Online Wheels and Tires

Initial Review, 1,500 Miles on Tires
April 24, 2013

After reading online about another Scion XD owner getting the Pirelli P7 Plus in 215/55/16 I decided to try them out. WOW! What an incredibly smooth, and well handling tire. My little Scion no longer feels bouncy, or harsh over bad roads. I glide down the road with precision steering control. A much appreciated change in my cars handling, and ride comfort. And, I too, really like the look of the 215/55 w/Motegi wheels on my XD.

Initial Review, 500 Miles on Tires
February 09, 2013

I cannot believe there are no reviews on this tire anywhere online!

When I was searching for winter tires for my M3 I really wanted a tire that would get me through light or heavy snow, but with a strong emphasis on not sacrificing dry cold conditions.

I was tempted to go with a Blizzak LM-60, but there were a few reasons I decided not to.
1. The factory recommended tire for the M3 is a Pilot Alpin 3 (since 2008), this could be considered the newest update, so that held some weight.
2. I could not break myself away from the fact that the PA4 is V speed rated and the Blizzak H rated. Am I going to drive 150 in the snow? no I am not... but the Pilot Alpin is designed for speed, so that has to trickle down for every day driving performance.
3. I also like the Assymetrical design of the tire and the snow sipes which are angled (most likely for snow turning performance, and I feel this really helps the snow grip performance when turning.

The size I chose was 245/40 r 18 which I decided because I wanted to have the exact same size front as the summer setup. The factory recommends 235 but this has not at all been an issue.

The PA4 is wider than other 245 tires by just a few mm's according to the specs.
I mounted them square on 4 identical 9.5 inch wide wheels for rotation purposes, and there is enough side wall tire that the wheel is not sticking out.

They drive safely in ice/snow and grip well, but have a tremendous amount of grip in the cold dry, and do not at all feel like they sacrifice steering response or grip from the factory summer sport michelins. (when driving in the cold)

I chose the Michelins PA4 over the LM-60 because to me COLD dry and wet driving performance is more important and actually measurable to me. Face it, if the snow gets deep enough eventually any low car is going to get stuck, so for just a few inches of snow a few times a year, why give up all of that FUN dry grip performance?

Initial Review, 3,000 Miles on Tires
May 23, 2012

Bought these to replace my OE Pirelli P6 All Seasons. The new set of Kumho Ecsta 4X (+1 size) is terrific - a clear step up from the Pirelli's in nearly every regard. They're a bit of a harder ride (might be due to the +1), but the dry traction is spectacular and the steering response is exceptional. Excellent on-centre feel and great communication through the wheel.

The Ecsta 4X is quiet on smooth pavement but on poor roads, not so much.

We had a bit of a late snowstorm last April, a couple weeks after I had the tires mounted (I use dedicated winter tires here in Alberta). The Ecsta 4X's highly asymmetric tread seems to contribute to poor cornering on snow/ice, although straight line traction (including braking) is acceptable for an all-season tire. I definitely would not recommend this tire for use year-round in Canada or the regions with serious winter conditions.

Probably the best thing about the Ecsta 4X is the price. Far cheaper than my car's OE tire, despite being clearly better. Ordered online from Canada, the shipping and other non-product fees constituted about 1/3 of the total price but still far cheaper than buying locally. Great deal, Tire Rack!

Initial Review, 10,000 Miles on Tires
April 19, 2012

I purchased these mostly to take advantage of the strong Aussie dollar and also because my tyre size is a bit uncommon here and subsequently choice is less and cost is more.
In the end bought a superior tyre online for less than an average one from a shop. Shipping was pretty expensive I thought but that's the norm it seems buying online from the states. On the plus side,the tyres were dispatched and landed down under in just a couple of days which I thought was pretty impressive.
I wouldn't call myself an aggressive driver but still, don't mind throwing it about a few corners (we've all got our faves don't we)on the odd occasion.
The tyres have worn pretty well which I would attribute to getting a dynamic wheel alignment following fitting as advised by my mechanic. Grip, cornering and wet performance are excellent and they coped with 1 in 100 year rain event we had at Christmas time wonderfully which is just what I needed as had all the family in the car at the time.
Unfortunately I hit a pretty nasty pothole at speed while on a country trip and when I inspected it at my destination, saw that the tyre had a rather large egg in the sidewall. Subsequently, a couple of weeks later my daughter hit another pothole with the same wheel and she blew. (The tyre that is. My daughter wouldn't do that. She's a nice girl.)
Unfortunately the shipping cost for two tyres is nearly the same as four and while I was keen to get some more Conti's, it just wasn't economically feasible :( I have replaced two of the Conti's with a Falken Z92 so we'll see how that goes.
If i have to buy a full set again I'll be looking at Tire rack. If I just need one or two, it's probably more economic to buy local but you takes your chances as far as choice.
Drive Safe
Longy

Initial Review, 400 Miles on Tires
February 02, 2012

I wanted to change from run-flats to standard tires, and at the same time, I wanted to increase the tire size and reduce the very harsh ride I was gettinging from the factory run flats. My BMW is a 2010 128i with the sport suspension and staggered 17" factory wheels(7" wide front, 7.5" wide rear). I also wanted a spare tire. So heres what I did. I went online and purchased two, new condition used, 7.5" facory wheels to replace the front 7" factory wheels($320.00). I used one front tire and wheel as the spare. I figured out how to strap the spare and jack kit down in the trunk but that's another story. I now have 7.5" wheels on both front and back. I had the Dunlop Star Spec 225/45/17 installed on the front, and Dunlop 245/45/17's installed on the rear. I was a bit concerned when I first started driving it in that it was so sensitive to the road, but after breaking them in with about 300 miles, I couldn't be happier. The harshness has been significantly reduced but it still has the traction and handling that you would expect from a performance vehicle/tire. It also looks FAT with these tires on it. I absolutly love it. I don't know how they will wear long term, but I will post again once I get about 10k miles on um. Oh, one more thing, with four people in it, you might experience a very,, very minor tire rub up in the fender well on the rear tires if you hit an aggressive dip. It's not very noticable,,, ever so slight. I experienced it once in 400 miles of driving. Not a concern for me. Could be more of a problem without a sport suspension. So if that's a concern for you, a 235/45/17 would probably totally eliminate that. Of course the trade off would be a slightly smaller tire. Hope this helps you.

Initial Review, 1500 Miles on Tires
November 07, 2011

I bought the used Spectra for the gas milage and it came with a fairly new set of tires. Theses tires went 40,000 miles and still had tread left. The handling and road noises were troubling to the point of constant initial checking for loose ball joints, CV joints and rear wheel bearings. Had to be those tires. But they would not wear out. Finally, at 40,000 miles I checked with Tire Rack online and the Hankooks appeared to be the logical choice for an inexpensive car like the KIA.

All road noise gone. Handling is as good as one would expect and wet/dry traction is excellent.

With only 1500 miles so far and no snow events yet a full review isn't possible but I no longer dread driving this car.

Initial Review, 15000 Miles on Tires
December 02, 2011

I was nervous about buying this tire at first, but after reading reviews here and elsewhere online, I decided to take the plunge just before Winter of '09. After two whole winters (and starting a third), the snow performance of these tires continue to leave me satisfied. I have intentionally put my little FWD Civic in nasty situations (unplowed parking lot after 12" of snow? why not!) and have never gotten stuck with these tires on the car. I've owned Hakkapelittas, and Blizzaks, and the Altimax Artic is a comparable contender to both at a fraction of the price.

The biggest detractor from these tires is their sidewalls. I expect a bit of softness in a snow tire, but these go to extremes. My car feels like it's "floating" at highway speeds, and requires some extra wheel input to keep it straight. When it's dry out, taking turns at speed in these tires will leave you guessing every time. Throughout the turn, the tires never settle, so you're constantly on edge trying to manage through the turn. Steering response is horrid as the sidewall turns to mush from any inputs. That said, lateral grip is impressive for such a cheap tire once you can tame the sidewall.

Overall, once you get the hang of the poor sidewall performance, the snow and ice performance makes you forget you ever doubted the tire.