coop

I would stay with the S02 in the rear until all 4 need replacing and then, I recomend Kumho MX's.

here a link to Tire Rack for the Ecsta MX's
http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires.jsp?ti...eModel=ECSTA+MX

Vanos954

I personally highly dislike the Kumho 712's. If you have any real performance tire up front and the kumho out back you're going to be going sideways much more than you'd like and a lot less predictable than you'd like. Straight line traction is pretty good on them but handling capabilities are marginal at best at speed. Take a look at the side profile of them, tiny little pieces of rubber facing the outside edge where it really needs some big chunks for roadholding. I liked the Yoko ES100's much better for about the same price on my M3 I had, of course they weren't as good as the MXX3's. The RE750's might be alright too, I had the 730's before and they were not the highest overall grip but they were extremely predictable and you could catch them in a slide easily (at least on a MR2 supercharged)

coop

I also do not like the Kumho 712, and I hate the Yoko ES100. Yesterday I put on a set of Toyo T1-S, that a friend got me a great deal on, but if I don't like them it's back to the Kuhmo Ecsta MX's.

rjosey8385

I assume by this you mean keep replacing the rears with S02s rather than just to leave the bald tires on the rear until the fronts match

johninator

I don't see the Kumho Ecta MX in 245/45/16. It is only available in 225/50/16. Will this have the same contact patch as the OEM S02s?

coop

I would replace the rears with the same tires as the fronts, until all 4 tires need to be replaced. but if you like the idea of driving around on slicks, then go for it

coop

[quote name='johninator' date='Jan 30 2005, 10:57 AM'] I don't see the Kumho Ecta MX in 245/45/16.

9kscream

I had great success with the Bridgestone RE950... it even comes with a treadwear guarantee... it handled very well with no feedback.

johninator

Some tires that has a section width of 9.1" will go down to 7.5" in tread width. Anyone measured the tread width of the Kumho 225/50/16? We need it close to 8.5" to match our OEM S02s contact patch.

devndorf

Consider the Falken Azennis tires. Be careful to get the Sport Azzenis, which you can tell by the large tread blocks. These are very popular street/autocross tires, and I found they were OK in the wet, as long as there is tread. They are also cheap for a performance tire, with tread wear rating of 200.

Falken has announced the replacement version of these tires which are supposed to be better, the ST-615. I saw one, but the tire dealer did not have prices yet.

The older Azzenis had very limited size selection, but I think they had 225/50=16. The new tires will have 17 sizes, and are advertised to be out this spring.

The Azzennis I had on my Integra were 205/50-15, and sold for about $80. Very responsive tires. Much, much better than the Yoko AVS100.

Note: Tire rack does not carry Falken Azzenniis, but Discount Tire (Tire.com) does.
Note 2, change all 4 tires, it is not good to mix tire brands.