What Sumi's?

Are the Sumitomo HTR Z II's something a San Diego Pcar could wear with good results? Any others? My rear's are toast and I was going to go with Mich Pilot Sport AS Pluses, mainly cause they're $150/ea cheaper than the PS2's. Then I hear good things about Sumi's, but see a wide price range (but all lower than the Mich's). I know I'll be happy with the A/S Pluses, but maybe I can be just as happy AND have a fatter wallet with the Sumi's?

I would (and did) go with the Sumi HTRZIII. I believe the HTRZII is the old generation and I would not use them at this point. Both models are summer only tires (or year round in San Diego) that should greatly outperform the Pilot Sport AS Plus, which is an all-season tire that costs a lot more.

Yeah, I saw the III's too and read some threads on them. Question: some folks saying they're running 295-30 18's instead of 285's. I DON'T want my sidewall stretched out on an angle to the rim, I can't stand that (nor is it really safe). Will I need to go 295's on the Sumi's to replace the 285 Conti's on their now?

I'm very happy with my Sumitomo IIIs on my 99. Can't comment on 18" fitament, mine are 17s.

I'd stick with the size that Porsche recommends for your rim. I'm running 295s on mine, but it's a C4S and they are 11x18 rims - it's the recommended size for wide body cars.

Quotes source post: 8338183

+1 I know it's pretty common to mess with tire sizing, but I just run the recommended 265s on my 10" wide rear wheels. It definitely looks more stretched than the fronts, but I'm not a tire or auto engineer so I'll let them make the call.

I got the car from a guy who had gotten it from a P dealership, but becasue the car had aftermarket wheels/tires on it, he talked them into splitting the cost of brand new Porsche 18" wheels and Conti rubber. They're the ones that put on the 285 tires, so I assume it's all legit. They look fabulous as is, not sure what a 265 series would look like on this car. I'm assuming the wheels are 10" and not 11's; I've got an '01 C4 so it's not a wide body. Someone commented that "not all tire manufactures spec their tire sizes the same" and that there is wiggle room, which is why they were putting 295 Sumi's in place of the 285 Conti's. I just want tires!! And I don't want to afford Mich's up front too (the Conti's have 50% tread left!!), but am afraid of driving mismatched tires. I won't be doing any track days any time soon, so it'll mainly stay on the road. Might be OK.

I have the Sumi III's. 235F and 295R on 18"s with no issues.

Quotes source post: 8338321

Pete, can you post a picts of the wheel/tire combo where the tire meets the wheel? I've seen a lot of posts of folks having 265's, 285's, and 295's, all on 10" wheels, but no picts comparing them. I'll post picts later of my 225F/285R.

Quotes source post: 8338337

Definitely never run different manufacturer's f/r with an awd car. It'll strain your awd system if the rolling diameters of the tires are not exactly the same. I track and autocross the HTRZ III's, and they have been great. They don't last as long as the more expensive tires, but grip-wise, they are pretty comparable.

I have 285 30 18 Hankooks and 285 30 18 Michelins PS on 10" rims The side walls look the same. I also have 265 ?? 18 snows on 10" rims and they look slightly stretched (negative camber tread to rim edge) compared to the others.

Thanks Frank. Some folks were going to 295s cause they thought the 285 (Sumi's) looked stretched on the rim; I'm guessing if the 265s did, then the 285s and 295s would both be OK. Cool.

I'm an adrenalin junkie, I love to rock climb, ice climb, closed course roadraced motorcycles for over 8 years, ran motorcycles over 150 mph at the Bonneville Salt Flats, and....I've run two sets of HTRZ lls. Yes, the lls. I've pushed the car in turns very hard in the rain to the point of initiating a slide and had the TC kick in and I've done the same in turns at above freeway speeds on dry cold roads in below freezing temperatures. I like to wag the tail a bit on warm dry roads as well and steer a bit with the throttle. I love the way the lls look, better than the llls, the lls also have a higher wear index which may mean a slightly harder rubber. Love the way the lls handle when you get over 500 breakin miles on them. Pushing them hard several times, I felt I had a good feel for their limits of traction and could predict exactly how far I could push them before getting them to break traction. When they go it is gradual and predictable. I'd run the lls on any street vehicle.

Quotes source post: 8338373

I have 235/40/18 (dia 25.3") and 295/30/18 (dia. 24.9") on 7.5" and 10" wheels respectively. This has a difference of .4" in Dia. Stock for my car with the same wheel size is 225/40/18 (dia. 25.1") and 285/30/18 (dia 24.7") .4" difference. A 265/35/18 would have a dia of 25.3" or .2" diff. This is from Tirerack's site. http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires....odel=HTR+Z+III click on the tab for specs. I can't get all tires exactly the same diameter.....but think I'm at the limit and would not go any bigger. Now the pics......er ahhhhhh......can't get the friggen pics to load.

You guys are going to love this! I'm tired of paying high prices for brand name tires that wear out in ~14,000 miles (rear tires). I'm now running Nexems 265/35 ZR18 on the rear of 02 Pcar and can't tell any difference in perfrmance and I only payed $137.00 each installed! Ok so go ahead and trash these Korean tires, as I'm sure some of you will. Just remember, I'm old enough to remember people trashing tires and products made in Japan, now look at us we all own something made in Japan! One day Korean made products will be as acceptable as those things made in Japan.

bfutch.....thats interesting stuff. What sizes do you have? Looking at their site they have 225 and 275's/18. What type do you have......N3000 or N7000? I won't trash a tire if it helps bring down the cost of replacement from other manufacturers.

I have the Nexem 3000, 265/35 ZR 18 on the rear and...Continental 225/40 ZR18 on the front. When the front wear out, I will replace the front with the Nexem tires.

Quotes source post: 8338035

The forum weened me off PZeros last week. Went with Hankooks and the the Sumis may be comparable or better. I was going to get the Mich AS but saved a couple of $$...LOVE MY NEW TIRES! Best post said why AS in a warmer climate (Dallas for me)..I got it. I'll drive the Volvo when it gets cold and if I end up in a ditch I will claim false advertsing..it has a "W" button for "w"inter driving...if it worked then how the hell would I end up in a ditch

Quotes source post: 8338070

I have no knowledge regarding "old" vs "new" but I do know that the 3's are asymetrical and the 2's are directional. If they are the same compound, this would be the molding difference. Basically, you can flip the 2s on the rim, but can't flip the 3s. I run the IIs on my GT3. -td

I just installed mine a few days ago. I got IIIs - 225/40/18 and 285/30/18s. They look fine to me. I have 7.5 and 10

I just replaced my rears with the II's, they are a lot quieter than the contis. Plus the price was $300 for the pair.

HTRZII's are absolute crap. The III's are awesome.

Quotes source post: 8340475

Curious what you have used the lls on? And is your opinion based on street use or track?

Those of you suggesting the cheap Asian tires that you haven't researched might want to look at the test results of a random Chinese brand. Sumitomos and Hankooks are mainstream brands...might want to be careful with the others, though: http://www.caranddriver.com/reviews/...mparison_tests

I just had Discount Tire order the Sumi II's from Tire Rack. They charged me the same shipping that TR would have charged me if I had ordered them ($15/tire), and kept the price the same, so I'm stoked about that. I've seen TR's shipping prices anywhere from $8/tire to $25/tire, so I'm perfectly fine with $15/tire. They should be here on Thursday, installed on Friday, and ready to roll. All 4 came in mounted, balanced, with road hazard warranty for the same as 2 rear A.S. Mich's with no warranty! Nice. Can't wait!! And cheap enough that I can track the car and not feel so bad about needing new tires! And the fact that there's a GT3 running the same rubber gives the II's some props right there.

Sumi III

I had the Sumi IIs on my old 996, and preferred them to the IIIs tread pattern - used only for street great tire for the price point

Thanks for the picts, Francars! Those do look like a perfect fit. I'm glad I stuck with the 285/225 combo then. I might go with the III's next time around, but for the price point and the reviews folks with the II's give them, I figured I'd give them a shot. Discount ordered them on monday from Tire Rack in Nevada, and they arrive the next day. Too bad they didn't have any morning appointments today (wednesday) or I would have taken her in. I'm going in tomorrow morning bright and early. Will post picts then.

Don't even think about 265s here is a pick with Sumi III 295/18

Tires on. First impression is that they ride a little softer and "cushier" than the Conti's, especially noticeable when going over a manhole cover. Cornering and road feel: there is definitely a little less feedback from road-to-driver than the Conti's. I'm happy with them for street driving and am really interested to see what they're like on the track. My rears were just about slicks, and I haven't really scrubbed these guys up yet, so it may improve a bit unless it's all due to sidewall flex. I'd really like to drive the III's to see how they compare. Still, overall I'm very happy with them. I wish I'd seen Chris's post (above) before I got my tires, or I might have gotten the 295's. Like someone else said in another thread, these 285's seem a tad narrower than other 285's such as my old Conti's. You can see in Chris's picture that the sidewall is pretty vertical, whereas mine are ever so slightly angled inward. There also seems to be a bit more of a radius from sidewall to tread-face, all of which means a little less contact area on the road; my Conti's were just about a 90 degree sharp angle from tread to sidewall! Still, I'm very happy with them and how they're initially performing, especially at the price ($109 for the fronts and $144 for the rears). At this price, I can burn thru these and get the III's to do the comparison! Lol!