Sometime around 26,000 miles the factory Goodyear tires either become thin and 6,000 miles before that the tread becomes so hard they get scary, lose their traction and much of their appeal. At that point a few obvious strategies may come to mind depending upon your situation and latitude.
For those who are able to buy performance tires because they are snow free or change tires in the fall I hope the following information may be helpful.
The factory size tire is 225/55 ZR-16, and the factory rim is 16x6.5". Car & Driver, Road & Track, and other car rags reported that the factory rims were 16x8, and the were all wrong There maybe a "magic" relationship between – intake design – ignition timing – OBDII computer - gearing and tire size. Forgetting that the 225 mm wide tire is the maximum tire width for a 6.5" rim, for any width 16" rim the factory size tire will minimize speedometer errors, fit problems and seems to "work" best.
Recently Tire Rack re-tested old favorites and some new tires to put them on equal footing so that they may be compared fairly. They used BMW 328i which is rear wheel drive which would give an advantage to tires made by Goodyear, Firestone and BF Goodrich which are tuned for the same.
Based on recent reputation, reviews the following tires were selected to be included:
General Street
Use
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| Michelin | Pilot SX MXX3 |
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| Bridgestone | S-02 Pole P |
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| Bridgestone | Turanza Revo H |
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| Yokohama | AVS Sport |
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| Dunlop | SP 9000 |
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| Firestone | Firehawk SZ50 |
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| Continental | CH95 |
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| Goodyear | Eagle F1 Steel |
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| Dunlop | SP 8000 |
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| Bridgestone | RE71 |
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| BFG | Comp T/A ZR-3 |
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| Yokohama | AVS Intermediate |
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Sorted by Road Rating we might expect the touring tires to float to the top, ratings less then 7/10 are in red. The Pilot SX MXX3 from the chart seems to compromise comfort for peak performance It is a butt kicking dry weather tire like the BFG g-Force. Notice it is much harsher for a small improvement over the S-02. The notable touring tire is the Turanza which should ride nice, it is only rated "H" 130 mph which may meet the needs of many. The low ratings of the Turanza, and CH95 indicate you will pay a performance price for the long wear and ride comfort.
The Goodyear F1 Steel is an high speed ambulance/police tire. It along with the traditional favorites the Dunlop SP 8000, Bridgestone RE71, Comp T/A and Yokohoma AVS Intermediate rank at the end of ride comfort and road noise but can cost less then "this summers" ultra high performance tires.
Dry Track
Performance
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| Bridgestone | RE71 |
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| Yokohama | AVS Intermediate |
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| Michelin | Pilot SX MXX3 |
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| Dunlop | SP 8000 |
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| Yokohama | AVS Sport |
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| Bridgestone | S-02 Pole P |
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| Goodyear | Eagle F1 Steel |
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| Firestone | Firehawk SZ50 |
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| Continental | CH95 |
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| Bridgestone | Turanza Revo H |
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| BFG | Comp T/A ZR-3 |
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| Dunlop | SP 9000 |
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Here the old RE71 still gets it done in the dry with the AVS intermediate close on it's heels. Both are old designs. Then the expensive modern SX MXX3 which is supposed to be the state of the art dry road tire. The Michelin is a lot more comfortable and expensive but the RE71 and AVS repeat their stellar performance in the wet where the Michelin is very skittish.
The next group of 3, SP 8000, AVS Sport and S-02 Pole are close in times even if the SP 8000 got hammered in the subjective ratings (old design, poor road comfort). The S-02 posts nearly the same wet and dry lap times sacrificing dry grip for nearly the same wet grip, this is it's "poor showing." Nothing but the RE71 can touch the S-02 in the wet. In contrast the AVS Sport is strongest in the dry, even though it places 3rd in the wet it is a full second off the S-02 pace.
The comes the Goodyear F1 Steel and then the SZ50 comes in just quicker than 3 touring tires. Both the F1 Steel and SZ50 are middle of the pack dry track tires but less than competitive in the wet. In fact the F1 is dead last in the wet.
Lastly the Comp T/A and SP 9000 bring up the rear in dry tests but the SP 9000 will get it's day in the wet track tests. The Comp T/A and the Goodyear fight it out for last place.
One mystery is how the touring tires got such low track ratings and still managed to edge out the BFG Comp T/As and Dunlop SP 9000? The course is 1/3 of a mile and the times are about a half minute so they must be averaging 40 mph. The course must be like an auto-cross route with low speeds and high cornering forces.
Wet Track Performance
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| Bridgestone | S-02 Pole P |
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| Bridgestone | RE71 |
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| Yokohama | AVS Sport |
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| Dunlop | SP 9000 |
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| Dunlop | SP 8000 |
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| Yokohama | AVS Intermediate |
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| Firestone | Firehawk SZ50 |
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| BFG | Comp T/A ZR-3 |
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| Goodyear | Eagle F1 Steel |
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The S-02 Pole Position has a huge lead on every other tire. For an old design the RE71 comes in second, it was first in the dry! They only way to explain the poor subjective is it cost about half of the most expensive tires and rides like a noisy truck. The AVS Sport comes in 5/12 dry and 3/9 wet. The Dunlop 8000, an old favorite did 4/12 dry and 5/9 wet, not bad. The SP 9000 which did poorly in the dry does better, the same as the AVS Intermediate which came in a close second in the dry.
The SZ50, Comp T/A and Eagle F1 are all domestic and well off the pace. Their forte should be front engine, rear wheel drive pony cars. The 318 is rwd and the three domestic should have a competitive advantage here.
The touring tires for some reason were not tested in the wet.
It would be nice to have some data for the SX MXX3 here, like the BFG g-force it is a dry weather creature.
Ranking Based
Just on Lap Times
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| Bridgestone | S-02 Pole P |
31.59
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31.65
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31.62
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$183
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| Bridgestone | RE71 |
31.18
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32.13
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31.66
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$101
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| Yokohama | AVS Sport |
31.50
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32.62
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32.06
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$168
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| Yokohama | AVS Intermediate |
31.21
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33.19
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32.20
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$135
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| Dunlop | SP 8000 |
31.46
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33.19
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32.33
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$105
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| Firestone | Firehawk SZ50 |
31.91
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33.51
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32.71
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$135
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| Dunlop | SP 9000 |
32.65
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32.89
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32.77
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$157
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| BFG | Comp T/A ZR-3 |
32.14
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34.13
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33.14
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$125
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| Goodyear | Eagle F1 Steel |
31.74
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34.54
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33.14
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$165
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| Michelin | Pilot SX MXX3 |
31.23
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$195
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| Bridgestone | Turanza Revo H |
32.06
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$162
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| Continental | CH95 |
31.97
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$77
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Interesting, new Bridgestone, old Bridgestone, new Yokohama, old Yokohama, old Dunlop, new Firestone, new Dunlop then BFG and Goodyear finish together. The Michelin MXX3 should be in the top 5 or 6 if we had a wet lap times, unless it is really bad in the wet?
Combined Ratings
What if you also want a street tire you can live with? Using Tire Racks subjective ratings for real world road riding, and wet track rating and try track rating and averaging the three we get something like this.
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| Bridgestone | S-02 Pole P |
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| Michelin | Pilot SX MXX3 |
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| Yokohama | AVS Sport |
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| Firestone | Firehawk SZ50 |
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| Dunlop | SP 9000 |
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| Goodyear | Eagle F1 Steel |
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| Bridgestone | RE71 |
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| Bridgestone | Turanza Revo H |
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| Yokohama | AVS Intermediate |
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| BFG | Comp T/A ZR-3 |
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| Dunlop | SP 8000 |
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| Continental | CH95 |
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You may note that quick track laps do not correspond perfectly with highest track ratings. Why, I don't know why? Tire Rack did the tests and it may be that some tires were easier to drive quickly and had more or fewer performance quirks. Maybe it is "marketing reasons" as in profit potential.
Scores less than 7/10 are in red, Subjectively the Bridgestone S-02 Pole Position stays top dog, the MXX3 second, the AVS Sport third, with the warning to be very very careful with the MXX3 in the wet.
I have been told the SZ50 is great in both wet and dry but here it places just above the Dunlop SP 9000.
The RE71 and AVS Intermediate and SP 8000 finish lower because they deliver performance at the expense of comfort and road noise but still represent great performance value, remember they had great lap times!
Tire Value & Conclusions
What if we want some value for our buck? More than one summer would be nice for $800 worth of tires. Let's divide the combined rating by cost.
| Brand |
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| Bridgestone | S-02 Pole P |
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| Michelin | Pilot SX MXX3 |
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| Yokohama | AVS Sport |
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| Firestone | Firehawk SZ50 |
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| Dunlop | SP 9000 |
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| Goodyear | Eagle F1 Steel |
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| Bridgestone | RE71 |
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| Bridgestone | Turanza Revo H |
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| Yokohama | AVS Intermediate |
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| BFG | Comp T/A ZR-3 |
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| Dunlop | SP 8000 |
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| Continental | CH95 |
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GT - Grand Touring
UHP - Ultra High Performance
Max
Perf - Maximum Performance
The cheapest rim protectors (H rated) are the CH95, a wear rating from hell and cheap to boot $77. They ride is not great and are slowest on the track. In complete contrast the RE71 are also inexpensive ($101) but did outstanding on the track but will wear twice as fast as the CH95 and ride just a bit worse. The old favorites SP8000 are a relative bargain ($105) and good wear rating and decent lap times, if like the RE71 lacking in great comfort.
The SZ50 come in fourth thanks to a reasonable mixture of wet and dry lap times and the lowest price I have ever seen for the tires ($135) . I thought they were $160+ tires. The AVS Intermediates have the same price and are about the same "value". Between the two the AVS are quicker but less polished. The Comp T/A are also in this price range but were not remarkable for anything except moderate price.
Tires in the $160 range - AVS Sports, SP 9000, Eagle F1, and Turanza Revo (240). The AVS Sport (180) generally performs better wet and dry but the F1 has a wear rating of 320 and the similar SP 9000 has a great wear rating of 280. In the dry and wet the AVS should kick their butt. (author loves his AVS Sports) as long as they last. The Goodyear seems over priced given it's performance but think of who they sell to, municipalities, and look at the wear rating and it begins to make sense. They meet the bid specifications and wear like iron. I for one think municipalities should drive on "sensible" tires, and leave the fun to us.
In the $180 & up price range the S-02 cost $183 each and won wet handling honors, best street behavior and near the top of the class in dry handling. The Michelin Pilot SX MXX3, the most expensive tire ($195) is at the top of dry performance rankings has a 140 wear rating like the S-02, The S-02 has a two layer wear rating of 180-140 so they should last longer than the Michelins. Michelin SX MXX3 are maximum performance dry road tire with great comfort and the S-02 sacrifice a touch of dry road performance for a large dividend in comfort, wear and wet road performance If cost is of no concern pick what which ever best meets your needs.
It should be noted that the tire prices are very seasonable and these are by far the best prices I have seen on the Tire Rack in a long time.
Looking at comfort, lap times and price the old favorites may be (in the case of the RE71 maybe not) just off the pace performance wise but well off the pace comfort wise. The tire manufactures have learned how to deliver better or equal performance at lower noise level and with a less harsh ride. If you are willing to trade away those niceties you can get performance bargains.
My AVS Sports are starting their 3rd summer with 6/32, not wear bad for the buck. S-02 are at heavy discount because you can now buy S-03. For the $135 each ( www.tirerack.com price) or so for S-02 is difficult to pass up unless you splurge on the S-03.
Buford