I've narrowed it down between these four tires --

Hanook Ventus HRII H405 - 195/50/15: $59 each


Falken Ziex ZE-512 - 195/50/15: $62 each


Dunlop Dunlop Direzza DZ101 - 205/50/15: $68 each


BFGoodrich g-Force Sport - 205/50/15: $92 each


Vehicle is a 1997 Civic 3dr with a B18B1. It has Tokico Illumina shocks with Ground Control OTS coils, lowered about 2.3" from stock.

The tires will be used on "summer" wheels for daily driving, Solo II events, and spirited backroad runs. These will be used in the rain, but not snow/ice. Road noise is a non-issue.

I need to decide by Saturday to take advantage of DiscountTire's $100 off sale. So please, voice your opinion as to which tire and why. Thank you very much.

 

Okay, let's go back a step.

Since you will never use these on snow/ice, you should get summer tires, which will give you better performance than all-season tires, whose snow/ice flexibility you don't need. So knock out the Falken Ziex ZE-512 right away.

Also, on a '97 Civic, 195/50-15 is too small! You need either 195/55-15, or 205/50-15. So look for tires in those sizes.

I strongly recommend the Kumho Ecsta SPT, instead of any of the tires listed. It's $73 in 195/55-15, and $71 in 205/50-15. It's much much MUCH better than the other tires you listed - better traction on dry pavement, better in rain, lasts as long or longer. In fact, I bought a set myself (in 195/55-15, for our GS-R), as part of the Discount Tire deal. Personally, I prefer 195/55-15 over 205/50-15 (for better accuracy of the speedometer/odometer, which is true of your Civic as well as our GS-R), but the 205/50-15 will work okay too.

For $192, a set of four SPT in 195/55-15 is an awesome price for an excellent tire.

 

For $192, a set of four SPT in 195/55-15 is an awesome price for an excellent tire.
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$292 for a set of 4 195/55-15.... i was like what!?! $192, then realized it was a typo

...i was going for the g-force's, but now i'm leaning towards the SPT's

 

I have a set of Direzza DZ101's on my K-swapped Civic, and I must say, I love them. Great wet and dry performance.

 

bfg kdw nt.. none of those.. i have them, 2nd set. and my manager has, had them too, and he gets two free sets ayear... and the kdw nt is his choice.. i highly rec. thos for a lil more then the bfg sport!!!

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by jaime83 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">For $192, a set of four SPT in 195/55-15 is an awesome price for an excellent tire.

$292 for a set of 4 195/55-15.... i was like what!?! $192, then realized it was a typo </TD></TR></TABLE>

It's no typo. Through Saturday, Discount Tire has an offer for $100 off any set of four tires (or wheels) ordered from their website. Which means you order four SPT tires for $73 each, and you get $100 off of $292, so you only pay $192. Including free shipping. No typo.

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by toyomatt84 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">I have a set of Direzza DZ101's on my K-swapped Civic, and I must say, I love them. Great wet and dry performance.</TD></TR></TABLE>

The DZ101 isn't bad, but the SPT is even better. Better on dry pavement, and way better in rain.

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by burke420 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">bfg kdw nt.. none of those.. i have them, 2nd set. and my manager has, had them too, and he gets two free sets ayear... and the kdw nt is his choice.. i highly rec. thos for a lil more then the bfg sport!!!</TD></TR></TABLE>

The SPT is a much better buy than the KDW. The performance is very close between the two, but the KDW costs a whole lot more money. (For example, the Tire Rack charges 57 percent more money for the KDW in 205/50-15, vs the similar SPT.) Which makes it a no-brainer; it would be pretty stupid to pay a whole lot more money for the same performance. (Of course, any tires you can get for free are a good deal.)

 

What the duece? the STP's are listed for $86 205/50/15, and $91 for 195/55/15

not $71 and $73...... i think different ares have different prices...?

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by nsxtasy &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">The DZ101 isn't bad, but the SPT is even better. Better on dry pavement, and way better in rain.</TD></TR></TABLE>

Unfortunately, I don't have loads of options for my car. 16" tires are not the most plentiful and diverse.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by jaime83 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">What the duece? the STP's are listed for $86 205/50/15, and $91 for 195/55/15

not $71 and $73...... i think different ares have different prices...?</TD></TR></TABLE>

No, it's not by area. It sounds like you are looking them up on the website for Discount Tire retailers (discounttire.com) when you should be looking them up on their internet website for having tires shipped to your door (discounttiredirect.com). If you are on discounttire.com you need to click on the icon that looks like this:



Or, just click here for the SPT in 195/55-15 and 205/50-15.

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by toyomatt84 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Unfortunately, I don't have loads of options for my car. 16" tires are not the most plentiful and diverse. </TD></TR></TABLE>

You can get the SPT in 16" sizes for most Honda/Acura cars. Just not all sizes in the same place. The Tire Rack has the SPT in 205/40-16 for del sols, CRXs, and pre-'96 Civics. tires-easy.com has the SPT in 205/45-16 for Integras and '97-00 Civics. Discount Tire Direct has the SPT in 205/50-16 for many Preludes.

 

Falken Ziex ZE-512

 

Ordered SPT's in 205/50/15. Thanks for all the input.