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[Fume]

My OEM runflat tires seem like they are done and I'm going to need some new summer tires for next year. This past summer, I got into autocrossing for the first time so it would be nice to get tires this time around that are actually good for autocrossing next year. However, I don't have a set of dedicated wheels for autocross so these tires would be used every day for commuting as well.

Does anyone have any opinions they can give on how bad the sacrifice is of extreme performance summer tires in terms of road noise, comfort and tread life when using it daily driving compared to max performance summer tires like Micheline PSS? I'm debating whether it's worth getting tires like RE-71R, R-S3, ZII star specs.

[Ginger_Extract]

DD Comfort: PSS > ZIISS > RE71R > RS3
DD Mileage: PSS > ZIISS = RS3 >>> RE71R
AutoX Performance: RE71R > ZIISS > RS3 >>> PSS

Pick the virtues you like best and choose accordingly.

[Fume]

Originally Posted by Ginger_Extract

DD Comfort: PSS > ZIISS > RE71R > RS3
DD Mileage: PSS > ZIISS = RS3 >>> RE71R
AutoX Performance: RE71R > ZIISS > RS3 >>> PSS

Pick the virtues you like best and choose accordingly.

Interesting. I think I'm leaning towards sacrificing some daily driving comfort and noise for better performance. From your rankings though, it seems like you found RS3 very bad for daily driving comfort. That kind of surprised me since tirerack seems to rate the hankook tires as having very good road noise and comfort (http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tests/...t.jsp?ttid=197)

I didn't realise that the RE-71R has such bad longevity. Is it really that bad? From your listing, it's really making me lean towards trying out the Dunlops. Has anyone here tried daily driving the RE-71R tires and care to comment?

[Cavpilot2k]

You can't go wrong with PSS. They are among the best of that group on wet pavement, which is a key factor for DD duty that most people forget to consider.
I love love love my PSS.

[Ginger_Extract]

Originally Posted by Fume

Interesting. I think I'm leaning towards sacrificing some daily driving comfort and noise for better performance. From your rankings though, it seems like you found RS3 very bad for daily driving comfort. That kind of surprised me since tirerack seems to rate the hankook tires as having very good road noise and comfort (http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tests/...t.jsp?ttid=197)

I didn't realise that the RE-71R has such bad longevity. Is it really that bad? From your listing, it's really making me lean towards trying out the Dunlops. Has anyone here tried daily driving the RE-71R tires and care to comment?

RS3 wear pretty well, but they are noisy, and love the tramline compared to the others. They are also the worst of the four in the rain. I've run through 4 sets of them now. They're a great track tire because they take punishment and over driving pretty well, assuming the car is setup right. They need camber and roll stiffness to work at their best because they like to sit on their shoulders. If your car is stock suspension, or near stock suspension, the ZIISS will be better paired for the extra roll and body motions.

Using RE71R on my Civic for AX, they wear more like Nt01 or R888 rather than a true street tire. Local autocrossers all report the same. What do you expect from a tire that can grip as well as an old Hoosier?

[Maximo44]

I went for more of a friendly DD tire in the Bridgestone RE-760 sport and i think these are fantastic tires in pretty much all conditions.

They are on my '06 Mini cooper S and the grip is really much better than i expected from a tire like these. I recommended them to a friend with a E36 M3 thats also used as a DD and he loves them.

Maybe not full out Auto-X potential in the RE-760's but i think a really nice 'starter' tire in the Bridgestone line of performance tires.

[lowside67]

It's worth saying that the PSS is a great street tire but is also quite soft and if you don't have adequate camber in the front of your car (-2.5 would be good), you will definitely wear out the shoulder of your front tires FAST at autocross. My friend and I did a single event on his M control arm but no camber plates 128i with brand new PSS tires and you could easily see the wear after only 5 runs each, on a smooth sealed asphalt surface. On concrete, good game, I bet they'd last 5 or 6 autocrosses to the cords and time to throw them out.

Mark

[chris82]

Since you're daily driving, I would go with the PSS. You can't beat the combination of performance and daily driving qualities. I bought my PSS used on here and I had them for 2 whole summers, plus 4 track days. I only recently had to replace the rear tires, the front tires still have 30-40% tread left which is astonishing. They have yet to let me down in any condition.

[Fume]

Originally Posted by chris82

Since you're daily driving, I would go with the PSS. You can't beat the combination of performance and daily driving qualities. I bought my PSS used on here and I had them for 2 whole summers, plus 4 track days. I only recently had to replace the rear tires, the front tires still have 30-40% tread left which is astonishing. They have yet to let me down in any condition.

I really appreciate the input everybody.

The PSS also seem to be on sale at the moment and they're a little more than $100 cheaper for a set than the other options so I'll probably just end up getting these. I'm planning around doing another 8-10 autocross events next year and trying out a novice track day as well which was the only reason I was considering the extreme performance tires. However, I figure I'm not trying to be super competitive at the moment and I keep hearing that PSS is best for a daily driver. Living in the pacific NW also means a decent amount of rain (had maybe 3 out of 10 autocross days this year rain during the event) and the little extra hydroplaning resistance will probably come in handy. Coming from the OEM runflats, I'm hoping this will be a noticeable upgrade.

[Cavpilot2k]

Let us know of your impressions once you try them for a while. I know it is winter now, and you will probably switch to winter tires soon, but I, for one, would be interested in your impressions. For me, the increase in lateral grip from RFTs was astonishing, because I thought the OEMs were decent.
Also, I went up in width on stock 261 wheels (225 front, 255 rear). Fit fine and MORE GRIP!!!

[lowbudgethero]

Originally Posted by Fume

I really appreciate the input everybody.

The PSS also seem to be on sale at the moment and they're a little more than $100 cheaper for a set than the other options so I'll probably just end up getting these. I'm planning around doing another 8-10 autocross events next year and trying out a novice track day as well which was the only reason I was considering the extreme performance tires. However, I figure I'm not trying to be super competitive at the moment and I keep hearing that PSS is best for a daily driver. Living in the pacific NW also means a decent amount of rain (had maybe 3 out of 10 autocross days this year rain during the event) and the little extra hydroplaning resistance will probably come in handy. Coming from the OEM runflats, I'm hoping this will be a noticeable upgrade.

It kind of depends on your skill level and desire for an extra tenth or two here and there and balancing your DD needs. I've liked my ZIIs they have good feedback (stiffer and better feel than the PSS) and they have good hydroplaning resistance, and I don't have any issue on the highway in the rain here on the east coast. The only draw back is they are kinda loud in comparison (not enough to bother me or any passengers though)