DanA100

OK, i will need 4 new tires in less than a month. (rain is coming in California)
My car is Audi 100 with stock 205/60/15, ET45 wheels.

Please, everyone on this forum, share and recommend a tire that would make me happy.
It should be GOOD in the rain(no snow here) relatively durable (30k miles), as WIDE as possible, and should make my car handle good.(no soft shoulders)
I drive 75% highway / 10% mountains. Budget is kind of limited so don't recommend tires that are more than $90-100 each.

I currently have Bridgestone Potenzas 910 and i'm very happy with them and i'm very close to order them again, BUT i first wanted to hear from YOU what else is out there that may make me happy.

How about those Sumitomos HTR200 (not sure of model)? Are they good for cornering AND rain???

Anyone had experience with Nitto tires?
Both brands are very affordable but is this really a good thing? (cheap = low quality)

And please, don't send me to the Wheels-tires Forum. I was there and it seems like nobody likes to reply there. Useless.

Thanks in advance!

SteveAngry

I have Sumitomo HTR 200's on my 88 5000S. I like them. Good in the rain, nice and quiet, decent grip. They will not be good in any kind of snow.

I have driven a couple of cars with Sumitomo HTZ 2's. Good bang for the buck tires. More performance oriented tire. I really like these!

I have Dunlop SP 9000's on my 86 5KTQ. Not bad. Good grip. Noisey. OK in the wet. Overall good performer.

I've driven my friends 4ktq with Bridgestone 910's on numerous occassions. Good all around performer. Good in the rain, dry and maybe even light snow.

My friend Lance had Nitto tires on his Jetta VR6. I'm not sure what model they were but they gripped very well. His main problem was that he kept blowing sidewalls over and over. This was probably more to do with the wheel size he chose than the actual tire design. 17" rims can be pretty hard on tires here on pothole filled Michigan roads.

Thats my 2 cents...
Steve
Michigan

Will Ng

From Tirerack for $42ea in 205/60-HR15.
It a new high performance all season.
I got some to replace BFG CompTA HR4+ in the same size. This went on my '90 200tq with 15x6 wheels.
They are just as quiet as the CompTA, but with a stiffer sidewall. Turn in is better, and overall performance improved. Haven't tried them in rain yet.
I was prepared to try a set of HTR200 but New England gets hit with that nasty white stuff. I've heard nothing but good things about the Sumitomos.
Don't let price fool you...Sumitomo is a huge manufacturer. They OEM numerous rubber components, brake pads and brake systems. They recently acquired Dunlop.

Due to the need for snow performance, the Kumhos got chosen. Kumho is a Korean tire manufacturer. Their claim to fame is their DOT legal race tires.
I have a set of Ecsta 712 205/50-ZR15 for my other car. Excellent tire with remarkable wet performance. But I don't think it's available in a 60 series.

Best bang for the buck:
Sumitomo, Kumho, Hancook, Toyo, Falken.

Nitto = crap. Stay away from this brand. It's a brand purely marketed towards the 'rice' crowd. They have the agressive "V" tread patterns similar to all the top performing tires, but the rubber compound is so poor, they break loose easily.
ie. their Nitto 450's have less traction than shopping cart wheels.

crotext

I have a set of Cooper touring tires on my 5000 TQ with about 7,000 miles on them. They are smooth and corner great, in addition to little highway noise. I ran through some pretty good rains and so far they seem to handle it well. Price was $69.95, mounted and balanced in Montana with lifetime free rotation.

SteveAngry

don't you guys need any sleep

Les

Bridgestone Potenzas 910's are the best tires I've used so far.

Type44Q

You want the narrowest possible tires (within reason) mounted on the widest possible wheels that will fit on your vehicle.

This ensures the following:

*minimum sidewall flex for the best handling and steering response

*maximum cpi (contact pressure index?) for the best traction in rain and snow

*reduced friction for minimum loss of horsepower and the coolest tire temperatures

*Rotational mass of tire/wheel combo concentrated more towards center (heavier wheel/lighter tire) of combo rather than outer part, making the whole thing easier to spin-up (betcha never thought of that!)

cuatrokoop

I'll 2nd Steve's nod to the HTRZii's. Its what I have on my CQ, in a 215/45-17, and I have yet to drive a car with better grip in the rain. These tires, in the wet, have more grip than my old D60A2's did.

Only problem is, I can't afford a set of snows anymore, so I'm not sure what I'm going to do when we actually get snow here in IN.

DanA100

I'm afraid that those HTRZ's don't come in 205/60/15 Only 16 and 17 inch rims will be OK.
I read so many good reviews about them but my stock wheels won't like them.
Or we are taling about different Sumitomos here?

DanA100

Re: Same here! ... i just wanted to see what else is good for my Audi