Anything better than SO-3's ?

[Mirroredshades]

Is there anything better than SO-3's ? I love them but it's time for a new set so I thought I'd ask. To narrow the opinions down, here are my conditions:

I don't care about price.
I don't care about wear.
I don't care about rain or snow.

Cornering hard is all that matters.

I did a search already and read a handful of posts so don't flame me too bad.

 

[evof575gtc]

KUMHO ECSTA MX
but are known to chunk.
http://www.nsxprime.com/forums/showthread.php?t=45910

interesting read:
Cars with run-flat tires are not only faster, they also brake better.
With run-flat tires, steering is even more precise. A BMW 5 Series shaved 10 seconds off a lap on the NURBURGRING NORDSCHLEIFE...

from BMW MAGAZINE 3/2005

 

[2slow2speed]

Is there anything better than SO-3's ? I love them but it's time for a new set so I thought I'd ask. To narrow the opinions down, here are my conditions:

I don't care about price.
I don't care about wear.
I don't care about rain or snow.

Cornering hard is all that matters.

I did a search already and read a handful of posts so don't flame me too bad.

R-compounds

But the sizes are limited

MPSC, Toyo RA1, Kumho VictorRacers V700/V710, Pirelli Corsa, Yokos A032/A048, you won't get *maximum grip* when cold.

Cornering hard is one thing, the other thing to keep in mind is *do I know what to do if the car starts to come around???* that's a bigger question, all tires will give up eventually, knowing what to do might be the smarter thing to think about/learn about *first*, otherwise you are setting yourself to a lot of hurt later.

BTW: If you drive at the edge on the street, then you need to *really* rethink/evaluate what you are doing/thinking, eventually you *will* have a bad wreck, it's only a matter of time and the street is *no place* to push your car to the limits, take your car to the track!!!!

Just my 2 cents..

 

[Gerard van Santen]

The last 7 years I used first the S02 and than the S03. They both are amazing tires in the rain and dry.

Now my wheels are dressed with Continental Sportcontact 2. These shoes are almost as good as the S03. And I think come very close to the performances S03 tires show. The sidewalls are softer but are (because of that) better tunable with tirepressure. Besides the performance in the wet and dry, these tires last at least two times more than the S03's.

I even tried the Contis on three occasional track days. It was fun. Understeer and oversteer was very predictable. Sliding began slightly earlier than I was used to feel with the Bidgs but it felt safe and neutral.
For road use I think the Contis are comparable with the Brids. You have to drive like hell to feel the difference on public roads.

I think if performances of tires are the same or almost the same, wear and costs will be the second and third to consider. In that object I find the Contis fantastic tires.

 

[Dave Hardy]

If price, wear, and wet performance truely don't matter, then you need R Compounds. Kumho 710's are the best for autox, but I hear that the Hoosier S05 is a better road race tire as it puts up with the heat better. Which would be a better street tire is a coin toss. Plan on dropping somewhere around a grand on them every 1000 miles or so. They will stick better than any street tire though.

 

[nsxtasy]

Is there anything better than SO-3's ?

That's a very good question, and comes at a good time in the tire industry. The Bridgestone Potenza S-03 Pole Position has been considered by many to be the best performing general application street tire for quite a few years now. Have competitors come up with anything better? Yes, they have, but only recently. Several other companies have come up with new designs that are reported to perform better than the S-03 in most conditions, including side-by-side tests by the Tire Rack. Three new models, in particular, consistently test better than the S-03: Dunlop SP Sport Maxx, Goodyear F1 GS-D3, and Yokohama Advan Neova AD07. The Goodyear also tends to have a price advantage over the others. Size availability may be a problem, though; for example, there is no Yoko AD07 size available in North America that is suitable for the front of an NSX.

Some people have suggested R compound track tires. R compound tires are indeed even stickier. The downsides are extremely rapid tire wear, lack of warning as their limits are approached, poor traction on wet pavement, and the need for the tires to warm up to grip effectively. If you're willing to live with those downsides, then they might be an option.

One other option is that there are a few tires available that, in many respects, lie in between the top-of-the-line street tires and R compound track tires. I'm referring specifically to the Falken Azenis RT-615 and the Hankook R-S2 Z212, both of which are available from Discount Tire but not the Tire Rack. On dry pavement, these tires grip better than the top-of-the-line tires, although not quite as well as an R compound track tire. Their wet performance is not as good as the top-of-the-line tires but better than the R compounds. Similarly, their treadlife falls in between the other two types of tires. So either of these specialty tires might be the best option for your particular needs.

KUMHO ECSTA MX

Most comparisons and tests have indicated that the S-03 performs better than the MX in both wet and dry conditions. The MX, which is the top-of-the-line street tire from Kumho, is a popular tire primarily because it offers performance that is better than budget performance tires like the Yokohama ES100, at a price that is significantly less than the S-03 and other top-of-the-line tires. The advantage of the MX over the S-03 is its price; the S-03 offers better performance.

 

[DeNguyen]

I liked the Michellin PS2 better than the S03's. This for wet/dry non R-compund tire. For just dry weather The goodyear SC's are probably the best Z rated dry tire.

 

[nsx13]

I agree with both Ken's comments. Recently bought a set of the new Falken RT615s for my NSX, and used them for the first time on the track this past Saturday. 2 thumbs up!! I had been using Kumho V700s this year, and I have to admit that these tires really grip and actually seemed to be more resistant to heat than the V700s which are an R-compound. Their dimensions are actually wider: ex. my other set of Falken's (Beta 451) in front I run 235-40-17, but with the RT615, the 225-45-17 I actually had a bit of rubbing during some elevation changes which wasn't a surprise because when I had both sets off the car, the 615s were visually wider. Same thing with the rear 275-40-17.

 

[nsxtasy]

Their dimensions are actually wider

Their predecessor, the Falken Azenis RT-215, were notorious for being larger than other tires of the same nominal size. I've heard from others that, unlike the RT-215, the RT-615 is sized normally, i.e. about the same as other tires; this is the first report that I've heard saying that they're bigger.

It's possible that the rubbing was at least partly because the 225/45-17 has a larger outer diameter than the 235/40-17 (it should, just based on the nominal sizes), and not just because it's wider (which it shouldn't be, but I'm not disputing you when you say it is).

BTW, which V700 were you using - the Ecsta V700, or the V700 Victoracer?

 

[Edgemts]

I liked the Michellin PS2 better than the S03's. This for wet/dry non R-compund tire. For just dry weather The goodyear SC's are probably the best Z rated dry tire.

I don't like Michelin, but the PS2's are great tires. Almost all the top running teams in the One lap were on PS2's.
I would definitely recommend them for all conditions, worked great on wet skid pad, standing water on the race track at over 100 and great in the dry both street and track.

 

[Mirroredshades]

Good info guys! This set will primarily be my road tires with occasional track use. I'm definately going R compound for my track wheels though.

 

[nsxtasy]

I don't like Michelin, but the PS2's are great tires.

The Michelin Pilot Sport PS2 is an excellent tire and came out slightly better overall than the Goodyear F1 GS-D3, which makes it one of the best around. However, there are no PS2 sizes available (in North America, anyway) suitable for the front of an NSX.

 

[nsx13]

BTW, which V700 were you using - the Ecsta V700, or the V700 Victoracer?[/QUOTE]


Ken, I was using the Ecsta V700. If/when I go back to r-compounds again, I'm going with Toyo RA-1's.

 

[ANYTIME]

I can't comment on SO3's, but I can tell you the Goodyear F1 GS-D3 tires are much more tire then the stock Bridgestones Potenzas I took off my car. I put the Goodyears on before the last canyon run and they were stuck like glue to the road, unlike the bridgestones, which would push and get tail happy often. I'm not racing, just doing a little spirited driving and have yet to find the Goodyear F1 GS-D3 limit.

 

[BITeR]

I found the S-02 and S-03 to be on the soft side as far as side wall stiffness goes.

I went from stock A022 (15/16) to S-02 in front and s-03 in the back and the difference was huge as far as ride stiffness and steering response/turn in sharpness.

The change made me look at the stock design of the AA022s, where they made the side walls very stiff compared to other tyres. They work extremely well with the soft spring stock 91 NSX. Now with the S02/03 on I want stiffer springs (i did not feel that way with the a022s). Will consider runflats next time/A022s or any other tyre with stiffer side walls for sure.

s03 - will suit most cars and most drivers, but I wish there was a number or a rating on side wall stiffness, because it sure makes a big difference on the NSX.

 

[Gerard van Santen]

I found the S-02 and S-03 to be on the soft side as far as side wall stiffness goes.

The S03 has one of the stiffest side walls compared to other high performance tires.

 

[BITeR]

The S03 has one of the stiffest side walls compared to other high performance tires.

Probably true, but I doubt they're stiffer than the NSX specific a022s and run flats. Never said the s03s are bad in any way, they're not. Just my experience when driving the stock tyres and s03 back to back.

 

[emdoller]

Is there anything better than SO-3's ? I love them but it's time for a new set so I thought I'd ask. To narrow the opinions down, here are my conditions:

I don't care about price.
I don't care about wear.
I don't care about rain or snow.

Cornering hard is all that matters.

I did a search already and read a handful of posts so don't flame me too bad.

Simply stated, no there's not :biggrin:

 

[gtr]

Is there anything better than SO-3's ?

I'd say Yokohama Advan 048 OEM lotus elise

Or the Bridgestone RE070 OEM for STi and NSX-R (but not availabe in all sizes here :frown

My evo comes with Advan 046's and there are close to the 032R and better than falken azenis

 

[nsxtasy]

I'd say Yokohama Advan 048 OEM lotus elise

Or the Bridgestone RE070 OEM for STi and NSX-R (but not availabe in all sizes here :frown

My evo comes with Advan 046's and there are close to the 032R and better than falken azenis

I assumed that the question was about general-application street tires available in a variety of sizes including some that fit the NSX, and not tires made specifically for some non-NSX vehicle, or R compound track tires like the Yokohama A048.

 

[BioBanker]

My friend has the Hankook RS2's that Ken is talking about on his S2000 and he is swearing up and down by them.

His reviews have suggested that the difference in grip between those tires and the R comounds he has driven, on the street anyways, is not discernable. He then points to the depth of the tread and says how when its wet, he will probably have a better wet tire than the better street tires. I probably agree with him.

I would have bought those *if* I could get them in the sizes I wanted.

I ended up getting TOYO RA1 R compounds for daily driving in my NSX. 215/275. The car feels great. I still have tons of tread left, but from my experience daily driving the RA1s in the past, I am not looking forward to when they're bald, or later in the fall when it gets cold (but is still too early to put the car away). That is the challenge of R coumpounds daily. When its warm and dry, you are laughing at the grip your car has. When its colder (say a few degrees above freezing), the tires are dangerous. When they're bald (2/3rds of their life) and its wet, the tires are dangerous. I am not looking forward to the day I show up at the track and its raining and I cannot drive the car with the *track tires* I chose because they're not new.

 

[NSXLuvr]

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tests/testResultsModel.jsp?tireMake=Michelin&tireModel=Pilot+Sport+PS2

some objective data. personally for street use I would go with S03's because in my experience they last longer.

 

[gtr]

I assumed that the question was about general-application street tires available in a variety of sizes including some that fit the NSX, and not tires made specifically for some non-NSX vehicle, or R compound track tires like the Yokohama A048.

I havent' tried it but i'd bet the new Falken Azenis RT-615 would be better in dry than S03's based on if the RT615 is better than the azenis sport.

I see the RE050A has the right sizes. I wonder how those compare to SO3's? Most awesome tires doesn't come with our OEM sizes :frown: