RE: Bilstein Q's

["Fadeev, Alex" <alex.fadeev@xxxxxxxxxxx>]

Josh Ormsby [mailto:josh@domain.elided] wrote:
> 
> Any suggestions for tires then?

Here's a my old post on the E30 tire subject:

> I managed to squeeze 40,000 miles out of the Dunlop D60A2s 
> put on by the previous owner.  I'm looking for a new set to
> replace these. Tirerack gave me two options:  Firestone 
> Firehawk SH30s (at $60 per tire, said to have great wet 
> traction) and Michelin Pilot XGT H4s (at $83 per tire). I 
> live in New York City and commute to Long Island (30 miles
> one way) and will have to drive in snow (not too much but 
> the roads will be slippery).  I will be buying 205/60/14's.

14" tire choices are so poor, that I would not lock myself into 205/60 size
only. Do look at the 195/65 (stock size) tires as well and you will be
rewarded with Michelin X-One's. X-One's and D60A2's (a youthful
indiscretion) were the only two tires I briefly drove over snow. You already
know about D60A2's (nothing special with full thread, lousy for the last 50%
of life span), but I was surprised to discover the X-One's were very
predictable and surprisingly grippy over snow. They are NOT snow tires by
any stretch of imaginations, but did carry me through two snow storms
without any drama. 

> If anyone has any experiences with these tires or any 
> others for that matter, please give me your suggestions.  
> I do have another option which is to go with the stock 
> size 195/65/14s with Perelli P4000s. 

For god's sake, stay way clear of P4000s. 
What Jim Powel wrote about them is a GROSS understatement - they are a spin
waiting to happen on both dry and wet. Please, don't even think about them!

> I was going to go with Yokohama AVSI's but was told that 
> these are summer only tires. 

Since I'm lazy, I will just re-post what I had said about E30 tire choices
in the past:

>   Since you don't autoX, I will not push the Yoko AVS 
> Intermediates too hard. They are simply the best dry 14" tire 
> you will find. Downsides? I could not get them to last past 
> 20K miles (with autoXing ;-) and they hydroplane easily when 
> over 1/2 worn. So I guess AVSi's are not for you, but don't 
> say I didn't tell you they are best 14" dry tires ;-).
>   As for as rain 14" tires go, I would pick either Michelin 
> X-One's or Firestone SH30's. 
>   SH30's are excellent in the rain and surprisingly good in 
> the dry. They squeal at the limit (like all other 14" tires 
> ;-(, but break away very gradually and are easy to catch. 
> Mine are about 1/2 worn after about 15+K miles and 6 autoX's. 
> I would guess they would have lasted twice as long without autoXing. 
>   X-One's are as good in the rain as SH30's, but a bit less 
> gripy on the dry. They used to come with 60K mile warranty 
> from Michelin, but the warranty has been dropped earlier this 
> year. I would guess that they last somewhat less then 60K miles.
>   I had also tried Pirelli P4000 and Dunlop D60A2 DB's once 
> in my life. I could not get either one to wear off fast 
> enough (mediocre dry and at best average wet traction, easily 
> hydroplaning after 1/2 worn) and D60A2 DB were noisy as hell 
> on concrete surfaces. Never again for either tire.
> 
> Here is my personal E30 tire rating chart (a '10' E30 tire is 
> probably a '5' 17" E36 tire ;-(
> 			Dry	Wet	Wear	Comfy/Noisy	
> AVSi		8	5	5	7
> SH30		6	8	6	7
> X-One		5	8	7	6
> P4000		4	6	8	6
> D60A2		5	6	7	3
> 
> Also check out TireRack's tire survey: 
> http://www.tirerack.com/tires/surveyresults/

YMMV,
alex f> 

------------------------------