Cut on a tire - replace or wait

[FTD]

Originally Posted by n4ally2

I called tire rack and they told me the yokohama tires are mot N rated. So I am sticking with PS2.

I think the N rating is a Porsche partnership / marketing thing. I thought I had to have N rated tires, but I no longer buy into that. Comments?

[eslai]

I hate the whole "N" rating thing. I hate being forced to buy tires based on some magic rating system. If Porsche and/or the tire manufacturers would release some specification telling us what the N rating means, I'd feel much less like I was getting suckered.

I've stuck with the stock PS2's this whole time. Burns my wallet in a very unsatisfying way.

[FTD]

I think N rating means 'Porsche approved'.
I had a friend that bought Tide laundry detergent because he said he was supposed to use it on his X brand shirts. That is bunk. So I figure the N thing is bunk too.

[eslai]

That's the problem--if it really does just mean that the tire passed some sort of certification with Porsche, then why do non-N-rated PS2s exist?

If there is no difference between the non-N and the N version of the tire, then Porsche is really bull****************ting us. Since they won't tell us what the actual difference is, it's impossible to tell and thus it is just frustrating "magic".

Originally Posted by eslai

That's the problem--if it really does just mean that the tire passed some sort of certification with Porsche, then why do non-N-rated PS2s exist?

Eslai, Michellin does in fact have non "N" rate PS2's. For example:

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/CompareTires.jsp?sortValue=1&filterType=all&resultsNumberSelected=Y&displayResults=10&compare=true&compareList=3%2C5&RunFlat=All&goWhere=%252Ftires%252FCompare1.jsp&sortCode=&width=265%2F&ratio=35&diameter=19&startIndex=0

The N rated tire is also $20 cheaper! Expalin that one.

[eslai]

I think you misunderstood what I wrote, because you basically just said exactly the same thing that I did.

[n4ally2]

I called up my local porsche parts dept yesterday and they explained to me that N rated tires are tested and approved by porsche. When they first tested and approved the tire, the tire manufacturer will put N0 on the tire. When the manufacturer makes any changes to the N0 tires, they will then call it N1 tires. So it is basically different versions of the tire. So to answer eslai, I best guess is the non N rated PS2 are prior to the prosche approval.

Now, get this: Porsche does not know the difference between N0 or N1. So I really questions how much does it really matter to have N rated tires or not. Maybe it is just a market scheme.

[Lil bastard]

I think simply the vast number of people out there running non-N rated tires proves there's little point to them (N-rated), especially if you pay a premium to get them.

If people were going through wheel bearings, or having excessive accidents or deaths on non-N tires, some credence might be given to the N ratings, but they're not.

Porsche may very well test the tires, whether or not the tire design is improved based on this testing remains a mystery.

Some Mfrs. have worked with Tire Cos. to produce a specific tire and then engineer the car's suspension and handling around that tire such as Ferrari and Mercedes to name a couple. In these cases, sticking with the spec'd tire probably results in the best overall ride and handling. But, since there are several OEM tires available for the porsche, and several more N-rated tires out there, it's not likely this is the case with the 986/996, 987/997.