leaning towards the BFG Gforce super sports
My local BJ's tire center can get them for me for $867 out the door with hazard, wrty, etc.
here is the tread pattern:


My buddy has them on his regal and seems to get good traction with them.
I'd like to try something like the KDW2's but i think that amount of traction would break something on my stock tranny.

Anybody have any experience with other good traction tires in that size?

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires.jsp?tireMake=Bridgestone&tireModel=Potenza+RE050A

Potenza RE050As were on my 18"s when I bought them. I was surprised at how long they lasted, and they were plenty sticky, but not too sticky. Problem is, I can't really afford to replace them, so I'm also in the hunt for new "rubbers". Funny, a friend of mine from Europe uses that term to describe engine mounts!