just a quick question on what the differences are and what tire i should get? these will just be my winter tires and maybe some summer daily drivers. TIA.

 

I had the 712s and would highly recommend NOT driving them in the winter. I got caught with 1-3 inches on the ground once and i could barely keep the car on the road. They are decent in wet/dry but have a lot to be desired. They are pretty cheap, and have high tread wear tho... i got 30k miles out of mine.

 

1-3 inches of snow? i'm in the seattle area and i think either of these 712's or 711's will be fine with the rainfall here. i'm leaning towards 711's because at $43/tire it's tempting. afterall, it's not like i'm going to be racing on these tires.

 

711's are the all-seasons, no? I believe we put a set of those on Bef's Tore ***. I'll have to check.

712's are very good in the rain, but I wouldn't trust them in the snow.

 

If you consider other brands besides Kumho.

The Falken Ziex are a good option. They are M+S rated, and I had a friend autox on them and did suprisingly well.

http://www.vulcantire.com/ze512_t.htm

They are $65ea

 

30k miles out of a set of tires on an ITR? Wow, I just turned 40k miles on my 98 ITR and my 4th set is just about shot. I'm getting about 10k miles per set. I guess I beat the **** out of mine too much.

 

Tirerack rates the 711 and 712 as summer tires. I have the 712 on my car. They are definitely not a tire you want to drive on in any amount of snow. They don't have much more "snow" grip than the RE010, and you know how those are like in the snow.

 

Id say the 712s are damn near impossible to drive in any snow/ice. When the roads are plowed, you can drive, as its just wet then, but if you go into a parking lot with snow on it or a back road....good luck stopping.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by DsR &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">The Falken Ziex are a good option.</TD></TR></TABLE>

Not for the snow they're not. The M+S designation only refers to the amount of space between treadblocks and has nothing to do with its actual winter performance.

And kumho 711's suck alot of *** too, but they're cheap.

For all-seasons that will see snow use the bridgestone RE92's, RE910/950 are good choices and relatively inexpensive.

 

Kumho Ecsta 712's (the more expensive one) does awesome in the rain for low $$ (relatively speaking). If you have $$, S-03's would be the top choice, but 712's are pretty dang good for the buck. Highly recommended for your usage.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Cosworth &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Highly recommended for your usage. </TD></TR></TABLE>

The 712's are beyond useless in snow.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by .RJ &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">The 712's are beyond useless in snow.</TD></TR></TABLE>

RJ - did you even read the original poster's comment?

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by .niterider &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">1-3 inches of snow? i'm in the seattle area and i think either of these 712's or 711's will be fine with the rainfall here. </TD></TR></TABLE>

In SEATTLE, winter = rainy/overcast season. It snows maybe twice a year... and it doesn't stick on the ground. I know, 'cuz I used to live their (Bellevue, WA) for over 10 years. And, I have driven 712's in the rain, daily... including down pour.

So, my statement of "Highly recommended for your usage," is what I meant.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Cosworth &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">

So, my statement of "Highly recommended for your usage," is what I meant. </TD></TR></TABLE>
thanks man. i think you were the first to give a real response to my original question. however, i think that the 712's and the 711's are basically equal in rain performance so i've opted to get the 711's at $43/tire.