They didn't test the Toyos because the Tire Rack doesn't sell Toyos. I know from looking at the miata.net forum (my dad's got a turbo'd miata) that the miata guys like the MX and the T1-S, but the general oppinion seems to be that the MX is superior in performance, although it's only available in one miata size vs. many for the T1-S. Try to find a Sport Auto review of the T1-S, they compare it to a whole bunch of others, but no Kumhos (I have it but can't post it due to size and I don't have a link).

 

Black91n/a: What's your dad running, and is he on the Power List? There's a couple other guys here I know of other than myself ("roadsterdoc", "miatrx") that drive FIed Miatas. I had a '95 R Pkg w/ FM II kit.

http://www.geocities.com/fmii_miata/r_pkg.htm

 

It's not fair to condemn a tire you haven't used especially when your argument is based on wear ratings. They don't mean crap.

 

How about noise? Most people are going to drive the car on the street with the T1-S or MX. I wouldn't want a noisy tire. Isn't the MX louder than the T1-S?? If performance is similar, noise is a factor for me. I didn't buy Bridgestone 730's again because of noise. I liked the tires otherwise.

 

I havent tried the MX but my t1s arent very loud but I guess it's all relative.

 

SpeedKing: My dad's got a 92 Sunburst Yellow with a FMIII (yes it's a 3, basically a 2 with a divorced wastegate, it's one of only about 7 ever made), Link ECU, Pauter rods, 9.0:1 pistons, ported+polished head, FM turbo single exhaust, HKS SSBOV, ACT clutch, FM aluminum flywheel, torsen LSD, 3.9 rear end, FM aluminum radiator, and that's about it (I'm probably forgetting something). It makes about 220rwhp at 12psi (mustang dyno I think). Apparently it made 260 at 14psi (don't know what kind of dyno).

DamonB: I agree that it's not exactly fair to speak with no personal experiance, but I've done alot of research on tires, and I posted based on what I have found through research. I've never seen anyone directly compare the two, but I can make intelligent assumptions based on the facts. The T1-S is a very good tire, although it does have soft sidewalls. It's one of the miata guys favorite tires judjung by the miata.net forum. Also the SPort Auto test ranked the T1-S behind the Dunlop SP 9000, Falken FK-451, Goodyear Eagle F1, and the Michelin Pilot Sport, so it can't be the best tire out there. Also, the Falken Azenis (another popular miata tire) is considered to be in another leage compared to the T1-S. I've read that the MX is only slightly inferior to the Azenis for performance. So by deduction one could assume that the MX is better than the T1-S.

I never post when I have no idea what I'm talking about unless I clearly state that I'm only gussing.

adam c: If you're concerned about noise maybe you should look at the Yokohama AVS dB, they're designed to be quiet. Most high performance tires will make a fair bit more noise than a "normal" tire, especially when they're worn.

 

Here is another vote for the Toyo T1S especially on a street driven car here in the NY/NJ area.

I had them on my BMW e36 with lotsa mods and they were great. Nice grip, very nice ride, very quiet, creamy breakaway characteristics, you could tell when you were at the limit. Kicked ******* *** in the rain! Increased my confidence in rain driving due to its great wet weather street traction.

I'm not sure about overall traction with 350HP as the BMW only had about 240HP or so, but I really enjoyed driving the Toyos on the street. Rynberg had a pretty good write-up about his experience using Toyos.

On the other hand, I've never tried the Kumho's. They look pretty cool though.