Subaru WRX Forum banner

Help me find a set of tires

7K views 25 replies 11 participants last post by  man show 
#1 ·
Vehicle = 2007 WRX Sedan
Suspension Modifications = Stock
Wheels = Stock 17x7
I'm Looking For = Good All Season Tires

My stock tires are still on the car (Bridgestone Potenza RE92 215/45/17 All Season), but they're complete garbage - not to mention, the tread is getting dangerously low - and I don't have any desire to purchase those exact same tires again. I don't have the funds to purchase a nice set of summer wheels/tires and a second set of winter wheels/tires, so I'm going to settle for a set of good all seasons on my stock wheels for now. With this in mind, my first, and probably most important decision, is what size to get. Some things to consider:

215/45/17
Pro + slightly narrower, so probably better winter performance
Pro + slightly less material, so probably lighter weight and better gas mileage
Con - worse dry performance than a wider tire

225/45/17
Con - slightly wider, so probably worse winter performance
Con - slightly more material, so probably heavier weight and worse gas mileage
Pro + better dry performance than a narrower tire

I'm leaning toward 225/45/17 which is a little wider than stock, but from what I've read, they should fit just fine. I live in Maryland and do have to occasionally drive in some snow, but I don't think the extra width of the wider tire will be that much of a negative issue. And the extra dry performance I'd get would probably make up for the slightly worse gas mileage due to the extra weight. So unless anybody can seriously convince me otherwise, I'll probably end up with the slightly wider 225/45/17.

Now, for the tires themselves... I'm probably going to try to get them through a friend who can get them at cost (+/-) through his place of employment and mount the new ones and dispose of the old ones for me for free, so all I have to do is tell him the size and exact model that I'm looking for and throw him a few bucks and he'll take care of the rest. Based on TireRack.com's reviews (basically, I'm not considering any tires that were less than average in winter performance), here are the brands that I might consider purchasing in 225/45/17:

Bridgestone Potenza RE960AS Pole Position
- Excellent wet/dry performance, good/average winter performance, plain looking tread

Continental ContiExtremeContact
- Good all-around performance, plain looking tread

Michelin Pilot Sport A/S Plus
- Excellent dry/wet performance, good winter performance, cool looking tread

Bridgestone Potenza G 019 Grid
- Good all-around performance, plain looking tread

Dunlop SP Sport Signature
- Good all-around performance, slightly more interesting looking tread

Michelin Pilot Exalto A/S
- Good all-around performance, plain looking tread

And now my eyes are a little sore after reading a bunch of reviews and I'm tired, so I'll probably come back to this list later, but I guess that's a start. Thanks for reading and all opinions are welcome.

The bottom line is: quality is more important to me than price. I want a good set of all season tires.
 
See less See more
#2 ·
I went from 215/45/17 Goodyear Eagle F1 GS-D3 (summers) to 225/45/17 Goodyear Eagle F1 All Seasons with hesitation also, about a year ago. But I'm happy with the switch in sizes. My experience is that the slightly wider tire reduces the tendency to roll onto the sidewall when cornering hard (or in other words you won't have to crank up the psi to keep that from happening). I think gas mileage is essentially a wash because even though you may have a bit more mass, it will be offset by a slightly greater circumference (more distance per revolution). Can't help you with your brands though, as I have nothing but great things to say about the Goodyear Eagle F1 series (on a WRX) and have yet to try a different brand. Good luck on your decision!
 
#3 ·
To be honest, I don't know much about tires, so I won't be able to pitch in much here. What I can say though, is this; there are other factors to consider here besides performance. There is a significant difference between the looks and comfort of 225/45 tires vs 215/45 tires. Your car will sit slightly lower with 215s, but your fender gap will be larger. Imo the diameter of the 225s is just right; you can get rid of most of the fender gap without sitting too low and sacrificing driveability. There is also a significant difference in comfort between the two. It may seem trivial at first, but 225/45s are noticeably more comfortable to ride on. Also, 225s on 7" rims provide some room for error when it comes to parallel parking and the like. It is slightly easier to prevent curbing and damage from potholes.

Lastly, if I were you I would consider buying another set of rims and tires so you can have a dedicated summer and winter set. I know it's much easier to say than afford, but I can assure you that in the end you will not regret it.
 
#4 ·
Toyo Proxes 4...they have excellent wet and dry grip and when I lived up north I ocasionally had to drive on them in the snow and they really didnt perform to bad
 
#6 ·
Proxes are terrible in the snow and have less dry grip than most of the others listed here.

225/45/17 Bridgestone Potenza RE960 A/S

Or, better answer, get a seperate dedicated winter and summer tire.
 
#7 ·
I think some proxes are better than others in the snow. The Proxes 4 are being run by alot of guys out here in oregon we all seem to get up and down the mountain in the snow okay. I've not tried the other tires listed so i can't say. I'm very happy with mine.
 
#8 ·
I am fortunate that I have a lot of friends with similar types of cars that let eachother drive them. I've tried most of the different types of rubber. None of these choices are "bad" really and to really differentiate them, it takes some comparison effort.
 
#9 ·
I have had a lot of different tires over the years on different vehicles. If you want some pretty unbiased info on which tires are right and even what features of tires benefit in different ways, go to tirerack.com. I always went for directional tire (really because I didn't know their fundamental benefit was rain control), but for an all season it's not really a key feature. . . If you deal with occasional snow, but altogether you drive in all conditions, you want an all season. I live where it snows a lot, and I've had different sets of snow tires before, with summer wheels and tires to mount up in the warmth. Determine the use for your tires, first. You said you weren't as concerned about the cost for the tires as getting a good tire. You get longer tire life from BOTH sets of tires by having a set for each purpose (reason being each tire was designed to wear in different conditions - like how a snow tire gets eaten by hot road weather and sport tires stay brittle and spin in the winter, causing unnecessary wear). So you're actually saving money by buying 2 sets in the long run. Keep in mind you do not have to have another set of wheels. Places like Discount will generally swap the tires over for free if you bought them there. AND you can have different sizes for the snow (205/50-17s) vs summer (225/45-17). Right now you only need to get your set of summer tires, so you can get stickier rubber for now, and 6 months from now you can shell out the other 350 or so for winter tires. I realize that costs more up front now. . . But in my mind, the car will be safer, and more fun to drive, as it will handle at its best in either condition. So value-wise, if you have no objections to spending a little more to get something better, get 2 sets. Because snow tires will outperform street tires any day, no matter how good the all-season is. Also, summer performance tires will grip better all summer long than even the best all season once again. That being said - If you live where it only gets "occasional" snow that usually gets plowed, get all seasons. If you get a lot of rain, get directional tires. As far as all seasons, Nitto Neo Gens are also a pretty good bet, as street and higher speed performance is good without a center groove, they can evacuate water quickly because of the tread pattern. There are lots of choices, and it comes down to your driving style and what feels good to you. I don't drive very aggressively, but on the chance that I need it, I want a tire that will hold the road tight for me. Getting 2 sets made sense for my scenario, and my next purchase will be good summer tires as I dislike the stock Bridgestone tires the car came with. I'm reaching 25k and they have plenty of tread, but they're far to soft in the side walls for me. Good luck, let us all know what you get and your response. I hope this can help you.
 
#10 ·
Man, you know, I really want to do that, but I just made it through a really bad billing cycle and all of my savings is gone. If I do get another set of wheels and summer tires, I'll be putting myself in debt, so that's why I was thinking about just getting a set of all seasons for now and maybe next year I'll be in a better financial situation to afford 2 sets of wheels/tires dedicated to summer/winter performance. Or.. I could stretch out the life of my stock tires as long as possible and try to save up and get winter tires put on this winter and another set of wheels w/ summer tires next summer. I just need to think about this a little more... if I had some extra spending money, the decision would be much easier.

:: sigh ::

Thanks for everyone's input so far though. It's really helpful.
 
#11 ·
Bridgestone RE960s cost about as much as a cheap set of rims and summer tires. Seriously. Your cost estimates are off. If you can store an extra set, it's not a financial strain to buy winter and summer sets. You're not getting shorter treadlife unless you buy extreme tires. In fact, there are lots of summer tires that cost less per mile than all seasons.

225/45/17 and a 17x8 +50 you can get for $99 each for the rim and $85 each for General UHP tires. Mounting and balancing is free. Shipping is dependent on address but about $50 total. For roughly $800, you can have a mounted set of summer tires on rims show up at your front door courtesy of tire rack. (No links, not allowed)
 
#12 ·
Sorry, I was off a little bit on the tire cost. My last set was like $85 a piece for my snow tires. . . those were Michelin X-Ices. They were AWESOME. . . But back to the point. Sorry, the current price for snow tires it's like 100-130 a piece for them. That's for a set of 205/50s, and 215/45s. My pricing I stated at 350 did not include wheels, but as you're using the same size wheels, you could keep the tires alone sitting in the garage. Either way. So if you're on a tight budget, I'd say look at the Nitto Neo Gens, Goodyear Eagle GTs, Sumitomo HTR+s, and the Kumho Ecsta ASXs. ALL of those tires should keep you around $100 a piece for them. They also all offer long tread life. Really check out the info Tire Rack has about which tire is right for you. Good luck, buddy.
 
#13 ·
"I'd say look at the Nitto Neo Gens, Goodyear Eagle GTs, Sumitomo HTR+s, and the Kumho Ecsta ASXs."

A long list of tires that are very poorly thought of by most tire experts...

Check out:
Continental ContiExtremeContact
Yokohama AVID W4S
 
#15 ·
reviews are good and all...but theres not that many people that review tires on subarus and tires definitely react different on different cars...especially AWD cars vs. 2WD cars so when ever you reading reviews try and find people that drive a similar car with a similar size and driving style
 
#16 ·
Update: I got into grad school and I'll be starting this fall, so the extra set of wheels and dedicated summer/winter tires are unfortunately out of the question for several years. My stock Bridgestone Potenza RE92 215/45/17 All-Seasons have almost 37,000 miles on them and they have just worn through the first wear mark. Although I could probably squeeze several thousand more miles (and maybe even another year) out of them, I don't want to become a hazard to myself or other people on the road, so I'll probably be replacing them some time before winter this year. I've done a little searching and have pretty much settled on 225/45/17 as the size. As far as the exact tire, I'm heavily leaning towards Michelin's Pilot Sport A/S Plus. Tire Rack ranks them as #1 in the category of Ultra High Performance All-Season Tires (superior wet and dry traction, excellent winter/snow traction, and superior/excellent comfort). Does anybody have any personal experience with that exact tire?
 
#17 ·
Odd that I was also just looking at reviews for the Michelins PilotSport A/S Plus...

just purchased on 08 WRX Hatchback, livin in Sonoma County, CA with plenty of curvaceous roads and the Potenzas suck... car has less than 9k but I want no part of actually agressively entering any corners with these things...

after I'll be looking into suspension to eliminate excessive roll.
 
#18 ·
Nice.. well if you do get them before I do, try to post some WRX-specific comments and let everyone here know how you like them. Sometimes it can be difficult to judge a tire based on reviews from TireRack.com because tires can react differently on different cars and bad comments get thrown in here and there, but the majority of the available information makes them sound like they're some of the best All Seasons on the market right now.
 
#19 ·
Get two sets. Better in the longrun. Only costs you a second set of rims which you can get for cheap. Lots of ppl on nasioc selling summer sets on rims for ~$400. Put some winters on your stockers and voala!

I wouldn't recommend the Pilots. They're not good in the snow. If you don't care about snow, why are you getting All Seasons anyway? Stick to the Conti's which are very reasonable or the bridgestones which are cheap. Problem with a lot of the reviews is some of these tires are summer tread designs with all season compounds used. Great if you're just worried about a little cold weather but not good in any kind of snowfall. Unfortunately, they'll be better dry than a more deeply grooved design more appropriate for an all season, especially in steering response.
 
#20 ·
I'm also running out of tread on my stock tires and am looking for a set of good all seasons. I'm leaning toward the Goodyear Eagle GT's, they're not that expensive, have decent traction in the snow, and all of the reviews on tirerack from WRX's are excellent. My friend has them on his Volvo and loves them also. Just curious if anyone here has any experience with them?
 
#21 ·
I'm in a tough spot. I just moved back in with the folks in an effort to save money for school, so it's just not possible for me to blow all kinds of money on my car right now. Mosc, I definitely see your point and I agree that it's better in the long run to have specific tires for summer and winter, but there's simply no convincing my parents that I need another set of wheels and two complete sets of high performance tires. While I'm living at home, I need to honor their opinions as much as I might not like it. So, basically, I need one set of good tires that will (1) be safe, (2) handle decently year round, and (3) last a while, so All-Seasons fit the bill for me right now. Living in MD, I only see snow a couple of times every year, so I'm not terribly worried about that. I just need another set of tires to get me through several more years and unless I can find a much better job than the one I have right now, it looks like I really only have one option.

Mosc: I'm just curious, how do you know Michelin PilotSport A/S Pluses are bad in the snow? Do you have personal experience with them or know someone who does? TireRack gave them a pretty good snow rating compared to all of the other All-Season tires. They were actually ranked superior/excellent across the board in all conditions.
 
#23 ·
Just ordered: 225/45-17 Michelin Pilot Sport A/S Plus

From: DiscountTireDirect.com
Price: $630.00 exactly ($175.00 per tire, free shipping, $70.00 mail-in rebate)

ATTENTION: DiscountTireDirect.com is currently offering a $70.00 mail-in rebate on any set of 4 Michelin or 4 BFG (not including precept) tires until 9/5/09. If anybody is interested in those particular tires, that's a great deal. My grand total was less than TireRack.com which would have been $699.02 ($165.00 per tire and $39.02 shipping).

I hope to have the Michelins mounted and balanced on my stock wheels some time before winter hits. My stock RE92s are almost out of tread, but they've lasted 39,000 miles and counting so I guess I can't complain too much.

It's a happy day for me and a sad day for my credit card. Oh well... I think I did alright.
 
#24 ·
I hope they work out for you in the snow. I bought two sets last year, which held up my stage 2 progress until the summer months....buying new RE070s in the late fall, then turning around buying used silver STI rims and LM-25 blizzaks. A big chunk of chance was thrown around for about 6 months. But, I love the fact I have perfect tires for warm and cold months. I hope the All seasons treat you right John. I know for a fact tha the 92s suck in slush and snow when down low on tread.
 
#25 ·
Hey, thanks for the kind thought. The way I figure it, the stock RE92 All Seasons have kept me on the road for 2 1/2 years now and have gotten me through several small snow storms without incident, so I'm probably going to be just fine with a good set of All Seasons for the next couple of years. As of right now, the warehouse is out of stock and they said they might get some in 3-5 business days. I'm not in a rush since I'm planning to squeeze a few more miles out of my RE92s, but it's nice to know that I'll have a really nice set waiting for me when the time comes. I think my next semi-major expenses are going to be brake pads and possibly a clutch... I think mine might be starting to slip. The next mod I'd like to do is a set of swaybars and endlinks.
 
#26 ·
New meats!

Michelin Pilot Sport A/S Plus 225/45/17

Installed this morning. Enjoy the pics :rocks:
 

Attachments

This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top