What tires are you all running? Reviews?

[m3f_dignan]

Anyone have any experience with the Falken FK-451? It has almost identical tread pattern to the Michelin Pilot Sport and Toyo Proxes T1-S, but with a better treadwear rating of 280.



I'm asking because they're rather cheap at around $550 for the set but they have good reviews and better treadwear than most Z rated tires.



I know the saying is true, you get what you pay for. But I'm looking for a tire that will last more than 15k miles with some spirited driving mixed in with daily driving.



I've used FK-451s all the way around for the last two years and I get about 12k on the rear and 15k on the fronts with lots of spirited driving.

[m3f_Tpb31_67f747186d]

Well, I was running the SO-3's and I loved them. Now I got Dunlop Pilot Sport Race mounted last night. I have a drift/track event this weekend, so I'll let you know how they perform. Mind you though, these aren't for people on a budget.

[m3f_PurpleM3Pursuit]

GSD3's here.. best tire i have ever had and it is INCREDIBLE in the rain.. #1



edit: now that i think about it.. i got these tires when my car had 56K on it.. now my car has 72.. not bad.. still on them too.. they look alright and we had a downpour last night.. ran just fine at highspeeds.. so im going to give the wear rating an A+ (and yes i drive my car hard in the turns.. so it would be amazing to see how they last on a car that isn't driven so hard)

[m3f_Psychotron]

I'm running Kuhmo Ecsta MX tires. Monster grip, pretty aggressive tread and sidewall pattern. Plus, you can't beat the price. They are definitely one of the best bang for the bucks. I bought them at my local Discount Tire. I was too impatient for tirerack.com

[m3f_M3HighwayPilot]

Haven't had Falkens on the M, but I went through about 7 sets of Falken tires on my previous cars and they were some of the best tires I've ever driven. At the time Falken was basically unknown and I bought them on the advice of a friend who was involved with the testing of the tires. Great tire at an unreal price.



My $.02 cents on the Falken issue.





Of course that being said I got about 20K out of my Pilots, which were brand new when I bought the car, and they were good tires. But based on the good word of mouth here (Purple99M3) and reviews from other sources I just order a set of Goodyear F1's, which will be my first experience with Goodyears.



Also upgrading to Billsteins at the same time as the tires, should be a nice bump handling performance.

[m3f_M///MILLER]

The Michellins pilot ps2 are better than the original. Thats what I have and they're awesome.



I totally agree, and they are what I have on mine all the way around.



There is a post here or on bf.c with a link to Tire Rack doing a test on the best of the best performance tires, and the Pilot PS2's were favored by a pretty big margin.



This testing is what helped me make up my mind between the PS2's and the SO3's.



I've only had them a month, but I LOVE them!!



If you are looking for a great bang for the buck, I liked the Yok AVS's too.



I think you will be happy with the extra money spent on the PS2's. They are made of a new composite that supposedly wears better too.



I bought mine from Tire Kingdom, and it all cost me just under $900 with road hazard and everything. My buddies the manager there, but they say they will beat anyones price, so shop around and hit them with your best deal.

[m3f_black sheep]

Wanna Try the Economical ONE??



I have always been on Dunlop 8080 and 9000sport, and always been Happy.

This time i decided to try the cheap option, just to see.

I found the Hankook Ventus K102 to be the cheapest option at 115$ a tire.mounted, balanced n ready to go.

(cant beleive the price??its all true)(its good for prices in Europe) :thumbsup:

I am a skeptic of buying cheap n expecting quality, You do get what you pay for!!!

BUT REMEMBER

Where i live in Spain its all dry weather most of the year, so i dont have to take WET into too much consideration.

I drive my M3 Daily to work, and i average about 37 Miles a day

I drive it nice n calm some days,, and i race her whenever opportunity arrives.



So being sceptical of the tires i put them on, and the first week is all good, exept for that the hankook garage didnt balance the whells correctly,l so I take her to my fav. garage for just that, and she comes out perfect as always.

(got a few mumbles about the tires, from the balancing guy at the michelin place,,but i pretended to not take any notice).



I am now entering week 5 with the Ventus K102, And heres the dreadful news...........

I still have NO complaints what so ever, they are gripping the road, they are quite, and

and far as i can tell upp till this day, I have made a good buy for the money spent.



BUT i hear ya all say just wait n youll see, they´ll fail on you, cuse they are cheap Sh***T.

Well thats all we can do, wait n see, Ill keep posting about them in here as time, (weeks) roll by, and iLl let you know what happens, But so far I feel I done a Winner buy.



BS

[m3f_Cleveland]

Yokohama AVS ES100 :thumbsup:



Amazing grip without the cost of severe tire wear.Excellent strait line and lateral stability. Always firmly planted to the ground even in wet weather conditions.



http://www.yokohamatire.com/images/TireFeatures/AVSes100_base.gif

[m3f_KUpolo]

Yokohama AVS ES100 :thumbsup:



Amazing grip without the cost of severe tire wear.Excellent strait line and lateral stability. Always firmly planted to the ground even in wet weather conditions.



http://www.yokohamatire.com/images/TireFeatures/AVSes100_base.gif





I ran these on one of my old cars and found them to number than hell. I would never buy another set of Yokohamas

[m3f_Max M3]

Another S03 user here. Excellent in any condition... better than the Pilot Sports I had before.

However, since Brdgestone has raised the price of the S03s to beyond what I consider reasonable, I will replace them with the NEW Pilot Sport PS2s. Don't be fooled by the ho-hum tread pattern, it's the rubber compound that puts them on the leading edge of tire technology.

[m3f_98technovlt]

The F1 GS D3's I have are as good as the S03's IMO and have lasted me ~18K on the rears and I'm at 22K on the fronts with 30-40% left!!! Surprisingly good tread wear...

[m3f_mbanks21]

Im running SO3 as well and I love them. Id say SO3 or Toyo T1-S

[m3f_SleepRM3]

S-03s are a bit noisey. Anyone try Continental Sport Contact 2s on the M3?



BTW, I'd like to do 245/40-17 all around on 9 x 17 BBS RG-Rs (42-mm offset). Any rubbing problems with this setup?

[m3f_Tpb31_67f747186d]

I was running 245/45 17 in the back while drifting with no problems rubbing. As far as the continentals are concerned, I used to use them as my drift tires, because after they have some wear, they get really easy to slide. So if you are looking for grip, I'd stay away from the Conti's

[m3f_SleepRM3]

What about P-Zero Rossos in 245/40-17? Smooth, quiet ride. Lightweight, with enough stick for daily driving?



BTW, 245/45-17 is 25.7 inches tall. Stock 245/40-17 is 24.7 inches tall. You just raised your ride 1 inch. Does drifting require more ground clearance LOL?