Michelin Pilot Sport for 05 Boxster S - need opinions

[edevlin]

"true, but do they stick like a PS2. Me, I am addicted to the PS2's for sure."

Sad but true because of the cost, I think I am addicted to the PS2's as well. I ended up getting a second set of Carrera lightweight wheels and put on a set of inexpensive Nexen 3000 tires, man those were inexpensive.

I got the second set of wheels both for the all-weather performance of the Nexen, but also to see if I could wean myself off the expensive PS2's, especially after hearing good reports from others on the fourm with the Nexens.

For me, the Nexen's are OK, but feel heavier, provide less road feel, are less responsive and definately less sticky. Still, for our household, the Nexen's are the tires for these economic times. I sure like my PS2's, but they seem to melt away before my eyes.

Ed

[boxster1]

Last Friday I replaced a set of worn Michelin PS2s with a new set of Sumitomo HTR3s and my initial impression was very favorable to the HTR3s. However, once I took the car out on to the Florida Autobahn, errr I-95, where the posted speed limit is 70, which apparently most people read as "80", I almost immediately noticed a difference. Suddenly the car was being blown left & right by gusts of wind that I would not have felt with the PS2s. This is particularly surprising as the PS2s were very worn out in the back.

I'm hoping this is due to the tires not yet being "broken-in". I have less than 300 miles on them however, with soft tires like these and the aggressive nature of Boxster tire wear, I find this unlikely.

Anyone else have a similar experience?

[Jaxonalden]

I'd love to here more on this. Could it all be in the tire compound and sidewall?

[boxster1]

While I would like another week of driving before I really make a judgment, I discovered two things in the last day. First is this review of the HTRZ3s

http://www.rightfootdown.com/?p=83

The author complains of soft sidewalls and poor braking ability. After reading this review, I will probably go back to the Michelins simply to compare again. To me, saving several hundred dollars is not worth the performance sacrifice.

The second is that as I was driving yesterday evening, crossing about the 400 mile mark on these tires, they did appear to be gaining traction left and right. I'll need several days of driving to discount other variables like change in weather, change of roads, my imagination, etc ...
but they did feel like they were improving, hopefully breaking-in.

[lapis986]

like others have said the ps2's are hard to beat for traction. I had them and went through exactly 2 sets of rears for one set of fronts at 40K intervals and drive pretty conservatively most of the time. They got a bit squirrely in wet weather like we have here in sunny Florida
I bought the HTRZ III's about 8K miles ago and also had some break in jitters, but they are gone. I check air pressure every week.
I was in a big hurry today and on a very long sweeping on ramp with nice warm tires I held the corner at +/-85-90 (i was watching the road) and had a little drift but no squeal and it was the first time I actually felt them drift(soft sidewalls do drift much more than PS2's no question). I paid 555 for a set of 4 sumis and spent the extra money on a proper alignment.
I actually like the sumitomos for daily driving due to acceptable grip and great wear for the money. seriously i would never drive that fast day to day and never with other cars around but on the rare occasion that you'd like to go fast and turn you can still feel confident even with a "cheaper" tire.
the one complaint i have seen is that when the sumis get low on tread they tend to get loud. Lots of good info on tires here but it really comes down to what you want- stickyness or wear. for me, longer wear, less grip is okay and i still feel safe pushing them. good luck