Update on the longevity of the Sumitomo HTRZ III..

Well, the fronts are worn to the wear bars. I put the Sumis on the car at 82k miles. I hit 115k today (33k miles). That's a great lifespan for the tire considering I do not drive gingerly at all and I have 3 track days on the tires (out of necessity due to my race tire getting a puncture). The pricier OE options were lasting me 11k miles max and they were twice as expensive as the Sumis The replacement tire I ordered were the Hankook Ventus V12. Let's see how these perform.

Based on other wear inputs from Rennlisters, you did very well with the Sumis.

I got just over 20k miles out of the Sumi's on my A4, They're about done now, I have agressive alignments on everything I drive so 20k miles is about all I can ever expect. I will buy them again. I hope you like the V12's more than I do, I actually can't stand that tire, put them on my M3 and they have no precision at all, feel like a wet noodle in direction changes. If I drove that car more than about 1500 miles a year I'd pull them off in an instant, I have track tires for it when I need good performing tires though. Andy

How many miles did you get out of the rear tires? I am getting new rear tires after 25K on my Pilot Sports. Front look good for another 20K.Would have gotten a lot less out of the rear if I had not rotated the left and right rear after 11K. The inside of each was wearing faster (I have the all season PS). They were warrantied to 45k so I get a credit of $145 each on replacement.

How did you get that many miles out of Sumis??? I replaced my rears after 9000 miles although the fronts are still ok. I do drive daily but not like a crazy guy. Had three DEs and about 5 autocrosses on those rears.

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I can't give you that information just yet because 1/2 way through the matching set I got at 82k miles, my RR tire got a bolt through the sidewall necessitating me getting a new set of rears. I'm hoping they don't encounter any more debris so I can see what I get out of them. I usually get very close lifespan front to rear (AWD could play that role here) but right now, with 10k miles on the newer set on the rears, they still look very, very good (at least that many more left.

I have a set of these. They have survived a track day, a season of autocross, and 1.5 summers of driving around. Seem to be a great tire for the money.

I've got about 15K on my Sumis right now. The rears are getting pretty worn, but the fronts still look quite good. I'm not sure what I'll do yet when the time comes to replace them.

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I'm not sure what I'll do for a next set either. On the track they scream when in a hard corner but they seem to continue to grip. Wondering if there is something that is a step up without going all the way to the price of the Michelins.

I am a big Sumi fan but am really enjoying my new Conti DWs. Not much more money at all.

I ordered Hankook V12s in a pinch. I needed tires fast for a DE and they were the best 'value tire' I could get. PS2s were available to me at about $2500 installed. Uh... no! Showed up at the DE and there was a fellow member with a C2, same year as my Targa (so, the same car). He had newish hankook V12s that came on the OEM wheels he had just acquired. His first comment on the tires was that they're total crap. After a day and a half he had huge chunks flying out of each section of tread repetion on his driver side front. Chunks the size of a Bic pen cap. He was pushing the car pretty hard. My tires, on the other hand, hardly show much wear after a DE weekend. Moral: it depends how you drive and what your expectations and experience are. Most people I ask think that the V12s are good bang for the buck. But, you get what you pay for.

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Same here on the Hankooks. My Hankooks (315-35-18) lasted me only 5k miles. 100% highway driving. I would run my hand over the treads after I got home and I'd be covered in pencil shaving type pieces of rubber. In my opinion, way too soft a tire.

I tried a set of Hankooks on our Cayenne S. That was a mistake. They weren't good - they didn't last long, and they were loud after a few thousand miles. On that vehicle, I'm now running Continental DWS tires and I've very pleased with them. I may go with Contis on the 996 when the time comes. As of April 2011, the only Continental tire recommended by Porsche is the Continental ContiSportContact 2 (N2). I can't see prices on that tire at tirerack.com - I'm guessing it's not cheap. I may consider the Conti DW.