Help with tires...

[richn001]

Hey, all. I am looking to replace my stock tires on my '05 NSX. The car came with BF Goodrich, but I am considering Yokos or Pirelli's. Can anyone recommend anything? I am researching and need a little help.

FYI, I don't race the car and usually just drive for fun because I live in NYC.

Thanks!

Rich

 

[Carrot Top]

If you have the stock wheel size and your not concerned with tire wear, I would recommend the factory installed Bridgestones (Potenza RE040). If tire wear is an issue, the Goodyear Eagle F1 GS-D3 are a great choice and reasonably priced, i'm on my second set of Goodyears and love them.
You will get the best performance from the Bridgestones, however the Goodyears come close and get much better wear. My Goodyears lasted twice as long as the Bridgestones.

 

[ANYTIME]

If you have the stock wheel size and your not concerned with tire wear, I would recommend the factory installed Bridgestones (Potenza RE040). If tire wear is an issue, the Goodyear Eagle F1 GS-D3 are a great choice and reasonably priced, i'm on my second set of Goodyears and love them.
You will get the best performance from the Bridgestones, however the Goodyears come close and get much better wear. My Goodyears lasted twice as long as the Bridgestones.

I strongly disagree. I had the bridgestones (in the same 17/17 sizes) and then bought the F1 GS-D3's. I thought the Bridgestones were pretty good, until I bought the Goodyears. The performance of the Goodyears was night and day compared to the Bridgestones. No track events, only autocrosses and street driving. YMMV

 

[Carrot Top]

I strongly disagree. I had the bridgestones (in the same 17/17 sizes) and then bought the F1 GS-D3's. I thought the Bridgestones were pretty good, until I bought the Goodyears. The performance of the Goodyears was night and day compared to the Bridgestones. No track events, only autocrosses and street driving. YMMV

Did you have the RE040 factory Bridgestones made specifically for your year NSX?

 

[Carrot Top]

I strongly disagree. I had the bridgestones (in the same 17/17 sizes) and then bought the F1 GS-D3's. I thought the Bridgestones were pretty good, until I bought the Goodyears. The performance of the Goodyears was night and day compared to the Bridgestones. No track events, only autocrosses and street driving. YMMV

Did you have the RE040 factory Bridgestones made specifically for your year NSX?

 

[awsomr1]

My vote goes to Bridgestone SO3

 

[mickeylex]

My vote goes to Bridgestone SO3

Good vote, but the S03 isn't produced anymore. If you can find some leftover stock in NSX sizes, I'd choose the S03 as well.

 

[Acura NsX Pilot]

I think we would be better able to suggest something if we knew more about your driving habits and usage. If you plan on using her thru the winter you might want to consider all season tires. I only drive my occasionally here during the winter and mostly during the summer and I prefer to just use the stock Yokohamas.

 

[ANYTIME]

Did you have the RE040 factory Bridgestones made specifically for your year NSX?

Yes.

 

[NSXGMS]

If you have the stock wheel size and your not concerned with tire wear, I would recommend the factory installed Bridgestones (Potenza RE040). If tire wear is an issue, the Goodyear Eagle F1 GS-D3 are a great choice and reasonably priced, i'm on my second set of Goodyears and love them.
You will get the best performance from the Bridgestones, however the Goodyears come close and get much better wear. My Goodyears lasted twice as long as the Bridgestones.

I've driven on both and the GS-D3 performs significantly better in every area than the RE040. And it's much cheaper. Don't have a lot of wet performance experience but in the dry the GS-D3s have it. I've heard OK things about the GS-D3 wet performance though.

IMO the GS-D3 is the absolute best all-around tire for the NSX, period, taking price into cosideration.

For AutoX and track use the Falken Azenis RT-615 are truly unmatched for price/performance.

 

[NSXGMS]

Good vote, but the S03 isn't produced anymore. If you can find some leftover stock in NSX sizes, I'd choose the S03 as well.

The GS-D3's rating on tirerack.com is just a smidge below the SO3s. I believe the SO3 comes in at #2 and the GS-D3 comes in at #3. But since the S03 costs substantially more than the GS-D3 the choice is a no-brainer.

 

[mickeylex]

The GS-D3's rating on tirerack.com is just a smidge below the SO3s. I believe the SO3 comes in at #2 and the GS-D3 comes in at #3. But since the S03 costs substantially more than the GS-D3 the choice is a no-brainer.

Agree. On pure performance, I'd still choose the So3, but on performance vs. $$, the Goodyear beats it by a good margin.

It's also a no brainer since the S03 is no longer available in NSX sizes from Tirerack (or probably any other retailer/etailer).

 

[nathan]

I think we would be better able to suggest something if we knew more about your driving habits and usage. If you plan on using her thru the winter you might want to consider all season tires. I only drive my occasionally here during the winter and mostly during the summer and I prefer to just use the stock Yokohamas.

Agreed,

If you plan on driving your car year round in all conditions, you really cant go wrong with the Pirelli PZero Nero All Season tires. They offer excellent treadwear, and great performance for an all season tire. I ran them on my 2003 Evo 8, and they handled great in the rain and snow. Most importantly they handled great in warm weather conditions, and I was able to get 30k on them easy.

If you dont track your NSX, there really is no reason to spend alot of money on the Goodyears or the BFGs.

 

[NSXGMS]

Agreed,

If you plan on driving your car year round in all conditions, you really cant go wrong with the Pirelli PZero Nero All Season tires. They offer excellent treadwear, and great performance for an all season tire. I ran them on my 2003 Evo 8, and they handled great in the rain and snow. Most importantly they handled great in warm weather conditions, and I was able to get 30k on them easy.

If you dont track your NSX, there really is no reason to spend alot of money on the Goodyears or the BFGs.

Except I don't see a PZero Nero 245 or 255 40/17 tire offered on tirerack.com.

Most Prime members don't drive their NSXs in snow or ice anyway. :wink:

The wet traction rating for the GS-D3 is actually higher than the all-season PZero Nero tire.

If you track your NSX you should not be on GS-D3s or SO3s honestly. Those would be the lowest rung tire I would ever run at track and that's only if I had nothing else. The Azenis are acceptable but those are still street tires, really. One should be running R compounds exclusively at the track, ideally.

On days where I don't want to switch tires and/or I drive to the track I run the Azenis.

 

[PaulL]

I used to have factory Bridgestones, then bought OEM Yokohamas as my next tet.

I MUCH preferred the Yokos.
They have better grip and stiffer sidewalls.

BUT ... they don't seem to be wearing as well, and the stiffer sidewall means they transmit more road shock to the car.

 

[richn001]

Thanks for all the info guys! I appreciate it and this is a tough decision especially if you are undereducated on tires. I dont race or track my car. I mostly drive it in NYC at night or on the weekends. Occassionally I will take a nice long drive on a 'get away from the city' weekend. I do drive in the winter if there is no precipataton. At the moment, I am debating between the Goodyear F1s and Yokos(Parada for the front and Advan S.4. for the rear). Im not so sure on the Yokos because the front and rear will have different tread patterns. After reading comparisons from Tirerack.com (Thanks carrottop), I want to pick something near the top of the list and with your opinions, I can make a more solid decision. Thanks!

 

[mickeylex]

At the moment, I am debating between the Goodyear F1s and Yokos(Parada for the front and Advan S.4. for the rear). Im not so sure on the Yokos because the front and rear will have different tread patterns.

Rich, it's not a good idea to mix tires (even from the same manufacturer) b/c it will affect the way your car handles and can be unsafe and/or unpredictable.
Unless you have personal experience or have driven a NSX with that tire setup, you might want to keep the tires the same on all four corners. Play it safe.

Your best bet will be the Goodyear F1 GS D3. Lot's of people here on Prime like that tire and its really a good bang for the buck tire considering the high level of performance you get.

 

[Carrot Top]

Thanks for all the info guys! I appreciate it and this is a tough decision especially if you are undereducated on tires. I dont race or track my car. I mostly drive it in NYC at night or on the weekends. Occassionally I will take a nice long drive on a 'get away from the city' weekend. I do drive in the winter if there is no precipataton. At the moment, I am debating between the Goodyear F1s and Yokos(Parada for the front and Advan S.4. for the rear). Im not so sure on the Yokos because the front and rear will have different tread patterns. After reading comparisons from Tirerack.com (Thanks carrottop), I want to pick something near the top of the list and with your opinions, I can make a more solid decision. Thanks!

No problem at all, glad I could help.
Where in NYC do you live? I'm originally from the Bronx, lived in NJ most of my life, now living in FLA for the last 15 years.

Mike

 

[NSXGMS]

Your best bet will be the Goodyear F1 GS D3. Lot's of people here on Prime like that tire and its really a good bang for the buck tire considering the high level of performance you get.

Word. Great performance (similar to the discontinued Bridgestone SO3) at a bargain price--and availability is no problem.

Set of two 205/45-16 & two 245/40-17 will run you $590 @ tirerack.com. (The 255/40-17 is on sale, though, and would save $28 making it $562.)

 

[comtec]

What about the kumho ecsta mx (ku15)? They are listed as "extreme performance summer" tires compared to the goodyear "max performance summer". They would be $180 cheeper per set. They also have a #2 rating. The F1 GS-D3 looks too be a wet performance tire with good dry "excels in wet conditions by delivering class-leading hydroplaning resistance and traction, as well as offers competitive dry performance". If he is like me and only going to drive in dry conditions would it not be better to go with a max dry performance tire like the kumho "ultimate level of dry road performance while maintaining good wet traction"?

 

[mickeylex]

Kumho MX is also a great choice for a street peformance tire. The price on that tire is great, it performs well in the summer, but the treadwear might be less than the Goodyear.

 

[NSXGMS]

What about the kumho ecsta mx (ku15)? They are listed as "extreme performance summer" tires compared to the goodyear "max performance summer". They would be $180 cheeper per set. They also have a #2 rating. The F1 GS-D3 looks too be a wet performance tire with good dry "excels in wet conditions by delivering class-leading hydroplaning resistance and traction, as well as offers competitive dry performance". If he is like me and only going to drive in dry conditions would it not be better to go with a max dry performance tire like the kumho "ultimate level of dry road performance while maintaining good wet traction"?

Kumho MX are a great tire but I don't believe they offer a front size for the NSX. The Yoko Advan AD07 also falls into this category.

The GS-D3 is not a "wet performance" tire. I would label it as performing remarkably well in the wet considering the level of performance it offers in the dry. I think this tire fits your description above best considering available sizes for the NSX.

The Falken Azenis RT-615 are quite simply one of the best dry-performing tires available but don't maintain good wet traction.

I'm afraid if you're looking for a bargain the GS-D3 is really the only tire that's going to deliver the dry performance while performing well in the wet.