new owner with a ?
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new owner with a ?
Last fall I bought a pristine `03 blue S with <15K miles. It is totally stock and has the oem bridgestone S02 tires. The rears are getting a little thin. They are not exactly cheap and I could nearly replace all 4 with something else but I dont want to give up much if any performance. Any suggestions?
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I have Continental Extremecontact DW tires on my s2k and they have great wet and dry grip. They actually have higher ratings on tire rack than the OE tires while costing a good bit less.
Joined: Mar 2009
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Far too many variables to just toss out a single tire.
The Star Specs are excellent tires, but you also have RS3's in the same category for ~$100 cheaper and most reviews I've seen bounce and forth between the two as to what the better tire is. These both assume the OP is accepting of better grip at the cost of tread life and won't be driving in snow/ice/etc.
There is a huge amount of threads going over tires. My recommendation is to first go through the Wheel/Tire section and then check out TireRack for pricing and read some reviews on there.
The Star Specs are excellent tires, but you also have RS3's in the same category for ~$100 cheaper and most reviews I've seen bounce and forth between the two as to what the better tire is. These both assume the OP is accepting of better grip at the cost of tread life and won't be driving in snow/ice/etc.
There is a huge amount of threads going over tires. My recommendation is to first go through the Wheel/Tire section and then check out TireRack for pricing and read some reviews on there.
Joined: Oct 2008
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From: San Francisco
I have Continental Extremecontact DW tires on my s2k and they have great wet and dry grip. They actually have higher ratings on tire rack than the OE tires while costing a good bit less.
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Joined: Mar 2009
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Having driven and auto crossed many tires including the S02's here are my takes on some popular choices.
Hankook RS3, MUCH more dry grip than the S02, much cheaper, about the same in the wet, will last about as long if not slightly less.
Dunlop Star Spec, same league as the RS3 in the dry (better in weather below 80 and not as good above 80), good in the rain (better than the S02 and RS3), more expensive than RS3, cheaper than S02, last about as long as S02's if not longer.
Continental DW. marginally less dry grip than the S02, AMAZING in the wet, will last quite a bit longer than the other options, very reasonably priced.
For dry sunny day only use, I recommend the RS3's
For light DD use, or weekend use that sees rain or cooler temps more often, Star specs are my favorite
For more frequent/heavier DD use, the DW's are my favorite.
Another good options,
Michelin PSS, same category as the DW but better in the dry (about equal to the S02), last longer like the DW, almost as good in the rain as the DW but pricy.
Personally: I DD on DW's and Autox on RS3's
Hankook RS3, MUCH more dry grip than the S02, much cheaper, about the same in the wet, will last about as long if not slightly less.
Dunlop Star Spec, same league as the RS3 in the dry (better in weather below 80 and not as good above 80), good in the rain (better than the S02 and RS3), more expensive than RS3, cheaper than S02, last about as long as S02's if not longer.
Continental DW. marginally less dry grip than the S02, AMAZING in the wet, will last quite a bit longer than the other options, very reasonably priced.
For dry sunny day only use, I recommend the RS3's
For light DD use, or weekend use that sees rain or cooler temps more often, Star specs are my favorite
For more frequent/heavier DD use, the DW's are my favorite.
Another good options,
Michelin PSS, same category as the DW but better in the dry (about equal to the S02), last longer like the DW, almost as good in the rain as the DW but pricy.
Personally: I DD on DW's and Autox on RS3's
