http://www.caranddriver.com/reviews/...mparison_tests

I read this in print a couple weeks ago. They compared all these tires to the gold-standard Michelin PS2:

Benchmark: Michelin Pilot Sport PS2
Ninth: Ling Long L688
Eighth: Nitto Invo
Seventh: Falken Azenis RT-615
Sixth: Yokohama S.Drive
Fifth: BFGoodrich g-Force T/A KDW
Fourth: Bridgestone Potenza RE760 Sport
Third: Kumho Ecsta XS
Second: Hankook Ventus V12 Evo
First: Dunlop Direzza Sport Z1 Star Spec

I was pretty set on getting a set of Nitto Invos next, but now I need to seriously consider the Hankook Ventus V12 Evo. I don't know... I've been reading Car and Driver since I was a little kid so I put a lot of weight into what they think about things car-related. I just wish they tested more models but they had pretty strict criteria for this shootout. Anyway, thought somebody might find this useful.

 

very interesting. Thanks for posting this.

 

Sweet. I was looking at a couple of the tires in that test to mount on some wheels I plan on getting. Definitely getting the Star Specs as I had planned. And they are surprisingly cheap where I work.

 

Affordable? I spent $250 per tire for my G-Forces... and I thought that was rather expensive.

 

This is no surprise... the Star Specs are one of the top street tires in autox. When you get out of the "affordable" realm, you also can look at the Potenza RE-11... but for the money - the Star Specs are great!

I'm running RE-01Rs this season (precursor to RE-11s) and they are fantastic. I think the Star Specs are VERY close to them in performance.

 

Holy crap! What size? I got 225/45/17s a couple years ago and they were $125/tire (tire rack).

 

the hankook v12 is only 99 dollars in my size ( 215/45/17)

this will be my next tires

 

yeah, i read this article, i think it is great. i currently have the kdw's on my tc, and i'm glad that all the problems i have with them were also cited by the c&d staff, so i'm not just crazy.

looking at the tires, the star specs had the best performance, but their treadwear rating is terrible, which is why i think i'll get the hankooks next time around.

ofcourse, if you autocross in the dry only, the kumho's are a good choice, just pray if it rains though.

 

I'm going to rock the Ling Longs!

 

Ya, ling long... distant cousin of...

Oh nevermind. It's too easy.

 

Yeah I hear the RE-01R's are excellent! But yeah the Specs are definitely cheaper.

Funny to see Ling and Long together.... lol

 

those ling longs were pathetic. but it is great proof that just because something looks like a high performance sports tire, doesn't mean it is. there is more to making a good sport summer tire than just making a low profile tire with an aggressive tread pattern.

 

You know I had just put some Yokohama S-drive 245/35/18 on my BMW Z4 just before I sold it. I loved those tires, they handled well, were very quiet compared to both the falkens and the Nittos I had on before them. And they were much lighter and I could feel the difference between acceleration and braking. And I paid just about the same for them as I did the Nittos almost 3 years ago.