Question: Tires, and types of Tires

[Tomray]

Hello All.........

This is my first discussion post after joining the Forum.........

I'm having noise and tracking problems with the GY F1 tires on my 2010 GS coupe, and at a little more than 9K miles, they appear to be 3/4's worn out.

I'm contemplating 4 new tires and don't know if I should stay with the run flats, or go with a conventional tire and carry a small compressor and a tire plug kit..........

I'm not an aggressive driver........ I use the car for travel and pleasure trips. Yes, I like to "let her run" some, but nowhere near track levels.

I'm leaning towards Michelin's, or possibly another major brand like Bridgestone ? Continental ?? Cooper ?? or ???? ......I just don't know yet.

I'm also planning to have the alignment (Camber) changed to increase tire life....

Will I notice a loss of handling with different alignment settings, and conventional tires?........

Are run flats still the best choice for me?

What can any of you tell me, to help me in my decisions.

Thanks in Advance,

Tom

 

[LLC5]

Hello All.........

This is my first discussion post after joining the Forum.........

I'm having noise and tracking problems with the GY F1 tires on my 2010 GS coupe, and at a little more than 9K miles, they appear to be 3/4's worn out.

I'm contemplating 4 new tires and don't know if I should stay with the run flats, or go with a conventional tire and carry a small compressor and a tire plug kit..........

I'm not an aggressive driver........ I use the car for travel and pleasure trips. Yes, I like to "let her run" some, but nowhere near track levels.

I'm leaning towards Michelin's, or possibly another major brand like Bridgestone ? Continental ?? Cooper ?? or ???? ......I just don't know yet.

I'm also planning to have the alignment (Camber) changed to increase tire life....

Will I notice a loss of handling with different alignment settings, and conventional tires?........

Are run flats still the best choice for me?

What can any of you tell me, to help me in my decisions.

Thanks in Advance,

Tom

I doubt you will notice a "loss" of handling on a street driven vehicle, but a very good driver on a track probably would. Unless you don't mind crawling under and around a flat tire on the side of a road, visually looking for a puncture and then fixing it (if it is repairable) under the same circumstances since there is no spare, jack, or tools, then you would need to stay with runflats. Keep in mind also that if you drive in temps under 45*F then all season tires are a must, or at least a very good idea. I have always installed Michelins myself, but price and treadwear ratings should also be considered. Good luck with it.

 

[Tomray]

Deleted.......Double post.......Operator Error!

 

[Tomray]

I doubt you will notice a "loss" of handling on a street driven vehicle, but a very good driver on a track probably would. Unless you don't mind crawling under and around a flat tire on the side of a road, visually looking for a puncture and then fixing it (if it is repairable) under the same circumstances since there is no spare, jack, or tools, then you would need to stay with runflats. Keep in mind also that if you drive in temps under 45*F then all season tires are a must, or at least a very good idea. I have always installed Michelins myself, but price and treadwear ratings should also be considered. Good luck with it.

LLC5,

Thank you for your response.

Yeah, I'm NOT looking forward to crawling around looking for a puncture, either, but I'd need to have the RF's repaired under the same circumstances, too..........If they were repairable.

I'm just contemplating how often that need may occur, and if the cost savings, ride quality, and tire life of conventional tires may make that somewhat meaningful..........

No doubt, I'll just "pony up" for the RF's and be done with it.........I suspect when I get down to comparing RF' and NON RF' prices in the same tire, the cost savings won't mean as much I thought, for the added safety and convienence.

Michelin, Cooper, BFG's and Bridgestone seem to have caught my eye as far as ratings go, at this point...........I haven't looked at Firestone, but will as I get closer to the purchase.

As others have said...."there arn't many choices in these tire sizes" in either configuration.

Thanks Again,

Tom

 

[catbert]

I had Bridgestone Potenza runflats on both my 2007 Z and 2012 GS. They were a great all-around tire with a good ride, less noise, and far better wet weather performance than the OEMs. If I had a C6, I'd buy them again.

 

[LLC5]

"Yeah, I'm NOT looking forward to crawling around looking for a puncture, either, but I'd need to have the RF's repaired under the same circumstances, too..........If they were repairable"



Not at all actually if I understand your statement correctly. The RF's, depending on the manufacturer, can usually be driven 50-100 miles on zero air pressure to get you somewhere safe to fix it. Here is another consideration also: to repair a tire properly the tire needs to be dismounted and patched from the inside of the tire. The only procedure you could perform on the side of a road is a plug repair, and you cannot later patch the puncture safely after a plug is installed, you are basically stuck with a plug repair for the life of that tire which will usually void any tire warranty. . As a side note, my Michelin runflats ride as good or better than the Goodyear non-runflats that were on my vehicle when I bought it. About the only pro's for non-runflats is pricing (unless you are tracking or racing the vehicle) in my opinion. I am not saying do not buy non runflats, that is each owners decision, but just trying show the pros and con's. Good luck with your choice.

 

[Tuna]

Additionally, if you have never plugged a tire before, actually doing it can be a serious chore and can leave you with a bigger problem if it is done wrong.

I carry a plug kit and compressor in all my cars and I've plugged many tires over my life time - RFs and Non-RF. Mostly successfully.

A compressor with a built in tire sealer kit can be very handy - even with an RF tire.

Several years ago, my wife ran over a piece of concrete in a construction zone and heard a pop. She called me on the phone to let me know that and to tell me that she also has a zero tire pressure warning. She asked me what to do. Since the car had run flats, I told her to keep going as she only had about 15 miles to go to get to the conference she was speaking at that day. The concrete chunk cut a 2 inch by 1 inch "T" hole in the sidewall - the tire was ruined but it held up long enough for her to make the conference and do it safely. Sealant would not have helped one bit in this case.

I wish all my cars had run flats but I also understand that the suspension needs to be designed to handle an RF tire - it not, you'll get a harsh ride.

As for tires, I have Michelin on all three of my cars. Interestingly, I own Goodyear stock but their hi-performance street tires suck. Michelin is the tire I prefer.

I have Pilot Super Sport RF tires on my Vette and Pilot Super Sport standard tires on my CTS V Wagon -- Great tire - decent in the rain.

Remember, no matter what tire you install on your car, new tires of any type will always be smoother and quieter than old, hard, worn out tires.

 

[Iroc2Vette]

I replaced my GY EMTs in 2014. I went to Michelin Pilot Super Sports. Seriously excellent tire! They're non EMTs, but, I'm not concerned. I had my IROC for over 25 years and it had wide tires, too, and picked up lots of screws, nails, etc. over it's years. I never once had a catastrophic blowout. I do the same as Tuna, keep a high speed portable air compressor in the cubby hold in back as well as a plug repair kit and pair of needle nose channel lock pliers. The improvement over every aspect of the cars performance with these tires is astounding. The ride is way more comfortable and the road noise is cut in half. I can roll down my windows on the highway and not get deafened. And, these tires have a 300 wear rating. Which means they should last me about 45-55K miles instead of the 17K the GYs lasted. The GY EMTs weren't worth the powder to blown them up with. The Michelins are even grippy when the pavement is at freezing temps. A much superior tire.

 

[kpic]

I went with non run flats. They were too noisy and as they have less flex, dual side walls do not handle as well as singles.

If I get a flat, I'll call AAA.