Falken Ziex 912 - 986 Forum - The Community for Porsche Boxster & Cayman Owners

jcb986 · 11-27-2009, 10:02 AM

Has anyone have these tires on your car now. I have Kumho's and not real crazy about them. Backs are shot. These came on it when I got it...pre-owned of course. Spending mucho bucks on new rotors, pads, 60,000 maintenance. Need reasonable set tires beside the one's Porsche recommends. I'm a Sunday driver living in Florida, so a good summer tire is perfect for here. I have priced a set from Discount Tires installed for $640.00. Basically half the price for N rating brands. I see good and bad reviews from Jap car owners. What the heck, driving fast and furious, nothing holds up. All comments appreciated. JB :dance:

robmints · 11-27-2009, 11:11 AM

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires.jsp?tireMake=Sumitomo&tireModel=HTR+Z+III

Have only about 1500 mi on them, but really like them.

jcb986 · 11-27-2009, 11:50 AM

You have the Falken 912 or the Kumho's

DaveinMD · 11-27-2009, 01:36 PM

I dont' have any experience with the Ziex 912s but the Falken site says they are all season tires. I took a set of Falken ST 115 summer tires off the car in the spring and replaced with the Sumitomo HTR Z IIIs (also summer tires). Had them drop shipped from Tire Rack to my indie to install. Both are great tires with good performance characteristics and pretty quiet. Sumitomo and Falken are the same company.

RGH · 11-27-2009, 01:41 PM

I just replaced Michelin Pilots that had only 14k on them with the Falken 912's. Incidentally, the Michelin's were not worn out, they were just getting old as they were the original tires on my '04 Box.

So far I only have about 500 miles on the Falken's, but wow what a difference, they are very quiet. I bought them primarily because of the 40k tread warranty. I found these to be one of the few that have a warranty. My Box is primarily used for weekend drives mostly and I drive like the old man that I am, so I am not at all concerned about lap times or such.

robmints · 11-27-2009, 03:30 PM

I have Sumitomo htr z iii. Pretty sure they came from tire rack. I shopped a bunch of places and not 100% positive where i ordered from. They are on a 2001 base. Not sure how any tire could be warranted for 40k on the rear of a boxster, i think the ones I replaced had 8k on them. May have made it to 10-12k but that would have been about it. They were the stock Continentals. I just bought the car used so I'm not sure what they went through, but I bought from a neighbor and don't remember him doing burnouts down the road or anything.

litteng · 11-27-2009, 07:18 PM

i know they are not the 912's, but i would say from my experience that they were the most retched tires i have even owned.

bad wear, awful wet handling, i will spend the money for a decent tire...
kuhmo, michelin, bridgestone etc

jcb986 · 11-28-2009, 05:47 AM

How long ago did you have them. Maybe you got the 512's which I understand fit your description of these tires on a Boxster. I also see that you live in Canada...the driving conditions are not the same. Me, I live in Florida where we get a little cold spurt now and then, but mostly warm to hot weather. I want a more radial tire that's like the Michelin Pilot P2's but not so expensive. The Falken 912's I believe are to be a competitive series to the Pilot's. I have found that most people, like me have no problems with them and get good results with everyday driving. Aggressive to very aggressive drivers will wear any tire out. My driving is around town, over to the coast and I usually run about 70 mph tops. Just don'y need a speeding ticket at 64. Thanks or your input. I will put my 2 cents about the tires once I have them for awhile. JB

Bladecutter · 11-28-2009, 07:28 AM

My '98 Boxster had a set of Ziex 912 tires installed right before I bought it.
They were a decent tire, and for around town use, are quite good in just about everything you can throw at them.

Only problem is if you get into really aggressive driving, or start doing track days, you can tear up the outer tread on the front tires pretty easy if you are still using the stock 205 width front tires.

The rears wore a bit more in the center, but that was because I actually kept them inflated to the pressure that Porsche recommends on the door. I now keep the tires between 32 and 34 psi in the rear, and no more center wear. You can probably get 10k miles with moderate driving, or 15k with easy driving on the rear 912's.

I got about 7k on them before they were no longer what I wanted on the car for my next track day, so off they came. I now run the Falken Azenis RT-615 on my Boxster, with 225/45-17 up front, and 255/40-17 in the rear. Fronts aren't getting worn out on the edges under abusive driving.

BC.

Lobo1186 · 11-28-2009, 08:34 AM

hmm there isnt alot of selection for the 225/45/17 and 265/40/17... its like six tires but i could go with dunlop sport z1 star spec if i drop to 255 in the back. they have a very high rating on tirerack.

jcb986 · 11-28-2009, 10:02 AM

I have decided to go with the Falken 912's, this tire was rated #1 with Consumer Report. Then again they probably don't test the tires on a Porsche. My reasons are simple:

1) It is a nice radial in design and should perform for my use with no problems. My Boxster S has a Tip and I drive more like an old granny at times. It also runs 225/40/18 on the fronts and 265/35/18 on the backs. No tire rotation...so, if I get 15,000 miles out of them, that's ok. Most tires on my setup usually do not make the 20,000 mile mark.

2) It is reasonable priced tire and should perform as expected. I have used several tire review areas and the internet. Most Corvette, Bimmer & Mercedes owners were happy with the overall performance and would buy them again. The Jap car owners generally complained just about everything about all performance tires. So, I ruled them out and went with the everyday driver who gets a little aggressive when his/her hormone delegates it.

3) I have Komho's on it now, backs are completed gone, the fronts are fairly new and I will probably list them here for sale. They are not a very smooth tire and probably would have been great a Boxster with a 5 speed. I drove a few 5 speeds and loved the thrill of going beserk behind the wheel...wow. But, I found this one owner S with a TIP and feel in love with it. So did my wife.

4) I would never race a street car anyway. Maybe I will find a 97-98 with 5 speed and do something with it. I will save that for my retirement project.

Thanks for all the input everybody. JB :dance:

litteng · 11-29-2009, 01:01 PM

i had the 512's on my passat as a summer tire, i wouldn't even consider them on my Box...

jcb986 · 11-29-2009, 01:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by litteng

i had the 512's on my passat as a summer tire, i wouldn't even consider them on my Box...

Yeaf, the 512's are none not to be very good tire. I believe the 452's have replaced them. So far, the 912's have had very good reviews. Remember, I drive on the streets in Florida and when I go to a race...it is to watch.

cvhs18472 · 11-30-2009, 02:51 AM

Maybe you don't like the Kumho's because they are worn out and act like crap. I have put Kumho Exsta SPT's on the rear of my 97 Box w/Tip 3x's now and am on my second set of fronts ( 2-1) and am very happy with them. My car gets driven like a scared little girl, normally, a little aggressive and ocassionally on the track. Better things about them is that the rears last between 12&15 K( real mileage) and they react wonderfully on wet pavement. Ed

jcb986 · 11-30-2009, 04:49 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cvhs18472

Maybe you don't like the Kumho's because they are worn out and act like crap. I have put Kumho Exsta SPT's on the rear of my 97 Box w/Tip 3x's now and am on my second set of fronts ( 2-1) and am very happy with them. My car gets driven like a scared little girl, normally, a little aggressive and ocassionally on the track. Better things about them is that the rears last between 12&15 K( real mileage) and they react wonderfully on wet pavement. Ed

The Kumho is not a bad tire, but most tire dealers want you to put the N rated tire by Porsche. That's about $1500 installed and last no longer than any other well made tire. I wanted a smoother riding tire for more comfort. Now for performance I will know soon, they get installed this week. :dance: