Tires for 2002 Boxster S

[Skos]

I live in Colorado and plan to drive my Boxster in the winter very short distances. I was thinking of getting all weather tires, has anyone experienced the difference in handling between high speed rated all weather tires and summer tires in the summer?

has anyone tried these tires:

Michelin Pilot Sport A/S Plus (Ultra High Performance All-Season)

Any recommendations?

Thanks

[Topless]

Yes, there is a pretty big difference in grip between Max Summer tires and A/S tires. Will you notice the difference on public roads? Probably. Two sets of rims is the choice of most serious all season drivers who live at altitude in Calif.

[Flavor 987S]

If it were me, I'd buy a set of Michelin's new Super Sports, and not drive it in the snow.

[Bobiam]

Summer performance tires are terrible in the cold, not to mention how bad in snow. The rubber compound hardens up in cold and looses most of it's traction capabilities.

[mountainman]

I have not tried them, but a frient has the michelin all seasons on his boxster S and loves them. He is also a very aggressive driver. I personally have multiple sets of rims and run bridgestone blizzaks in the winter.

[Flavor 987S]

Lots of sunny, 40-50 degree days, during the winter in Ft. Collins.

[ovul82jazz]

Hi there,

I just put on a full set of Nitto Invos on my '01 - interesting asymmetric tread and great adhesion. 2 weeks in an I have to admit that I am quite impressed with the handling and ride. Old set up was pZeros on the rear and Yokos on the front. Pulled 2 sec off of my autocross times. Interesting experiment... keep you posted.

Its certainly worth considering.

[recycledsixtie]

Originally Posted by mountainman

I have not tried them, but a frient has the michelin all seasons on his boxster S and loves them. He is also a very aggressive driver. I personally have multiple sets of rims and run bridgestone blizzaks in the winter.

I drive my Boxster base in winter in the snow and run the blizzaks in winter with no problem. I dont know about Colorado but snow tires in winter on a Boxster in Canada are highly recommended. I do not know about all season tires but I will drive in snow about 3 inches or less with winter tires.

[tonycarreon]

the best option is summer tires for summer and winter tires for winter. a/s tires are a compromise for both summer and winter and don't do as well as dedicated tires.

if that's not possible, then a/s will do "ok" in the summer and "ok" in the winter, just expect to not drive in much snow during the winter and to lose a little grip in the summer.

[stephen wilson]

It depends on whether you ever INTEND to drive in snow. The handling of any all-season will be very "sloppy" compared to a Summer tire. I don't like to compromise driving all Summer for a handful of Winter drives.

Don't be afraid of running Pilot Super Sports in the winter, rumors of instant death are GREATLY exaggerated! They handle the cold better than my old PS2's. I've run them at 20° with no problem. Yes, they have reduced grip, just don't try and take your favorate ramp at "Summer speeds". They will still have more grip than 95% of the grocery-getters on the road. Just don't get caught in a snow!

[CoBeerToad]

I bought all season Goodyears for mine. They seem to work just fine on the street. Rain or shine. I haven't used them in the winter and probably will not so I have no idea what they would be like, but in the rain, they run great.

[Skos]

Has anyone had summer tires and then switched to A/S tires?

[opus69]

Does anyone have experience with Michelin Sport Cups in cold or wet weather?

[Flavor 987S]

Originally Posted by opus69

Does anyone have experience with Michelin Sport Cups in cold or wet weather?

Sport Cups are pretty much OEM on GT3's. Not very good in wet or cold. Don't last very long either. Great dry track performance. Guys are saying the Super Sports are a better overall tires (wet, tread wear....etc) and lower costs.

A Sport Cup will perform worse than a PS2's for example in cold and wet.

[grubinski]

A friend of mine has Pilot SS's on his GT3 and *LOVES* them. He is amazed by their wet grip.

My plan for winter is to get another set of rims and run Continental Extreme Contact DWS tires. We don't get enough snow in the Seattle area to make it worth buying Blizzaks for the Boxster. We have Blizzaks on my wifes 330xi, and if it snows, I can drive that, since she's a teacher, and they close school in this area if there's 1/2" of snow. :-)

[Deserion]

I have the Pilot Sport A/S on mine. So far so good, no complaints.

[sb01box]

Not trying to hijack this thread, but....

I've changed from Michelin ps2 to super sport. And I really can't tell them apart.
Rear there's last 30k miles, front about twice. 2001 base 5 speed, DD @ 123k miles.

I would like to ask your driving habit.. How many miles does the front/rear tires last? And how many miles do the brake pads last? Trying to equate my tire performance need/desire with the posts in this thread
Thanks

[ekam]

Putting A/S tires on a boxster is like wearing a quality suit but pair it with sandals.

[Topless]

Originally Posted by opus69

Does anyone have experience with Michelin Sport Cups in cold or wet weather?

A Sport Cup tire will hydroplane at about 30 mph in standing water. Great for skidpad exercises, lousy if you need to get to work.

[grubinski]

Originally Posted by ekam

Putting A/S tires on a boxster is like wearing a quality suit but pair it with sandals.

As a tire to use all year, I agree. In the winter, maybe a smart choice.

I have always used the grippiest tire I could on my sports cars, usually a "streetable" R compound of some sort.

I was mildly dismayed when the car I wound up buying had a relatively new set of middle-of-the-road tires on it, but I can see advantages after a while, too. The car still has that sweet Boxster handling balance, but the limits are just that tiny bit lower, and thus more accessible in sane street usage. Also, since the car can't pull 1.2G on these tires, there's less chance of running the sump dry and hurting the engine. Grip and handling are two different things ... these cars have plenty of both on almost any tire.