Hey everyone,
I know this has been asked a lot, however I couldn't find a recent thread when searched. I will be in the market for some tires sooner than later for my 15' is350 AWD Fsport soon and wanted some recommendations. I live in Iowa so some snow is a consideration however there is not telling how much or how little any given winter. I wanna stick with all seasons for this reason. I remember a decently recommended Bridgestone tire on here but cant remember the model now. Anyway looking for something that meets the following criteria;
1. Durable/Long Lasting
2. Good all around traction in snow, rain, but doesn't necessarily get eaten up by dry pavement
3. Provides adequate rim protection
4. Affordable
I have the stock set up with the F sport wheels and not looking to change it that. Any recommendations are greatly appreciated. Thanks everyone!

 

I really liked the Goodyear Eagle Exhilarate I ran on my GTI. The tire was pretty decent in the winter and grippy in the summer, and funnily enough, it was a quiet tire, too.

Also the Continental DWS06+ is really popular and costs less than the Goodyear. It seems to be the go-to UHP all-season for most people. Probably a little softer than the Goodyear if not as grippy.

On my 2016 IS 300 AWD, I ran some BFGoodrich G-Force Comp-2 A/S, and now there's a newer version of that tire, the G-Force Comp-2 A/S Plus. I really liked the sporty feel of that tire, and it was affordable as well. It was also a lot better than the stock all-season that came on the car when it came to snow.




So those are my recommendations. I'd say go Michelin, but the Michelin is more expensive than the Goodyear, which is the most expensive of the three above.

 

Awesome! thank you sir! i'm not seeing the Michelin model recommendation, but i appreciate you listing these options as ultimately i needed a starting point!

 

Gotcha. It would be the Pilot Sport AS4.

You can go on Tire Rack or Discount Tire and research what all tires are available for your car as well.

 

if you want the best tire money can buy then I would personally go with the Michelin Pilot Sport AS4. They are pricey but are worth it 100%, I use them on my 3is and I drive pretty hard and aggressively. It has never once failed me and never allowed me to lose traction. I've (hypothetically) taken turns rated for 35 at 60+ with no issue, gone 100+ in the rain, and driven in heavy snow with the roads not being plowed, etc. The only time I can ever lose traction with these tires is if it's wet outside, I shut off traction control completely (not just pressing the button but holding it) and then flooring it around a sharp turn. I absolutely love these tires and if you have a Costco membership you can get them from there. I'm not sure about it right now but when I bought mine they had a deal for $150 off of the full set, plus their normal benefits of patching tires for free, a long warranty, etc.

 

Thanks man, would you say it’s worth getting a costco membership for these tires if they are doin the $150 off the full set?

 

A basic Costco Membership is $60 per year (or, it was a few years ago when I had one). Other places will do tire patching for free as well, and offer warranties. I got my OE Bridgestones on the 2021 patched for free at Discount Tire for example, even though they came from factory on the car and not from Discount Tire.

I did like the Costco tire center though. Honestly, their prices without the specials/sales are about the same or slightly under what Tire Rack charges. So I'd say it depends on whether you actually plan to shop at Costco; I wouldn't do it just for a set of tires personally.

 

I mean if you're going to only get these set of tires and that's it then I'm not entirely sure it'll be worth it but honestly, if you have multiple cars you can get your tires from there and their gas prices are always cheapest (at least around me) and usually by 10c-15c margin which saves a lot of money if you drive a lot as I do. Plus I just like Costco in general cause their prices on other goods in store are pretty great. But if for some reason you don't think you'll use the Costco membership for gas or for shopping then shop around and see who has similar prices on the set of tires. (or just get the membership use it for tires and then don't renew next year) Though in my opinion, it'll be worth it just to get a membership and use it for anything that you might need.

 

why buying expensive tires? 2014 350 f sport
using nankang ns25 all seasons
30 k miles still have 10k left
I will get barum bavarius all seasons next

 

I mean to each their own, but since your tires are the only thing keeping you on the road I'd personally spend a lot of money on tires to get really good ones. Not only does it feel and perform better but can also help prevent you from losing traction and possibly crashing. It's not a guarantee that good tires won't lose traction and that cheaper tires will lose traction BUT I don't wanna risk crashing my car or having to worry about it ever. You get what you pay for so ultimately its up to the owner but still, I don't think saving some money right now is worth it.

 

For this reason I really like the BFGoodrich and the Continental options. Pretty well-regarded brands that aren't quite as pricey as the Pirelli, Goodyear, or Michelin.

I'm looking at summer tires for my IS and still unsure if I'll really want to save the $400 a set and get the Continental ExtremeContact Sport or just go for broke and get the Pilot Sport 4S.

 

Thats a fair point, from personal experience I find that Michelin best suits my needs but as you said Continental is a very very close second. I almost purchased Continentals for my car but after extensive research I found that the Michelins would be slightly better for my needs but both are amazing tires it just ended up coming down to what type of driving I do personally. As for what summer tires to get, it’s kinda really up to personal preference because summer tires are already catered to just one type of climate so both the options you listed are very good and will perform similarly. Personally I like Michelin but if the price for those are much more than the Continentals then I’d definitely go with the Continentals.