". . . but they were literally DIRT cheap. . ." Well, somebody does not know what the word literally means. He seems to be trying to say they were inexpensive, although the expression dirt cheap is usually reserved for items under $10.00, as, literally, potting soil sells for about $5.00 for a 20 pound bag. Still, it's nice to know about some inexpensive tires to put on a luxury car.

 

I'll be running Yoko Avid Envigors on my CT. They are ultra low rolling resistance and had a good experience with them on my Lexus HS.

 

This was about 2 years ago. The Avid Envigors were great on my MINI Cooper but when I got a set for my ES350 they would not balance. I ended up returning them for Michelins. Apparently the large sizes had some balance issues. Overall when balanced, they were great tires. I just got Hankook Ventus Nobles for my CT. Very nice ride

 

I've had the Michelin Premier A/S tires installed and so far they're great. Nice and quiet and getting great mileage. These tire should last me for at least three years. My Michelin MXM4 tires lasted me over 67,000 miles. Michelin Premier A/S tires I would recommend, "Safe When New, Safe When Worn"

 

A year ago I swapped out the stock low-resistance tires for a set of performance summer tires. I went for the Bridgestone Potenza Pole Position, although the guy at the tire store said there are tires from other manufacturers that are very similar. In short, the new tires make the car a lot more fun to drive, but they do reduce the mpg and cost more. Detailed results:

* Dropping the low-resistance tires for ones that make far more contact with the road improves driving dynamics drastically. The car sticks much better into turns and in general just feels more planted. This is true not only for me, a fairly fast driver, but also for my wife, a slow driver who loves how much grippier the new tires feel.

* When making a quick right from a standing stop on the stock tires, often I would accidentally chirp the tires, causing the traction control to go nuts. This has been eliminated.

* The performance tires are more expensive -- $110 each, instead of $60-$80 for the low-resistance tires.

* I spent a week in Asheville earlier this year during a snowy and icy period and didn't have any trouble with the summer tires. That said, I was extremely careful and it was a short test, so they might not be ideal for someone who spends a lot of time in winter conditions.

* The mileage has dropped significantly, between 7 and 11 mpg.

Should you put performance tires on the car? If you don't mind the extra expense and drop in mpg, and if you like the added performance and sense of stability, then absolutely.

 

. . . Also, performance tires, being much softer, will wear out sooner and need to be replaced more frequently, which needs to be factored into the estimate of the long-term cost of high performance tires. Still, they are much more fun.

 

http://sailuntires.ca/PLT/ZSR.html
http://sailuntires.ca/catalogs/ZSR.pdf