Kumho LE KU39 now available in Australia

[Guran]

After 22,000km, I'm due to replace the original tyres on my 135i. I decided to try the KU39s for $269 each, locally fitted & balanced this coming Friday. I know I could get them cheaper direct from the warehouse in Sydney but couldn't be arsed with organising pick-up and fitting elsewhere. Compared with KU31s ($259), the Kumho website says they have better dry & wet grip, lower noise, but higher wear rate (280 AA A vs 320 AA A) and lower comfort. But considering that I'm coming from 140 A A RE050A runcraps, I'm expecting they'll be a massive improvement in nearly all aspects. I will post some feedback once I've had a chance to sample them.

Incidentally, I'm getting 215/40R18 89Y and 245/35R18 92Y which means both have higher load rating than the stock tyres.

[MikeVictor]

Nice. That's a similar price to the Hankook S1 Evo's I had fitted about 12,000km ago, which I reckon after a club track day in August will be ready for replacement.

Let us know your thoughts on these after you scrub them in please, Guran.

[woosh]

KU31 at $259 for 18"?! Let me know next time you want some... I can point you in the right direction ($150 for fronts, ~$200 for rears)

Interested to hear your impressions on the KU39

[banglemangle]

<----------- watches this intently, although somewhat surprised at the mileage. Have similiar mileage here and tires have loads of deep / even tread. Methinks good for maybe 40k.

[wkthyk]

I am on KU31 now. I think i got them $140 for front and $180 for rear from Tempe Tyres. Comment: They are only good for the first month, not quite once the first layer wear off, both dry and wet. After 4 months on these tires, now the rear tyres are not really holding the torque well with modarate throttle.
My personal comment is, yes they are quite good at the begining, but pretty disappointed once wear in. I can't rate them any better than the RE050A, however by given they are real cheap, they are alright when you only use your car as shopping trolley.

[Guran]

I'm home now from a weekend full of driving on the new KU39s with a variety of conditions - wet and dry. Putty Road to Broke, then across to Rylstone on Bylong Valley Way, and over to Mudgee for an overnighter. The return trip today was the boring route on the main roads, including stop/start rubbish on the Great Western Hwy in the Blue Mountains. The verdict? Ride quality is (of course) superb compared with the OEM RE050As. Cats eyes are absorbed nicely rather than crashing through everything. Better still, the car was much more settled on sweeping corners afflicted with broken surface - the tendency to skip offline has been eliminated. Wet grip was greatly improved, although that's not a fair comparison since there wasn't much siping left on the old tyres. Dry grip was pretty decent too - but as I had the family with me and a boot full of gear, I wasn't pushing it too hard. Overall, I'm very happy with the KU39s so far. I still need to check them out on roads I'm more familiar with.

One thing that did surprise me a bit is the width of the circumferential channels on the rears. There's four of them and their width is 5mm, 15mm, 15mm and 12mm. That's a LOT of water channelling capacity!

[Stuart@BMRAutowerkes]

KU36s are the 'semi slick' version right? So are the 39s meant to be a more performance orientated tyre than the KU31 (which I'm running now) or is it a successor to the KU36?

[Jeef Beef]

Are KU31s considered a performance tyre? My mum runs them on her car because they were the cheapest ones available in her size. They grip alright but aren't great compared to the stock Dunlop Sport Maxx tyres.

Guran, how come you chose to stick with 215/245 rather than 225/255?

[xrooster]

as i have new rubber on my 135 i can't comment on wear &grip. but on my old 325i once i got rid of the potenzas. replaced with michelin ps2s, a new world evolved a much smoother ride &better handling. have since sold it so can't tell about wear. when these wear out that's what i'll be fitting. i live in the country so i need runflats. gothe roosters.

[Taymaishu]

Good review B-man, thanks!

I'm upgrading my rears (again soon). Both of my sets arent tacky enough for wet grip. DSC kicking in in D mode on cornering in the slightest of damp conditions.

I'm thinking of sticking with the eagle F1 GS-d3 (symmetrical and clearly a wet tread).. They're around 300 a corner.

If you've found yours to be good, I'll definitely consider. Have they tacked up a bit? The F1s are top stuff - the non-treaded rubber feels like it's gripping your finger to touch!

[Jeef Beef]

Originally Posted by Taymaishu

Good review B-man, thanks!

I'm upgrading my rears (again soon). Both of my sets arent tacky enough for wet grip. DSC kicking in in D mode on cornering in the slightest of damp conditions.

I'm thinking of sticking with the eagle F1 GS-d3 (symmetrical and clearly a wet tread).. They're around 300 a corner.

If you've found yours to be good, I'll definitely consider. Have they tacked up a bit? The F1s are top stuff - the non-treaded rubber feels like it's gripping your finger to touch!

Go get something nice for yourself from tirerack for all four corners. Advan Neova AD08s are only $250 for 255 rears. Just remember to factor in $270 shipping for 4 tyres.

Just ordered a set of Dunlop Direzza Z1 star specs for a grand total of $1,130 shipped to my door. Not too shabby if you ask me.

[The__J__Factor]

^ those Star specs are supposed to be great for the price. A lot of the M guys are running them and love them.

[Stuart@BMRAutowerkes]

Originally Posted by Taymaishu

Good review B-man, thanks!

I'm upgrading my rears (again soon). Both of my sets arent tacky enough for wet grip. DSC kicking in in D mode on cornering in the slightest of damp conditions.

I'm thinking of sticking with the eagle F1 GS-d3 (symmetrical and clearly a wet tread).. They're around 300 a corner.

If you've found yours to be good, I'll definitely consider. Have they tacked up a bit? The F1s are top stuff - the non-treaded rubber feels like it's gripping your finger to touch!

That's cause your current rears are kmart specials or ling longs or something? lol... good for ripping skids.

Originally Posted by Jeef Beef

Go get something nice for yourself from tirerack for all four corners. Advan Neova AD08s are only $250 for 255 rears. Just remember to factor in $270 shipping for 4 tyres.

Just ordered a set of Dunlop Direzza Z1 star specs for a grand total of $1,130 shipped to my door. Not too shabby if you ask me.

Can't wait to feel your one hundred and thirty five injection pull once it has grippy rubber!

[Guran]

Originally Posted by Jeef Beef

Guran, how come you chose to stick with 215/245 rather than 225/255?

Because I wanted to stick with the stock size. Bigger is not necessarily better. Haven't you heard that from the girls?

[Guran]

Originally Posted by bmroxm5

KU36s are the 'semi slick' version right? So are the 39s meant to be a more performance orientated tyre than the KU31 (which I'm running now) or is it a successor to the KU36?

KU39 are Kumho's "high end" tyre, KU31 is for "drifters" and KU36 for occasional trackdays. According to the Kumho website.