Type S Winter Wheels / Fitment Specs

[Vivid Apex]

Falken RT660s

Would you go with 275s in this case? Or with the 265/35/19s?

Also, Tirerack has a Kumho Ecsta PS91 in the 265/30/19 OEM size - thoughts on those as a cheaper alternative to the PS4S?

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[optronix]

Would you go with 275s in this case? Or with the 265/35/19s?

Also, Tirerack has a Kumho Ecsta PS91 in the 265/30/19 OEM size - thoughts on those as a cheaper alternative to the PS4S?

Yep, I think the Falkens are only available in 275/30, which should be fine if not preferred for my use case. I have zero interest in a higher aspect ratio, although I know some folks prefer it. I don't give a shit about having "meaty" tires... if I wanted that I'd go with 18s.

I honestly can't recommend Kumho tires. That really just comes down to personal anecdotal experience, on an admittedly small sample size. I had Kumho Ecstas on a 981 Boxster GTS when I first bought it, and when I made the change to Michelins a few months later it was a night and day difference. I don't know if perhaps the Kumhos on my car were ruined in some way by the previous owner (I think at least two of them were brand new...), but it was such a stark contrast that there just isn't a wide enough price disparity to justify having such an inferior tire. And I truly mean inferior, in every possible way. NVH, steering feel, road feel (here is where I would have said "grip" but honestly I don't have a direct empirical comparison as I had just been driving on the street up to this point)- but all of it is comically worse with the Kumhos.

I wouldn't put them on even if they were given to me, personally.

The Continental ExtremeContact Sport 02 is a worthy alternative to Michelins if you want to save a few bucks... but again, ultimately I would choose the Michelins.

 

[Vivid Apex]

Yep, I think the Falkens are only available in 275/30, which should be fine if not preferred for my use case. I have zero interest in a higher aspect ratio, although I know some folks prefer it. I don't give a shit about having "meaty" tires... if I wanted that I'd go with 18s.

I honestly can't recommend Kumho tires. That really just comes down to personal anecdotal experience, on an admittedly small sample size. I had Kumho Ecstas on a 981 Boxster GTS when I first bought it, and when I made the change to Michelins a few months later it was a night and day difference. I don't know if perhaps the Kumhos on my car were ruined in some way by the previous owner (I think at least two of them were brand new...), but it was such a stark contrast that there just isn't a wide enough price disparity to justify having such an inferior tire. And I truly mean inferior, in every possible way. NVH, steering feel, road feel (here is where I would have said "grip" but honestly I don't have a direct empirical comparison as I had just been driving on the street up to this point)- but all of it is comically worse with the Kumhos.

I wouldn't put them on even if they were given to me, personally.

The Continental ExtremeContact Sport 02 is a worthy alternative to Michelins if you want to save a few bucks... but again, ultimately I would choose the Michelins.

Thanks for the advice. In my old RSX I would always run Kumho Ectsa MXs and really thought they were a great bang for the buck. I've been nothing short of thrilled with the performance of the Michelins on the ITS though. I would need a ringing endorsement to switch at this point.

 

[Victorofhavoc]

Thanks for the advice. In my old RSX I would always run Kumho Ectsa MXs and really thought they were a great bang for the buck. I've been nothing short of thrilled with the performance of the Michelins on the ITS though. I would need a ringing endorsement to switch at this point.

It's not just about being a Michelin, but it's the very specific dt1 ps4s in this size. There are other ps4s that would fit, even in this size, that are cheaper but they are not the same tire. There are plenty of Michelin tires that are just garbage, too.

I've had a few great kuhmo tires. The great ones give up a lot of daily livability for more grip.

That's the beauty of the ps4s... Has the comfort of a 500tw, the noise of a 300tw, and the grip of a lower ranked 200tw. Well balanced tire.

As was mentioned earlier, the conti ecs02 are a great tire too and typically much cheaper. The pirelli pz4 are even better than the Michelin in wet/damp weather, and also very close to the ps4s in dry weather. They're also quieter in my experience with them, but I hear that's size dependent for them.

 

[optronix]

It's not just about being a Michelin, but it's the very specific dt1 ps4s in this size. There are other ps4s that would fit, even in this size, that are cheaper but they are not the same tire. There are plenty of Michelin tires that are just garbage, too.

I've had a few great kuhmo tires. The great ones give up a lot of daily livability for more grip.

That's the beauty of the ps4s... Has the comfort of a 500tw, the noise of a 300tw, and the grip of a lower ranked 200tw. Well balanced tire.

As was mentioned earlier, the conti ecs02 are a great tire too and typically much cheaper. The pirelli pz4 are even better than the Michelin in wet/damp weather, and also very close to the ps4s in dry weather. They're also quieter in my experience with them, but I hear that's size dependent for them.

I'm not sure if the Porsche N-spec PS4S are similar in the sense that they're actually better than "standard" PS4S... but I felt the same about the PS4S on all the P cars I've had too. I did end up with the P Zeros on my last 718 and they weren't noticeably bad either. A lot of P car guys really don't like the Pirellis but I couldn't really complain.

I'll throw out there that I don't have a lot of track experience but I definitely noticed just how amazingly EASY the ITS was to drive fast on track with these Michelins. At no point did I feel like the tires were holding me back.

I am still going to get something 200 TW though, if for no other reason than for the experience of comparison to the Michelins...

One other thing I just thought about the other day too though- if the Honda PS4S are so great and made specifically for our cars, would it be reasonable to expect the Honda Cup2 made for the FL5 to be about the same?? They are EXPENSIVE though.

 

[Victorofhavoc]

I'm not sure if the Porsche N-spec PS4S are similar in the sense that they're actually better than "standard" PS4S... but I felt the same about the PS4S on all the P cars I've had too. I did end up with the P Zeros on my last 718 and they weren't noticeably bad either. A lot of P car guys really don't like the Pirellis but I couldn't really complain.

I'll throw out there that I don't have a lot of track experience but I definitely noticed just how amazingly EASY the ITS was to drive fast on track with these Michelins. At no point did I feel like the tires were holding me back.

I am still going to get something 200 TW though, if for no other reason than for the experience of comparison to the Michelins...

One other thing I just thought about the other day too though- if the Honda PS4S are so great and made specifically for our cars, would it be reasonable to expect the Honda Cup2 made for the FL5 to be about the same?? They are EXPENSIVE though.

That's correct, the specific cup 2 would be a notch above the ps4s in terms of heat tolerance and dry grip. It will trade off being even louder and stiffer on the street with a large falloff in wet grip.

Good tire being a notch closer to a track tire and a notch further away from a street tire. Not a true track day tire.

 

[RamVA]

That's correct, the specific cup 2 would be a notch above the ps4s in terms of heat tolerance and dry grip. It will trade off being even louder and stiffer on the street with a large falloff in wet grip.

Good tire being a notch closer to a track tire and a notch further away from a street tire. Not a true track day tire.

I agree with that, but with one exception. My experience is based in the original Cups and the MPS2 and MPSS (so many years ago), and things may have changed, but the Cup is faster in the wet as long as there isn't standing water. I don't think it's a suitable full time tire for a daily.

I've since switched to Hoos for the track, but I may switch to the Cup2, just easier to manage. (Not sure I can get them in size, I run 18s on the track car.) For the street, MPS4S are tough to beat.

 

[Victorofhavoc]

I agree with that, but with one exception. My experience is based in the original Cups and the MPS2 and MPSP (so many years ago), and things may have changed, but the Cup is faster in the wet as long as there isn't standing water. I don't think it's a suitable full time tire for a daily.

I've since switched to Hoos for the track, but I may switch to the Cup2, just easier. (Not sure I can get them in size, I run 18s on the track car.) But for the street, MPS4S are tough to beat.

Yeah I meant relatively standing water for street use.

Track use if you have a slick i wouldn't bother with wets unless it's actively raining. Even standing water won't slow you down as much on a slick as a wet would from overheating in the dry areas. My issue with my wets is that they've been around for 3 years and have only seen 5 legit wet sessions. That's basically 35$/minute, .

The nice thing about the cup2 is that they're still designed for an aggressive street alignment around -2 to -2.8 camber. True slicks like Hoosier, Michelin, or pirelli need -3 to -4 degrees to keep from burning up the edge. That gets into more geometric changes and quickly becomes a slippery slope of more tire, more brake, more safety, roll cage, etc. Unless you're willing to go down the dedicated car route, it's typically better to stick closer to a street/clubsport level.

For 18s, Hoosier makes the new track attack which looks like a reasonable option. Their 295/30/18 looks like it's fairly narrow too. Narrower than some 285 200tw tires like the re71rs. I'll probably pick up an 18x10.5 wheel next year and run it as my instructor/HPDE tire.

If you're into slicks or have a dedicated racecar or track car, trackdaytire is now selling Michelin slicks too. A bit spendy in some sizes, but they're insanely good. I've pulled upwards of 1.7G on a fresh Michelin vs 1.5 on a fresh Hoosier. They're just stupid wide, though. A 255 or 265 is probably too wide on this car... My other car runs a 295 or 315 R7 and the max width of Michelin I can do is 275!

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