Tyres Thread!!!

[JSL]

Thanks Hebe..

[hebe]

PLEASE NOTE THAT THESE FOLLOW POSTS ARE DATED BACK TO 2003!


Courtesy of Haden:

Okay, in the past year we've had some very good sticky threads about suspension and a excellent member thread of modifications and reviews.

For all the newbies who would like to know what modifications our members have used and would like a review, do a search for modifications thread. It used to be a sticky and had an incredible view count.

I'd like to start a new one and I think that a thread like this would be relevant at least once or twice a year, as new models of tyres are released and old ones superceded or axed.

So may our venerable moderator please make this a sticky for reference to our members, at least for 6 months in which time we can do a review and update the new tyre lists.

What I ask of my fellow clubRSX'ers is to post information of their current set of tyres, mentioning their tyre mileage as to give other members a gauge of life expectancy of a given model.

The user should also mention the model of their car (e.g. DC2R, DC5R etc).

Posters should also rate their tyre, characteristics of tyres under certain conditions, and if possible, make a comparison of a previous tyre they have used and which one they prefer. This way as more people post their tyre usage histories, future buyers can have a gauge of what they believe is a better tyre for their use.

This thread should be open to all makes and models of tyres, whether for street, track or both. Everyone is welcome to post, but please don't post off topic questions like "how much did it cost? where did you buy them? etc" as the poster will have put down the cost of their tyres (preferably per tyre, either including fitting/balancing or not, please specify)

This thread is here for the benefit for all Honda car enthusiasts,as we all know that judging a tyre is extremely difficult for beginners, let alone judging the best tyre for a specific make/model of vehicle.

As a start, I'll make the first post to set a template for other members.

EDIT: Here are some current tyres that people might want to purchase or would like to know more of. Even if you haven't tried these tyres, you can make a comment about them in the 'recommendations' field

[hebe]

BRIDGESTONE
Grid III $213
Potenza S-03 $244
Potenza S-02 (I believe these are superceded)
RE010 (DC2R OEM)
RE030 (DC5R OEM)
RE711 (Excellent street tyre but discontinued)
RE540 (Semis)

DUNLOP:
Formula FM901 $270
Formula R D01J (semis)

MICHELIN:
MXF sport (superceded by Pilot Preceda)
Pilot Preceda $219

TOYO
Proxes RA-1 (Semis) $264
Trampio R882 (Semis)

FALKEN
Azenis ST115? (did i get the model right?)

BF GOODRIDGE (i think a division of michelin?)
G-Force Sport $199

GOODYEAR
Eagle-F1 GSDS3 $240

YOKOHAMA:
Yokokhama A539

PIRELLI: PZero Nero (I think extremely expensive range)

Okay fellas, these are the ones i can remember off the top of my head, these all fit the DC5R 205/55/R16 so if anyone can add more models for other cars, please feel free. Hopefully our moderator can update the tyre list and perhaps as we get more responses a poll can be introduced and a overall rating blah blah blah u get the deal

Hope this thread will prove to be very informative and a invaluable tool for car owners to use when selecting a tyre. Cheers!

EDIT: I have put in some prices for the above tyres. These quotes were from various tyre retailers around Melbourne, Victoria. They are quoted for per tyre, including fitting and balancing. You can PM me for quotes or new models of tyres you'd like me to include. Oh, and these quotes were for size 205/55R16 so they'd be a little cheaper for the DC2R sizes.

[hebe]

Vehicle: 2002 Integra Type-R (DC5R)
Tyre: OEM Bridgestone RE030
Size: 205/55 R16
Cost: OEM, but i hear its around $300+ replacement!!!
Mileage of tyres: 37,000kms and still going!!! around 1/2mm tread left
History of tyres: 14 months old, 1 Trackday (Wakefield Park) Mostly highway use (Sydney M5)
Previous tyres: None, these are my first.
Comments of current tyre: Excellent grip!!! but after ~70% wear, tyre are very bad!
Recommendations: I have none as I have not tried any other tyres

Recommendations: Advan Neova AD-07

Current Wheel Set 1 Tyre:Bridgestone S03 Pole Position

Size: 205/55 R16
Cost:$245 each
Mileage of tyres: 18000KM -> Still Going!?
History of tyres: N/A
Mostly highway: Street Driving
Comments of current tyre:Bridgestone 205/55 S03 Pole Position, Very good in dry & wet performance, More orientated to wet performance. Lost of grip is very progressive around corners.

Current Wheel Set 2 Tyre: Yokohama Advan Neova AD-07

Size: 205/55 R16
Cost: $420 each
Mileage of tyres: 4000KM - > Still Going !?
History of tyres: N/A
Mostly highway: Street Driving
Comments of current tyre: Very good Wet & Dry performance tyre.

Previous Wheel Set 1 Tyre:OEM Bridgestone RE030
Vehicle: 2003 Integra Type-R (DC5R)
Size: 205/55 R16
Cost: OEM, Replacement $280each
Mileage of tyres: 15,000KM
History of tyres: 5000KM rotate, No Balance
Mostly highway: Street Driving
Previous tyres: Silverstone, Falken Azenis ST115, Falken Azenis RS
Comments of current tyre: Nice all round tyre & Have lots of overtsteer if the rear is lightened. I like it , not complaining

Previous Wheel Set 2 Tyre: Falken Azenis RS
Size: 205/55 R16
Cost: $230each
Mileage of tyres: 3500KM -> SOLD Them
History of tyres: N/A
Mostly highway: Street Driving
Comments of current tyre: N/A

char...

[hebe]

Vehicle: 2002 Integra Type-R (DC5R)
Previous Tyre: OEM Bridgestone RE030
Size: 205/55 R16
Cost: OEM
Mileage of tyres: 22,000kms worn on outer edge, lots of tread left inside
History of tyres: 12 months old, 0 Trackday, mixed city/highway
Comments of tyre: grip is ok, quite noisy on highway, predictable lost of traction

Current tyres: Bridgestone s-03
B]Size: 225/45 17
Cost: 300
Mileage of tyres: 200km and stick like shit on your bedsheet
Comments of current tyre: Excellent grip, quiet compare to oem, add another 20km/h thru corners without hiccups
Recommendations: highly recommended over oem

Vehicle: 2000 Integra Type-R (DC2R)

Tyre: OEM Bridgestone RE010
Size: 195/55 R15
Cost: OEM, $200 each approx.
Mileage of tyres: 35000kms
History of tyres: 18 months old, 1 Trackday (Wakefield Park), daily driver
Previous tyres: None, these are my first.
Comments of current tyre: Excellent feel and good grip, but once it wears down still good feel but no grip.
Recommendations: Nothing beats OEM

Tyre: Falken Azenis RS
Size: 195/55 R15
Cost: $180 each approx.
Mileage of tyres: 15000kms
History of tyres: About a year old, daily driver, three trackdays
Previous tyres: RE010
Comments of current tyre: Poor feel but awesome grip, in the wet grip is ok but traction is an issue. OK on track, after a few laps you will be sliding.
Recommendations: Good value for money

char...

[hebe]

Vehicle: 2001 Integra Type-R (DC2R)
Tyre: Dunlop FM901
Size: 205/50 R15
Cost: $180 each
Mileage of tyres: 1,000kms
History of tyres: a few old road runs
Previous tyres: Falken Azenis RS
Comments of current tyre: Best handling tyre in WET that i have experienced, dry performance is also very good
Recommendations: These tyres seem to give a lot of road noise in the cabin, not just due to dc2's lack of sound deadening, friend with 00 celica who got at the same time thinks the same .

Vehicle: 1995 ek4 civic vti-r
Tyre: Bridgestone g3
Size: 195/50r15
Cost: $110 each
Mileage of tyres: 3,000kms
History of tyres: n/a
Previous tyres: Toyo T1-s
Comments of current tyre: Cant complain really very nice tyre stopping distances have improved and feel is better with the tyres. (More than likely due to camber correction and toe correction) I really like the tyres I use to launch at 3500rpms in a traffic light battle and light the tyres up, now 3500rpm its just grips and my torquless wonder of a car just boggs just need time to get a feel for the tyres before i give it a good run.
Recommendations: I think these are a great tyre, BANG for BUCK, i feel everything has improved on my car, however i do believe because of the adjustments made to the camber. anyone on a budget that needs a street tyre i dont think u can go past these

Vehicle: 2002 base Integra (DC5)
Tyre: OEM Michellin Pilot HX MXM
Size: 205/55 R16
Cost: OEM, but insurance made me pay $110 for a replacement for my worn front left ??? had about half tread left
Mileage of tyres: 35,000kms still some tread left
History of tyres: 14 months old, 1 Trackday (Morgan Park) Mostly highway use (M1 and Ipswich)
Previous tyres: Federal S535(on my 17" wheels on a 95 V6 Camry)
Comments of current tyre: Thought it was ok for the first few months, then when i started to have strut bars and sway bars, these tyres were frequently loosing grip around corners.
Recommendations: good as a tyre to commute in, but if you want to drive harder on the streets, get something else.

char...

[hebe]

Vehicle: 2002 Integra Type-R (DC5R)
Tyre:Bridgestone Potenza S03
Size: 225/45/17
Cost: Approx $250
Mileage of tyres: approx 14000 kms
History of tyres: Street use
Previous tyres: Bridgestone GIII, Bridgestone Potenza RE030
Comments of current tyre: Awesome tyre, progressive feel in corners, very high grip level (gets higher when heated up a little, honestly they feel like mini semi slicks, cornering threshold improved considerably
Recommendations: S03 for street only

Vehicle: 2002 Integra Type-R (DC2R)
Tyre:Bridgestone Potenza Re711
Size: 205/50/15
Cost: Approx $220
Mileage of tyres: approx 30000 kms
History of tyres: Street use
Previous tyres: Bridgestone GII, Bridgestone Potenza RE010, Bridgestone Potenza S02
Comments of current tyre: I love the s02's i had, and i thought i couldn't get a better tyre. I was wrong. RE711's have far and above exceeded my expectations! Only thing is now I can't find a replacement as they are no longer available in Melb.
Recommendations: RE711's. Where can i get another set?? If i can;t find another set will go to new RE 55's (evolution of RE 540s) and give them a burn. Bridgestone all the way!!

char...

[hebe]

Vehicle: 2001 Integra Type-R (DC2R)
Tyre:Bridgestone Potenza RE010
Size: 195/55/15
Cost: $39,990
Mileage of tyres: approx 25,000 kms
History of tyres: Street use
Previous tyres: None
Comments of current tyre: For a Standard Issue Tyre I could not complain at all, good choice Honda
Recommendations: Would get another set

Vehicle: 2001 Integra Type-R (DC2R)
Tyre:Toyo T1-s
Size: 215/40/17
Cost: Approx $250
Mileage of tyres: approx 30,000 kms
History of tyres: Street/track use
Previous tyres: Bridgestone Potenza RE010
Comments of current tyre: After taking it to the track it was never as sticky again. Little disapointed for the price.
Recommendations: Get Yokohama or Bridgestone

Vehicle: 2001 Integra Type-R (DC2R)
Tyre:Yokohama ES100
Size: 215/40/17
Cost: Approx $270
Mileage of tyres: approx 25,000 kms
History of tyres: Street use
Previous tyres: Bridgestone Potenza RE010, Toyo T1-S
Comments of current tyre: Great dry and wet tyres, would definatley recommend this tyre.
Recommendations: For street use and a great tyres

Vehicle: 2001 Integra Type-R (DC2R)
Tyre:Toyo Trampio R882 (Semis)
Size: 195/55/15
Cost: Approx $170
Mileage of tyres: approx ???
History of tyres: Street use
Previous tyres: Bridgestone Potenza RE010, Toyo T1-S, Yokohama ES100
Comments of current tyre: Extreme High levels of grip for the street, you can launch the car from 4000 and it just grips. Much higher level of grip than a normal street tyre and not very noisy compared to Dunlop Semis
Recommendations: For $170 a corner fitted, how can you go wrong???

char...

[hebe]

Vehicle: 2001 Integra Type-R (DC5R)
Tyre: Bridgestone Potenza S-02
Size: 225/45 R17
Cost: ~$220-230 per corner
Mileage of tyres: ~150kms
History of tyres: Brand spanking new
Previous tyres: Bridgestone Potenza RE-030
Comments of current tyre: Although these arent fully worn in yet, I'm very impressed with them. They are just so much better than the stock RE030s when new (although it's hard to tell since these tyres are 20mm wider than the stock ones). They grip EXTREMELY well in the dry - when I take tight round abouts and off camber tight turns at high speeds they grip very very well..... Wet grip isnt too bad at all (I heard S03 is better in the wet) it takes quite a bit of force to get them to hydroplane but when they do they dont give all that much warning....
Recommendations: Grab em while they're cheap since they've been 'superceeded' by the S-03s (Donnellan's in Vic is clearing them out).

Vehicle: 2000 Integra Type-R (DC2R)
Tyre: Yokohama A539
Size: 195/55 R15
Cost: $170 each according to receipts
Mileage of tyres: after ~17500kms they have ~1/3 tread left
History of tyres: daily driving, occasional 'spirited' winding road drives ...1 track day (mallala, SA)
Previous tyres: None, these were on the car when i bought it.
Comments of current tyre:grip is not bad, particularly in the wet, but not great. fairly progressive 'break off' though, ie not snappy (this may also be due to the SUPERB DC2R chassis! ), they chirp and make a lot of noise around corners when pushing along...
crap on the track, not much grip, makes the car understeery.
Recommendations: I have none as I have not tried any other tyres in this size

Vehicle: 2003 Integra Type-R (DC5R)
Tyre: OEM Yokohama Advan A046
Size: 215/45 ZR17
Cost: OEM, maybe ¥35000+ replacement!!!
Mileage of tyres: 26,500kms and needed a change!!!
History of tyres: 12 months old, but only used for 10 months due to 2 month layup from accident. Mostly street use and mountain running
Previous tyres: None, these were my first.
Comments of tyre: Excellent grip!!! Wet and dry grip was more than adequate
Recommendations: I would recommend these tires, don't know if they come in a 16" size though

Current tyre: Advan Neova AD07
Size: 215/45/17
Cost: Normally retailed at ¥27000, got them for ¥19500
Mileage of tyres: So far about 2200kms
Comments of tyre: Incredible wet grip!!! Dry grip is also outstanding. Don't have any tracks to play on, but from what some people told me stateside, after about 5 or 6 laps of heavy driving they get slippery. Overall feeling, the car just loves to grip and go, handling is very neutral, with a slight bit of oversteer, though I think that has more to do with the suspension setup from Honda
Recommendations: Definitely would recommend these to anyone, an outstanding street tire, and it grips hard when I am playing around in the mountain passes, though I can not comment on track usage, I would recommend Advan A048s for the circuit

3 char

[hebe]

Vehicle: 2000 Integra Type-R (DC2R)
Tyre: BFGoodrich ProfilerG
Size: 205/50 R15
Cost: Were on car when i got it.
Mileage of tyres: after ~30000kms they have ~1/3 tread left
History of tyres: daily driving, occasional 'spirited' winding road drives
Previous tyres: None, these were on the car when i bought it.
Comments of current tyre:seem like they grip ok in the dry(not as good as friends stock dc5r on stock tyres), never had a problem in the wet, pretty progressive and make lotsa noise when pushed towards limits (Esp when underinflated), ...
Recommendations: I have none as I have not tried any other tyres. But i am sure there are better tyres than these as the dry grip isnt huge but they are very progressive and this is why i have survived quite a few _on_the_limits_ hairy moments.

Vehicle: '03 DC5R
Tyre: Michelin Pilot Sport PS2
Size: 225/45/R17
Cost: $445, each
Mileage of tyres: ~4000Kms
History of tyres: Typical Type-R driving, yet to do a track day
Previous tyres: Stockys, RE030's
Comments of current tyre: Incredible grip in dry and went, bring out the body roll of you suspension. Wet breaking almost seems better than dry, its that good. These tyres increase your road confidence. Road noise doesnt seem that bad, i cant tell the difference though and as for wear its too early to say.
Recommendations: If you can afford or justify them i strongly recommend them. Just dont take them on a dirt track, lol.

3 char

[hebe]

Vehicle: 00 dc2r
Tyre: BS G3
Size: 195/55/15
Cost: came with the car
Mileage of tyres:3000+km
History of tyres: i dont have a long history with G3, but at the moment, its seems to do its job well. grip level in the dry is above average, and in the wet, i cant complain, water seems to escape pretty effectively from the 4 water dispathing thingy . the only critisism is the soft sidewall compared to other street tyres i have tried in the past
Previous tyres: not yet for my dc2
Recommendations: cant recommened on new tyres since i only have experienced G3 on the dc2, but if not then i have tried yoko es100 on a gtst, man these were sticky as, and therefore didnt last too long. BF goodrich G-force sport which is made by michelin are the affordable michelins and they arent too bad, especially the price i payed for them which were $205 for 225/45/17. on my dads volvo we used to have a set of Profiler G, and got decent milege out of them, 35+. although i think my next set would be in the yokohama department. BS s03 on another gtst, takes a while to warm up but when they do, you know about it otherwise we be in the trees.
goodyear eagle F1 (GSD02), abusulutely crap. although performes better in the wet then in dry which was kinda good. loud road noise but meh...
yoko A539...the X patterned one, found it shaky under hard braking in the wet. kinda shat myself, and they were probably worn in too. i think they sit just on the border of street/performance tyre.
otherwise faulkens st115, the radials, gotta say they were crap as well, good for the first 10k but after that i found it to be a deathtrap and i have found the same with all other faulkens except for the st215.....the semi slick one which i have never tried but im pretty biased and will not settle for faulkens again. rather fork out extra $ for good tyres

Vehicle: 2000 Integra Type-R (DC2R)
Tyre: Michelin Pilot preceda
Size: 205/45/16
Cost: $229 each
Mileage of tyres: used for about 1000 kms so far
History of tyres: daily driving, occasional winding road drives
Previous tyres: Bridgestone potenza re711
Comments of current tyre:Was actually looking to get a set of pilot sport 2's but i was told they dont make them for 16" wheels, so the tyre place reccomended the next model down the pilot precedas.)
grips very well,a soft compound tyre, not too sure how long it'll last,sidewall stiffer than s02's but not as stiff as the re711,but overall quite impressed with it so far.I would say it grips better than the re711 wet and dry! will update once i get to drive some more on these tyres

Vehicle: '03 DC5R
Tyre: BS GIII
Size: 205/55/R16
Cost: $182, each
Mileage of tyres: ~20000kms still going ?
History of tyres: Typical Type-R driving
Previous tyres: RE030s, GIII, S03
Comments of current tyre: The grip is above average, both dry and wet. Heaps better than stock tyres. However still not as good as S03s.. i didnt go back to S03's cos they dont last too long and expensive ...
Recommendations: If ur changing from stock tyres definitely get these , u can really feel the difference. Wont regret it

Vehicle: 1999 Integra Type-R (DC2R)
Tyre: Bridgestone RE-01 (Street) Falken Azenis RS-V04 (Track)
Size: 195/55 R15 (both)
Cost: RE-01 (came with car) / RS-V04 ($800)
Mileage of tyres: no idea / 1 Track run & Some Street
History of tyres: no idea / no idea
Previous tyres: CRX - Bridgestone GII (extremely crap), Goodyear F1 (not bad)
Comments of current tyre: RE-01 (Extremely good for street/hills) / RS-V04 (Excellent on extremely hot track *34'c Day*)
Recommendations:If anyone has access to JDM... get me a set of RE-01R / would highly recommend RS-v04 for track work.

Vehicle: '00 Vivic Vti-R Coupe
Tyre: Goodyear RevSpec (discontinued???)
Size: 195/50/R15
Cost: $230, each
Mileage of tyres: 60,000km
History of tyres: Highway/City Daily use
Previous tyres: Standard Dunlop SP Sport200 OEM
Comments of current tyre: Very Quiet and awesome wet handling. Lasted a very long time and i was lucky to get these as my car was on Lease.
Recommendations: Still available but i heard its limited as they may have been discontinued. also hard to get info on this tyre as its apparently imported from Japan

Vehicle: '00 Vivic Vti-R Coupe
Tyre: Goodyear Eagle F1 GSD3
Size: 195/50/R15
Cost: $145, each
Mileage of tyres: 40,000kms still going - Front to be rotated to back shortly.
History of tyres: Highway/City Daily use
Previous tyres: Dunlop SP Sport 200, Goodyear Revspec
Comments of current tyre: V.Good wet weather grip, bit inconsistent in the dry. Noisy especially when breaking during last 20km/ph (apparently quieter than GSD2). Tyre wear good but not as good as Revspec.
Recommendations: Good inthe wet. wouldnt recommend this for Type R's because of the noise. worth considering otherwise. Motor Magazine's tyre test rated these highly.

3 char

[hebe]

Vehicle: Honda Integra Type-R (DC2, 2000 model)
Tyre: Yokohama AVS ES100
Size: 205/40 ZR17
Cost: approx. $250 ea.
Mileage: about 2500kms
History: daily granny driving, occasional spirited winding road drive
Previous tyres: Yokohama A539s on 15x6 standard wheels
Comments of current tyre: Very happy with these. dry grip is excellent, much much higher grip level than my previous set. speed through corners is significantly faster. turn in response is excellent. progressive feel and communicative.steering feels a tiny bit 'heavier' due to the wider tread than standard. compound seems very soft so dont know if they'll last very long though.bumpy ride.
tyres are also very quiet considering the low aspect ratio and high grip/sports driving nature of the tyre.
Recommendations: i would highly recommend this tyre for this size wheel for an integra R.

Vehicle: 1999 Integra Type-R (DC2R)
Tyre: Kumho ECSTA 712
Size: 205/50/16
Cost: $170 ea.
Mileage: n/a
History: Daily driving, occasional spirited winding road drive
Previous tyres: Dunlop Direzza dz101
Comments of current tyre: Not that happy with them. Grip on dry/wet is average. Tire screech when taking corners fast, I can feel the sidewall flex a lot more compared to the Direzzas.
Recommendations: Overall they are good for daily driving at a good price but if you plan on tracking or even just occasional fun around winding roads I would recommend something else.

Vehicle: 2001 Integra Type-R (DC2R)
Tyre: Falken Azenis (ATW-235)? Circuit/Street semi-tyre
Size: 215/45/16
Cost: around $225 (but my last replacement was under $175 each)
Mileage of tyres:between 5K-10K kms (depending on how much track work u do)
History of tyres: Street driving @ Sydney & Wakefield track days
Previous tyres: None, these are my first on that size rim.
Comments of current tyre: Awesome grip & very sticky when HOT!!! But as the tyre wears, the grip level drops-off noticeably. (surprisingly good in the wet though). Also, can be quite noisey tyres?
Recommendations: Definately wouldn't recommend them if street driving is all u do, as temperature is needed in these tyres. NB. on the street =no agro driving especially in the colder months.

3 char

[hebe]

Vehicle: 2002 Integra Type-R (DC5R)
Tyre: Toyo PROXES R888
Size: 205/55 R16
Cost: around $300+ per corner,
Mileage of tyres: 1,000kms
History of tyres: Brand new, used them for the recent Blackheath mountains cruise in July 05.
Previous tyres: Bridgestone RE711

I had used the famous RE711 for 38,000kms and for a road tyre they were amazing. They easily outlasted the OEM tyres (BS RE030) and still gripped better when low in tread depth.

These Toyo R888 are the first set of SEMI racing tyre I have used. After around 500kms they are the best gripping tyre I have ever used. After spririted driving during our recent cruise, the tyres got even better. Sometimes I dont even need to brake for 90 degree turns, I can just turn the steering wheel at 50km/h and it will just grip. I have to provoke understeer by jerking the steering by more than half a turn to get it sliding (and thats only when the tyres are cold).

Alot of people may be wondering about the wet performance. Provided that one stays away from puddles of standing water, grip is very good, but will need longer warming up.

Warm up isn't a very big issue, I feel the tyres easily outgrip street tyres at street tyre temperatures, and is very short.

It sounds like a washing machine on spin cycle. It starts to resonate with the cabin (but doesn't rattle anything) when you slow down to around 20 to 30 km/h. The noise isn't irritating even though I have stock exhaust system.

I recommend these tyres soley on the fact they are Semi slick type tyres. Extremely fun on the street (I haven't found its limit yet, and will not try until I visit a race track) and just have to be tried. I wonder how long they will last...

Vehicle: 2001 Integra Type-R (DC2R)
Tyre: Goodyear Eagle F1 GSD3
Size: 195/50 R15
Cost: $145 fitted and balanced from Australia's Best Tyres
Mileage of tyres: 2,000kms
Cold Pressure: 37 Fr, 38 Rr
History of tyres: All Street
Previous tyres: Falken Azenis RT-215

As I have a set of Toyo R888 for track I decided to try a `performance' street tyre. I went for the Eagle F1 as it had decent reviews in EVO and Motor and is cheap at $145.

Performance Highs
It is a very light tyre in the 195/50/15 size - noticably lighter than the 195/55/50 R888 on my second set of stock rims. Turn-in is sharp and near instant, as are direction changes - makes the car feel alive, very similar to the RE-010. Straight-line traction and launches are also quite good. It is also the quietest tyre I have ever had on an Integra when cruising at highway speeds. It is OK in wet weather, but not amazing.

Performance Lows
It freakin' screeches! Hard launches, 1st-2nd redline changes, hard cornering etc, make it screech.
Mid-corner grip is OK, but less than Azenis RT-215 or RE-010. Has some tread squirm while settling into a hard cornering stance.

Summary
A decent everyday street tyre, needs high pressures (37-38 cold) for best performance. Almost makes it as a performance tyre except needs more mid corner grip and no screeching. Worth $145 IMO.

Vehicle: 2003 DC5 Base Integra
Tyre: OEM Michellin Pilot HX MXM
Size: 205/55 R16 91V
Cost: OEM, i haven't search around shops for these yet but i heard these range from $230 up
Mileage of tyres: done almost 45000km on these and still going, brought my car to honda for a service around 3Ks before and they told me i still had 97% tread on fronts and 100% tread on rear
now i'm running 2psi above the reccomended to finish these tyres off but its not doing the trick Front around 38psi and rear around 36-37psi
History of tyres: 2 trackdays at wakkie and been to around 4 cruises pushing it pretty hard through the twisties and a lot of suburban streets with a few highway driving as well
Comments of current tyre: at first when my car was fully stocked i didn't really notice nothing, then i brought my car to wakkie with stock sussy and the wheels just screeched through every corner. not long after i got aftermarket springs (spoon) with front and rear struts and noticed that the wheel didn't have much grip, which was proven on the second wakkie day.
not long after that i got front and rear sways plus some coilovers and now the wheels screech, that is if i go through a coner at around 20ks
Recommendations: i think these tyres are very good if your planning to do daily driving and not push it, these tyres last for a while, but right after these tyres are finished i'm going to something completly diffrent

Vehicle: 1998 Integra VTiR (DC2)
Tyre: Toyo Proxis T1R
Size: 205/45 R16
treadwear rating 240
Cost: $211 ea fitted
Mileage of tyres: just fitted
History of tyres: no history
Previous tyres: see below
Comments of current tyre: to be updated
Recommendations: not yet

Vehicle: 1998 Integra VTiR (DC2)
Tyre: Dunlop Formula R D01J
Size: 205/50 R16
treadwear rating 40
Cost: $210 ea fitted
Mileage of tyres: 12'000 to wear indicator (1.5mm)
History of tyres: road use only
Previous tyres: see below
Comments of tyre: excellent on the dry road, warmed up quite quickly, ultumate stopping tyres very noisy though, they are good in the wet, but even more likely to 'track' in ruts
Recommendations: not for road, suggest track only

Vehicle: 1990 Integra LS (DA6)
Tyre: Falken Azenis RT215
Size: 205/50 R16
treadwear rating 200
Cost: $205 ea fitted
Mileage of tyres: 14'000 to wear indicators
History of tyres: a few track days, the rest road, tyres went *hard* after 8000km, lost all traction, would not heat up, slightly skitish in the wet.
Previous tyres: see below
Comments of tyre: do not use on track if also going to be road tyres, usable life of tyres greatly reduced by track use, on track tyres get slippery after 4-5 laps, not a serious track tyre at all
Recommendations: probably better options out there

Vehicle: 1990 Integra LS (DA6)
Tyre: Toyo Proxis RA1
Size: 205/50 R15
treadwear rating 40
Cost: $225 ea fitted
Mileage of tyres: 12'000
History of tyres: track, hillclimb and road use
Previous tyres: see below
Comments of tyre: fantastic road grip, fantastic dry track grip, going off after 5-7 laps due to softness of compound, fantastic wet track grip. unparalled confidence on the road in the wet
Recommendations: highly recomended if you can find them

Vehicle: 1990 Civic GL (ED)
Tyre: Michelen Piolet SX
Size: 195/50 R15
Cost: $free
Mileage of tyres: 25'000 still 1.5mm to wear indicator
History of tyres: traffic driving only
Previous tyres: see below
Comments of tyre: excellent grip on such a light little car, quite and excellent in the wet, i think the lowish treadwear of 180 helps these tyres to provide such confidence to the driver
Recommendations: highly recomended for light car

Yokohama AVS ES100 (205/50/R15)
Condition: 250km's
Vehicle: EK4
Usage: Street
Opinion: I just purchased these and are absolutely fantastic street tyres. On the weekend I tried to push these really hard around corners and haven't been able to get them to lose traction or even get a squeek out of them. They are much softer compound compared to my previous tyres (except the semi-slicks of course). As I was breaking in the new tyres the wet weather traction seemed very good as well. The turn in response is not as sharp as 195/55/R15 setup due to the wider tyres and stickier compound. The amount of confidence you feel around every corner definitely makes up for it. I will update this further once I test it out more.

Bridgestone Potenza GIII (195/55/R15)
Condition: 30,000km’s (30-40% tread remaining)
Vehicle: DC2R
Usage: Street
Opinion: These are definitely a bang for buck tyre. Good grip and sharp turn in control, but a little bit nervous at times in dry and wet when driving really hard. Just watch out when driving on smooth wet roads. Just be cautious on smooth wet roads. They last forever too. I rekon I could get 45-50K km’s out of them, and that’s including abusing them at OP numerous times. I would recommend these for a cheapish tyre with high built quality (Made in Japan) and long-life. I’ve sat in another DC2R with these on track and they hold up extremely well I must say. Turn in response is very good even when heated up.

Falken Azenis RS-V04 (195/55/R15)
Condition: 4,000km’s (20% tread remaining)
Vehicle: DC2R
Usage: Track
Opinion: These are fantastic track tyres. They are extremely soft compound and can take 10 laps at wakefield no problem. Dry grip is absolutely phenomenal. Wet grip is poor. Takes about 1 warm up lap to heat up. These are a cheap track tyre and would highly recommend for track use only. They are too noisy and bumpy for street driving. A jeep wrangler would be more quiet and comfortable in comparison. Because of its very soft compound, you wouldn’t expect them to last that long but the extremely high grip characteristics make up for it. Although these are 195/55 in specifications, they are actually wider like a 205/55 or /50 profile.

Dunlop Formula FM901 (195/55/R15)
Condition: 30,000km’s
Vehicle: DC2R
Usage: Street/Track
Opinion: The compound is something between the Yokohama AVS ES100 and the BS Potenza GIII’s. You can’t get these anymore but were great tyres. Everyone who has tried it would say the same. I used it on track when it was wearing low and it didn’t like it very much. I had about 10% tread left but killed it completely at the end of the day.

Bridgestone Potenza RE040 (185/55/R15)
Condition: 8,000km’s
Vehicle: Jazz
Usage: Carrying groceries
Opinion: These are very similar to the Potenza GIII’s. Same characteristics. Looks the same. Feels the same.

3 char

[hebe]

Dunlop SP Sport Maxx (205/55/16)
Condition: about 99% got them 2 weeks ago
Vehicle: DC5 Base
Usage: Daily
Price: $260 Each :S
Opinion: well i just got these about 2 weeks ago, these tyres compared to my old tyres even though i driven less than 1000km on them i can feel they have way more grip than the michelin MXM Pilot. With these tyres, these are going to either replace the Dunlop SP 9000 or going to be above them as these are the international flagship tyres for dunlop
and guess what the name of the tyre is written on the tread it self

Bridgestone RE070

Picked these up for about $339 a corner (not cheap by any means but that’s what you pay for performance tyres). I researched up about tyres and I narrowed my choice down to the following:
Yokohama Advan AD07 (which were so fricken hard to get a road legal set in Australia at the time but now it’s quite easy)
Bridgestone Potenza S03s (the current ‘flag ship tyre’ in Australia)
Bridgestone PotenzaRE070 (Stock on the 05 STi and unfortunately all the Subaru drivers think that Bridgestone made these specifically for the STi….. **BEEEEHHHH!!!** they were originally designed for the current shape NSX Type R released in 2002/3.)


So what did I go for? Sorry Honda F1 but I ended up buying the competitors brand of tyres

Heard great stories about the S03 but heard they were going to be replaced by the RE050s (see this thread : http://67.15.94.66/showthread.php?t=102746&page=10 ). I read some reviews about the RE070 – some rated them even better than the new Falken Azeni RT615s … I found out they have probably the stiffest side wall of all road tyres on the market (heh heh the guys at my local Bob Jane T mart took 3 guys all with crowbars to get the damn tyre onto the rim!). A review from the STi guys said that the RE070s were not as squirmy as the Falken Azeni RT615s on track - after a few laps on the track and the dry grip is very very very very VERY (did I mention very?) good….. (don’t ask me about wet though - apparantly they are horrible in the wet….. and this is coming from WRX STi drivers with AWD – oh what joy I have to look forward to this winter…. But I guess being ‘wet’ isn’t always such a bad thing







(ok I wont even go there)

(and get those diry thoughts out of your mind you bad bad person!)


I also noticed that the tread width (ie ‘phatness’ or tread surface that contacts with the road) seemed a little wider than the S02s (which are already wider than most other equivalent tyres in the same size) – sweet! Which means for the same size 225/45/17 you’re getting about another 2.5cms of tread width over say the equivalent Eagle F1 DS-G3 (or you’d prob have to go 250 on the eagle to get the same tread width – there’s some food for thought)

Tread width for 225/45/17:

RE070 8.7”
AD07 – 8.5”
S03 8.4”
RE050A 8.3”
Eagle F1 DS-G3 7.6”


STREET

First thing I noticed is how pron these things look! It was almost as nice as the time I went to that school girl theme night at that strip clu…… (only kidding!) The outer tread looks basically like a semi slick…. The mid and inner portions have a few grooves and there are vertical continous bands in the centre.….. The ride became noticeably harsher than my already firm S02s (thanks to the stiff side walls) ..... the tyre noise was also quite noticeable too - I haven’t heard what semi slicks sounds like from the cabin but these have a very low pitched hum at 60kmh – not unbearable but noticeable even in a Type R so I’m guessing it’s quite noticeable on any other car.…..

Handling wise, I gotta say, these are noticeably *better* than my S02s were when they were new…. I can now take corners harder at speeds where my S02s would just begin to understeer and squeal…. The car feels much better planted and more predicatable on hard street cornering. The amounts of grip these tyres offer is quite amazing!

Tread wear will probably suck as bad as the S02s (both are rated at 140 treadwear)….. They do tend to tramline a little bit more than the S02s (guys in the US have reported the same thing too). But like all things in life, some are more high maintenance (right girls? )

Wet handling? Uh….. these things are not all that confidence inspiring in the wet! My S02s were ok but these were maybe a little worse in the wet…. They gave me a smidgen of 4 wheel drift on a moderately aggressive corner….. It’s hard to compare wet stopping since it’s been quite a while since I had my fresh S02s but the wet stopping is reasonable I guess…. Nothing that fantastic…… I guess that’s the compromise for such a high gripping dry tyre but my theory is that you have to be an idiot to go all out on a wet street road…..



TRACK

Wow! I was quite impressed with the amount of dry grip on the street but these things were fantastic on the track!

These gripped much more than my S02s! From what I can remember the amount of speed I was able to carry mid corner was a little more…. The tyres gripped very very well for street tyres! I progressively attacked each corner harder and harder and when the understeer came on, it was quite progressive and where the S02s would start to give up, the RE070s still were fighting to keep the grip going…..

With my new brake set up (see later) I was able to cane more laps than before (I’d be getting brake fade at lap 3 and ‘end up in the kitty litter’ fade at 5-6 laps)….. I found that the tyres did become a little squirmish after about 4-5 laps or so. They tended to lose a little bit of grip but for how hard I was caning them, they were still ok….. My S02s off memory got a little squirmish around the same time 4-5 laps….. (note this is for Mallala – at Sandown the S02s lasted longer).

The wear on the sides of the tyres was noticeable too – lots of freshly caned rubber was sitting on the edges although there were no ‘clumps’ of rubber like my S02s made…. There was just a few small ‘dandruff’ like flakes on the surface…. Better compound maybe? (excuse the reference to body parts – heck I’m medical! )

Toyo Proxies T1R (195/55/15)
Condition: Just got them last week
Vehicle: EK4 Civic
Usage: Daily
Price: $141 per corner balanced
Previous Tyre: Dunlop FM901 (195/50/15)

Comments: So far... AWESOME. Quite grippy in the dry but I've yet to test them in the wet (hopefully today). One thing i've noticed is the tyre noise... itz damm quiet. The 901's were prob one of the noisiest tyres, so now i don't have to listen to that wooshing sound when i'm on the freeway no more. Grip is very comparable to the 901's and the 55 profile really helps with the comfort level (going over train tracks for example) and it fills the guards up nicely too. So if your looking for these tyres in VIC... go to Edgar's Tyrepower on Blackburn Rd (near Monash) and speak to Ian or Paul.

Yokohama Advan AD07 225/45/17
Condition: NEW
Vehicle: dc5R
Usage: Daily
Price: $300 per corner
Previous Tyre: bridgestone S03 215/45/17

so far these are awsome...very grippy in the dry, in th rain this morning still very good

3 char

[Jingers]

nice work