best tires for everyday driving?

need new tires, no tracking (yet) so for now just everyday driving. Seems Michelin Pilot are the best buy, have Yokohama now. Also, when cutting tires deep to turn front tires seem to "hop", checked and they aren't rubbing. Have 18" wheels.

Michelins are a good tire.. yet pricey! Continentals are used by many people as well... You can read all the reviews on tire rack of each brand & fitment for your car... or call Damon at Tire Rack for help. Not sure what you mean by "hop, when cutting tires deep to turn front"

your "best buy" are the Sumi HTZR III's although I would guess the PS2's are much better track tires... you did say daily driving. Many of us here have enjoyed the Sumi's for daily use and at less than 1/2 the cost of the PS2's that is the "best buy" IMO

Best: Any of the N-rated options from Michelin, Bridgestone, Pirelli or Continental. Opinions will vary on all of these, but they are all very good tires designed specifically for Porsche Carreras. For every person who criticises one brand you can find someone else who swears by them. But that list assumes that "Best" has no price requirement. A set of N-Rated tires will run anywhere from $1,200 - $2,000. If cost is an important criteria for "Best," then the Sumitomo HTRZIII is a very good option at around $800-900 for a set. Check this thread on the 993 board: https://rennlist.com/forums/993-foru...-any-good.html "Hop" - Do you have PSM? If you are cutting a corner really hard at speed you might feel PSM kicking in to keep the car from spinning. I have only felt this in low speed, high load corners on the track - and it could be described as a "hop." At first I thought is was gravel, but then noticed the surface was clean.

I'll second the Sumitomos...I don't see any reason to pay for PS2s for street driving. As for the hop you describe, I'll bet you have a C4.

I have tired many different street tires, and havent found anything better than the Michelin PS2's. Great grip, quiet, and soft...

Sumi's for the street are great for the price.

Okay, now that I have had some time on the Sumis, I will say they are great tires with one caveat- they are not nearly as good in the rain as the PS2s. I have had a lot of sets of tires over the years and the PS2s have been the best all-around tire, excepting price. To be honest, if I was in a dryer climate, I would say the Sumis are hands down the best value and performance for the money. I have been pushing my car harder in the rain recently and the Sumis just don't have the wet grip that the PS2s have. In the dry, they are great. In Seattle, rain grip is really important for those of us that use our 996s as DD... just my .02. My next set will be PS2s- I am wiling to pay for the wet traction, although the difference is pretty large.

I use the dunlop SP sport 9000's, they are moderatly priced, and you can swap the rears from side to side to help with the inside wear issue if you do alot of street driving.

Sumitomos - Have them on the Audi and my previous boxster. You can do "some" tracking but not too much. But for the price and what you are looking for they are my choice

You may also want to check out the Hankook Ventus V12's. I put them on last summer and have been pretty impressed with them - good grip in both wet and dry conditions. They are also relatively inexpensive...

Whatever you do.... dont buy Pirelli's. Not worth the price. Cant wait for the fronts to wear so I can stop buying the rears.... I will stick with PS2 since I do DE on occasion... if its a DD. Sumi for sure.

I agree with Ferd... I'd do PS2s for the occasional DE and I'd be fine with Sumis for use as a DD. My Sumis have about 15K on them, and they are wearing remarkably well. I will, however, probably switch to PS2s when the time comes.

N rated is porsche approved. Others do make a lot cheaper tires that aren't trying to sell their name. Continetal and General have some tires that fit and low cost. Way way way lower cost since they aren't in the sell their name. I'd prefer the mich and perelli tires but saw some excellent results on the track tests of the Continental dry and wet extreme contact tires. That tire design came out of europe and the major tire manufacturer isn't a name seller.

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'best' as best summer dry grip, or 'best' all-around all-seasons with acceptable wet traction? PS2 are not bad but kinda pricey. if you ready to sacrifice wet grip - there are some nice options, if you need all-around then may be RE11 or conti extreme contact dws. re-11 is not that bad grip wise too. Dunlop Star Specs have good dry grip but imho so-so in wet. or heck with wet grip totally and go with toyo ra1 or r888 r-comps for best dry grip possible.

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+1 The Sumi IIIs give you 9/10+ of the performance of the PS2 at less than 1/2 the price. This formula made sense to me and I am very happy with the Sumis.

As you can see many of us love the sumi HTRZ III's, the you can get two sets of sneakers for the price of one set of Continental's or Michelins. Something to consider, over the past two years I have had to replace a Sumi, twice. Each time the tire had only 100-200 miles on it....had a spike in the sidewall and the second time hit a peice of concrete thrown up at me on the highway, dead, center on the front left....and that trashed the belts inside (thankfully no wheel problems), and FWIW, having to replace a $200 tire with a new Sumi is a lot eaier to swallow than replacing a new Michelin or Continental. Having said that, I still believe that Michelin makes one of the best tires out there....... but 2 sets for the price of one workjs for me. While I love the track, I am not at the point where shaving 1 second of my lap time is going to put me in first place......(lol)

Sumi III

Hankook V12's

Hankook V12's

Thanks guys for ALL the great info on tires. I am ordering them today. Let me clear up the confusion on the "tire hop"...when backing out of my garage and then turning steering wheel a deep left or right to move forward, the front tire will do a hop (maybe best t say a bump) there doesn't seem to be anything the tire is bumping against. I thought while I was having my tires installed I would ask the tech what it could be. Thought you guys might be able to assist?

Hankook v12 on left rear, Sumi HTRZ III on the right rear, Continental on right front, Pirelli on left front and Michelin as a spare...no wait was that Pirelli rr and ..?

Sumi's

I have had both SUMI III and Micheling PS2, hands down Michelin PS2 are better, even for daily driving, but the SUMI are pretty good for a lot cheaper

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And you ordered.... ?

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Man, we really need to know if you have a C2 or C4 car. My C4 does exactly what you describe and I'm 100% certain it's just some binding from the AWD system at full steering lock. If so, it's nothing to worry about.

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WOW - this made me smile....an agreement (so I cant resist ) You know if you do end up taking your car to the track, the Sumi's are pretty good there too. For me it made sense at the price point to "try them" and if they were my limiting factor replace with better next time - turns out the driver of my car is still the limiting factor. Fast forward a couple years and in a car will a lot less HP - I now drive faster then I ever did in my 996 - and I am still not on the "best tires" nor are my tires my cars limiting factor....(read driver still needs improvement) - putting drum away - thanks for reading

At the recommndation of my local tire guy I bought Toyo T1r's and they suck. Can someone comment on the sidewall stiffness of the Sumi's, the Hancooks, and the Michelins ? My biggest complaint with the Toyo's are leaning in corners.

I have the Sumi's and intend on getting more. Like others I can't and won't justify the cost of the high $$$ tires out there. A set is around $650 for me. Tracking the car over the Summer months I have learned (and not to echo Ed) that its not the tires its the driver that go faster. You don't want $hit rubber but the Sumi's are the best for me. I'm still learning how to counter what the car is doing and my tires have more to give.....this is what is making me better.You want to be almost instinct like when you get your butt hanging out there and you make the corrections and drive on. If I had the super duper sticky tires I don't think I would be learning as much at my current skill set. When I reach the limits of the tires than its time to move up. And than the learning starts again. Now if some one dropped some PS2's in my lap for the same cost as Sumi's what would I do? What do you think...PS2 all the way.

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well said!! and the important thing is they are not the stickiest - as Pete says, they allow you to get into the slip angle a little more, maybe at lower (read safer) speed. I think that is a huge benefit to learning car limits/control unless those PS2's fall out of the sky

You folks should really take another look at the new Conti Extreme Contact DW. Priced at about $600 -$900 (size dependant) compared to 1000 - 1300 for the Michelin's -and based on Tire Rack test - to close to call for most drivers. Better warranty as well. Why spend 40% more?

I'll go with Sumi 111 again after my first set wears out.

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You can really play that drum. You are a modern day Keith Moon. I do AutoX and track my cars, however I have not tried the Sumis on track. All of my AX/track time has been on MPS2 and other high priced tires so I am very interested to see how the Sumis perform when pushed hard. When I do get the chance to track the Sumis, I am sure I will easily out drive them and they will be my limiting factor.

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Agreed. This is especially true when learning a car with limits as high as a 996.

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cool - cant wait to hear your feedback RE the sumi's

I paid $ 480 for a set of 4 Sumi HTZ III balanced and mounted........can't go wrong even if you replace them twice or three times........for my 993

I have liked the PS2 and get a decent deal on them. Last summer I got a set of Dunlop Sportmaxx GT's for free so I thought I would give them a shot. I actually prefer them to the PS2 in dry condition but they do not compare in the wet. I only put about 5000 miles on a set if tires before getting rid of them so I can't really comment on the wear but it's supposedly better than the PS2. The sidewall has a little more give than the PS2 which I find gives a more comfortable ride without sacrificing huge performance on the track compared to the PS2 For a tire that retails for about 1/2 of what the PS2 is it ranks #1 for bang for the buck in my books edit: if you look at tirerack, the Sportmaxx GT actually rates higher than the standard PS2 in overall ranking for Max Performance tires

+1 .... set of four SUMI HTR z III

Chris what size are you running f/r?

Cool pic Chris !

Kind of a thread revival, I'm up for tires, based on this thread the Sumitomo HTR Z III and the Michelin PS2 are the preferred ones do you guys still thinking the same? after 3 1/2 years? or there is something new. Thanks

After completely using a set of Sumitomo HTR ZIIIs through their effective life, I would never buy them again. I love my Michelin Pilot Sport PS2s. The new Michelin Pilot Super Sport is getting great reviews and I would like to try those...

I am running Yokohama Neova Advan AD08R. Just replaced the rears with enough tread left on the front that they will last until these tears wear out. Great grip and water management. Not cheap but fall somewhere between the PS2s and the Sumitumos

Sumis have worked fine for me, including a track day. Due for rears soon and will stick with them. Cannot justify twice the price for some other tires.

There have been some really huge advances in tire technology the last 2 years with respect to high silica tread compound and the resultant increase in wet and dry traction with less tire wear. Personally, I wouldn't buy a tire that's a more than 2 year old design right now.

If you need summer only then sumitomo's HTR ZIIIs but if you need an all weather tire, the best are continental DWS (Dry Wet Snow)

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I would agree if you're on a budget or just street cruising. The DWS though only does ok on very light snow in my experience but I was very surprised by its wet weather performance. You may experience noise issues with the Sumi's as they wear. I'm not sure if they resolved this issue or not. Currently on Hankook V12's and I know they have a newer version out but the older version was pretty decent for me for the price. However if you have the budget and/or are very sensitive or finicky, I would recommend the Michelins. They don't excel at any one thing but they are very good in all categories and very refined. This level of refinement is what you're mainly paying the extra for IMO. And refinement really matters to some, especially on the streets. On the opposite end of the spectrum, if you have poly mounts and stiff coilovers, get the Star Specs. :devil: OMFGanothertirethreadijustgotsuckeredinto!?$@&;/

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I agree with the Sumi HTR ZIIIs choice. I have Blizzaks for the cold months, so I switch sets back and forth. So far my Sumis are quiet and perform well enough for me and my C2.

Here's another vote for Continentals. I run DWS tires on my 2001 C4 and DW tires on my Cayman. Quiet, excellent wet traction, and enough dry traction and responsiveness for the street driving (sometimes spirited) that I do.

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I just got the new version of the Hankook V12's for my rears. Front Hankooks were still good at 12K miles. I like them, they are quiet and smooth riding. Minimal road noise in my cab. Good luck.

If you don't mind paying high price, get the Pilot. On the other end, get the Hankook for the same performance but half the price.

Skip the Hankook V12s; you're driving a Porsche, you know- get the Hankook R-S3! For real, the R-S3 v2 is a fantastic tire, Hankook's best street tire, and sits in a performance category above the V12 and PS2/PSS.

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Interesting. Are these new? I don't remember seeing them when I bought mine. Just a FYI, I find it cool/funny/ironic that the official tire of the DTM German race series is the Korean Hankook but that also says something about the company as well.

The R-S3 is a relatively new tire, but it's been around about 3 years now. It has a new compound for this year (tirerack's calling it the "v2" though you can only tell by the date stamp) which gives better cold-weather performance than the "v1", but it's one of the best performing 200+ treadwear street tire on the market right now. Dunlop ZII* and BFG Rival are the other top tires; each of the 3 taking top honors in different tests; lot of variables involved, but all the top GT3s were running R-S3 at the SCCA autocross national championships this year.

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+1 on the sumis - I also ran them around Laguna seca - no problems - I was more of a limit than my tires were .... Perhaps not for an experienced gt3 driver but perfect for everyday at US highway speeds ...

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What size are you running? I don't see tirerack or discounttiredirect offering the R-S3 in the OEM sizes for my 996 (18" oem option)

Don't limit yourself to OEM sizes; go wider in the front and dial out some of that understeer- just make sure you keep rake the same so it doesn't interfere with PSM/ABS. Go as wide as you can on both ends, really. I'm running 255/35-18 & 275/35-18 ZII on my 2010 Boxster S; R-S3 v2 are available in these sizes as well. That's 20mm wider than (my) OEM in the front, 10mm wider in the back, and slightly shorter than the OEM tires.

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The V12's are probably adequate - ore more than adequate - for the original poster's request for "everyday driving" tires...

How much is the RS 3

I had the Sumi HTR ZIII on my Honda S2000 and had no issues. On my 911 however they are unbearably loud. At freeway speeds the noise level is ridiculous. My next set of tires will likely be Hankook V12's which I currently have on my BMW 328XiT

Porsche snobs will never consider Hankook because it's not expensive enough.

I have the v12s and they are okay... nothing to write home about. I will be changing to something else once they wear out.

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Umm, and how long with the tread last on this driving on the street? if you can find bang for the buck and in the wet cannot beat Hankook V12's. On my 3rd set and only issue I have is the new Hankook V12's v2 don't go wide enough for my rears so in 6 months I will sadly have to go elsewhere.

Bummer - this is my first set of v2's - I love 'em. Better than the original V12 (which is obviously the goal, but nice when it actually works out that way).

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V12 are 28k tires treadwear, R-S3 are 20k. If you're concerned about treadwear, you could always mount 80,000 mile all-seasons, but why would you do that? You spent all that money on a Porsche, and tires are the single most important thing you can do for it performance-wise; if you slap on prius tires, you're going to limit your car to prius performance. Tire changes every other year or so is simply one more maintenance cost. I've driven by Porsche on snow tires, and I've driven it on street tires; there is very little difference driving down the highway, and I'd argue you should never be exceeding the grip of an all season tire (~0.8-0.9gish) on public streets, but you're a WHOLE lot safer driving to 7/10 of a really good tire than 9/10 of a crappy one. Sooner or later, you're going to make a mistake and push that edge a little too hard during a spirited drive, and having a tire that can haul you through a 1.2g corner is what's going to save your ***. You're going to find you have to hold back a whole lot more if you go with a lesser tire, and that ruins a lot of the fun and experience of owning a high performance sports car like this.

Thank you so much for all the input so I made my choice and throw some fresh Sumis all 4 tires on it and I got a great deal from Braman Porsche for the alignment. I had the Michelin when I bought it with 3900 miles on that tire when I took the car for service 300 miles later they recommended to change them and 1600 miles later there was a line inside the back tires so we are talking 5800 miles life for the back tires? I don't know how the previous 3900 miles were driven but still I thought they should last longer with the Sumis the ride improve 50% and with the alignment another 20% what a difference. I know I have to brake down the tires until they settle I will report later my experience with this tires, good thing about Florida there is no snow to worry about!

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Don't know how you are getting 28k out of V12's v1's. If I get 15k on rears I am extremely happy out of any tires. So you were saying about driving a Porsche like a Porsche? I am on my 3rd set of Hankook V12's and if they would make V12's V2 in 295 or 285 then I would be on my 4th set. Forget Porsche take a look at independent reviews all over the web on all kinds of cars. Great, tires, great wet performance and great value for a daily driver. So sure I "could" run R-S3 and get what 5k - 6k miles but why would I especially when i live in South Florida as you do so you must know it rains ALL the time another area Hankook V12's excel against ANY tire.

I work hard for my money and I'm not a racer. Hankook tires are good enough for me. It can compete with any brand on the streets. $150 per tire is all that I'm willing to pay.

So, perhaps someone can help me out. I purchased a set of V12's back in January (mainly due to price and the recommendations from this forum), and I've had nothing but problems with theses tires. They simply will not stay balanced for more than about 2 weeks. Latest example all four wheels were Road Force Balanced (at the proper PSI) about 8 weeks ago, and now 3 out of 4 tires are above 19 lbs, the two rears being the worst at around 49 lbs. They also seem to flat spot very easily when sitting. I leave my car parked for a maximum of about 4 days, and then it takes a good 20 km or so to get them at least manageable (to where I just get the usual vibration from them being out of balance). I've tried going back to 10/10 tires where I purchased them to see if I can get them replaced under warranty - and they maintain 'it's to be expected from these tires - you should have bought Michelins'. I now have about 10,000km on them and have been told by another shop that they cannot correct the balance anymore by spinning the tire on the rim. Open to suggestions, but unless some type of miracle cure happens, I would steer as far away as possible from the Hankooks for my next purchase.

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V12 are UTQG 280 which is supposed to be ~28k. The R-S3 are 200, which is ~20k. YMMV depending on alignment and driving style. Do you get closer to 28k on your fronts? I've not gotten more than 5k miles out of ANY tire on my Porsches. (They tend to be really fun 5k miles, though...)

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You can steer far as you want. Get the most expensive Michelin you can buy. It will balance better. Geez... I've been using the same Hankook tires for 5 years on my. 911 and Boxster .

Wanted to revive this thread. Any new options or feedback ?

Did anyone mention Continental Extreme Contact DW yet? My car buddy friend love them, I have nothing bad to say about them, and they are great in the rain.

The V12 will be a little faster than the sumitomos htrz3, and last very similar maybe slightly less. My htrz3s are wearing well, have only lost 2/32 roughly with 4k and about 15 autox events on them. The RS3s will be MUCH faster than either, but I burned through 3/32nds (about a third of the tire life) in 1k street miles and 5 autox events. These are NOT 200TW, they only carry that rating to satisfy SCCA requirements, the re71r is even worse.

Almost forgot- MPSS are pretty good as well, I'd say about on par with the V12 maybe slightly better, but noticeably better than sumitomo htrz3. For me they're not worth the price though, and towards the end of their life even at 2 years old are worse than a fresh set of cheapo sumitomos

I just bought some BF Goodrich G Force Comp-2 A/S tires and so far am absolutely in love with them. At the moment they are way quieter than the Dunlops I replaced. Haven't tested their handling limits yet as they only have about 100 miles on them. Tire Rack has a $70 rebate for them till the end of the month. My local, trusted Discount Tire matched their prices and discount.

I just ordered Pilot Super Sports. Highest tread wear and rain handling on Tire Rack.

I had Hankook Ventus V12 evo2's on my 986. They were great street tires. I killed them with 2 days of track and 2 AX. They get VERY slippery when very hot. The rears were down to the wear bars in ~11k miles Fronts still had tread. Just put a set of Sumitomo HTR ZIII on and they feel great. Have not done a track day or AX on them yet, track coming at the end of Oct. The Sumi's are also not $$ a set of 4 is under $500 My 996 has Michelin AS/3 on it and they are super noisy. They are 19's, so maybe that adds to the noise.

Some of the best tires I have had on my 996 were the Falken 425's. Great wear and great handling on the track. Super in the wet. That being said, we should all be running whatever tires KCAttorney is since he has a 996TT and his word is now Porsche gospel.

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I have the Continental Extreme Contact DWS version on my '02 C2 (they came with the car when I bought it). While I thought they were fine in general, I did my first autocross this past weekend, and the instructor riding along with me made a point to tell me how bad they were. I'm an AX newbie, and just learning the car's limits in that environment, but I will say it wasn't hard to break them loose and get sideways. Given that I live in Southern California, I can't imagine I really need the all-season component these tires give, so I'll probably go with something else on the next go-round. I've got some tread life left, so I've got some time to figure out what the next set will be.

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Not sure where you pulled those numbers out of but NO WAY will you get 28k out of V12's if your drive a Porsche LIKE A PORSCHE! Best I have gotten 15k and that was with threads showing at the end. Like I said my 3rd set.

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DWS is a different tire than a DW. Unless I really dump the clutch (which I haven't done yet) it's almost impossible to break them loose on dry pavement or around a corner.