ourtires

Bridgestone Potenza RE940 (Ultra High Performance All Season)
225/50ZR16 on OE rims
Z speed rated
Tire Rack: $139.00 (I paid $189 locally, don't ask)

Ride Quality: 7
Dry Handling: 8
Wet Handling: 7
Dry Braking: 8
Wet Braking: 6
Dry Traction: 8
Noise/Vibration: 8
Follows rain grooves: 8
Useful in snow: ? Only used in snow twice

Expected life: UTQG 220 AA There is no tread warranty, I'm hoping for 25K

I've only put 5K on these tires, but I am very pleased with them. Dry
corning is excellent. They have a fairly stiff sidewall. I've only got them
to break away once, but it was under extremely aggressive cornering on wet
roads. If you don't have the luxury to run summer and winter tires, the
RE940 would be an excellent choice. If I get atleast 20K miles and if they
perform well in the snow I would consider purchasing another set.

BTW - I run them with 40# in the front, and 38# in the rear.

Eric Eaton

Ride Quality 7
Dry Handling 8
Wet handling 9
Dry Braking 8
Wet Braking 9
Dry Traction 8
Noise/Vibration 9
Follows rain grooves 9
Useful in snow 8
expected life in miles ~40,000

Comments: These are the best all conditions tires I have run across in 35 years of driving sports oriented cars hard on windy roads, regardless of cost or speed rating. I have used 2 sets on my previous main daily car, a 1981 Mk I Scirocco, converted to the 100hp Carat 8 value motor (from 68hp stock), 14 inch rims, and VW's rally components suspension. The second set will likely be replaced from age some day, rather than wear, now that the car has been switched to sunny summer Sunday use. Changing to them from the normal Goodyear RS-As that the dealer kept on the SHO resulted in vastly improved speeds through tight curves and a day/night change in the rain (for the better). It also produced a noticeable increase in oversteer, which was corrected by lowering the rear tire pressures 2 lb per instance until neutrality with 26lb in the back compared to 32lb front. You can spend a lot more and still do a lot worse, so I recommend these without reservation.

Ride Quality 9
Dry Handling - Normal Driving 7 Auto crossing 4
Wet handling 100+ in the rain :)
Dry Braking 8
Wet Braking 8
Dry Traction 9 - these are super sticky
Noise/Vibration 9
Follows rain grooves 10 ??? if there is a crack in the road these tires will track it. :(
Useful in snow- No snow yet?
expected life in miles ~?

UPDATE- Hey Tim, I just wanted to update you on the Sp5000s. I got a chance to run them in the snow the other day. Well I live 290 miles from Bangor Me, I had to go pick up my dad from the hospital there on Thursday. I left my house at 7:00am Exactly, it takes me 20 mins to get to ANY highway and I still made it in 3hrs and 35 mins. I never slowed down once from 80-95 all the way up! I must tell you I was scared shitless but nonetheless I needed to get there, and they did the job without any indication of breaking loose. So I would say they would be an 8 for traction. Friday It snowed here, about two to three inches worth of the cold greasy snow and with just a little bit of caution across the back roads they were absolutely flawless behind an Outback and in front of a BMW SUV; traveling at the same speed as dry pavement.

Ride Quality 5
Dry Handling 5
Wet handling 5
Dry Braking 5
Wet Braking 5
Dry Traction 5
Noise/Vibration 5
Follows rain grooves 5
Useful in snow 5
Expected life in miles ~25000 miles

Comments: These are the factory tires on all V8 SHOs as best as I know. I think their performance is fine but not outstanding and is 5/10 in all categories by definition for the purpose of this article. Ride quality was very good for a Z rated tire but after the first 18,000 miles the tire got as hard as a rock and became down right dangerous. A large number of folks purchased used SHOs with these Goodyear tires thinking the SHO was a pig in the corners which is not true. In my experience at 5-6/32 these tires need replaced just for safety which makes the very expensive on a per-mile basis.

W rated (168 mph) ~$170 at tirerack
Ride Quality 3
Dry Handling 9
Wet handling 9
Dry Braking 9
Wet Braking 9
Dry Traction 9
Noise/Vibration 2
Follows rain grooves 1
Useful in snow 1

Comments: I like these tires a great deal, the stick like glue in wet or dry but are not intended for use in any kind of snow. Tires in this performance category can have 10,000 mile life or less but these seem to wear great, - better that the factory RS-A. Ride quality is not as plush as a 16" factory tire would be on a 16" rim so I can not give it a 4 or a 5 but it is not racing tire harsh either so I did give it a 3. It ignores rain grooves and has excellent turn in response. It is the kind of tire you can (and will want to) drive on a racetrack with only your fingertips on the steering wheel. I have never found the tires limits, but the feed back is great and the tire very forgiving and easy to drive near the limits, (should I ever find them).

update - I could not be happier with my AVS sports. It truly is where the rubber meets the road. It is a whole different car. I paid $900 with install, balance, road hazard... and think that the extra $400 (over what I would have paid for any other tires) was well worth it.

I was going to lunch the other day, and had some younger guys from work in the car. They always hold the "OH SHlT" handles, as they have ridden with me before. I coolly zipped into a parking lot at speed, slowed down right after the turn, and waited for a comment. None came, and I coolly said, " the RSA's wouldn't have done that..." and looked up at their faces, since they were still silent. Their eyes were as big as saucers. They haven't asked me why I spent that much on tires since. One of them races on a circle track.

I am guessing you got an all-season tire? I don't recognize the numbers. Yoko has come out with a new tire called dB, which can be found for $90-100. Haven't heard much feedback on it.

Ride Quality 6
Dry Handling 6
Wet handling 7
Dry Braking 7
Wet Braking 6
Dry Traction 5
Noise/Vibration 4
Follows rain grooves 4
useful in snow 7

Comments The tread on the S4 is a little more open than the RS-A so wet weather and snow performance is better, The side walls are stiffer and traction is better than fresh RSA and I am very happy with the wear. They can follow rain groves to some minor extent and sing just a little on textured pavement. They are OK all season tires if you don't need serious snow belt tires. I get by OK in 6" of wet fresh snow.

I can recommend them for cheap all season use but the model is being replaced by the Yokohama dB decibel.

I have the Michelin Pilots, and so far (6K) I love them long time. Dry traction is good, but I can still break the tires for a chirp. It's in the rain I noticed the biggest improvement. Last night I was driving on the Taconic Parkway, which runs out of NYC to Albany. Hills, twists and trees, little traffic. I was starting to get a little concerned when the car was getting loose in some of the turns marked 40 MPH until I looked down and saw I was doing 80-85. On the way home after dinner, I took Interstate 84 from Newburgh NY to Middletown (30 miles), and it started to rain mixed with a wet snow. At 80+, passing semi-trucks, the car was well planted with no
noticeable signs of hydroplane.

So, as far as initial review, two thumbs up, four wrenches, ten gear teeth, or what ever the rating system is.

My tires specs are 225/55/ZR-16. Tread left, about 1/2 the tread. These tires were forgotten about and sat outside all throughout a Chicagoland Winter. Overall, these tires aren't for the average driver who's looking for comfort or a luxury ride. I'll break these tires up by subsections.

Street/Racing Performance:
The tires won't give up. Simply put. They'll squeal like pigs from the line, but don't let the wheelspin noise fool you. They truly pull HARD. The compound is excellent for high speed driving and for aggressively driven cars. They'll let you "feel" the power transfer through the wheels, which is a excellent thing performance-wise. These tires are in no way meant to be a part-time performer. They perform and that's what they're meant for. On the road, they're a bit noisy, but not too noisy. Launching is somewhat "smokey" if you drive stick or load RPMs on a ATX to take off. However, the tires do bite extremely good.

Handling:
- Dry: In dry weather these tires are great! They bite in and out of corners. If you're looking for a quiet ride, however, these aren't your tires. Driving along makes these tires humm a peaceful tune that proves their stability. Get your wheels to break loose and it sounds like all hell broke loose from their high-pitched squeals. They won't bother you in traffic from noise, but they will do something they're known to do - They "track" all over the place. They make their own path. They pull on uneven grounds and they track in and out of bumps. The extremely odd factor with these tires is the sudden changes they cause in steering as well. If you let go of the steering wheel, you'll se how the car can track wherever it wants. This isn't a bad thing, but it certainly does take getting use to. Pushing the car through turns with these tires definitely shows how aggressive they are. It'll make you realize that your suspension the bottleneck if you really push through turns.

- Wet: These tires also love the rain, with some considerations. They bite great in and out of water and hydroplane is minimal. One problem with them, however, is when they do lose traction (either by wheel slippage off the line or in 1-2 shifts if you have a really hard shifting car). They don't like biting back unless you really ease off the throttle or just get off it. My '91 MTX can easily break them loose from the line, but once I pick up past 10mph, I can mash the pedal to the ground and effortlessly cut right through the water! Steering response in water is definitely great. I can't really analyze the handling as I'm still running my Blizzaks on the rear. However, if I maneuver really fast or really tight, the rear end will slip past the traction of the front wheels. Showing how much the front tires bite, however, they won't let loose! Incredible. Braking is absolutely great in them. They still track around as I stated for the Dry handling, but this has no effect regarding how they perform in and out of puddles. They channel water very impressively, considering how much life they have left on them and how much I push them.

Braking:
Braking is great. They bite from the second you hit the brakes. They do, however, tend to track in the braking process too. This almost accelerates the "tracking" phase these cars seem to be in. The car will pull like it's getting forced in by wind sometimes, but other times it'll stop STRAIGHT like it's on rails. Once again, these tires love feedback and they give a ton of it.

Overall:
These are tires for serious drivers. If the price doesn't give this away, then I hope you'll understand this through my review. They aren't meant for comfort so the ride does get rather bumpy, but in a sporty way. They aren't insanely harsh or anything, so don't misunderstand me. They also wear pretty fast. Driving hard doesn't wear them as much as mileage does. I've done a lot of street/track racing lately and they lose very little rubber. Driving in the city/highway, however, seem to take more of their life. With the way I drive the car and push these tires, 7K would be great for their life.

- - - -
Neno & The '91 Dark SHO
- Black 50/50 seats/console on Mocha, Removed Inner fender box, Rod Shifter Converted, 225/55/ZR16 Pilot SX MXX3 (front), 215/60/16 Bridgestone Blizzaks WS-50 (rear), SHONut Reinforced Motor Mounts
- SHOcago Enthusiast Club: Website @ http://shocago.ratestar.net

Ride Quality 7
Dry Handling 5
Wet handling 5
Dry Braking 7
Wet Braking 3
Dry Traction 7
Noise/Vibration 6
Follows rain grooves 3
Useful in snow N/A (probably not)
Expected life in miles ~50000 miles

I bought my 97 SHO with 64K miles with brand new Dayton Daytona 225/55-ZR16 z rated. They are probably a little thin on the sidewalls, but I can't be sure, as they are the only ones I have had on this car. The tread pattern is a directional pattern most similar to the Bridgestone RE730. I have just put 26K miles on the SHO and they are approx. half worn (halfway to the tread wear indicators). When new (<10K) they WOULD NOT hydroplane. Even in heavy rain on grooved highway at 90mph. After 10K this feature declined quickly to limit the SHO to 70-75 in same conditions. The Daytonas have been very sticky in the dry and so-so on wet streets. These tires are very quick to squall, but grab very well in the corners, even after 26K.

But as mentioned before, the SHO must be thrown into the corners a little earlier to compensate for the thinner sidewalls. Best traction compromise comes at 40psi in the front and 36-37psi in the rear. Any more in the rear and it wants to come around too easily.
Off the line, it's hard to spin the tires unless on an incline or, of course, turning. In cold weather, the tires will spin easily until they get warmed up (approx 3 min)

Christian Smith
97 TR

225/55ZR16 on OE '97 rims
$99 each w/option of road hazard for $5 per tire
Ride Quality 7
Dry Handling 9
Wet handling 8
Dry Braking 9
Wet Braking 8
Dry Traction 9
Noise/Vibration 6
Follows rain grooves 6
Useful in snow 8
Value 10
Expected life in miles ~40,000

I am of the firm belief that you get what you pay for. When it comes to the Pep Boys Futura Ultra Z tires, I found that you get more than what you pay for. Where else can you get 4 Z rated tires in the OE size for the SHO for less than $400? The bonus is they offer a road hazard warranty for only $5 per tire! That paid for itself one day when the AWA got a flat but continued driving anyway to a gas station with cover because it was raining outside. Needless to say it was ruined, but I got a replacement that was prorated fairly with no questions asked. If you need the best performing tire out there because you go off-road racing, then I say go with a higher dollar tire like the Nittos, ect. But for the price and performance, I think you’ll be hard pressed to beat this deal and they will be more than adequate for most owners. I have no concrete numbers for track times, but seat of the pants tells me they handle better the RSA’s. Tests have been done by others and found these tires performed as well as most higher priced tires and in some cases performed better. They also have a nice looking sidewall and aren’t directional, meaning they can be rotated from side to side and front to back. They have great traction straight line and cornering. It’s a very good medium between performance and value. They aren’t perfect however. The road noise is more than the OE RSA’s. I also found they were out of balance after about 12,000 miles of driving. They were rebalanced for free because of the lifetime balance. They are bad if there are rain grooves in the highway, feels like I’m on bias ply tires sometimes. And lastly, in cold weather it seems as if they almost get a flat spot and it takes a couple miles for them to work it out. These are livable downsides to me and frankly I found the same flaws in the RSA’s. www.pepboys.com

I've got some Nitto 450 Extreme Performance 225/50 VR16 mounted on the front of my '97. I bought them as to see how a 50 series tire affect the acceleration in which they exceeded my expectations. They are very similar to the Firestone Firehawk SZ50s as far as tread pattern goes. They are a directional tire and like the SZ50s are outstanding in the rain.  The main reason I bought them is the price of ~$90.00. Over all they are better than the OEM Goodyears in all respects but not as good as the SZ 50s in traction on dry surfaces. Not unreasonably noisy and look nice. For the money I would buy them again.

The specs

Nitto 450s (on the front)
225/50VR16
Traction      A
Treadwear 300
Temp AA
price $90.00

Firehawk SZ 50 EP (on the rear)
225/60ZR16
Traction AA
Treadwear 340
Temp         AA
price $136.00

Last set of Firehawks (which lasted 23K)
225/55ZR16
Traction AA
Treadwear 240
Temp AA
price $126.00

Before I get chastised for running different size tires on my car here is my experience. At first the rear end would start sliding when I cut hard into a turn but I have since learned to turn even harder and get the front to break first which allows the backs to maintain traction. I really like the raked look that the 50/60 setup gives the car, but it disables the ABS due to the different circumference of the tires. The 60s are about 1 1/2" taller than the 50s and drop the front end at the spoiler about 2".

The 60 series tires really hurt acceleration but I would assume greatly increase the wear of the tires. At the time that is what I was looking for but now don't give a damn how long they last and will probably try 225/45 16 tires next.

Firehawks were replaced by the Firehawk SZ50 "EP"s which have a treadwear rating of 340 vs. 240.

I have the Nitto NT450s (siped) on my '96 and love them. They are better than I expected in the snow and ice, which is a good thing. On dry pavement they are excellent. When it's wet and rainy, they are easy to spin from a stop but a good grip on the road once you get moving.

I am sure there are better tires out there on the market, but I these are my #1 pick in their price range and category.

I had a set of Nitto NT450 Extreme Performance 225/50VR16 91V on my '97 and currently have them on my '93 SHO.

They are a very good rain tire, good in snow, a bit noisy though. As far as cornering goes though, you can get the car to slide but it will start slowly and let you know whets going on.

For the money a very good 4 season tire for those of us in the snow belt. It is not as good as a true winter tire in snow, nor as good as a summer tire in the corners.

cost ~$100.00 ea.

I will put the Niitos back on the '97 this winter and run my Michelin Arctic Alpines in the winter on my '93, the daily driver........

Paul Nimz
'97 TR
'93 mtx

Michelin XGT Z4(all season performance)
225/50ZR17 on Team Loco 143 5 spoke 17x7.0 rims with 35mm offset
Z rated
~$170-180

Ride Quality 5
Dry Handling 7
Wet handling 9
Dry Braking 7
Wet Braking 9
Dry Traction 7
Noise/Vibration 3
Follows rain grooves 8
usesful in snow 7

expected life in miles ~40000 miles with 300 treadwear rating

Comments: These tires are probably the best all season tires I've ever had. Not only is their performance in dry weather outstanding, but their ability to hold the road during rain or snow is phenomenal for high performance tires. They have a very aggressive tread design which makes that possible. Also, this is one of the longest lasting performance tires that I've ever seen before. I currently have 23000 miles on these tires including the miles I put on it from my old SLO, and the tread still looks like brand new. However, the tradeoff is that these tires are fairly loud, even on smooth roads from the aggressive tread, and the ride quality is a bit stiff.

Thanks to June H Han

I decided to change out the OE RS-As at 4/32" to 5/32" because they were hydroplaning and had turned hard. After much deliberation I chose XGT-Z4s in the stock size. Because nobody on this list has reported on GY HP Ultra Plus or BFG KDWS, AFAIK, I took June Han's advice on the XGTs and I have to agree with his assessment. At CA$238 ($153 real dollars) installed in Canada they were not a bad deal either.

I've finally tested in snow today on the shores of Lake Erie and they are about as good as a Caravan with Uniroyal snowtires in similar conditions (very good, in other words). In wet slush and rain they seem 10/10 with good evacuation and stability. Ride is on par with the RS-As, but they are visually "thicker/rounder" in the sidewall than RS-A. (I kept an old RS-A as an emergency spare, call me paranoid). Cornering is about on par, maybe 5% worse than RS-A. The only quibble I have is they look kinda cheap, sort of like private label from 6 feet away.

I was "this" close to the HP Ultra Plus, so naturally I'm curious if anyone has/gets them, what they think. Oddly the HP U+ has no sipes from what I saw. In summary I think GY would be better in the summer but the 4-season tradeoff in the XGT-Z4s buys a lot of versatility with an acceptable (very little) sacrifice in performance.

REVIEW:
Ride Quality 7
Dry Handling 9
Wet handling 10
Dry Braking 8
Wet Braking 9
Dry Traction 9
Noise/Vibration 3
Follows rain grooves n/a
useful in snow 9

I am using P225/55VR16 Yokohama Avid V4's. Paid $153 Each my cost from a tire franchise we deal with at work. Love them, Grip well, quiet, have had the car up to 125mph 2x with no tire problems. Handle wet very well and seem to be getting thru our snowfall here just fine... {long as I do not overpower them}. Even good on Gravel road on way to my Sister's Farm. Rated for 340 tread wear which seems to highest out of what I looked at, High performance all seasons. Leave great black marks when lighted up by right foot and holding together well after almost 10,000kms of driving. forget ratings for categories but would rate them and 8 overall.

Clare Allenby
96 TR
London, ON

I had a set of AVS Sports and they were a very good tire. No doubt about it. They handled well especially on wet surfaces. Dunlop makes a great tire as well. Not to confuse the issue, but I just bought a set of Bridgestone Pole Positions. They are, with out a doubt the best tires, I've owned. They are every bit as good as the AVS Sports on dry roads and they excel on wet surfaces. And they are quieter than the AVS tires. There is an aggressive on-ramp I take from time to time. I usually like to push a tire until it just starts to squeal. I could take this exit @ 54mph with Goodyear RSA's; 66mph with the AVS and I was going 73mph with the pole positions and there was still no squeal. These pole positions are like putting my SHO on rails. This car really sticks. FYI- I run 36 lbs all around with 95lb torque.

Agreed, the S-02 has been the best by far; but it's replacement, the S-03, is hitting The Tire rack's shelves this month. I'd wait for the 03.

After reading Big Dog's post about the Bridgestone Pole position tires I went over to Tire Rack's website and the S-02 Pole Positions are on sale. You can get them cheaper than the Firestone SZ-50s now.

Paul, I noticed that the two tires you asked about are both all season tires. The above two tires are summer only so if you get snow in the winter you'll need winter tires. I use a set of SP5000 on the factory rims for my winter tires. I like them. They are better than the stock RSAs. I didn't like the RSAs in the rain because they hydroplaned to easily. But in all fairness though I really don't push the car very hard when I switch to the SP5000 because they feel really sloppy when you are use to driving on a set of AVS Sports during the summer. So during the winter the SHO goes into luxury mode since the SP5000 gives me a very comfortable and quiet ride.

I purchased these tires mounted and balanced on steel wheels over the internet two winters ago. I believe the tires still have two winters left, at least one more. They make either of my SHO's the best thing on snow short of a snowmobile. You cannot believe the difference a good winter tire will make until you try them. I will never use a all season tire again, much better with two sets of tires and wheels anyway.

My only complaint is the low speed rating and of course the aren't made for any exciting cornering either, but then again summer tires don't do well in the snow. Each is made for a specific task. The lack of dry road cornering for the Alpines is more than made up with having fun in the snow.

My 1999 SHO Black Beauty revved her engine and whispered to me that Paul Mellum said on Tuesday, May 08, 2001:

> I should have clarified that I'm looking for an all-season high performance
> tire. Do the SZ50 and RE730 fit in the all-season category?

If we'd had snow, I'd have skipped work. Fortunately I live in Alabama. I've heard enough about high performance tires in snow that I'd prefer to get the evil eye from my boss than to risk the car.

That said, I have never had a tire that did as well in rain as the Bridgestone RE730's I've got on there now. And in the dry they're smooth and invite you to put some more foot into the turns. I discovered very quickly that I haven't got anything that comes close to what these tires have, so there's a very good safety margin no matter what I try, provided that it's me doing the trying.

At the tire store they guy who put them on said, "Watch your neck. After those RSA's I took off, you're liable to sprain it on the first corner."

Those same two tires were on my short list, in the end I bought the AVS dBs. I have not regretted the purchase. They are, as advertised, an incredibly quiet tire, it was spooky the first few times on the highway how quiet they were. My previous tire was the SZ50, so I've had some experience with one of the best. The AVS dB cuts through snow like no ones business in an all weather tire. Since you live in Minnesota Paul, I would recommend these to you as an all-around tire unless you want to ante up for separate rims and winter tires.

One nice benefit to the AVS dBs vs. the SZ50s is that I can actually get some wheel spin from a start. The SZ50's (I think Scott Eddy mentioned this too) are so sticky, I never laid rubber under any circumstances. So if you want to do some drag racing with your street tires that should help you out.

This was my first time with Yokos and time will tell if I'm overall satisfied. My priorities were longer mileage (24K on SZ50s), and better all weather usage. I have owned and been pleased with several Dunlop tires over the years (4000's, d40M2, d60a2). My initial front runner was the Dunlop 5000s but I read a bunch of comments from various sources and the consensus was they were more All Season than All Season Sport.

I got my Yoko's from Tire Rack for $102 each plus shipping. Shipping was surprising cheap in my opinion. At this point in time (3000 miles so far) I would highly recommend the AVS dBs.

First of all the news that the 2003 SHO convention will be held about 75 miles from my house is great news, not sure if I'll be there but I could hardly pass it up when it's in my backyard :)

Just thought I'd offer this for the Our Tires page. I'm shopping for new tires right now (my top choice so far are the BFG geForce KDW's), as I still have the original Goodyears I am sure - and I bought the car with a tick under 50k miles. Ford said, at my last visit, I was down to 2/32 in the back and 4/32 in the front. But you wouldn't know it to drive it.

100mph on a wavy country road? No problem. 90 degree downtown intersections at 30mph+? Not a sound. Still drives great in the rain, which it's done all week up here in Wisconsin (dang hurricane).

Tire Reviews by SHO Owners