Any suggestions for street tires?
 

My 2000 S may need tires soon. It has the optional 18" turbo twist " Technology" wheels. Any suggested tires to consider? I have used Yokohamas on past cars with good results. Just street use, no tracking. Thanks!

Lots of posts on that topic...check some of those out..

I've got a thread going in the perf section, but it is for street and track use, so we are talking about max and extreme perf summer tires.

I'm not sure where in CA you are, but if it is in a year round warm part of CA and you don't anticipate any cold weather driving, summer tires might be the best, and give you the grip for occasional spirited driving.

I have the Sumitomo htr z iii, a max perf summer tire, and I like them, but I am stepping up as they are almost worn out and I am doing more autox and track days.

Check tirerack.com, clear out the categories you don't want, and then check out some of tire rack's test results and reviews.

If I wasn't doing track days I would probably stay with the sumis �� They have good reviews on tire rack.. and did I mention they are (relatively) inexpensive ��

Michelin Super Sports, not too high of cost , amazing dry / amazing wet and they have amazing tread wear

Lots of choices. Just depends on what you want from your tires.
Dry grip
Wet grip
quiet ride
ride stiffness
cold weather use
track days
longevity
price

The Michelin PSSs are very very good while in good condition, HOWEVER, once they wear down they can become downright dangerous in wet conditions. I burned up a pair of rears in 6k miles (street with a tiny bit of track). Fortunately, michelin and tire rack actually honor their treadwear warranties.

Its taken me a long time to realize this but the honest truth is that for street only use you really should not be driving such that you'd ever need sticky tires, unless of course you want to end up like Paul Walker. My recommendation is to find the proper speed rated tires in the proper sizes with reasonable tread wear >=300. All buying sticky low wear tire accomplishes is having to buy another set real soon and more $ for the tire guys. It's a money making scam as far as I'm concerned.

If your looking for dual use tires, that's a different story.

No Sticky tires for street use, whats the fun in that?

Even for safety sake on the street the extra traction could not hurt, but since most of us bought a Sports Car, its likely that we will drive in a spirited fashion now and then.

I have been using the Hankook V12's for daily use and a few auto crosses and I have discovered that it has excellent wet performance as well.

The treads have held up for 2 years now and still may have another year in them for daily use.

In retrospect I'd like even more stickiness for Auto-X and am thinking about the Hankook RS-3 for next time.

I'd had good experiences with Sumitomo HRT Z-III tires for street use on a 2.5l Boxster.

I'm going with the Continental Extreme Contact DWS All Seasons this time. A friend of mine put them on his 993 a few years ago and they still look like new and handle well.
I only drive my car in summer, never track it, and I live in the mountains of Colorado, where you can get snow in any month of the year, so I prefer to have an all season tire.

I have the Hankook Ventus V12 Evo on mine, and they're working out very well. Previously had Michelin Pilot Sport A/S on there (also satisfied).

I have the DWS's on my daily driver and am not impressed with the tread wear. I travel 100 miles RT of highway driving on the toll way and my first set went bald after 20,000 miles. My dealer rotated the tires every 5000 miles and performed an alignment at installation.

Offered me a new set @ 40% off and now I have 4/10 tread depth after 22,000 miles. I may not be going back to these since they are supposed to have a 50,000 mile warranty.

Looking at Michelin Pilot Sport A/S3 for the 04 Boxster S. Have the same tread as the PSS, tirerack has them rated close to the performance of the PSS and they have a 50,000 mile warranty. Also less expensive than the PSS. :)

Hmmm, I'd say 20k miles on a set of Boxster rears is outstanding treadwear. I usually get about 5k on the rears. Different tire choices for different reasons.

:cheers:

Michelen sport pilots have a 300 wear rating and are plenty sticky for any street use. If you need the extra traction for "safety" you are driving over your head.

As far as "fun" can't answer that as I have not had fun driving "fast"in street cars for years' there, because frankly all street cars are dog slow. .. But then I have a racecar that pulls close to 3gs and can lap laguna seca faster than any porsche ever built has except for 3... 962, rs spyder, and gt1. So my perspective on fast is vastly different from most

Topless,
The 20,000 miles was on my Hyundai Sonata. :o That's my DD. Just bought the Boxster in Late October. The Boxster has the original Yoko's on it from 2004 with 16,000 miles.

I generally agree with Koda, with decent tires and suspension, there is no curve on the street that will truly challenge a well driven 986 at any sane street speed. So, get some kid of decent Michelins, or BFG's and just enjoy the ride and the long tire life. But, if you want to ever auto-x or track, you need an entirely different level to be competitive.

Hey Koda, that looks like a Van Diemen FC in your avatar. I can't believe the excellent values available on these now. I'm an old S2000 guy, but they have gone out of sight, so I'm starting to look for an RF92+. Any suggestions?

If the sticky tire's superior collision avoidance benefits allow you to prevent 1 collision they have more than paid for themselves!

Tires
 

i prefer Bridgestone Potenza. They came on my used 2001 base box. It had 62k miles when i got it. it now has 175k miles.

i'm on my third set on the rear.

but get this...i'm still running the original pair on the front! they still look and perform fine. i can't believe they have 110k miles!!

they're W-rated, assymetrical and look great.

I've got the Hankook V12's. Nice for the price! Run much better when hot.

Thanks for the good info folks!