Sumitomo Tires

[Tony_SS]

Feedback on these? I'm looking at the HTRZ I or II.

edit.. considering Falkens too

[DButler]

I have the HTRZ II on a nova and I like them.

[wmhjr]

I bought htrz's to replace worn S03's on a BMW a few years ago. Handling was very noticeably worse. After 3 days I returned them and replaced them with new S03s. the Sumis were cheaper, but I couldn't stand the drop in handling. This was on an M3.

[DriverzInc]

The HTRZ III's are decent, otherwise, if you are looking for max performance, definitely not the "best" tires out there, but for the price... they do the job. Take into consideration the application and then make an intelligent decision weighing cost vs. performance.

[Tony_SS]

This for the Wagon.. street driving. I was told Falken owns or makes Sumitomo.. any truth to that?

[JustinB]

Tony, I believe it is the other way around. Sumitomo/Dunlop own and manufacture Falken.

[Tony_SS]

Thanks.. I'm probably going with a set of Falken 512's.. the W sidewall is supposed to be decent? The place that sells the MB wheels sells Falkens, but not Sumitomo..

Justin, if you guys sell MB wheels let me know

[Gotelli Speed]

they are decent tires for a daily rat but any spirted driving will show the weakness on 360 treadware, had them on a shop car for a year and they wore like rocks!!

[SLO_Z28]

they are decent tires for a daily rat but any spirted driving will show the weakness on 360 treadware, had them on a shop car for a year and they wore like rocks!!

The treadwear on these tires is measured differently. When I used to install HTRZ3's in high school they were 150 treadwear. This is still the exact same compound as it was when rated lower.

The sumitomo HTRZ3 is hard to beat for the money. I like them because I can destroy them and not feel bad. I have no hesitation to take them to their limits are they are VERY capable as a tire. HTR stands for High Tech Rubber and it means that these tires have optimal grip over a wider slip angle than most other UHP summer tires. They dont like cold and they dont like rain like any UHP summer tire, but other than that theyre great. There are better tires out there, but not in anywhere near this price range. Better tires start off at at least twice as much.

I picked up my tires for $400 shipped:
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/noimg.gif (http://img155.imageshack.us/i/032dv.jpg/)

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[aeroocoupe]

"The sumitomo HTRZ3 is hard to beat for the money. I like them because I can destroy them and not feel bad. I have no hesitation to take them to their limits are they are VERY capable as a tire. HTR stands for High Tech Rubber and it means that these tires have optimal grip over a wider slip angle than most other UHP summer tires. They dont like cold and they dont like rain like any UHP summer tire, but other than that they are great. There are better tires out there, but not in anywhere near this price range. Better tires start off at at least twice as much. " SOL Z28

sumitomo HTRZ II Good for the money and they will give u notice before u loss control. When u smash the gas they will put on a great show when they are cold. Good for the street but not the best tire out there.

[wmhjr]

I agree the sumis give you warning. For me they were like driving on jello. The back end of the m3 got REAL loose. Not sliding. Sidewalk flex like crazy. They were 20mph slower - not just making it up. The instant I got rid of them, the car was rock steady and responsive again. The nitto nt05s I'm running on the gto seem MUCH better performing than the Sumis, at a significantly lower price than the S03 equivalent. When you have a test vehicle as tight and responsive as an m3, you can really notice the differences. Of course, those were htrz2s i think, and not 3s. Maybe they got their crap together. I'm not going to buy any more to find out.

[Tony_SS]

At least they look nice. heh.. The Falken 512 have a 360AA tread and W rating. If I go with 17's I think I'll go with those...otherwise I'm really leaning toward 15x8's all the way around now.. I have 2 perfectly good Cooper Cobra's on the back and I'd would just 2 new ones for the front.. plus I'm not crazy about going to a 25.7" tire in the rear of the wagon.. might look too short back there? Not sure what to do..

[DriverzInc]

FYI too guys, all the Sumis and Falkens are soon to be added to the site: http://driverzinc.com/category/tires/

[SLO_Z28]

I agree the sumis give you warning. For me they were like driving on jello. The back end of the m3 got REAL loose. Not sliding. Sidewalk flex like crazy. They were 20mph slower - not just making it up. The instant I got rid of them, the car was rock steady and responsive again. The nitto nt05s I'm running on the gto seem MUCH better performing than the Sumis, at a significantly lower price than the S03 equivalent. When you have a test vehicle as tight and responsive as an m3, you can really notice the differences. Of course, those were htrz2s i think, and not 3s. Maybe they got their crap together. I'm not going to buy any more to find out.

At wholesale the NT05's are twice as much as the HTRZ3. A lot of this depends where you live, for me cold is anything below 80. Im used to the valley weather so 90-115 was the average race day, maybe as cool as 80 by midnight. I know that we went 11.34 on those tires at sears point in a brand new 02 camaro in high school with the help of a little N20.

The one thing I can say about the ZE512's is that they flat spot easy. Ive done that to several sets that were brand new while on test drives for brakes/alignment. Theyre also as expensive as a set of NT555's which are a better tire.


Edit, wow, major brain fart. I meant HTRZ2's in all of my posts. The Z3's are terrible. I dont think the Z3's even existed back then. The Z2 is great, the Z3 is rubbish, about on par with a radial TA(i know, thats harsh)

[Tony_SS]

James, what do you mean by 'flat spot'? I'm seriously looking at the ZE512's... thanks.

[SLO_Z28]

James, what do you mean by 'flat spot'? I'm seriously looking at the ZE512's... thanks.

Like 12 years ago when ABS wasn't common, the tires would lock up on test drives and lose 2-3/32's almost instantly. I probably drove peoples cars way harder than was necessary. People would come back with the same problems on their own. To be fair Falken still warrantied the tires.

[montessaj]

Tony, I ran the ZE512's on my S-10 for about 4 months only because they lasted 4 months. They seemed to have a tendency to chunk up, especially on the fronts. I may have gotten a bad set, but I switched to the BFG G-force Radial and never looked back. The BFGs have been excellent street performance tires I have no complaints with them.

[Tony_SS]

I did some fitment tests and a 285 fits - so my only real option there is a NT555. Ordered a set mounted and blanced on the wheels - I should get them Mon or Tues.

The only bummer is I have to run a 1" adapter to make the 5.5" of backspace work. Its better than a loose spacer I guess.

[SLO_Z28]

- so my only real option there is a NT555
You'll be happy with those. The NT555 is a great tire!

[Tony_SS]

Yep, I'm running them on my Monte - very happy with them.

[79-TA]

Whatever you buy, give the guys at Driverzinc a call to see what prices they offer.

[ModedCB2]

in my experience the HTR2's on a moderate powered car of moderate overall vehicle weight are tough to beat for a street tire. No they will not excel in the slalom course or auto-X, they aren't meant to. I can totally see a drop of 10+ mph, the tire is not priced or intended for that use.

I have HTR2's on the King Cobra right now, it weighs about 3,120 with me in it. the 306 I have under the hood makes about 400 rwhp. The HTR2's are 17" 245/40 front & 265/40 rear (I think) & they handle great, especially in wet. They hold the power to the pavement admirably. I still have leaf-springs out back with South Side Machine traction-bars & the HTR2's don't just spin constantly, unless its REALLY cold.

I've had Falken's, Sumi's, Nitto's, BFG's & others over the years on all the Mustang 2's, all moderate to fully built V-8's and aggressively driven. Sumi is the only brand I have been a multiple repeat buyer of. Heck at one point I had Sumi's on all (4) Mustang II's, the wife's Sable, & the wife's '89 Mustang Coupe.

On the cars that see track use, then there are dedicated Drag radials, handling, or whatever purpose built tire.

Hard to beat for the $$ & durability.

I was NOT impressed with the Wear of the 1 set of HTR3's I had. Returned them to Tire Rack and they found me a set of the HTR2's.

Rob

[wmhjr]

Wow. That's amazing to hear such a different experience. I was also talking about street tires - not for the track. BTW, I couldn't have cared less about them spinning off the line. They were the pure definition of "suck" in any type of bend. You could feel the sidewall flexing and the entire rear end just wallowing around like crazy. No threshhold braking, nor any diving into an apex. I'm talking about just highway on-ramps and exits. Not Autox. I'm wondering if maybe you have a car where the suspension just isn't that tight, the car isn't sensitive enough to allow you to really feel the changes in tires. It's interesting to hear different opinions of the same tire.

[ModedCB2]

wmh... welll yeah there is a pretty significant difference between any E36-up, heck even E30-up M3 and a "lowly" Pinto based Mustang II. no matter how much technology I have thrown & fabricated into my cars. My King Cobra still wears Leaf springs, so, there ya go.

But, having said that. My wife's Mountaineer SUV came on BFG Long Trail tires & I could feel the squirm in them to the point it made me car-sick driving it. I had new Kumho Excsta's on it in under 15K... only because Sumi didn't make an SUV/Sport truck tire at the time.

I've done my fair share of SCCA, auto-x, & recently time attack as a sit-in driver. I know exactly what you are saying & I agree. The sidewall could use some "at the limit" shoring up. I found, running the 40-series tire, was as close to rubber-band I had ever run and they were comfortable, but nimble. The '89 Mustang Coupe I built for my wife had 45-series on it and it was stable. Maybe I am just a lil more forgiving on the street. Also, both cars showed significant improvements with the + 2 sizing on the '89 & +4 sizing on the King Cobra.

I think, overall its about balancing what the buyer expects vs. how much they are willing to part with, given the available brands in the size. I need 335/40/17 for one of my other projects... I am VERY limited on options there... all checking in at $250+ per tire.

Like you, I enjoy hearing all experiences and use them to gauge my own future purchases.

Rob