I just finished reading a test of 11 brands of popular high performance tires in Car&Driver. They used 225/45R17 sized tires in all there tests and used BMW 325's in their testing. The Kumho MX (my current tire choice) came in last place overall. I was surprised to see the Hankook place 5th overall especially at only $99. All the other tires prices ran between $178 and $135. I'd been under the impression that the Kumho MX's ($136) were one of the best bang for the buck tires available. But after reading this test, the Hankook may become my next tire choice. I realize all tire choices are a series of trade offs. Wet vs. dry handling, braking etc. but the Hankook's in most cases seemed to fair pretty well. And when you throw in a savings of between $144 and $316 for a set they appear to be a decent value to me. Any thoughts on this Jim?

 

I would not read a lot into it. Euro Tuner magazine did a test here and they rated the MX number 6 all around and number 1 in the dry skid pad.

 

I've run both the MX and the RS-2, and I will continue to run the RS-2. Both are great bang-for-the-buck tires.

 

[QUOTE=Jim@tirerack,Nov 9 2005, 05:27 AM]I would not read a lot into it.

 

Jim,
I bought a '03 s2k with kumhos 711 at the rear , and supras 712 at the front
The good news is that the 711 are almost worn out. Right now, I am considering 4 options, considering that I want to keep prices as low as possible, and that of course I am looking for the best bang for the buck:
1- Potenzas Re750
2- Avon Tech M500
3- Kumho MX
4- Yokos AVS ES 100
I am not too sure about the hankooks, and I don't plan on Xcrossing with it, but I drive rather spirited, and I love carving corners in those beautiful Socal canyon roads.
So, what's your take?

 

I have the Avon Tech M500. I don't push the car hard on the street, so I can't comment on that. (That's what autocross and my Hoosiers are for.) They are quiet so far, about 4k miles. Do well in the rain. My only complaint is that they take a set if the car is parked for a few days. When this happens, it takes about 5 minutes of driving before the vibration goes away. If I remember correctly, they were about $450 installed.

 

I have the kumho MX's on my 02. Dry grip is almost as good as my S02's were, they take a tick longer to turn in though when they are new. Also, they perform much better with more negative camber. Kumho's in general like more camber. As far as wt performance goes, I am not concerned with it since I don't drive the S in the rain. Tire wear is also not a conceren. as long as I get 7k miles out of set of tires I am happy. I am running 215/45 17 up front and 255/40 17 on the back. Camber up front is -1 and -2.1 on the rear. I have had them on for 4k miles now 2 auto x's and 350 track miles and they have held up very well. I should still be able to get another 3k to 4k miles out of them. They do heat up quicker than some other tires do that I have run in the past, so for track I need to start at a lower pressure. For the price of the Kumho's I am very happy, but I will go with new Yoko Neova next since I want the stiffer sidewalls again. If I can get 5k miles out of those I will be happy.