My tires are bald .

I have no experience with tires, but from what I've read from searching I've decided on Hoosier R3SO3 P225-50R16Z's all around for my stock FD rims. Now the questions:

Are these tires $140 each, or for four?
Where do I get them?
Should I intstall them myself?
Do I need new valve stems?
Can I just take the car to Sears or Wal-Mart for alignment?

 

You do realize Hoosier R3S03s are race tires only, and are not recommended for road use, right?

 

http://www.hoosiertire.com/rrtire.htm

racing only

 

Thanks for the responses. *sigh* I hate being a newbie .

I don't suppose you have any opinions on daily street-use tires, do you? For example, what brands or products are the best bang for my buck as far as tires? I'm a real big fan of doing things right the first time, so I beg of you to help. Right now I'm running Bridgestone Potenzas.

I also want to re-iterate that I'm a total newbie on this subject, and still curious about my original questions:

What do you suppose it will cost me for four tires?
Where do I get them (e.g. x's website, discount warehouse like sam's club, name brand store, etc.)?
Should I install them myself?
Do I need new valve stems?
Can I just take the car to Sears or Wal-Mart for alignment?

-Jon

 

Bridgestone Potenzas are good tires

Go to www.tirerack.com for more info

 

What is your budget for tires. You can get tires anywhere from $80 for four to $300 for each. If you
establish a budget for us, we can recommend the tires we feel are the best tires within that. I would start out looking at prices for the Potenzas you currently have now. You probably don't want to downgrade to a lessor tire or you won't be happy.


What do you suppose it will cost me for four tires?

>>See above

Where do I get them (e.g. x's website, discount warehouse like sam's club, name brand store, etc.)?

>>See R1's response above, tirerack will get you some ballpark tire costs. They also have user ratings for each tire

Should I install them myself?

>>You'll need someone to mount and balance the tires on your rims. This is not something you can do yourself. You SHOULD however be able to put them on your car yourself, but it will be easier to just take the whole car somewhere, let them take the old tires off, dispose of them and put your new tires on your stock wheels and put them back on your car for you.

Do I need new valve stems?

>>I think generally, when you go somewhere and buy new tires they will put in new valve stems...(not a significant cost)

Can I just take the car to Sears or Wal-Mart for alignment?

>>If you are staying with the same size tires as you have now, I don't see any reason to get an alignment.

 

good point about sticking with some potenzas.

here's some advice: don't get kumhos. they really suck, and i wish i would've saved up some more money for some yokohama's or potenzas.

i don't think i would worry about alignment since you're putting the same size tires on like nocab said, but if you do want to get an alignment done, i would steer clear of chain-store type alignment shops. they are usually just ho-hum about alignments. i would go to an alignment specialty shop. it might cost more but they will get it right the first time.

p.s. don't get kumhos

 

potenza kick ****!!! yoko es100 is high on list...see thread for reviews...dunlop sp800 or 5000 is my money. These are all less money than potenzas. Whether I bought from tire rack...paid for shipping, paid for mount and balance or bought em at local tire store, the cost came out about the same for the same tire. epinion is a good place to read about various tire reviews...take it with a grain of salt.

 

That's the best advice I have see posted in a while! I can't agree more! You will also find that ALOT of people on forums like this and any other do have alot of info but exaggerate! e.g.. "Yukohamas suck! Pirrelis are way better!" when they are really only talking about fractions of a second of difference on the track! Unless you have a money tree growing in your backyard and its not a factor then make sure you know your getting the most for your money as well! Because buying the difference between better and the best is usually more money then its worth!

Ps: If have money tree, mail assortment of seeds to.
22 Dillberry crt. Toronto Ont. Can. L3P 2H2

 

As far as street tires go, there are 3 categories I like to use: 1) EXPENSIVE, very high performance, so-so treadlife; 2) somewhat expensive, fairly high performance, slightly better treadlife; 3) bargain-buy, suitable high performance, good treadlife. Here are some reputable tires that I shop around for:

Category 1:
Bridgestone Potenza S03
BFG g-Force KD
Pirelli PZero

Category 2:
Bridgestone Potenza RE730
BFG g-Force KDW
Yokohama AVS Sport
Firestone Firehawk SZ50

Category 3:
Yokohama ES100
Sumitomo HTR-ZII
Kumho Ecsta Supra 712

Lots of complaints about the Kumho street tire, so I might steer clear of that one. I've gotten rave reviews from fellow auto-xers about the Sumitomo's. Hope this helps.

 

Nothing wrong with your Category 2

 

You've got an open diff? ;-) Sorry, couldn't resist.

Expect to spend $500-800 for new tires, stems, mounting, balancing, and disposal of the old tires. Here are some common buy/install options:

- warehouse club, buy tires and have them install

- Discount or America's Tire (same company), they have good prices because they are also in the mail-order market. Note that the prices are a little higher than Tire Rack or Discount Tire Direct usually, but you don't have to pay for shipping, don't have to lug the tires to the shop, and you usually get a better deal on mounting and balancing if you buy the tires from the shop rather than mail order.

- Mail-order the tires and then find a place to install them. I usually use Discount Tire because they are close and cheap if I have tires to install, though I prefer one of the other options above, generally. Call around for prices first.

Don't let the warehouse club or tire shop guys talk you into the "Eldorado Open Road GT" or whatever crap house brand they have. Choose a tire model (or a few) and then find prices for them. It is likely that they will be special order and that you'll have to come back to shop for the install when they arrive. Don't let them sipe the tires, either. And I usually don't get road hazard protection, but I know some people use this service and like it. You decide if it is worth the money to you, based on how likely you think you are to need it, how much it would save if you do need it, and how much it costs. I always get new stems with new tires, and balancing is an absolute must-have.

-Max

 

Thank you all for your responses. You have really jump-started my research on this topic. My budget is pretty restricted (as far as an FD goes anyway ). I want bargain tires that will last me a reasonable amount of time. I just finished thumbing through tirerack.com and reading the tire article on howstuffworks.com. Just by using the rating system on tirerack.com, I'm leaning toward the Yokohama ES100, because of it's low cost coupled with a good tread life and handling characteristics. I probably will wait until Summer to get new tires, since that will be the next time I'm home from school. This will also give me four months to research and absorb the topic.

Thanks again for all your help!

 

FWIW, I'm running the Dunlop 8000's. Stick like crazy, zero hydroplaning (in Seattle, this helps... ), look pretty good, semi noisy on sucky freeway (last repave 12 years ago!), not noisy at all on smoother roads. Might be losing air a little on each over time, might just be temp fluctuations.