Comment about mixed tires and ? on cheap tires

I just tool around town on my everyday set of tires. Just to stir it up I am over a year on a mixed set which is unanimously decried on this site as a terrible thing to do know but I have never seen a data based reason (and I have asked) why not to. So, whatever on that. (Feel free to chime in about how terrible that is). I need new tires now and am thinking about going back to the Sumi III's. I have a track set of Pilot Sport Cups so these are just for jacking around town. There are a dozen on Tire Rack under $700. Any reason I should not to do the Sumi III's again? Have a look at the list and let me know if I should buy or stay away from any of these. This is what I found: Hankook Ventur V12 Evo $608 Kumho Ecsta Le Sport $566 Sumi HTR Z III $648 Bridgestone Potenza RE760 $680 Dunlop Drezza DZ101 $608 Fuzion ZRI $564 Kumho ECSTA $628 Sumi HTR ZII $518 General Gmax AS-03 $660 Kumho ECSTA 4X $632 Kumho ECSTA ASX $618 Yoko Avid EnVigor (W) $690 Additional data: 18" and I live in Texas so summer tires or all season are fine. Also as I've mentioned before, any sarcasm or irrelevant comments like, "spend more time in the seat", "that all depends" or "post a pic" are greatly appreciated because between my three crazy kids, wife and responsible job I just don't get enough of that. It's why I log on regularly. :-)

Pics!!! Mixing tires are like putting bench seats in your pcar.

I like my bench seat :-)

I just bought the Sumitomo tires. They are loud, not louder than the OEM continentals, but different frequency (boomier, but less "white noise"). the roads in Portland are so crappy from studded tires all the tires make noise. That said, the Sumi's are much stickier than the OEM Conti's IMHO. and 680 bucks for 4 ain't bad.

Michelins or contis for me. I like expensive tires (: They give me a better sense of safety. haha

I'm a mixer as well, have been for a few years. I have Sumis on the rear....very QUIET tires for me anyway. Dunlops on the front...regardless of the naysayers, I have had no issues safety wise or other. Let the blasting begin. Love my bench seats as well.

for me its age of tire over the mixing...esp for daily street use. Tires are not like wine

Mixing tires is bad because you're putting contact patches with different grip properties on the same car...made worse by doing it to a vehicle that's already got some interesting handling quirks due to the engine hanging behind the rear axle. It's like going skiing with two different models of skis strapped to your feet...or playing basketball with a Nike shoe on the left foot and a Reebok on the right--leads to problems that you might not be prepared for.

mixing tires is bad, but if you drive respecting speed limit and granny style, as per law enforcement requirements..you are fine I have a set of SUMI III and they are just great, I track them and they are plenty fun and cheap too. My conclusion on tires: 1/ LOW WEAR IF put low mileage on your car -> buy expensive tires, you will not change them that often and you will enjoy extra grip from time to time 2/ HIGH EAR - newbie: IF you drive a lot or go to the track which wear your tires a lot -> by the cheap tires, they are almost as good and the cost really add up over time. 3/ HIGH WEAR - pro: Caveat: IF you wear your tires a lot AND ONLY if you are a great driver, then by the expensive tires, cost a lot but at least you are getting something out of them. See in which category you belong

Agree - Sumi is good choice for lower cost. Some of the cheaper tires are not rated 97Y load - so best to stick to that spec (for rears) I think. Mix is OK if you are not pushing it sustained over 100 or around the corners - I'd also be more worried about age. If you are at the track, you can probably see a difference in lap times between the best N-rated (sticky) tires and the cheaper ones here - but sounds like you have good track tires already. My P Zeros are almost shot - think of getting the Yoko S-Drive 265/35-18 rears on my '02 targa next. Anyone try those ? Or is Sumi better for this app ?

If you drive the speed limit I think anything will work. Scream up on a posted 15 MPH hard off camber right on a steep down grade at night in pouring rain at 80 MPH braking late, I'd at least want the same brand on each axle. Each of us have our own level of comfort;-)

Hankook V12's

I have ContiSport 2's, the rears have less than 4k miles and they are down to 3/32". Dear can't get them and Tire Rack sold out. I found a local tire store who said he can get them, so i'll see. But now i'm having a hard time deciding what my next time will be. I want to stay N rated but 5-7K miles out of $650 tires is hard to swallow. Dealer recommends PS2's which I'm sure are great tires, but overkill for me and the car at $1,300 for just tires + delivery + install + alignment.... Are there other N rated tires I should consider since Conti 2's might not be avalible?

If i lived in texas I would only look at max summer tires.

Due to availability I am now mixing Conti DWs (rear) with Conti SportContact 2s. No problems yet... And it just did a hard driving NC mountain trip with PCA.

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I live in Texas and I only use Michelin's on everything drive - PR2's and Pilot Power for the bikes and Sports for the Carrera.

Quotes source post: 8900434

Maybe I'll try 2 different skis this winter when I'm up in the White Mtns. I'd tend to agree with you on tires if I was driving at the limit on a track, or flagrantly exceeding posted speed limits all the time(ie. autobahn speeds here in the US), but tires that aren't outdated time wise, with decent tread...nah, I'm not buying it.

Yeah - we are not in Germany running flat out on the autobahn ... in the wet - then for sure i would only go with n-rated. At US highway speeds and even the occasional burst to low triple figures - other options give more value for the money. Of course if money is not an issue and you want to go with the best then upgrade to a 997.2 and PSPs....

http://www.6speedonline.com/forums/9...x-ps2-v12.html It's true that most of us aren't on the autobahn every day, but if you drive your car like a Honda Civic at all times, what's the point of getting a Porsche in the first place? There's plenty of information available about the disadvantages of mixing tires (there are no advantages), so if y'all choose to ignore it, that's your problem. I've also seen people in this forum claim that summer tires are fine in the winter as long as it's dry (!?!). Anyway, there's nothing more dangerous than Joe Sixpack driveway engineering something he doesn't know about. You'll never find a tire company engineer that says it's OK to mix tires with different grip properties, sidewall stiffness, tread patterns, etc, and that's good enough for me. Here's a question: do you guys see a problem with using four different brands of tires on your Porsche? Why or why not?

I only use 'N' rated tires.

The rating is not the issue here. It's the mixed grip. Keep in mind that each tire manufacture makes a different size 295/30/18. If you don't believe me check for yourself. This in itself can throw off your stability control. The mixed up compounds in rubber will totally destroy the Porsche handling. You are better off replacing 4 cheap tires then just two. This way your car will be better balanced with similar grip on all four corners. Have you guys ever tried driving in snow with only two winter tires? It's the same effect.

My response to this is relatively useless for you since you have already made up your mind to mix the tires on your car. If you are only driving on dry roads, at or below about 50 MPH, then going cheap is up to you. Although, I do agree with those above who question why you even own a Porsche in the first place if you need to go cheap and choose off-brand non-spec tires. Get a Camry. I know, that sounds arrogant. But mixing tires on a Porsche means you are discounting any value in all the engineering and factory safety recommendations against doing so. I hope those three kids are wearing their seatbelts whenever they ride with you.

Interesting to read all the responses. Everyone is entitled to their opinion. Here's mine. I have two sets of wheels. One set for the street, one set for the track. For the track tires, they are always the same brand, always the same R-compound, always bought as a set of 4. The car is driven at the limit, there should be no compromises. I've been doing it since the car was new in 2002. For the street tires, I buy the cheapest, the one that is on sale, and can have different tires front and rear. I currently have old P-Zeros in front and new Sumi's in the rear. I would NEVER drive this combo on the track. On the street, I would NEVER drive these tires close to their limit. Sure, I'll go over the speed limit, run 75 or more in a 55 zone, maybe take a corner a little faster than I should, but these are nowhere close to these street tires limits. I don't think mixing tires is stupid. I think driving on the street at or close to a street tires limit is stupid. The only place to drive a Porsche like a Porsche should be driven is at the track.

Some think outside the box, some don't.

Quotes source post: 8910933

Well said, and I happen to agree. +1