dagoof

I live in Idaho, and the roads are sometimes less than ideal here. They tar and chip-coat the roads here and it makes your tires pretty loud. Added to that is the fact that I have 18" wheels.

Does anyone have a good recommendation? Is there a good tire out there that might be more comfortable without giving up too much performance?

I do drive fast and hard when I get on good roads like Jackson pass or the empty Montana freeway, but I also travel on some back country roads that are a little rough.

It seems like the most recomended tires on this site are:
- Nitto NT05's
- Dunlop Direzza Star Spec
- Brigstone RE-11
- Yokohama Advan neova AD08

- BFG g-force T/A KDW also looks good

Are any of these better than the rest?

Miata_mx5

Direzza Star specs I have been extremely happy with.

AD08 I want to try next.

Heard decent things about Hankook RS3s as well. No personal experiences though.

dagoof

My car came with Fulda Carat Extremo's on it.

I don't know much about them, so I don't really know what to expect going to another tire yet.

Roen

iTrader: (2)

Each one of those tires is low on the durability scale.

They give crazy performance, but if you want a tire that'll last, maybe check out a General Exclaim UHP or something.

jdmsuper7

iTrader: (1)

You can't have both comfort and performance, those 2 goals contradict each other. If you want instant response, you need a stiff sidewall. If you want a cushy ride, you need a soft one. If you are at all worried about tread noise, don't even bother looking at the tires on your list.

You should probably go down a few performance classes to get something a bit more durable and softer-sidewalled. Kumho ASX maybe?

dagoof

Thanks for the advice. I'll take all the input that I can get.

Can you even get a softer, more comfortable ride with 18" wheels? Would it really make a noticeable difference?


Don't get me wrong. I'm not looking for a Cadillac ride. I like my car, and I'm not trying to turn it into something that it's not. It's mostly a weekend toy for me, and I like to drive it fast and hard, but I'm kind of new to sports cars and I don't know too much about low profile tires. (The last set of tires that I bought were 32"X11.5" R15's.)

I'm not planning on driving the car much in the rain or in winter weather, but I do run around to and from town, on city streets, and back country roads. I'd like to try auto crossing one day, but I'm not there yet.

jdmsuper7

iTrader: (1)

Sidewall construction of the tire will make a noticeable difference in ride quality on any tire, the problem is with 18"s if you are running anywhere near stock overall diameter (meaning wheel + tire) you aren't going to have very much sidewall on the tire to begin with, which isn't going to help your ride even if you put touring tires on.

I'd probably look at something in the "high performance summer" category on tire rack. Do some research (there is a wealth of knowledge on that site) and see what you think is going to work best for you. I'd personally stay away from the auto-x spec tires like the Star Specs if you are going down rough roads. Not only will they sandblast your car (they will pick up stones easily when they are hot), but you also chance a puncture if you are going down a dirt or gravel road and pick up a big enough or pointy enough rock. Additionally, rough roads will tear them up, and you will probably see far less than the ~10k mile expected lifespan.

Also, don't wait, just go auto-x.

I haven't driven on the General UHPs, but they are probably a good place to start looking.

dagoof

Thanks for the help.

There actually aren't any "high performance summer" tires listed on tire rack for my size. (225/40/R18)

The only choices that they give me are:
- Ultra high performance
- Max Performance
- Extreme performance

- Or the all season/snow tires, but most of them are ultra high performance too.

I'll keep researching. Tire rack is a good site. I guess, eventually, its going to be a trial and error kind of deal. expensive learning curve.

Josh18_2k

iTrader: (3)

i vote for federal 595ss. they are dirt cheap, and have a suprising amount of grip.
sidewall is a bit softer than the tires listed

http://citytireonline.com/Federal595.htm

gracer7-rx7

iTrader: (16)

Give tire rack a call as well. Those guys are usually very helpful.

dagoof

Thanks guys for all of the input

Mahjik

iTrader: (1)

For that size:

Hankook Ventus V12 Evo
Kumho Ecsta XS
Goodyear Eagle GT


Those are some decent all around tires for the price.

dagoof

So I've been researching and I'm starting to narrow down my ideas. I'm now looking at:
- General UHP's
- Firestone Wide Oval's
- Bridgestone 760's

I'm also still tempted to splurge and get the Michelin PS2's

A couple of others that I'm still trying to reaserch because I can't find much info are:
- Nitto envo
- Nitto neogen
- Federal SS595
- Toyo Proxes

Also, I'd love to get a cool tread pattern like the BFG KDW2's but I keep reading that they are so noisy that they vibrate the whole car.

Roen

iTrader: (2)

Which Proxes?

From reviews, the Kumho Ecsta XS seems to be bad in the rain.

Neogen's are pretty old tech these days.

dagoof

I love the tread design on the R1R, but probably the T1R would be more realistic.

Mahjik

iTrader: (1)

I'm running the T1R's on my M3 now. They are decent, not great. There are several tires I would pick before them now after trying them (and I will not be buying another set when they are done).

Roen

iTrader: (2)

If you go T1R, you might as well go R1R. Newer tech and all.

dagoof

Everyone tells me that the Extreme performers like the RE-11 and Star Spec's are way louder and ride a lot rougher. They also say that the BFG KDW2 is really loud.

I've got 225/40R18's, and on 18" wheels, I'm thinking that any tire I get will ride rough and be pretty loud. Is there really that big of a difference?

Mahjik

iTrader: (1)

If you get a performance oriented tire like the Star Specs, the ride quality will be compromised. You aren't going to have super sticky tires that also ride and feel good. The characteristics which make a tire good for one, make it horrible for the other. Rank your needs:

1. Grip
2. Noise
3. Ride quality
4. Price

When you do that, it will help narrow down the tires which will fit your needs.

dagoof

Thanks for the input guys.

I've done my research and got some General UHP's located and ordered. I know that they're not the top of the line performance wise, but I'm just getting started. I don't autocross yet, and I'm thinking that these UHP's should be a good happy medium for the driving that I do; besides, they are priced right too.

Can't wait till they get here. My back tires are so bald right now. LOL Spinning tires is an addictive habit.

Maybe next time I'll get something like the Star Specs so that I can compare.

ARD T2

iTrader: (22)

One of the easy ways to tell if the tire will be stiff is to look at the

TIRE MANUFACTURER LOAD RATING, FOR THAT SPECIFIC SIZE.

Then you can compare these load ratings between brands and models. This will help to give you an idea of which brand/model might be softer for your ride.

As a rule of thumb these tires have been softer in terms of sidewall: This is for UHP tires.

Continental
Toyo

STIFF Sides.

Yokohama
Bridgestone
Dunlop

ArmenMAxx

iTrader: (21)

http://www.caranddriver.com/reviews/...mparison_tests

sounds like the hankook Ventus V12 Evo will be perfect for you.

THe evos have soft"ish" sidewalls, last a long time, very cheap, good in wet AND they grip almost on-par with the star specs.

Roen

iTrader: (2)

Bridgestones are known to have better than expected ride characteristics than other manufacturers for similar levels of performance.