Looking to get either of these: Goodyear Eagle GT or Kumho Ecsta ASX in 225/45R17 I currently have the Kumho Ecsta ASX from the PO and they need replacing. Date code on the tires show 2004. These are on Enkei rims which I know nothing more about them. Thoughts on ANONTER tire thread. This is going on my 87 GT with what I believe to have 1" lowering Eibach Springs all around. This will be a 3 season fair weather fun driver.
Regards, David
[This message has been edited by TheDave (edited 02-25-2014).]
Only goodyears ive owned are Viva 2 (on truck) and Gatorbacks but gatorbacks dont last long (very soft compound). I use bridgestone G3 potenzas on my GT and i love them
[This message has been edited by dematrix86gt (edited 02-25-2014).]
I had new Kumhos on one of my Corvettes. They were junk. Nice on a dry road, ran smooth. Any hint of water on the road turned them into water skis. The car drove where it wanted on a freeway, it went to whatever lane (or not a lane) it felt like. Absolutely the worse (scariest) tires I ever bought. I also never got very good wear with Goodyear GTs. My Mustangs all came stock with them and were lucky to last 15,000. A friend bought a new Magnum with factory Goodyears on it and 3 our of 4 were out of round and shook the car, which they replaced. I prefer Dunlop and Bridgestone myself, if I have to buy any.
I had new Kumhos on one of my Corvettes. They were junk. Nice on a dry road, ran smooth. Any hint of water on the road turned them into water skis. The car drove where it wanted on a freeway, it went to whatever lane (or not a lane) it felt like. Absolutely the worse (scariest) tires I ever bought. I also never got very good wear with Goodyear GTs. My Mustangs all came stock with them and were lucky to last 15,000. A friend bought a new Magnum with factory Goodyears on it and 3 our of 4 were out of round and shook the car, which they replaced. I prefer Dunlop and Bridgestone myself, if I have to buy any.
Which Kumhos? They make a lot of tires. Some of the Goodyear tires are also crap in wet weather. Some of the Kumhos are pretty soft, too. Dunlop is also a subsidiary of Goodyear.
Really, the best thing you can do, is go to a site like http://tirerack.com and compare the tires you're thinking about, and look at all the different technical specs, including the tread pattern. If you don't know what all the numbers mean, there's plenty of info on there describing what they are. And all the info will help you pick a tire that has a good tread pattern, the right amount of hardness/grip for what you will use them for, grip, road noise, etc…
I wouldn't put kumhos on my cars if someone gave them to me. They are noisy, and get really greasy when they get hot. I run hankook Ventura rs-3s and BfGoodrich GeForce rivals. They are $142 apiece for 225-45-15 size and they are a very grippy summer tire. I run them in autocross and get great results, and the rivals are the best tires in the rain that I have ever driven on.
Which Kumhos? They make a lot of tires. Some of the Goodyear tires are also crap in wet weather. Some of the Kumhos are pretty soft, too. Dunlop is also a subsidiary of Goodyear.
Really, the best thing you can do, is go to a site like http://tirerack.com and compare the tires you're thinking about, and look at all the different technical specs, including the tread pattern. If you don't know what all the numbers mean, there's plenty of info on there describing what they are. And all the info will help you pick a tire that has a good tread pattern, the right amount of hardness/grip for what you will use them for, grip, road noise, etc…
All tire manufacturers make many different models. All too often, I hear someone bashing Brand XYZ because they had one set of their tires and it was too noisy/harsh/soft etc. for their taste. You cannot lump an entire manufacturer together based solely on one experience with one if their models. Just like any product, every manufacturer has their hits and misses with their products. More often than not, that specific tire was not the ideal choice for that individual's application. Many people will spend months researching pretty wheels till they find the perfect style, yet only spend two minutes to find the cheapest tire in the correct sizes that they want.
You also have to be very specific on the tire models that you are comparing. "Bridgestone Potenza" can mean many different things, from the not-so-special all-season Potenza RE97AS to the uber sticky extreme performance Potenza RE-11A.
IMO the best thing to do when selecting tires is to go to tirerack.com and select the performance category that best suites your needs. Once you've done that then read the road tests, comparisons, and reviews for all of the tires in that category to make your decision. Remember, your tires are the only thing connecting your car to the road. They are important.
For many long years I ran Goodyear Eagle GT's on my cars and truck but would need to replace them somewhere after half the tread was gone. They just didn't seem to have good wet traction after that. I then went to the Yokohama Avid H series. Wonderful tires for dry and wet, but tended to be a bit noisy.
For economic reasons, I've switched to Kuhmo Exta XL's on my 87 GT and find that they have excellent traction while putting the pedal to the medal on the mountain twisties. No problems when driving in the rain, either as long as the car has a decent alignment. Misalignment was a problem in wet weather with any tire I've used on the Fieros.
I have Kuhmo Road Venture AVT's on my truck and have experienced no adverse problems with them in wet weather. I remarked to the wife that the truck is so quiet at highway cruising speeds that you can only hear the wind.
This is my first use of Kuhmo tires, so I don't know how they will perform once they're worn past the halfway mark.
OK thanks to everyone for their responses. I think I am going with the Goodyear Eagle GT. 1. American Company. 2. I have the new Goodyear Wrangler All-Terrain Adventure With Kevlar on my truck and they have performed amazing this winter. 3. With the type of driving I do the Goodyears should perform for many years for me. 4. Reviews and testing at Tire Rack look really good.
I dont know what model of Kumhos they were. They were the ones recommended for Corvette. There was nothing wrong at all with the car. The wet driving characteristics showed up the first time I took a trip in the rain. The Goodyears were OK as far as handling and performance...they just didnt wear as well as Id expect them to. On one, I had less than 70K miles and it was on its 4th set of new Goodyears. I routinely get 100K on a set of new tires. My Sebrings Continental Touring tires have 105K now and still work fine in deep snow and still pass tread test. Theyre the original tires that were on it new in 2005...except for one replacement when I hit a curb and ripped the sidewall about 4 years ago.
