All Season non-runflats

[ChrisTKD]

Ok, I read through the old thread on tires but it looked like it was getting cumbersome with the 63 responses.

 

I'm in the market soon for 205/45-17 non-run flats. I can't do summer tires as I'm sure to have some trips in below 40 weather prior to the time to switch to winter tires. So, all season will be the way to go. The tires will be for street use and twisties - - definitely good in wet weather and able to handle light snow.

 

I've looked at Tire Rack and these two appear good possibilities:

 

Continental ExtremeContact DWS $468

 

or

 

Kumho Ecsta 4X $342 (net of rebate)

 

 

I'm sure you can't go wrong with the Continentals and I'm willing to pay the small extra. The Continentals are supposed to wear longer (540AA versus 420AA) but I'm not sure how they last in real life. It would be nice though to save $120 but not if it's going to cost me in traction or real life longevity.

 

Are there any fans out there for either of these two options?

[Stephatron]

When I was tire shopping 3 weeks ago, a lot of people told me to go with the Contis. I chose the Toyo Proxes 4 Plus. I got them at a slightly better price (I went 215) from PTUNING in Manassas. Mounting, balancing, tires themselves ran me $630 for all 4 tires. PTUNING also price matches and all that fun stuff. I took the Dragon with these tires and holy crap, they are grippy as an be and well worth every penny. On the way home from the Dragon, I was in torrential downpour from the Dragon all the way up to about Blacksburg area on 81. I didn't have any problems with them in the rain either and I was going a steady 80 the whole way up. So overall, I am THRILLED with these tires and they're really good. Just my 2 cents since I was looking at the same tires.

[TGGRRR (Ali)]

I had the Continental DWS and they lasted 2 years. I will say the last 6 months they were pretty bad even though they had tread. They chirped A LOT which was annoying and at autocross I had major tire squeal.

 

Now I'm back to running two sets of tires. I even got trapped in cold temps with my summer Michelin Pilot Super Sports and they were fine. First autocross was just over 40 when we started and they held better then I expected

[DBeest]

I love my Continentals.

[ChrisTKD]

@Stephatron - Thanks for the info on the Toyo Proxes - - I hadn't considered them because I was only looking at Tire Rack. I'm assuming the slightly wider Toyos will fit on 7.5 rims. I see that PTuning carries the Toyo, was that the reason you went with the Toyo's over the Contis? I won't be using PTuning since I plan on getting rims from MachV but I could always have them shipped to MachV.

 

@DBeest - good to hear. I know a few Bimmer owners who were very happy with the Conti non-runflats.

 

@TGGRRR - I know that tires often wear out faster than the hypothetical longevity under ideal conditions. But, 2 years for the Contis is surprising. If you told me to expect 2 years for the Kumhos I guess I wouldn't be as surprised but that's based on my lack of knowledge of the Korean tire mfgrs.

[cmcveay]

Chris,

Not having run the Conti's, I can only assume that the DWS isn't all that different from the DW - the exception being a change in the compound so they still perform well in colder conditions. Like others have said, it's hard to go wrong with them as they have great reviews.

 

I have run a couple of sets of Kumho's and one of my favorites was the ASX which was replaced by the 4X I believe. Great tire! I drove through "Snowmageddon" on them and they actually got me through that entire winter which had several lessor snow storms and one or two big ice blasts.

 

With regards to fitting on the 7 or 7.5" wheels - if you keep the tire dimensions close to the OEM size, you'll be fine. I actually ran a 245/40 on 7.5" rims and all it did was suck the bead in a little and protected the wheels from curb rash! That was a set of Star Spec's.

[RDG_RCR]

Our neighbor just replaced the tires on this Countryman (he just wanted to get rid of the runflats), I believe they are the same size as the Cooper S, anyways, there is less on a few thousand miles on the tires and he is looking to sell all 4 for $500. If you want more info I can give you his number.

[Edge]

With regards to fitting on the 7 or 7.5" wheels - if you keep the tire dimensions close to the OEM size, you'll be fine. I actually ran a 245/40 on 7.5" rims and all it did was suck the bead in a little and protected the wheels from curb rash! That was a set of Star Spec's.

Please note this is only true for 2nd Gen MINIs, which have a LOT more wheel & tire clearance than 1st Gen MINIs do, especially in the rear.

 

Two immediate examples: Alan put 215/45R17s on B.A. - and they rub on any hard bumps or corners in the rear. My autocross tires are the same size, and I have the same problem. The stock size is 205/45R17, so it's a very small jump.

 

1st Gen owners need to be very careful about straying beyond OEM sizes. I imagine that 215/40R17s would be OK for 1st Gens, but that size is much less common.

[OhBe1]

So far, so good with the Conti DWS. Goal was an all-season, accepting dry compromises, and nmot wanting to store a winter set -s=especially since winter is mostly mild. Usually.

 

Dry grip is a bit disappointing, compared to many summer tires I've used on the Miatas. Not a tire I'd use if AX'ing regularly.

 

I wonder if the GY TripleTred would have been better all around. We use these (H-rated) on our Outback (AWD) and Tacoma (2WD).

[Stephatron]

@Stephatron - Thanks for the info on the Toyo Proxes - - I hadn't considered them because I was only looking at Tire Rack. I'm assuming the slightly wider Toyos will fit on 7.5 rims. I see that PTuning carries the Toyo, was that the reason you went with the Toyo's over the Contis? I won't be using PTuning since I plan on getting rims from MachV but I could always have them shipped to MachV.

 

 

I don't know if they are a Toyo representative. You can buy Toyos off Tire Rack though, depending on size. I had one of the guys at PTUNING just choose them for me and I'm super happy with them. I'm running 215s on oem 17" wheels on a Cooper S. You can get rims from PTUNING too though, unless you're getting Rotas. I've had a great experience there and the tires are awesome. I'm a bargain shopper too.