Im looking for a set of 205/55/15 summer tires to replace my Kumho Ecsta SPT's (which have been very good). Im disappointed that tirerack doesnt stock that size of SPT anymore. Did Kumho discontinue that size? The car is a daily driver, so I want a tire that will provide decent tread life with reasonable grip. I live in Hawaii, so it only needs to handle in wet and dry conditions...no snow or ice or anything cold. Looking through the tires that tirerack does have in my size, it looks like the good ones are:

Yokohama S.drive
BFG g-force sport
Michelin Pilot Exalto PE2 (a bit expensive for me)
Fuzion ZRi
General Exclaim UHP

Which tire among those offers the most for the least? Anybody have any experience with grip or tread life of these tires? Any other suggestions are welcome, including where I might find Kumho Ecsta SPT's in 205/55/15.

 

I don't know what the deal is with the Kumho SPT, but the dealers that had been carrying it - Tire Rack, Discount Tire Direct, tires-easy.com - either don't carry them or don't keep them in stock. Kumho still lists that size on their website, so theoretically any Kumho dealer should be able to order them for you. But yeah, it's a PITA.

Of the tires you mention, I don't normally recommend the Michelin because of the price. Of the rest, the two best are the S.drive and the ZRi, with a slight edge for the S.drive. (Also note that the Tire Rack is back ordered on the ZRi, as is the PE2.) Both of those are better than the BFG or the UHP.

 

Cool...I think I will go with the S.drives. Thanks for the advice.

 

I would also look at the Dunlop Direzza DZ101, they are good too

 

The S.drive, SPT, and ZRi are all better than the DZ101.