C-Thrilla

Help I need new tires I really don't know what I want at all. The car came with some crappy low end tires I just rode them till they wore out. The Tires are for my 1998 Sc300, I live in San Antonio, Texas. There's no snow here, some rain but it should be on light the rest of the year. Summer driving coming up i want a tire to stick excellent but not loose all traction if it happen to shower a bit. I have 18's front and rear, Width is 8.5 in front and 9.5 in rear. I want a directional tire that looks good and performs well I Think I'm going to spend about $1000 More or less. I don't care if they're cheap or expensive as long as they work.
Let me know what everyone out there is running as far as tires go or what you do or don't recommend. please list stuff like, problems, road noise, wear patterns, grip, stopping, mileage out of the tires, etc Thanks Cris