cosmick

Interesting. Hadn't considered it that way. Thanks. But even if they're junk, I'll still try them when I get rims.

Thirdgen89GTA

iTrader: (5)

Thats my point, they aren't junk for the money spent. But if you want better you are going to have to spend significantly more money. And if you want the BEST then you have to give up something. In my GTA's case that was ANY cold weather running capability. The Nitto NT05's are one step down from an R-Compound race tire.

The 4X's are $126/tire each in 275/40/17.

The NT05's are $165 for the same size/aspect tire.

For the $156 difference the NT05's will destroy the 4X's. However you can't drive them year round unless you live in a place where the temps never really fall below 40*F.

Reid Fleming

iTrader: (2)

Go figure that a guy in Texas in May with 90° weather would talk about snow tires.

Here's a comparison of various Michelin tires. Everything from ultra high performance to regular all season all season to performance winter to snow & ice.

http://www.caranddriver.com/comparis...mparison-tests

A chart I made of the results.



Some of the tests show dramatic differences between the tire models. Being a Canadian, I'm aware of Quebec having a winter tire law for certain months of the winter. Yet with me originally being from British Columbia, if there was a same law there, it would actually be LESS safe than running all seasons. -5°C is about as cold as it gets on the west coast of BC. And at that range, all seasons > winter tires.

cosmick

Maybe time to split this thread into best real-world tires and best race-only tires. I for one won't be destroying my car by taking it to a track, I don't need more grip than I already have since I can already take every corner at 5 over the limit, but wider tires look better.

11ellswray

iTrader: (1)

www.youtube.com/watch?v=fFdCKRlgQVQ

JoeHarper

Ok I am new here...can someone please help me.....I am looking to replace some dryrotted 225/60/14 Firestone Firehawks on my soon to be restored 1984 Firebird. I've done a lot of websearching and I can not find 225/60/14s anywhere. I believe the recommended size is actually a 205/70/14 or 195/70/14 and would certainly be willing to go with that.
The choices available (Tirerack, Sears, Walmart, and Summit Racing) look kind of uninspiring. I have read so many reviews my head is spinning.
Does anyone have any recommendations? Handling is the most important issues (my soon to be sixteen year old son with lead foot and sense of adventure will be driving car).

antman89iroc

Ok here's my experience with stock IROC 245/50 16 tires. As you may know selection is getting tighter as years go by. There are only a half dozen or so manufacturers making this size any more.

My latest tire is the Cooper RS3-A. W speed rated and a good looking tire IMO. Not a bad price either. I'm into them for a little under $500. My preference is a unidirectional tire and this is one. I run 4 "front" wheels on my car so I can cross rotate them and it gives the back a little wider track. The RS3A is an all season tire with a good ride and so far seems to handle well and have better than average traction. UTOG rating is 500 which is better than most. So maybe I'll get a year or two service out of them lol. I am impressed with a tire that I hadn't really considered until I read a Motor Trend article comparing them to some BFG's and others. One negative so far is a waxy like coating on the outside which turned a little chalky and needed some scrubbing to get off. Probably because it is made in China which is another less than desirable fact. Few tires I have found are actually made in the states. China, Mexico and Canada seem to be common.

In the past I have used a lot of different tires. Here are my comments on some.

BFG touring. On car when I got it and don't believe they make this size any more.
Kuhmo 712's. Good handling directional tire. Got around 30k. Don't make them anymore so it's a mute point.
Pirelli Pzero Nero. Best tire to date. Great traction, great handling, good life. Would be on my car now if they still made this size.
Firestone Wide Oval. Good tire but I didn't really give it a chance. They had a narrow cross section (seemed funny for a "Wide Oval") so I sold them with only a few thousand miles on them. Now they make the Wide oval all season which I would have tried if the Coopers hadn't come up.
Sumitomo HTR +. Last set before now. Overall I was pleased but they did seem to have more flex in corners. Traction and life was about par.

Two others I would consider are the BFG Sport AS and the Prime Well Pz900. Although the PW had a UTOG of only 280 it looks like a decent tire at a modest price. Of course the Michelin Pilot Sport would probably be a good choice too, although a bit pricy for something I'll end up chewing off the back end.

rhettjstone

I got a set of Michelin Pilots (http://www.6speedonline.com/forums/b...ort-tires.html) awhile back and could not be happier with them. Really sticky, great ride and handling, excellent road manners.

C-Titan

iTrader: (2)

I've been running a set of Hankook V12's for the past few years - wet traction was the most dramatically improved, holeshot sticks, and corning performance is great... 255/40/ZR18 fronts paired with 285/35/ZR19 in the back... Rim protector,a fat sidewall, and window smashing grip is all I need

antman89iroc

Update on the Cooper RS3A's~ great wet traction!

And yeah once you go to a custom wheel tire selection isn't an issue.

What I am hoping to do one day is have a custom wheel made to replicate the 88-89 wheel in probably 18" size. Then not only could I get just about any tire I choose but I could also upgrade to the SS/CTSV 14" brake!

evilemokid94

iTrader: (6)

Any one ran cooper cobras? Likes or dislikes?

Nolan92RS

Anyone have any experience with the continental extreme contacts with a decent amount of power? I am running these tires right now on my 3.1 camaro and just curious as to how they will do when I do my motor swap. I plan to get something along the lines of some M/T's for the track.

Ozz1967

iTrader: (4)

My Radial T/A's are worn out and I'll be needing new tires by the end of the summer.

Not many options for a 15" rim, the Radial T/A's or Cooper Cobra's.

Anyone have any preference?

The car is my DD right now so there is a good chance I'll have to drive it in the Utah Winter again next year (My other car threw a rod and was scrapped)

Blown84Bird

Good for a stock dd nothing remarkable about them.

RavageTheRoad

I'm sure these have been posted before, but I would never dream of putting any other tire on these cars unless it was a specific racing set up.



Pic was taken before I got the fatties for the rear to match but you get the idea. Firehawks would be a close 2nd but they don't come in white letter anymore...

Thirdgen89GTA

iTrader: (5)

If a tire allowed me to stick 1g+ in a daily streetable tire, I'd run it even if it was pink. I don't care about tire appearance so much as tire performance.

ceccacci316

Anyone ever use BFGoodrich G-Force Super Sport A/S 245/50ZR16 97W
Looking to put these on 1989 Firebird Formula, which will be a daily driver.

69 Six Pack

Of these two which would you pick for a 1991 Z/28?
FALKEN ZIEX 912 P245/50R16
or
Cooper Zeon RS3-A P245/50R16


Thanks,
Dave

RamIt

The Falkens wear faster and have better outright grip than the Coopers. The Falken 912's I have were made in Thailand.

The RS3-A probably will last longer and has reasonable grip. Tires are made in China.

Probably a push between the 2. They are both kinda cheep, bottom price tires.

I do actually have both. The RS3-A on the Camaro and the 912's on the Vega.

antman89iroc

I can't speak on the Falkens but do have the Coopers. I am very satisfied with them. Great traction for a street tire, good handling and wear. I'm planning to buy a pair for the front and rotate my fronts to the rear so I can take my rears and put them on an extra pair of rims I have for racing. The grip at the strip (with all the rubber laid down) is as good as the BFG drag radials I owned. Plus they last a lot longer than the BFGs and are a lot less expensive.

IMissMy86TA

I have generals and paid 81/ea for them. they are not speed rated and not the best looking tire IMO but yet look decent, clean up well and have a softer/more compliant ride which on the suspension of these cars really makes the ride better. they have good traction and handle well. they are not sold anymore though. no generals at tire rack in 24/50/16

69 Six Pack

Thanks for your input guys, should have I started a new thread? Anyway I think I will go with the Coopers, as they are both on sale and priced about the same.


Dave

Lucid

iTrader: (4)

All the cheap tires seem pretty much all the same to me. Kumho's H rated tires seem to wear the fastest. I bought some Primewell tires from Firestone, they run about $97 a piece and they had a deal with buy 3 get 1 free. They have been some really good tires. My dad asked me when I bought new tires and I have had them for almost a year now.

mmadden55

I would get a wider tire 255 at least.

69 Six Pack

So the Coopers ended up being on backorder...they said could be 3 or 4 weeks lol So I contacted the place selling the Falkens and the set they had were sold...so I have been researching some other tires. Thinking of the Kumho Ecsta PA31. Any opinions on these?


Dave

tcflint

iTrader: (4)

Has anyone had any experience with Hankook Ventus V2 tires on there 3rd gen???
Tirerack reviews were mostly good but different cars....

Thirdgen89GTA

iTrader: (5)

I haven't heard anything about the V2s. But the V12s have gotten good reviews.

Tire rack's reviews are fairly good, its nice that most tires are tested on the same car.

But they really need to start putting together a database to compare tires that were tested in different tests. Record ambient weather and conditions, and then put that into a database so you can cross compare.

antman89iroc

Agreed. We should also look at what tires are currently available for the stock rim sizes as well as aftermarket rim sizes. Finding a tire that has desirable specs is one thing, finding one that also matches the legacy sizes seems to be the biggest problem.

Tire manufacturers that make tires for a 16 x 8 wheel, for example, is difficult and selection is very limited. Finding a 14, or 15 inch tire seems to be getting very limited.

antman89iroc

For my 16 x 8 IROC wheels I really like the Cooper Zeon tires RS3-A in 245/50-16. They have a mid level price, good tread wear, wet weather traction, fairly quiet and have great traction for a street tire and best of all they're still available. I've had a lot of good sets of tires that were not available when I went to replace them.

paul_huryk

It is an easy swap to a 225-55-16 tire, which there of dozens of tire choices - it was the euro sedan size from 1995 to 2005 or so.

antman89iroc

True, but not the stock size for my car. When ever I do change size and aspect ratio on a tire from stock I always go the other way. I like the widest foot print I can get (to a point) on a car. For me, it isn't an acceptable option. That is as long as a good tire is available in my size. For now the Cooper is a fine choice. If a decent tire is no longer available or gets stupid expensive then I would likely go with an aftermarket wheel and modern size. I would go to great length to avoid putting a narrower tire on my car.

However, your suggestion is a good option for anyone who doesn't mind. Most people would never notice the 3/8-1/2 difference in width. At least you speedometer would be correct!

paul_huryk

I understand - and so do many others.

But keep in mind that the 245-50-16 size is becoming scarce and high performance options are extremely limited (there are 2 left). I've mounted 2 sets of 225-55-16 tires on 3rd gens and the owners love them.

It leaves but few choices: 1) use one of the very few 245-50-16 tires on the market; 2) switch to a 225-55-16 (there are dozens of options); 3) go to a 17" or larger wheel and tire (and go wider at the same time).

Cooper makes great tires, but the ones you have (which were on my GTA when I bought it) are not all that great in terms of performance, but do ride nice.

I'd rather have a set of 225-55-16 Direzza DZ102 tires than anything in 245-50-16 at this point. FYI - I have a customer in the older DZ101 tires on our 17" wheels that dominates his chumpcar class.

antman89iroc

Paul, you make some excellent points. I agree the Cooper tires are not the best from a handling stand point. I was surprise however at the dry traction they have. Or at least had for the first 1/2 of the tread wear. At the track they stuck as well as BFG drags when there is a good patch of rubber left by the real sticky tired cars. And yes they do ride pretty well. But in the end you are right the selection is so limited we may have no choice but to go the route you are suggesting. Better have a good selection than stuck with a horrible tire.

IMissMy86TA

I have generals and love them! they are similar to the coopers.. not great grip but ride nice, in right size and were a bargain at 81 each. They are not made anymore however.
you would do better with
Kumho ECSTA PA31 for 81:10 each

edpontiac91

iTrader: (2)

I've had my 245/50/16 Z rated Goodyear GS-C tires on my car for awhile. They were take offs from SLP when they were making the Ram Air upgrades to 17" tires. These were also stock on the late 80's and early 90's Corvettes. I know they no longer offer them, but what an awesome looking and handling tire.

BubbaK

iTrader: (1)

I'm glad I read through this thread.. I was all set to pull the trigger on the BFG Radial T/A for my stock 88 camaro. After looking through some reviews I changed my mind. I am looking at the General Altimax RT43's. I have 15" stock aluminum rims and am looking for tire size suggestions. I'm not sure what the max width tire I can put on the rims. The car came stock with either 215/65/15 or 235/60/15. The car is going to be almost a daily driver once we get it finished up. Probably mostly a summer weather car. I was looking for a bit wider and taller tire in the back than the front. I was thinking 215/65's in the front. I saw a lot of different brands listed through this thread, but not much on 15" sizes..

Camaro86IrocZ

iTrader: (1)

couple of 15" tire size threads with pics..

https://www.thirdgen.org/forums/whee...tires-get.html

https://www.thirdgen.org/forums/whee...er-cobras.html

clubber

iTrader: (1)

I went with BFG Sport comp 2's 255-50-16. They stick great and never rub. The size is slightly off from stock but .2 inches of sidewall increase isn't causing me any issues.