Sad to note the Firestone Firehawk SZ50 EP is no longer available from Tirerack. The only sizes listed on the Firestone site are 245/45 - 17 (89V) and 275/45 - 18 (94Y), neither of which will work on a G50.
I hope all my NICO buddies got a set of these superior tires before they disappeared. I sure wish my Yokohama AVS dB had worn faster!
Other than the Yokohama AVS db S2, and the Michelin XGTV (or the H, if you are so inclined) there is no tire remaining in 15" diameter for the G50. Time for a group buy on 17"x8.5" forged wheels with the correct offset and the 66mm hub. I think 16" won't last too much longer anyway and will succumb to the same fate in a year or two.
Taps sounds for the SZ50 EP
-
Q45tech
- Moderator
- Posts: 14296
- Joined: Tue Apr 30, 2002 3:19 am
- Car: 1990 Q45 342,400 miles 22 years ownership with original engine
1995 G20t 5 speed 334,000 miles 16" 2002 wheels - 205/50/16 Sr20ve vvl
Guess what I'm trying on the rear: Kumho KH11 96 V [AA-A-320] rated 225/60/15. ................with 235/60/15 Pilot H4 on frontKind of wierd feeling [2 ply sidewalls 51 psi tire] but only 600 miles so far....................Mom's car will need 2 new tires so I though I'd break them in first.
Did some rain testing ok so far but they are brand new and soft.http://www.tirerack.com/tires/...+KH11
Pretty much equal to the Michelin Pilot H4 All Season in Tirerack test results so I thought it worth a try.
Would be interesting to compare them new to the 21,000 mile USED Michelins.
Been 18 months since my SZ50 non EP wore out. Been thru 4 AVS I now back to the Michelins for almost a year.
Did some rain testing ok so far but they are brand new and soft.http://www.tirerack.com/tires/...+KH11
Pretty much equal to the Michelin Pilot H4 All Season in Tirerack test results so I thought it worth a try.
Would be interesting to compare them new to the 21,000 mile USED Michelins.
Been 18 months since my SZ50 non EP wore out. Been thru 4 AVS I now back to the Michelins for almost a year.
-
Q45tech
- Moderator
- Posts: 14296
- Joined: Tue Apr 30, 2002 3:19 am
- Car: 1990 Q45 342,400 miles 22 years ownership with original engine
1995 G20t 5 speed 334,000 miles 16" 2002 wheels - 205/50/16 Sr20ve vvl
It wasn't 2 ounces total it was 2.14 ounces .......25 grams and 35 grams on opposing sides........the stackup of tire and wheel was not considered, just yellow mark to valve stem.
We shall see tomorrow when I rebalance them after break in.
Sometimes funky tires get better, if they get down to 1.5 ounces [40 grams] match mounted, I'll consider the $20 each to radial force match them.
We shall see tomorrow when I rebalance them after break in.
Sometimes funky tires get better, if they get down to 1.5 ounces [40 grams] match mounted, I'll consider the $20 each to radial force match them.
-
Q45tech
- Moderator
- Posts: 14296
- Joined: Tue Apr 30, 2002 3:19 am
- Car: 1990 Q45 342,400 miles 22 years ownership with original engine
1995 G20t 5 speed 334,000 miles 16" 2002 wheels - 205/50/16 Sr20ve vvl
569 miles...[10 days].........one Kumho increased from 60 grams [25 inside 35 outside] to 72 grams total [28 inside 44 outside] and the new weight positions moved about an inch - the tire read 13 grams out of balance with old weights in place.The other Kumho decreased from 60 grams to 53 grams and the weight positions stayed identical the tire read 8 grams of imbalance with old weights still in position.
The Front Pilot H4 were checked after 2504 miles [22,000 miles total] one which had ZERO weights in the outside plane needed 3 grams to balance to 1-1gram........no other changes.
The other Pilot read 12 grams out of balance but only 5 grams need to be added to the 17 grams totaling 22 grams: 10 inside, 12 outside.
Guess I'll wait a few more thousand miles before asking for a replacement*........both wheels have around 13-15 grams of residual imbalance alone so the 72 grams might only be 57 best case probably more like 63-65 grams [ 2.3 ounces] caused by tire.* The tires are quiet and have a stiffer sidewall so the impact harshness is a little higher but with only 600 miles we'll have to weight and see how they are at 6,000 miles
Same sequence I went thru with the 3 sets of AVS I tires they changed balance very frequently and severely but that was more a front wheel stress than a rear [which still changed some].
Pretty much learned that no 15" tire other than Michelin had a chance to survive on front service if you are picky about checking and maintaining precise balance and low radial force.
As I've discussed directional tires are not suitable for me due to excessive heel toe feathering and noise.
If you have to AVS DB S2 in 15".
The Front Pilot H4 were checked after 2504 miles [22,000 miles total] one which had ZERO weights in the outside plane needed 3 grams to balance to 1-1gram........no other changes.
The other Pilot read 12 grams out of balance but only 5 grams need to be added to the 17 grams totaling 22 grams: 10 inside, 12 outside.
Guess I'll wait a few more thousand miles before asking for a replacement*........both wheels have around 13-15 grams of residual imbalance alone so the 72 grams might only be 57 best case probably more like 63-65 grams [ 2.3 ounces] caused by tire.* The tires are quiet and have a stiffer sidewall so the impact harshness is a little higher but with only 600 miles we'll have to weight and see how they are at 6,000 miles
Same sequence I went thru with the 3 sets of AVS I tires they changed balance very frequently and severely but that was more a front wheel stress than a rear [which still changed some].
Pretty much learned that no 15" tire other than Michelin had a chance to survive on front service if you are picky about checking and maintaining precise balance and low radial force.
As I've discussed directional tires are not suitable for me due to excessive heel toe feathering and noise.
If you have to AVS DB S2 in 15".
-
szh
- Posts: 15932
- Joined: Tue Jul 23, 2002 12:54 pm
- Car: 2018 Tesla Model 3.
Unfortunately, no longer a Nissan or Infiniti, but continuing here at NICO! - Location: San Jose, CA
Re: Taps sounds for the SZ50 EP
maxnix wrote:Sad to note the Firestone Firehawk SZ50 EP is no longer available from Tirerack.
Sad day!
Z
-
szh
- Posts: 15932
- Joined: Tue Jul 23, 2002 12:54 pm
- Car: 2018 Tesla Model 3.
Unfortunately, no longer a Nissan or Infiniti, but continuing here at NICO! - Location: San Jose, CA
Re: Taps sounds for the SZ50 EP
maxnix wrote:Other than the Yokohama AVS db S2, and the Michelin XGTV (or the H, if you are so inclined) there is no tire remaining in 15" diameter for the G50.
There is one other possibility: Continental ContiExtremeContact 225/60-15 (95V). But I do not know what quality this has. The Yokohama AVS db S2 seems like the only real reasonably priced possibility left, since the XGTV is totally unsafe in wet weather (in my experience.)
Z
-
diamondj30
- Posts: 830
- Joined: Wed Aug 21, 2002 10:49 am
- Car: Not to low , not to high , just right .
- Location: 3rd world seattle
- Contact:
-
Q45tech
- Moderator
- Posts: 14296
- Joined: Tue Apr 30, 2002 3:19 am
- Car: 1990 Q45 342,400 miles 22 years ownership with original engine
1995 G20t 5 speed 334,000 miles 16" 2002 wheels - 205/50/16 Sr20ve vvl
The problem with all DIRECTIONAL tires is that 66% of the gain [what ever tricks they used to make them seem good - brand new in wet weather for tire tests ] goes away when the tread becomes half worn.Whereas a soft compound [that doesn't harden too quickly] keeps on performing to 25% tread.
Something they forget to tell you with directionals!
All in all the Pilot H4 is good enough for most [if you keep the speed down below 120 mph] and much less time consumming to maintain for 30,000 miles. Because the 400 treadwear is not real they perform better in wet than one would think.
The Contis get noisey faster than the AVS which is much faster than Pilot H4 but at the same time as Pilot V4.
http://www.tirerack.com/tires/...c.jsp
Something they forget to tell you with directionals!
All in all the Pilot H4 is good enough for most [if you keep the speed down below 120 mph] and much less time consumming to maintain for 30,000 miles. Because the 400 treadwear is not real they perform better in wet than one would think.
The Contis get noisey faster than the AVS which is much faster than Pilot H4 but at the same time as Pilot V4.
http://www.tirerack.com/tires/...c.jsp
-
szh
- Posts: 15932
- Joined: Tue Jul 23, 2002 12:54 pm
- Car: 2018 Tesla Model 3.
Unfortunately, no longer a Nissan or Infiniti, but continuing here at NICO! - Location: San Jose, CA
maxnix wrote:Doesn't HeavyDuty have teh Sport A/S? Hopefully that is one Michelin that will hadle the rain better than its lesser siblings.
That is one of my hopes when I go to get new tires for my M45 sometime later next year, or early next. I am hopeful that this has better wet weather handling than the XGTV.
Z
-
diamondj30
- Posts: 830
- Joined: Wed Aug 21, 2002 10:49 am
- Car: Not to low , not to high , just right .
- Location: 3rd world seattle
- Contact:
-
diamondj30
- Posts: 830
- Joined: Wed Aug 21, 2002 10:49 am
- Car: Not to low , not to high , just right .
- Location: 3rd world seattle
- Contact:
-
szh
- Posts: 15932
- Joined: Tue Jul 23, 2002 12:54 pm
- Car: 2018 Tesla Model 3.
Unfortunately, no longer a Nissan or Infiniti, but continuing here at NICO! - Location: San Jose, CA
Q45tech wrote:Actually the Michelin Sport A/S is not the best performer in rain, quite a few notches below the Sport Summer tire.
The absolutely worst WET tires on the planet have Rain/Hydro in their model name ........even the French and Akron brands.
Hmmm .... I was going by the reviews on Tire Rack — have not actually tried these tires myself. Basically, I assumed that the Pilot Sport A/S was better than the Pilot Sport for wet weather, because of the rankings there. Back to the drawing board and search, I guess. Sigh ...
BTW, thanks much for your postings, Dennis! My first purchase of the SZ50EP some years back was influenced by your experience with the SZ50. And the SZ50EP turned out to be the best tire I have ever used!
Z