Dreaming of new shoes, Summer 2013 options?

[Earendil]

I'm dreaming of summer and dry roads already, and with that comes the need for new rubber! I'm going to kick off this subsections summer tire dicussion since no one else has broached it for a year.

My 325i has been sitting pretty on 205/50/15 Dunlop Z1 Star Specs for the last two years, and an awesome two years it has been! Sadly, I'm through all the awesome rubber that they came with, and I'm down to the a-stock-M20-can-break-them-loose-in-2nd-gear rubber

I always like to evaluate my options, but two things have made me seriously consider something besides the Star Specs.

1. They have increased in price (at least on TireRack)
2. They aren't offered in my preferred size (again, on TireRack).

Two years ago the competitor for my purposes (track days in the rain, woot) was the Bridge Stone RE11, but at the time the RE11's were $30 more per corner, which was just not worth the extra performance for me. Now though, the price difference is only $20. Additionally, TireRack only has the Star Spec in a 195/55 when it comes to the 15" variety, While the RE11 comes in a more desirable 205/50/15

Now I'm leaning towards the RE11. Thoughts? Is there anything on the horizon that people are aware of? Anything else that matches up well to the Star Specs and RE11?

Rain performance is about the only consideration I really have, otherwise I might consider the Yokohama AD08's. But what do I know? My information comes from this review from 2009.

What does R3V think? Has anything changed in the last 4 years?

[ncbrock]

hankook rs-3's, awesome tires, I like them more than start specs

[Earendil]

hankook rs-3's, awesome tires, I like them more than start specs

Oh yeah, I remember reading about them 2 years ago. Rather poor wet traction though, right? Do you have any experience there? They do seem to be a step above the R11 and AD08 in the sticky department, but sacrifice wet traction for it.

ooooo, and the RS-3's only come in a 225/45 on a 15" rim? That'd be a less than vertical sidewall on my 7" wide TeamDynamics ;-)

[Earendil]

Wow wow wow. Tire Rack JUST added a new Dunlop tire! The Dunlop Direzza ZII. That would make it the second generation Star Spec. And the Internet confirms this!

Looks like it exceeds the Z1 given the reviews from Japan. This just might be the tire I'll be running this summer if it proves to be as balanced as the Z1 Star Specs yet "improved". Looks like it'll be sold at a similar price too, making it cheaper than the R11, AD08, and even the RS-3. I can't wait to see some good reviews on this :)

I also found this an interesting read, a Car and Driver review of 9 summer tires from 2012 (make sure and see the rather hidden downloadable PDF summary). What's interesting is that they review basically two categories, "ultra" and "extreme" (extreme being the stickier one) and while the Ultra tires came out on top, almost NONE of them are offered in anything less than a 16". In fact the winner isn't offered in less than a 17"! However, all the "extreme" tires are. I guess they know all the tiny miata/E30 style cars on the ones putting time in at the track ;)

If anyone comes across a good review of these new ZII tires compared to other mentioned tires, please post it up!

[R3Z3N]

I've been waiting for the ZIIs, as Dunlop needed to update with the new generation of rubber coming out. Stoked it comes in 235/40/17, but no 245/35/17 :-(

The Japan review states over a 1% decrease in lap times...that's pretty damn huge if relatively true. I can't wait to read how they feel and get more stats on them.

[Nsquared97]

Was going to post something about the ZII's, but it looks like you already found them haha. And yes, a fair amount has changed in the last 4 years, especially in this tire category lol. IMO, RE-11's aren't worth the price premium over all the other options as they just don't do anything better than the competition. And don't get me wrong, I have a set in 205/50/15, they are a great tire, just not worth the price IMO.

The ZII's have me pretty excited. Cheaper than the outgoing Z1's, and supposed to be a quicker tire. You did mention wet weather performance, which was a strong point of the Z1's, but just from looking at the treat pattern of the ZII's I doubt they will be as good.

But, if you don't need the tires just yet, give it some time. There should be some good tests of these and other new tires coming out by the time warmer weather hits. Also, I would look into the Grassroots motorsports tire tests, I have read the C&D one before and I don't agree with a lot of what they had to say.

Lastly, what are your priorities for new tires? All out track grip? Spirited DD?

[L8 apexr]

Tire rack has had my CC # for a month waiting for the arrival of the new 225-45-16 ZII,exiciting to see they finally showed up the website.:D

[Earendil]

The ZII's have me pretty excited. Cheaper than the outgoing Z1's, and supposed to be a quicker tire. You did mention wet weather performance, which was a strong point of the Z1's, but just from looking at the treat pattern of the ZII's I doubt they will be as good.

I fear that too, looking at the tread pattern. The Z1's really were amazing and consistent in the rain.

But, if you don't need the tires just yet, give it some time. There should be some good tests of these and other new tires coming out by the time warmer weather hits. Also, I would look into the Grassroots motorsports tire tests, I have read the C&D one before and I don't agree with a lot of what they had to say.

I certainly don't need them yet. I can wait a few months. Thanks for the tip on GRM vs C&D for tire reviews.

Lastly, what are your priorities for new tires? All out track grip? Spirited DD?

Two years ago it was "Spirited Driving with some track days". Now I live in the city, so I fear it's "Track days with the ability to drive to the track safely". I still enjoy driving my E30 far more than my E46, so the tires shouldn't be unsafe on the street in moderate and wet NW weather. But they should perform well enough on a track in the rain, and hold me tight on the summer days as well :)

The Z1's really were perfect for me for the last two years. We'll have to see what the reviews bring, and see what if anything they sacrificed for that 1% decrease in lap times.

[Herr Faust Schinken]

I've been waiting for the ZIIs, as Dunlop needed to update with the new generation of rubber coming out. Stoked it comes in 235/40/17, but no 245/35/17 :-(

The Japan review states over a 1% decrease in lap times...that's pretty damn huge if relatively true. I can't wait to read how they feel and get more stats on them.

i just looked on tire rack they say that they will have 225-45-16 size i think ill be happy

[Nsquared97]

Well Tire Rack's initial test of the ZII looks very, very promising:

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tests/testDisplay.jsp?ttid=168

[M-technik-3]

Looking forward to ordering my zII's.

[agent]

For the money, I like the Conti DW. One of the highest treadwear ratings of any tested by C&D, and their top wet performer. Very highly rated on TireRack as well. There are a number of tires to choose from that offer a little more grip in dry conditions, though for a DD I don't think it can be beat.

[M-technik-3]

For the money, I like the Conti DW. One of the highest treadwear ratings of any tested by C&D, and their top wet performer. Very highly rated on TireRack as well. There are a number of tires to choose from that offer a little more grip in dry conditions, though for a DD I don't think it can be beat.

While true they are a great tire but they do not offer a tire in 225-45-16 which is the preferred sized for a 16 inch rim for E30's.