Poll: Kumho MX or Goodyear Eagle F1 GS-D3 ?
 

help me out
I am torn between Kumho MX or Goodyear Eagle F1 GSD3
cant decide ...

just pick one for me

All depends on what they are going to be used for!

Fish

I personally like the Goodyear Eagle F1 GSD3. I have them on right now and they are great tires. They seem to be great for Dragon runs if your like to push the corners.

But like Fish said, it really depends on what your going for.

Goodyear makes a great wet tire, however the sidewalls are generally much softer than other tires.

i know that kumho mx's sidewall is kinda soft already
what u guys mean by what i use them for ???
i thought they are in the same catagory ? no ?

track, auto-x, daily driving through rain....etc.

If you are only street driving and will be driving in the rain, then I would go with the Goodyears out of those two choices.

I've had both, and prefer the Goodyears. Much quieter, better overall grip, better ride.

-chris

Look at the specs. The goodyears have like a 280 treadwear. The kumho's are a 220. I have the goodyears on the back of my fc now and they're good. although I was looking to upgrade to the kumhos, even tho they're cheaper, I think they would offer more grip. A lot of guys run the kumhos for autocross and track days. No one runs the goodyears for track days. I would go with the kumhos because thats what I AM going to go with when I put tires on next. Read the reviews from tire rack and see what you think. The kumhos are much more affordable too.

Chris

Tirerack and others may classify them as the same "type" of tire but what you use each of them for differs greatly.

If you plan to Auto-X or run HPDE's then you should pick the MX. If you plan to use the car as a daily driver and spirited driving/canyon carving choose the GS-D3.

Nor for the reasoning behind my recommendations:

Compared to similiar tires in it's class the MX is very slow to overheat and become greasy. As such it can withstand your typical 20 minute HPDE session with excellent wear and handling characteristics over the entire session. For auto-x it's considered an OK tire as it doesn't warm up fast enough to gain the advantage of it's stickiness as quickly as preferred Auto-X tires but it can get the job done with good wear and handling characteristics. The MX also has a large block tread pattern which makes it feel very stable in high performance driving. The disadvantage to this is the tire is relatively noisy during driving and doesn't have the best wet performance (it's not the worst but probably mid pack below average).

The GS-D3 is probably one of the better daily driver/spirited tire you can buy for the money. (Pilot Sports and Contis are generally seen as a better all around performance tire but cost significantly more.) What makes it such an excellent DD tire is it's V tread and softer sidewalls. These two combine to make the tire have a smooth and quite ride compared to any large block high performance tire. The V design is also an excellent wet tire tread. The primary downside to the V design though is it's known to squirm under heavy cornering. For DD and your occasional canyon run this isn't a large concern. While auto-x'ing or HPDE'ing it becomes an issue both in how the car feels to the driver but also in tire wear. When the V pattern squirms what really is happening is the outside edge of the V that is taking the lateral loads during cornering and the inside edge is rolling inwards to the center of the vehicle. This causes the V tread to start wearing in a cupping fashion. This ends up destroying the tires excellent wet traction as the leading edge of the V is no longer sharply defined and doesn't come into full contact with the road forcing the water into the dedicated water channels while also reducing the amount of rubber you have on the road.

I personally run MXs because I track my car often and only have 1 set of wheels with tires on them. Once I can spring for a second set of rims I will move to GS-D3's for DD and R-compounds for track days.

Treadwear ratings from different companies cannot be compared. The rating is not an absolute, but only a comparison to whatever internal standard the individual company uses.

:bowdown: thank you for your write up
and thanks everybody for their input
u guys can keep them coming while i try to make up my mind what i want to do with my car

I've used the Avon Tech 500 and I love them. They're a really affordable and they provide great grip. I think they're just as good as the goodyears I have on the back now.

Chris

No one likes the Kdw2's????

Great input Tanj

I haven't driven the Goodyears, but I have been on the MXs for a year or two and am very happy with their wet performance. I rate them as high as my old Toyo T1S as far as resistance to hydroplaning, good water management and overall grip in the wet. I rate them higher than the T1s in dry grip, traction, much better turn in, stiffer sidewalls.

I may have over stated the wet ability of the MX's. I know a few amateur race car drivers who use the MX at full tread depth as their wet tire for races. Comparatively to the GS-D3 and a few others in the same class their are better wet tires that give up very little in the dry the MX. The MX's are not considered the road tire of choice for the Targa Newfoundland where wet weather will be encountered. I can't seem to find the NASIOC thread discussing it with a competitor who ran them and clearly felt that they hampered them. IIRC the KDF's or RA-1's were considered to be the better all around tire for wet & dry use.

I've never had any issues with hydroplaning in them but they can become a might slick as the tread pattern wears down to the wear bars. Like you though I've been driving them for 2+ years and will continue to do so until I end up with dedicated street and track rims.

That wasn't a poll choice. :)