I posted this in the wheel/tire forum, but that area doesn't seem to get a lot of traffic...

I need a new set of rear tires (fronts still have plenty of wear left on them at 16,500 miles). I see on tirerack.com that I can get the Kumho ECSTA MX (which has excellent reviews and a higher wear rating that OEM, 220 v. 140) for $129 for the rear and $111 for the front, while the OEM are $178 for the rear. So, should I replace all four tires with the Kumho for $480 or just replace the rears with OEM for $356? Seems to me that for just $124, I might as well replace all four tires with the Kumhos and get a higher wear rating in the process if they are just as good as OEM. Any thougts would be appreciated. Thanks.

 

First, tire ratings are meaningless between brands, as tire wear is measured differently between them.

Second, I did a nice detailed write up of the Kumho MX in the wheels & tires section FAQ for 04+, so you should check that out.

Third, be wary of using different brands of tires front and back - the grip thresholds can cause problems with traction and controlling the car, so just be warned.

Personally, if your fronts are good for another 16k mi, I'd just replace the rears with OEM, (but I do like my Kuhmo MX now that they are broken in).

 

^ Thanks. I'm not contemplating putting the Kumho on the rear and keeping the OEM on the front. Rather, I am trying to decide between replacing all four with the Kumho or replacing just the rear with the OEM (my front OEM appear to have a good amount of wear left on them). I read your review of the Kumhos. Do you like them better than OEM?

 

I had 245/40/17 Ecsta MXs on my M3 and they were great. Pretty grippy with a decent tread life. They were relatively quiet too.

 

Well, they were a lot cheaper than OEM when I bought them, so despite how bad they were for that first 1k miles, they have been a really good tire imo. I got 17k on my OEM RE050s, and if I get at least 12k out of the Kumhos I'll probably put them on again as I think they communicate better than the RE050s without being significantly less grippy, and they definitely feel better in the rain.

 

ps - I think the MX look better - more agressive tread pattern.