Like Reverend Sam (of the church of 'if it feels good, do it') above I chose the Continental Extreme Contact DWS simply because of the tread wear rating vs the drive out price. I do not stress the capabilities of tires and am tired of 18-20k mile gum rubber tires.

Tight Wad Tom

 

New tires are nice. When we recently got our car, it needed tires, so, without the benefit of this forum as we had not yet joined, we just matched what were already on the car. In doing more research, it appears that the rear tires are not the OEM size. They fit well and look great so it is all OK. The tires are Michelin PS II's and are 245/45 ZR18 in the front and 275/40 ZR18 in the rear. Certainly the most expensive tires we have ever purchased, though they are for the most beautiful car we have ever had, meaning no disrespect to our early Mustang fastbacks, so it is all good.
Bill

 

Michelin PS and PS IIs are very good tires, so when I found the Car & Driver article comparing the Hancook Evo Ventus V12 directly to them, and they were 2nd...well, the savings compared to the Michelins completed my decision.

As long as you are confident on whatever tires you choose to install, that is all that matters. But, I could take a small trip to Vegas with the difference between the two tires, when all four were paid for.

 

Update - 15,269 miles later
-----------------------------
LF (outside) 7/32 8/32 6/32 [ ]-----[ ] 6/32 8/32 7/32 (outside) RF 60-70% remaining
LR (outside) 6/32 6/32 5/32 [ ]-----[ ] 3/32 3/32 4/32 (outside) RR 30-50% remaining
-----------------------------
Fronts are wearing excellently (is that a word?) Rears are doing ok, I was really surprised at the difference in Left vs Right, as both have previously worn evenly during my last check. Perhaps with my latest wheel bearing and shock issue on that side, I have had some excessive wear going on.

Anyway, the rears always wear faster, and I'll change them out in another 5,000 miles or so as the RR is getting close to my comfort zone tolerance.

Noise is very low, I am very pleased in that regard, even at the rear's age and condition.

 

This is an older thread - but just in case someone is keeping score:

I chose a set of Riken Raptors today to replace my Pirelies(sp?) Kept the staggered front and rear sizes and these are directional as well so no chance to save by tire rotation - We'll see, but the immediate difference in ride and silence is very impressive. DaleD

 

I think you are the forth person with Rikens (I can't remeber the other three offhand) I like mine, even when it turned out one had a bad belt on me

 

I was originally going to replace the two rear tires only, with the same type that came with the car, Toyo Proxies TIR. The tires had about 26k miles on them, fronts were still good but the rear tires were almost bald, but even wear.

But after locating the sale price of the Hankook's and rebate I realized I could purchase 4 tires for what two tires would have cost me from Belle Tire. I also received a 5% discount after asking the agent. Price out the door was $741. Tire size was standard 245/18 F, 255/18 R. I emphasized to the agent the staggered arrangement and 8" F, 9" R rim size. He was familiar with the setup and made sure the person mounting the tires was careful not to mix the installation. The tires were mounted just as I wanted.

Discount tire mounted and balanced the tires perfectly and did the replacement job in less than 30 minutes. I could have left the shop earlier if it had not been for a downpour that I waited to pass.

The tires are fantastic and the ride is much improved over the Toyo's, very smooth and comfortable. I do not hear any road noise with the tire and performance is outstanding.

After deciding on this tire I wanted confirmation from previous owners on what they were using and found this long thread. It convinced me that I had made the right decision. I hardly do anything to my car without first checking with the forum, great advice.

 

Hello Matt,
Looks great.
I just put the Hankooks on my 2002 XK8 Conv.
Ride great, BUT, I have the 70mph steering wheel shake.
I had many try balancing both my old and new tires.
I just have to drive above 80mph to be smooth.
Mark

 

I am not ready for tires yet but just planning for the future. My last car (95 Corvette) had Goodyear GSC asymmetric tread tires that did not last very long. When it came time to replace my local tire shop steered me to Bridgestone Potenzas that were much less than the Goodyears. I had never had Bridgestone's before and I ended up quite pleased with their performance and wear so I will be considering those when it comes time for new tires on the XKR.

Has anyone here had experience (good or bad) with Bridgestone's on their XK8/XKR?

Thanks,

Doug

 

I am one of them that has the Riken Raptors. When I first got my XKR, almost three years ago, it needed new tires. They were less expensive than any other tire I could find and as this was my 3rd car and it wasn't going to be driven a lot, I decided to get them. With just over 10K on them, they look brand new. They are quiet too.

 

I had to change my Pirellis with BFG g-Force T/A KDW 2. I was driving on I-35 where I had to swerve to avoid debris - like remnants of some-type of steel reinforced wood pallets or a box or something - and was not successful. One of the piece slice the side wall of the rear driver side tire.

It's right before an exit ramp about 300-400 yards from a Discount Tire. Turned on the hazard light and limped to the store in approximately 10 mph. They only had the PS2 and the BFG in stock at the time - chose the BFG.

The ride is better with the original Pirellis but the BFG seems to generate less noise. The tread pattern though looks really aggressive. Link below:

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/BigPic...omCompare1=yes

 

I'm one too! (Wasn't there a joke about that back in the high school years?) Anyway - I love mine after the old Pierelli's (sp?) quiet, soft, very aggressive grip tread - not many miles yet, but I'll keep reporting on their wear as time goes on. DaleD

 

I considered the Continental Extreme Contract DWS tires because of their good wear and low noise reports (Tire Rack purchaser reviews), but eventually went with the Hankook Ventus V12s and have been very pleased so far. The noise level is low, the reviews (both customer and professional) were great, and the price was impossible to beat ($174 each, for my size (I forget it offhand) on 19" wheels). The Pirellis all had so-so reviews on wear and noise, and not the best performance either. I still have a mint condition (original?) Pirelli spare tire in the trunk for old times sake.

The Michelin Pilot all-weathers that were on the original wheels when I got the car were horrible. Granted, they were partially worn down, but the noise level was so loud I seriously thought I had bad front wheel bearings. Imagine my relief when the noise went away with the installation of new rubber!

 

Just replaced P-Zeros with Hankook Ventus V12s and am very impressed with the ride, quiet and wet and dry traction. 'Course the Pirellis were bald-headed (in the rear anyway). I'm generally happy with the way Discount Tire treated the Cat except I saw one guy who was mounting them on the wheels stand a tire on top of the wheel "spokes" to apply slickem on the bead. Got a bit upset at that and had to polish some minor scratches out of the finish.

Anyhow, I believe the V12s are the best bang for the buck today, at least in the 245 and 255/40-19 sizes.

Regards,

 

This part of the message is very engine conversation , I ,for a moment, thought you were talking about V12 engines

 

I just checked prices at your store for my size and am pleasantly surprised $156 & $214. I've got the 20". One thing I noticed right away was the $60 mail in rebate from Hankook on the V12 EVO K110 series tire.
You didn't mention it. Just FYI

 

Ooops, just noticed the date of the original post. I'm not too swift until the coffee kicks in. I've got to get some new rubber right away so this has been an interesting post, thanks.

 

I have had Hankooks EVO V12s on two cars now, and in my experience they are great. When I purchased my XKR at Marietta Sportscar in Marietta Georga, the owner of the company and I were talking about the car, (which incendently he was driving at the time) he said that the Hankooks ride better than the P-Zeros, have no cold flat spots when first driven and wear twice as long as the sticky P-Zeros without much loss in traction. Also they are quite! You will love them.

 

That's good to know! When I got my car about 4 months and 10,000 miles ago it was quiet but the rear tires were nearly bald. I replaced the rears with Continental Extreme Contact DWS's, but the fronts still had plenty of tread on the Michelin Pilots. I left them alone. On our long trip I noticed the front end getting noisier and noisier even though I had an alignment a week before we left. The tread on the front tires is still OK, but the noise is getting unbearable. I was concerned about wheel bearings, but the fact that the noise is almost non-existent on some road surfaces while it's super-loud on others led me to believe that it's most likely the tires. Your post confirmed that. If I'm going to sell the car I guess I should just bite the bullet and put new, matching Continentals on the front.

 

I-Right-I: - Thanks for mentioning the $60 rebate. I forgot that I still have the form in my glovebox. I guess they only work if you mail them, right?

LOL