KrayzieFox
Member
- :
- 01 MP3 Turbo
Hey guys, I need some help here. It's time for new summer street & AutoX tires and I'm having a hell of a time deciding. 99% of my driving will be on the street (mostly highway), and I'll probably do 6 or so AutoX events. I'm not ultra competitive, I just like to go out and have fun.. so performance isn't all that big of a factor for me.
My current tires are Strata Zeno 205/40/R17 (they came stock on the SS Cobalts) and they came with the wheels I bought. I actually didn't mind them, they didn't wear fast, weren't very noisy, but they also didn't offer the greatest traction on the track. That was about the only downfall to them. I would usually end up sliding though hard corners, which kinda sucked cuz I would lose a lot of speed too.
The Potenza RE-01R's are on sale at TireRack.. and I can get them for $45 cheaper through a local tire shop ($350 shipped for all 4), but I'm kinda concerned about the thread wear. Everything I've read about them tells me that they're an amazing performance tire, but no one seems to be able to get more than ~15,000 miles out of them. I'd be willing to sacrifice some of this performance for a little more life, as I really don't AutoX that much and as I said.. I'm not that competitive to really care all that much about how well I do.
Another brand of tires I can get from the local tire place are Coopers. I had a set of 2XS's before and they wore way too fast, but there are these ZPT and Sport A/S I've been eyeballing and they don't look too bad. They're about ~$70 a tire.. so not much less than the Potenzas but they're supposed to last twice as long.
So here's a summary of everything.
Use & Wants
Tire Choices
Bridgestone Potenza RE-01R (205/45/R17)
Pros: Excellent performance (W-rated); On sale
Cons: Low thread wear rating (180 A A UTQG); Being discontinued
Cooper Zeon ZPT (215/45/R17)
Pros: Cheap; Good thread wear (380 A A UTQG)
Cons: Size options (215/45 may rub, 205/40 are very skinny); Not as good performance (H-rated)
Cooper Zeon Sport A/S (205/45/R17)
Pros: Excellent thread wear rating (400 AA A UTQG); W-rated like the Potenzas
Cons: Price (I don't think these are as cheap as the other choices); Not very aggressive looking (looks like a strictly street oriented tire)
Strata Zeno (215/40/R17)
Pros: VERY cheap; Excellent thread wear rating (400 AA A UTQG)
Cons: Poor traction; Sizes (205/40 are super skinny, 215/40 may rub)
Maxxis Victra MA-Z4S (205/45/R17)
Pros: Also, VERY cheap through local tire shop; Superb thread wear rating (420 AA A); Size options (205/45, 215/40, 205/40.. just about anything I can imagine is available)
Cons: Probably very poor traction; Quality (never heard of the brand..)
Also, these will be going on my Kyowa 17x7 +48 wheels. I'm lowered on Tein H-Techs which isn't TOO low, but I don't think I can get away with 215/45 without rubbing. 205/45 is probably going to be my "safe" and optimal tire size.
I kinda need to pull the trigger on this soon, cuz option #1 is about to go out the window real soon. The price on the Potenzas is ridiculously low and I'm sure they'll all be gone within the next few days (especially my size..)
My current tires are Strata Zeno 205/40/R17 (they came stock on the SS Cobalts) and they came with the wheels I bought. I actually didn't mind them, they didn't wear fast, weren't very noisy, but they also didn't offer the greatest traction on the track. That was about the only downfall to them. I would usually end up sliding though hard corners, which kinda sucked cuz I would lose a lot of speed too.
The Potenza RE-01R's are on sale at TireRack.. and I can get them for $45 cheaper through a local tire shop ($350 shipped for all 4), but I'm kinda concerned about the thread wear. Everything I've read about them tells me that they're an amazing performance tire, but no one seems to be able to get more than ~15,000 miles out of them. I'd be willing to sacrifice some of this performance for a little more life, as I really don't AutoX that much and as I said.. I'm not that competitive to really care all that much about how well I do.
Another brand of tires I can get from the local tire place are Coopers. I had a set of 2XS's before and they wore way too fast, but there are these ZPT and Sport A/S I've been eyeballing and they don't look too bad. They're about ~$70 a tire.. so not much less than the Potenzas but they're supposed to last twice as long.
So here's a summary of everything.
Use & Wants
- Strictly summer (rain and dry use)
- 99% street
- Occasional AutoX (some performance wanted, not a huge factor though)
- Low thread wear (>25,000 miles if possible)
Tire Choices
Bridgestone Potenza RE-01R (205/45/R17)
Pros: Excellent performance (W-rated); On sale
Cons: Low thread wear rating (180 A A UTQG); Being discontinued
Cooper Zeon ZPT (215/45/R17)
Pros: Cheap; Good thread wear (380 A A UTQG)
Cons: Size options (215/45 may rub, 205/40 are very skinny); Not as good performance (H-rated)
Cooper Zeon Sport A/S (205/45/R17)
Pros: Excellent thread wear rating (400 AA A UTQG); W-rated like the Potenzas
Cons: Price (I don't think these are as cheap as the other choices); Not very aggressive looking (looks like a strictly street oriented tire)
Strata Zeno (215/40/R17)
Pros: VERY cheap; Excellent thread wear rating (400 AA A UTQG)
Cons: Poor traction; Sizes (205/40 are super skinny, 215/40 may rub)
Maxxis Victra MA-Z4S (205/45/R17)
Pros: Also, VERY cheap through local tire shop; Superb thread wear rating (420 AA A); Size options (205/45, 215/40, 205/40.. just about anything I can imagine is available)
Cons: Probably very poor traction; Quality (never heard of the brand..)
Also, these will be going on my Kyowa 17x7 +48 wheels. I'm lowered on Tein H-Techs which isn't TOO low, but I don't think I can get away with 215/45 without rubbing. 205/45 is probably going to be my "safe" and optimal tire size.
I kinda need to pull the trigger on this soon, cuz option #1 is about to go out the window real soon. The price on the Potenzas is ridiculously low and I'm sure they'll all be gone within the next few days (especially my size..)
