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Even though we seem to be stuck in the endless Winter here in northern Indiana, with February drawing to a close and Spring just around the corner, I can't help but get excited about warm weather and switching back to my performance tires. I have always been a "performance first" kind of guy, so fittingly, I use Extreme Performance Summer Tires
There are a lot of exciting changes within the category this year, and I can't wait to get out there and test some tires to determine what I'm going to choose as the replacement for my Dunlop Direzza ZIIs.
I'll keep everyone posted with my impressions and those of the Tire Rack as a whole once I have a chance to drive them on our test track. I welcome your thoughts and experiences with these and any other performance tires
I'm really curious about the Bridgestone vs Dunlop in particular. Seems like in the past the Bridgestone RE-11 and the Dunlop ZII were at opposite ends of the spectrum in this category. The Bridgestone was quite comfortable, but gave up some grip compared to others. The Dunlop on the other hand had lots of grip at the expense of ride comfort.
Now Bridgestone introduces a tire with tread that looks nearly identical to the Dunlop, and Dunlop updates their tire and brings back the Star Spec name. Should be fun, I'm looking forward to Tire Rack testing results!
That makes two of us! That's the matchup I'm most interested in, too, since those are the two tires I have narrowed my selection down to for use on my vehicle. I'll be sure to let you know once I take a spin on them.
Six sizes in four rim diameters of the Kumho Ecsta V720 Extreme Performance Summer tires have arrived in time to make the SCCA April 30th eligibility deadline.
The Ecsta V720 is Kumho's Extreme Performance Summer tire developed for passionate driving enthusiasts looking for a tire that was bred for the track and domesticated for civil society. Designed to deliver Kumho's ultimate performance on dry pavement and cool confidence on wet, the Ecsta V720 delivers unusually long life for a tire that lives this fast. Like all summer tires, it's not intended to be driven in near- or below-freezing temperatures, through snow or on ice.
Ecsta V720 tires mold Kumho's super high-grip synthetic resin and ultra-fine carbon black enhanced tread compound into an asymmetric pattern featuring wide outboard shoulders to deliver dry road responsiveness and cornering, along with a continuous notched center rib that promotes control and high-speed stability. Crossed lateral grooves channel water away from the tread to enhance wet handling with outboard grooves that help clear water from the shoulder area for wet cornering and the inboard grooves reduce hydroplaning and enhance wet braking.
The tire's structure includes dual high-tensile steel belts reinforced by spirally wound nylon to provide excellent strength, uniform ride quality and high-speed capability while the sidewalls are tuned to resist lateral deflection and provide handling control and positive feedback. The tire's casing was developed using Kumho's ESCOT "tension control optimization" technology that allows engineers to tune the bead, sidewall and shoulder tension to optimize footprint pressure distribution and uniformity. This results in less flexing and cooler operating temperatures that improve durability.
Six sizes in four rim diameters of the Kumho Ecsta V720 Extreme Performance Summer tires have arrived in time to make the SCCA April 30th eligibility deadline.
OK, I thought I could get some clear guidance from this thread. But, now, I'm even more confused by the multitude of comments, lol. Seems like every tire that is recommended, has serious detractors and reasons for those cons. I'm a newbie owner of an '05 RX330. And, I live in SoCal, so we barely get any extreme weather. Maybe 20 days of rain a year (if we're lucky!). So, mostly dry and hot weather conditions. I just want a smooth, non-noisy ride on tires that will last more than 2-3 years. Please help me out with your top three choices for my car and weather conditions and I would truly appreciate your help. Thank you so much!
02-26-15, 09:23 AM
Summer Tire Season Is Approaching
