The New Tire FAQ sticky!!!! W00t!

The Tire Rack Home Page

Good sources for information on The Tire Rack Website:

Tire Rack Tire Guide

The Tire Rack Tech Center

Tire Rack Tire Test Results

Tire Rack Tire Survey Results

Tire Rack Winter Guide

Other useful links and things:

Road & Track test 11 top Max Performance tires

Tire calculator (O.D., etc)

How tires work, construction, etc.

Tire 'Bible', lots of good info

Yokohama's explanation of multiple tire and wheel concepts, great reading

Tire pressure info How to set your "Base" tire pressure (see below for more information as to why that’s important) for performance, and how-to read a load index, tire sidewall, etc.

http://www.j-body.org/forums/r...26864 Good posts about suspensions and wheel tire package affects on track handling.

Other links soon- keep checking back.

Why do people recommend wider tires? Don't wider tires mean more grip?

In a short version, no. Don't go e-mailing me about how wrong I am yet, either. Think about your tire as a balloon (more accurate than most people think) holding the weight of your car up. Now, if you place a balloon on the ground, it has a certain area that contacts the ground, this is the 'contact patch', now you can make the patch wider(wider balloon) but the total rear remains the same, because the pressure on the balloon is the same.

Now, what does this mean to YOU? It means that since the same amount of tread is in the contact patch area between either tire, 'grip' should be the same. Thusly, the only things affecting grip(since the area of potential contact is the same) are tread design and friction(tread compound) and finally how well the suspension does a job of keeping the tire in optimum contact with the road surface.

Unfortunately it is not that simple. A wider tire does have some benefits over it narrower counterparts, with a wider contact patch comes a bit better lateral stability(to a point, lateral stress doesn’t vary THAT much between narrow and wide tires), but sacrifices some ride comfort, and less noise cancellation(in theory). This can both generate quicker turn-in and, since the treadblocks are wider, less tread squirm which can increase total available cornering force. Also of note, a wider tire generates more rolling resistance than a narrow tire.

Something else to consider:

Think of a gap in the road surface, typically these run perpendicular to the tires contact patch. On a narrow tire, with a long contact patch, the gap in the road surface would take up more (percentage wise) of its contact patch than a wider tire. Make sense?

...so wider tires do provide some benefit, to a point. Wider tires usually come in stickier compounds, too. Yet, the compound and tread design has far more to do with tire grip than the size.

Now quit asking me how wide of a tire you can fit on something.

Tire options: See above links for Tire Rack Test and Customer Survey Results!

"best (lowest) price" and "best performance" NEVER go together.

Extreme case: formula one tires cost 900 dollars a piece.

-Kumho's are what I consider a "well i wanted big wheels to LOOK like I wanted to go fast" tires. They stick decently, and roll like complete *** unless you very carefully index them. 9/10 people who acclaim kumho's have JUST upgraded their wheel/tire package from a H-rated to a 17" or higher Z rated. But hey, they are cheap. For the cost minded person with a high-performance tire size selection. Note, the 712 are the primary reason for complaints, the MX's seem to hold up quite well, and are a good bang-for-the-buck summer tire, good dry grip.UTQG's:Ecsta MX: 220/AA/AEcsta Supra 712: 280/A/A

-Michelin Pilot Sport/Sport all season (a/s) provide excellent overall grip, and are very linear at the limit (give up grip preidcibly), although not as grippy overall as some tires in their class, tend to wear a bit longer (especially the a/s) and be quiter than most 'max performance' tires. Also rather expensive.The MXX3 is a dry tire, provides excellent grip, but suffers lack of rain traction and wear, great "summer" tire.UTQG:Pilot Sx MXX3: 140/A/APilot Sport: 220/AA/APilot Sport A/S: 400/AA/A

-Michelin Pilot Sport 2 (PS2) provides an ever greater level of grip than the original Pilot Sport, and aces even the s-03 in some test of overall grip. Featuring a twin compound asymmetrical design, it provides ample water shedding abilities with phenomenal grip, and progressiveness only found in large tread-block asymmetrical tires. Fantastic summer tire, overall, the only thing it lacks? A lower price.UTQG: 220 AA/A

-Pirelli Pzero Asymetrico/Pzero family- great grippy tires, wear out kind of fast, provide excellent cornering grip, and very good rain traction, given that the original asymmetrical was a "dry" tire. The 'rosso' was designed to limit the noise associated with the worn asymmetrico and provide better rain traction, although it gives up some overall grip. The "Nero" version provides a good blend of styling, performance, and costs less than the previous two Pzero tires. the ASym. and Rosso tend to be costly tires, while the Nero(not quite as linear giving or grippy at the limit as the asym.) tends to be less expensive.UTQG:Pzero Asym: 140/A/APzero Rosso: 240/AA/APzero Nero: 220/AA/A

-Pirelli P7000 and p7000SS: provide good grip for the price, provide good wet weather traction, but again do not grip as well as a "max performance" tire because they do want good rain, and in the case of the SS, light snow traction.UTQG:P7000: 160/A/AP7000 SS: 320/A/A

-Falken Azenis- Great dry grip tires, good for occasional autocross due to its large tread blocking, but all season and rain traction suffer considerably. Noise also becomes an issue as the tire wears. Wears quite fast due to it emphasis on dry grip. NOT a good all-season tire. Very cost effective.UTQG: 200/A/A-Falken Ziex 512- the successor the 502, provides a good, V or Z rated tire in most sizes with good all-season traits. Slightly better ride characteristics than KUMHO tires. Wears decently for a V/Z tire. Good all season Z rated tire for those needing a cost effective all season sports tire.UTQG: 360/A/A (in V rating)

-BFgoodrich G-force KD: DRY DRY DRY DRY DRY DRY. Don’t even think about using this tire if you plan on running these tires in lots of rain or inclimate weather. given that, its a wonderful dry grip tire, as was its purpose, can be babied through light/moderate rain and be OK, but choosing the KDW (dry and wet) would be a better choice for wet-weather excursions/daily driven cars, while providing a good level of grip, price is intermediate, and sometimes very high compared to similar, and possibly better tires. The KD is also noisy, but consistently posts the best dry-skid pad readings in test…UTQG:Gforce KD: 200/AA/AKDW: 300/AA/AKDWS: 300/A/A (All season)

-Yokohama AVS sport: I have put more than a few sets of these on Porsche’s, Lotus esprit twin turbo, etc. everyone loves them, for the money its a wonderful sports tire, very good rain traction, but wears out quickly, and sometimes becomes noisy after 3/4 of the wear are gone. Good max performance tire for the money.UTQG: 180-200/AA/A

-Yokohama AVS ES100- similar to the pilot sport, without the steep price tag, recently tested them on a maxima, the wet traction was very good, although not as forgiving at the limit as a Pzero or similar, it costs half as much, and should wear better. Slices the dry/wet/tread wear criterion very well. Sometimes get ‘greasy’ after repeated heating, due to silica impregnated tread compounds.UTQG: 280/AA/A

-Yokohama Parada Spec-2: decent tire, design is similar to Falken Azeni's. Only problem I have seen is tread wear and lack of serious rain(downpour) traction. Does not deal well with heat, it does get slick quickly when overheated. Definitely a solid choice for the money if you don’t see snow or heavy rain much or for show purposes…not recommended for hard drivers, its high silica content tread gets slick very fast.UTQG: 300/A/A

-Dunlop W-10 or FM901- good cost effective tire, problems with noise may throw some people off. Wet traction and overall grip is often sporadic. ON balancers it can spin funny, as I have seen many come from the factory (like kumho's) shaved or very badly out-of-round (no tire is absolutely round). In the same area with Falken and Yokohama as far as price, provides adequate traction, pretty good tread life given the price and speed rating of the tire.UTQG: 200/A/A

-Goodyear GS D3- brand new design, only put one set on a ws6 trans am, guy said they are good cornering tires, but a bit noisy compared to his Bridgestone 730’s he had before. That’s all I can really tell you (no hands on with these yet). Dry grip a bit lower than S-03’s, suffers a bit of tread squirm..good rain characteristics.UTQG: 280/AA/A

-Bridgestone Pole Position S-03: bad-*** max grip tire, has two separate tread compounds in the tire, so the amount of grip stays the same as the tire wears. Very forgiving at the limit, large water channels provide good wet weather capabilities(put a set on a 540i and an m5 both love them) tread wear is not especially good(12k+ would be good out of these, similar to the Pzero) but does provide excellent traction in both wet and dry. Possibly noise problems as the tire wears down.UTQG: 220/AA/A

WHEW. I think that covers everything; if you think of one I forgot, let me know...

Here’s my personal ranking (given my experience) if cost is a serious consideration And you need decent tread wear:1. Yokohama AVS-ES100 (depending on size/weather area)2. Pirelli Pzero Nero3. Falken ZIEX 512/Azenis4. Kumho Ecsta 712

If cost is not a big consideration/you want dry grip with decent wet weather traction1. Michelin Pilot Sport 2 (PS2) 2. BF Goodrich G-force KD(summer use only) or Bridgestone Potenza S-033. Pirelli Pzero, Yokohama AVS sport or Goodyear Eagle F1 GSD3

All in all, you got to figure out what tire matches your driving styles and car/suspension setups. Be realistic. Don’t go buy a G-force KD (or Falken Azenis) if you KNOW your going to be in serious rain or snow. Get something more snow/rain capable.

I myself have Pirelli Pzero's and love them to death, I have had other Pirelli’s, Michelins, etc on my cars and these are the best yet (have not had s03 or KD’s yet on my car) but they come at a price. They do require a warm up to get to a good grip level though.

Tire Inflation Tips for Road or Autocross Racers

1. Inflate your tires to your desired pressure (IE 30-32psi baseline usually).2. Mark each tire from the outer edge of the tread block (outside edge blocks) to about 1" down the sidewall of the tire. I suggest using a white grease pen.3. Do your lap, run, etc.4. Check to see how much of the grease mark has worn off.-if LESS than 1/4" is worn off, deflate your tires a few PSI-If between 3/8" and 5/8" is worn off, remark the tires.-if MORE than 3/4" is worn off, inflate the tires a few PSI.Remark the tires and write down the PSI you set them at. Ideally you'd get about 1/2" rollover during hard cornering, maximizing contact patch. You may notice different tires (Front to rear usually) require different settings of air pressure to run effectively, that’s fine just adjust them and keep checking.

Trouble shooting tire symptoms at the track Troubleshooting Tire Temperatures Reading - Handling problem - Reason

All tires too hot - * - Compound too soft for track and ambient temperature conditions.

Front tires too hot - Understeer - Front tire pressures too low.

Rear tires too hot - Oversteer - Rear tire pressures too low.

Inside edges too hot - Too much body roll - Too much negative camber or too much toe-out.

Outside edges too hot - Too much body roll - Too little negative camber, too little toe-out or too much toe-in or wheel width too narrow for tire width.

Center of tread too hot - * -Tire pressure too high.

Edges on too hot - * -Tire pressure too low.

All tires too cold - * - Compound too hard for track and ambient temperature conditions or car not being driven to limit.

Front tires too cold - * - Inadequate load on front tires.

Rear tires too cold - * - Inadequate load on rear tires

Remember to set your cars pressure back to normal after the event if you use street tires (street tire class, etc).You'll probably notice quite the improvement in cornering using this method....

Tire Maintenance Tips and General Information Tire Terminology "]Directional - The tire has to rotate in one direction, in respect to the vehicle. Directional tires generally feature swept back tread blocks, and use this design for better water traction. Directional tires will have a "rotation" or "direction" arrow specifying how it should be sitting on the wheel and car.Asymmetrical- The tires tread is different from side to side, and MUST have one side of the tread design/tire facing out, the other facing in. A few tires feature this design, it serves the same purpose as using a directional tread, buy lends itself to larger tread blocks overall (generally speaking).Tire Care "]Rotation - Rotate your tires, supposing they are the same size front and rear, every 4,000 to 6,000 miles. The harder you drive, the earlier you should rotate them, and vice versa. If you have a directional tire, you can only move the tire/wheels front to back, and can't switch sides without dismounting the tires. If you have excessive alignment problems(negative camber), I would recommend dismounting the front tires, and swapping them side to side before the rotation, this will help even out the wear pattern that you see so often(inside edge worn out too early). If you have asymmetrical tires, you can rotate the tires any way you want, but I would recommend a modified cross rotation. The front tires go to the opposite corners, while the rear go straight up(IE LR tire is LF, but LF tire is now RR.), this wont avoid the edge wear(since the tire can only have one 'outward' side) but it will help extend the life a little bit by avoiding repetitive suspension stresses(wear patterns). All other tires you can rotate as you want, usually front to back, as normal.Tire Inflation See above post and FAQ link about tire pressures. Check your tire pressure at least once a week when the tires are cold to make sure you aren’t running one under-inflated.Leaky tires?In the case your tires do not hold air, getting them "dunked" to find the leak is a great idea. Typically most tire shops have a small tank with water in it to submerge part of the tire/wheel to see where air is leaking from. If its in a fixable area of the tire, it should be PATCHED, not plugged. Plugging a tire does not reinforce the belts, or keep the belts from getting moisture or other things in them. Needless to say the 'patch-plug' is the best method. A patch-plug is an item that looks like a mushroom, where the 'hat' is a patch, and you pull the 'stem' through the hole in the tire to seal it completely, inside and out. This is the only way to repair a tire safely according to Michelin and most other tire manufacturers. Be cautious with patched tires and high-speed driving, some manufacturers do not warranty, or ensure that even a properly patched tire can handle the original speed rating of the tire(EG H, V, Z, etc) because most of the time, the patch itself is not designed for such stresses. Just a thought…Stages of tire wear Most tires start with 10-11/32" of tread all across the tread blocks. In between the trad blocks you should see some little "bridges" of rubber, those are "wear bars" once a tire's tread is worn to those, its time for replacement(most wear bars are at 2/32"). After the wear bars, you will hit "secondary rubber", which is a rubber cap below the main tread carcass, you will know it by a slight discoloration compared to the regular tread rubber. After that, you'll hit your cords, or the inside of your tire...we all know what that is. Check your tires wear every week(with your tire pressure), and at worst every month, and be sure to check the inner and outside edges for odd wear, just because the middle of the tread is fine, doesn’t mean the tire is.

*Remember*, no matter how good your engine, suspension, brakes, differential or anything else is...the only thing keeping YOU in contact/control with the road are your TIRES. Don't under estimate their importance.

-Chet

The Tire Guide and Tech Center links are dead.

Nice car tire info, what about truck/SUV tire info? I do not own a car. TireRack is notoriously unfriendly to truck/SUV owners, very limited selection and high pricing. They offer exactly ZERO M/T tires when I search.

We need more comparison with other models.Kumho has the Sport SPT model that's not mentioned here.

There's also brands like Nexen and Fuzion on the market.

This is an excellent tire size conversion calculator.

http://www.csgnetwork.com/tireinfo4calc.html

What about stretching tires?