TR6 Another round of tires - TR6 16" wheel

[Guest]

So my panasports are off backorder and on a truck.

I chickened out and got regular silver 16x7s rather than try some 17s or the gunmetal 16s I was toying with.

So now I'll have to get tires. I figured 205/65R16 are a good match, so a quick browse of Tire Rack gives me two main choices based on reviews:

1. Yokohama Avid TRZ
2. Kumho Ecsta HP4

Anyone have either? Any comments, or would anyone offer a different choice based on experience. I personally don't like Michelins - great in the dry, lousy in the wet imo - but am open to options. Oh and after paying for the wheels, even with 20% off, the cheaper the tire the better...

 

[crj7driver]

Where were you going to get 17 inch panasports that are the correct offset and width for a TR6? (because I would like to run 17's if I can get the proper fit.)

Thanks

 

[Guest]

You can't - that's the whole reason why I ended up with 16s. I had heard Superlite were going to come out with some 17" minilite clones, but my 3 emails to them in the UK (over the course of a month) all went unanswered and so I lost patience.

I was looking at some of the other 17x7 wheels for a 260Z that are supposed to be a direct replacement, but couldn't find any that I personally liked - not that seemed in keeping with the character of the car at least.

 

[richards]

RE: Superlite Wheels. The ONLY authorized distributor in the US is Pack Racing. I just ordered a set of 15X6 from them. Very nice to deal with.
They are in Prescott AZ. 928 771 1763. The wheels are made in Australia by Performance Wheels.

good luck.
I will be receiving my wheels on Sat. Sep 24. I went with the 15x6 just to be super safe on size. The 16 inch wheel would look better.

 

[Eric]

Those are both pretty low performance tires for a sports car - more aimed at soccer moms in minivans. An economical performance all season that has good reviews and that I've had good success with is the Falken Ziex ZE 512, which is available in your size. Tire Rack doesn't carry Falkens, but they're widely available.

 

[Guest]

They look ok, but they don't come in 205/65R16 size...

 

[71tr]

I just put a set of Falken Ziex ZE 512's on my SAAB and love them. They handle well in both wet and dry conditions and were relatively inexpensive. However, I don't know that I would put them on my six. Call me a semi-purist but the modern tread and sidewall patterns just don't appeal to me on a vintage auto.

 

[Guest]

I had Yoko Avids on my Volvo, liked them alot. Had good traction wet or dry and the wear was pretty good. Best part was the price, the are a bargain compaired to some other brands. Personally I feel Michellins in general are over rated. I'm not saying they don't make a good tire, but I think there are several manufacturers out there that make equally good tires for alot less money. I've got Bridgestone Potenzas (RE92's) on the Subie now, good dry traction but the wet isn't so hot, but the RE92 doesn't have a very good reputation amongst enthusiasts. Some of the other Potenza models are supposed to be far better. I hear the Toyo Proxes are supposed to be excellent, don't know what the prices are like though.

 

[Guest]

[ QUOTE ]
Personally I feel Michellins in general are over rated.

[/ QUOTE ]

I am running Michelin Hydroedge 205/70R15 on my TR6 and enjoy excellant wet and dry traction plus I like the way they fill up my wheelwells. But the selling point to me was the fact that I have Michelins on my Chevy Tahoe that have over 100,000 miles on them and have plenty of tread left. I think you often what you pay for. Not always, but often.


Bill

 

[vettedog72]

Bill:
Do you think that size will fit on a standard TR6 rim w/o rubing on the front during lock turns or rub on the rear with standard hight springs?

 

[Guest]

Bill, thats great that you've gotten such good performance from your Michelins. I'm not knocking them for performance reasons, it's just that every time I shop for tires their prices are a good deal higher than I'd like to pay. The Michelin equivalents were 50% more money than the Yokohama Avids I was running on my Volvo. Are they a 50% better tire? Maybe, but I tend to think not. My point was just that I think the Asian tire makers in particular (Yokohama, Toyo, Kumho) make products that are very close to, if not equal or better than, some of the more established premium tire brands (Michelin, Goodyear, Pirelli, Bridgestone) for a good deal cheaper. My buddy loves the Kumhos that he's got on his Supra turbo right now, and they were dirt cheap when compared to Michelins or Bridgestones. As with alot of things I think that your paying more money for the name, and sometimes your don't get better quality. I think Goodyears are considered a premium tire these days, and I hate them. I had Goodyear Eagles on my 300ZX, terrible traction on anything but a clean dry road. I nearly spun that car more times than I care to think about. Then I had Goodyear Wranglers on my Jeep Wrangler when it was new. By 30K miles I couldn't get the front end to stop shaking over 50 MPH. After 3 times balancing and rotating the tires the shop figured that the belts within the carcass had possibly shifted. Put on a new set of BF Goodrichs and the shaking was gone, smooth as glass. Then when my wife bought her Jeep Grand Cherokee it came with Goodyears also, and they were equal junk. We didn't get but a little over 30K out of those before you couldn't keep the truck going in a straight line on the highway. Replaced them with a set of Yokohama Geolanders, problem solved, for alot less money.