I know this is a bad question because they are more than our stock tires... but I have decided to order BF Goodrich g-Force T/A KD for my new Work Meister wheels...

What are your opinions about these tires?

I figured an active tire thread would be the place to ask...

 

Which Sumis? I have had a couple sets on my wife's Lude with good success.

If you didn't know, Sumitomo is the parent company of Dunlop!! And take a look at the OEM spark plug wires (on Hondas at least) and you'll see Sumitomo's name there. They are a huge chemical company as well...

 

In my experience with the yoko a520, i don't think they're a really good tire..i've known a couple of people with those tires on which have wiped out and crashed ..Supposedly they weren't going too fast but that's all relative..I've driven with them on my friends car and they just don't feel right to me..I would have wileecoyote..The Re-71's stick quite a bit..I've had both the s02's and the re-71's on my old turbo talon and both stuck to the ground equally well..plus a bonus i guess if you could call it that is they Re71's are supposedly not made anymore?? I don't know..that's what i've been told but you can still get them all over the place and they are way cheaper than the s02's..

 

The Toyo T1-S, they are better in the wet and have a better all round temp grip than the S0-2. But after the SO-2 warms up, it will probably have more ultimate grip. But overall the T1-S is a better tire on the street. Also much cheaper.

 

The RE71 is now known as an RE711 and is most definitely available. I don't believe there is any major difference between an RE71 and RE711.

 

I have had very good results with BF Goodrich Comp T/A ZRs on my other performance cars. Check prices through Tire Rack. (www.tirerack.com) They are available in S2K sizes and they'll average about $100 each. Grip level at the limit of adhesion will be a little less than S02s but you'll probably get about 20,000 miles out of them.

Al

 

STL,

I don't remember which model Sumitomo's I had, but they were EXCELLENT. I used to use them for "street wear" and the SCCA auto-x's while I was still in school about four years back. In fact, they were on my Prelude as well. . .4th gen that is.

The auto-x's were held in the parking lot of the Milwaukee Brewer's County Stadium where the hardtop was "crumbly" because of it caused very loose traction.

After I blew out of the Sumitomo's, in college, I couldn't afford another set and went with some Toyo's. I used the Toyos for two months and needless to say, I never bought another set. I think for everyday play, the Nittos I'm using on the Lude suffice very nicely, on the 18" rims I want to get for the S2K, I will go with either more Nitto's or the Dunlop SP8000. Again this is to balance quality of tire vs. price for a 'just cruising' tire. The stock rims will always get either the S02 treatment for the track days or winter tires for late Fall, early Spring, or daring Winter days.

Urmil
Luder94

PS. STL, I will try to find out the line of tires I used to have (the Sumitomo's) and no I never knew that Sumitomo was the PARENT company of Dunlop. . .thanx

 

Actually I forgot to mention this before, but the Sumitomos that I know (see them at the Tirerack.com) are pretty darn in-expensive!

 

Bridgestone Potenza RE730s are a Z-rated tire at a little more than half the price of the S02s and with a longer tread life. I put a pair on the rear a few weeks ago and have found that the ride is comparable and the grip is identical under normal circumstances. They do not offer the same level of grip for more competitive situations, probably somewhere around a 10% degradation with the tail sliding out more than with the S02s...which is actually kind of fun!

 

Fun until you need that extra grip (like in an emergrency/evasive-action situation) and you end up sliding that tail into a wall or something.

Don't get me wrong I'm all for cheaper tires, but going too cheap and using hard (extended treadwear life) rubber is only asking for trouble in my opinion. But at least you aren't using some ultra-cheap H-rated Michelin rubber like one idiot S2000 owner is doing!!!