Tirerack's tests shows Michelin, Goodyears, and Pirelli are stronger in some areas including the wet.

 

Do you have a link? I'm having problems finding a new comparo on their website.

 

yup michelin then goodyears then bridgestones, they also have better tire wear but just as good grip as the SO3's

 

Looks like those new Pilots are pretty good

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tests/...nextGen_c.html

I wish they would test the Nitto 555Rs against the S03s

 

i used the Michelins and they were not bad.

I just didn't think they would rape a S03.

But, non of them compare to the A032r

 

My car came with some heat cycled ones and let me tell yah; they stick like no other tires I've had. The only complaints I have would be road noise and treadwear. Other than that they're great.

 

i dont believe, the A032R most def but not the michelin and when was the last time goodyear made a credible performance tire?

forgive my pessimism ive got the s03's on my fd

 

Oh please. This thread reeks of as much bullshit as any I've ever seen.

If you look at the majority of the scores, the numbers are off by only a couple tenths of a point. And to get these numbers, this was done on a track at a 10/10 pace. Under real-world driving conditions on the street, you'd be hard pressed to see any difference.

 

exactly right

 

Well not "exactly" in my opinion. So they are slightly better in the wet and... drumb roll please... cost less. So you may not be able to feel the difference on the street but I bet you will feel the $100 you save on a set of 4.

 

I have had the opportunity to test all three of the tires in the testing (Michelin Pilot Sport PS, Bridgestone Potenza S03, Goodyear Eagle F1 GS-D3) runs that we do here at the Tire Rack. To be honest with you i would have to say for over all performance and handling i still think the S03 is the best. The PS2 i would run in second place only because with the asymetrical tread design you have the ability to rotate tire easily which promotes longer tread life but they are noisier and i didn't think the wet traction was as good as the S03. the dry traction and cornering was great and pretty much the same. the GSD3 was also very good but in driving it, they just seam to be one step behind the S03 and the PS2. In the long run, even though for performance and handling reasons i prefer the S03 i would probably buy the PS2 simply due to the ability to rotate which will help the tire last longer, they are very similarly priced, the wet traction was negligible from the S03, and i could care less about the slight difference in noise on my 944. I drive the car for the speed and handling, not to listen to the radio.

 

How about the Fuzion ZRi and the Kumho MX?

 

I've been hanging out on the bimmer boards lately, specifically www.bimmerforums.com (my username on the bimmer boards is SleepRM3) and the Michelin Pilot Sport IIs are getting rave reviews from bimmer M3 owners. I plan to get a set for my M3/4-door with BBS RG-Rs, 9 x 17, 245/40-17s (see pics here http://nobot.2y.net/pictures/bbs_rgr/ ). The biggest dis against the S-03 is weight. The PS2 in 245/40-17 is 21 lbs. The S-03 is MUCH heavier than that in the same size. The Rx7 will need new tires before the M3, so perhaps, I'll put 255/40-17 PS2s on the SSR Integral A2s (9 x 17)?

 

Holy ****, I didn't realize m3's came in 4 door (I guess on for the E36 chasis?). I saw one on the raod today and tought he was a ricer, lol. By the way I like the way your new rims look. But why did you get them with spacers and not just get them the appropriate offsets to begin with?

 

The E36 M3 was available as a 4-door sedan between '97 and '98. They were the best selling versions of the M3 during those years. In '97, only 5-speeds were available for 4-door M3s. In '98 slushboxes were finally offered to the wussies that can't drive a manual. The last year of the E36 M3 was in 1999. Only Coupes were offered. M3 sedans are a very rare sighting in the BMW world.

The silver E36 M3/4-door pictured in the link is not my car. I posted the link to show how the BBS RGR looks so stock on an E36 M3. The owner placed BMW roundel emblems over the BBS center cap, to give the BBS RGRs a completely stock look.

http://nobot.2y.net/pictures/bbs_rgr/?2

http://nobot.2y.net/pictures/bbs_rgr/?0

http://nobot.2y.net/pictures/bbs_rgr/?

BBS RGR 9 wides x 17s require spacers b/c, they're intended to be rears on an E36 M3. Tire Rack doesn't provide 9 wides as an option for the fronts. The 10-mm spacers are needed to clear the inside of the front wheel tire away from the front strut housing. No spacers are needed for the 9 wide rears.

Yes there's no accounting for (bad) taste in some people. "Ricers" are everywhere...even among BMW owners. I prefer to keep mine as stock as possible. The BBS RGR wheels/Pilot PS2 tires are the only planned mods for my bimmer.

 

Connor, most of the BMW folks on www.bimmerforums.com agree. They like the S-03s, and think the turn-in feel much better with the S-03, than Pilot PS2, but in their 245/40-17 E36 M3 size, the Pilot PS2 is a better value?

 

...

 

Post # 4 http://forums.bimmerforums.com/forum...d.php?t=253925

Scroll toward the bottom. The owner weighed the Michelin PS2 245/40-17 tires.

S-03 data sheet, 245/40-17 26 lbs; 255/40-17 27 lbs

http://www.bridgestonetire.com/dpp/

 

yup, I clicked on the link and was like. . wow, how did I miss this? Needless to say that website has been filed Thanks, Manny!

 

"Manners" is much more important than ultimate grip IMO when it comes to tires. That last little smidgen of grip doesn't do you any good if it's too hard to get out of the tire. Anything that laps within a few tenths of a second may as well be considered the same.

Unless the driver is faster than the tires there's no need for $$$ top tier tires anyway...

 

That is the case in several sizes which is why i stated in my post that they were similarly priced. It seems to teeter from size to size. sometimes the S03 is more and sometimes the PS2 is more. it just depends on the size you are looking at

 

FYI, the correct statement is "couldn't care less". To say that you "could care less" means that you care some, and "could care less" than you do.

Anyway, I drive my car for speed and handling some of the time. Actually, a very small percentage of the time. Like everyone else, much of my time in the car is just trying to get from A to B. Noisy tires suck. If I am in my car listening to the stereo, I don't want to hear the tires. In fact, I don't want to hear them even if the stereo is off. Maybe we should take a poll to see what percentage of drivers prefer noisy tires ....... or would that just be a waste of time??

 

Conner, can you comment on the S02, PS2, and MX feel? I've been using MX's for a while and love them... except for the soft sidewall. It's not an issue on the street even during spirited driving, but on occasion I leave them on for the track and autocross. They transistion too slow and are unsettled in high speed "kinks" for my liking. Is there any street tire that offers near R-compound feel? If so, do you believe the differance is significant enough to warrent the cost going from the MX to...say the S02?

 

I've had the Eagle F1 GS-D3s on my car for a while now. They are much better than the slightly dry-rotted Toyo Proxes FZ-4. Traction is great in both the wet and dry. I think the sidewall is supposed to be much stiffer on the S03s. I don't track my car, so the sidewall issue isn't a big deal. The softer sidewall should actually help when I go to the drag strip this Wednesday.

 

Err, I ment S03 above.