Best tire brands? Worst tire brands? | FerrariChat

Best tire brands? Worst tire brands?

Discussion in 'General Automotive Discussion' started by Admiral Thrawn, Nov 2, 2004.

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  1. Admiral Thrawn

    Admiral Thrawn F1 Rookie

    Jul 2, 2003
    3,932
    I haven't been able to find any comparative information on the Internet, so I'm posting this question here.

    Which are the best tire manufacturers, and why? How do they compare to one another?

    Also, which are some tire manufacturers that you shouldn't go near with a ten foot pole?

    I'm thinking about tyres that would be fitted on sedans such as Mercedes-Benz, BMW, Lexus, Volvo, Audi, Jaguar, etc, rather than sports cars.
     
  2. PaulfromPA

    PaulfromPA Karting

    Mar 3, 2004
    166
    Lancaster, PA
    Full Name:
    Paul Grabowski
  3. TCM

    TCM Formula Junior

    Nov 10, 2003
    552
    Tyngsborough, MA
    It depends on the type of tire you are looking for. IMO, for sport oriented tires it is hard to beat Michelin and Bridgestone, with Pirelli and Conti taking up the rear.
     
  4. Schatten

    Schatten F1 World Champ
    Owner

    Apr 3, 2001
    11,237
    Austin, TX
    Full Name:
    Randy
    Difficult to say, even with brands as the blanket judgement. I dig some tires from various brands and detest others, even if they are a slight twist of a particular model. (i.e. - OEM S02's vs. PP S02's) Some tires work well for some cars but not well for others. This is a very difficult subject to get hard facts. I'd say, Grassroots Motorsports or Sport Compact Car would have the better reviews of various tire makes/manufacturers than others.
     
  5. tvrfreak

    tvrfreak F1 Rookie
    BANNED

    Mar 31, 2003
    3,879
    Arkansas
    Full Name:
    F K
    Bridgestone RE70s. Crap tyres that gave out very suddenly, resulting in massive oversteer. Made for lurid powerslides, but it was tricky to catch, and quite dangerous.

    Best: Yokohama Advan A048s (OEM on the Lotus Elise). Unbelievable. The steering and throttle feel like they are slider switches for dialing in how much grip you want. Understeer, oversteer, neutral sideways drifting, slight squiggle, etc. all available when and how you want it. Simply AWESOME.
     
  6. tfazio

    tfazio Formula 3
    Silver Subscribed

    Apr 20, 2004
    1,968
    Michigan
    I think PaulfromPA gave you a great source to find information. I always go to tirerack.com and read owners testimonials on specific tires I am interested in. They also have great comparisons on a lot of different tires.

    Personally, I have always loved Michelin and never been a big fan of Bridgestone. Michelin seems to be able to make a tire that performs and wears well for the most part. Of course they cost more. Bridgestone makes some great tires I am sure but I have never owned any I liked. Pirelli introduced the Nero tire a while back and it seems to be a great all weather performance tire.
     
  7. Artherd

    Artherd F1 Veteran

    Jun 19, 2002
    6,588
    Bay Area, CA
    Full Name:
    Ben Cannon
    Always loved Pirelli Pzeros on anything I drove. The "Pzero Rossos" are good too.
     
  8. K27

    K27 Karting

    Jul 10, 2004
    60
    Vancouver BC
    Full Name:
    Lance
    Personally I found the owners comments on Tirerack a bit of a joke, when you see comments like " I cant believe how bad this racing tire is in the snow" you know your in trouble.
    Bridgestone, Micheline and Yokohama all offer up pretty good products.
    I am currently on Yoko ES100's, nice tire good price, but it's horses for courses with tires. So choose the right tire from one of these manuf. and you should be happy.
     
  9. Admiral Thrawn

    Admiral Thrawn F1 Rookie

    Jul 2, 2003
    3,932
    Thanks for the replies, guys.

    Been doing a bit of research and am thinking of getting the Bridgestone Potenza S-03 Pole Position tyres. Second choice would be Pirelli P Zero Nero M+S.

    Thoughts?
     
  10. artn

    artn Karting

    Mar 2, 2004
    108
    I heard great things about both. (I'm on my second set of P Zero Rossos, btw..)

    However, you might want to post information on what car you are intending to install the tires on. That way, you should be able to get feedback on which models offer which attributes you may want from current/past owners of the same car.
     
  11. Auraraptor

    Auraraptor F1 World Champ
    Lifetime Rossa Owner

    Sep 25, 2002
    13,196
    MO
    I use S0-3s on my BMW 750iL. (I use S02s on my Ferrari)

    Simply put, IMO, they are the best intermediate (rain + dry) tire you can buy. They have saved my life a few times when we got the remnants of hurricanes up in the NE of the good ol' USA with buckets of rain coming down.

    Damn good tire. Better then the Pzeros I had on before them in terms of grip and control.
     

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