sorry i know this has been covered numerous times, I searched and read all that junk. But tirerack classifies the yoko es100s as "summer tires." But then I read all the reviews and posts about'em and people seem to be pretty happy with their wet-road performance.
(but there's two sides to every story and there was one guy who said "DO NOT DRIVE THESE IN THE WINTER!" so ionno..)

I live in seattle, it rains prolly 80% of the year, so basically my question is...
are the es100s adequate for rain, even though they're classified as for summer use?

 

https://honda-tech.com/zerothread?id=706286
look around at that thread, has a lot of info on es100's.

i've heard mixed things about the es100. some say it's a excellent street tire some says it's a horrible tire. have you checked out the falken azenis yet? i think they are better

 

There was another thread about driving tegs in the snow and we covered this.
But anyway.
In the summer, in the heat the ES100's are great.
In the rain, as long as you have some heat in them, theyre the best rain tire I've ever had. Period.
But in my experience. They are not so great in a cold wintery rain.
And they are pretty scary in the snow. I wouldn't drive in the snow with them if I were you.

 

My es100's are working great. I can promise they will do better than azenis in the winter.

That and azenis last like 5000 miles...if you want to replace your tires every other day. They do grip better than the es100s for a couple thousand miles...but they just wear so fast I just cant justify getting them unless I was only tracking the car.

 

Yes the ES100s are adequate for use in the rain even though they are labeled as a summer tire. They put my kumho ecsta 711s which I have on right now to shame! I guess they have an ideal tread pattern for use in wet weather. No hydroplaning was felt when driving through standing water and cornering was no problem. This is pretty much a good all around tire.

 

Im local to you and I've been riding on these through the winter, they're not dangerous from my experience.


Modified by CleanSi at 9:42 PM 12/29/2003

 

You guys are confused. A "summer tire" only means that a tire is not good on SNOW (or in cold weather), and has nothing to do with its RAIN capabilities. Many summer tires rock in the rain. And as it happens, the Yokohama AVS ES100 is an excellent tire in rain. So is the Bridgestone Potenza S-03, another highly-regarded summer tire. (The previously-mentioned Falken Azenis Sport, by contrast, is not good at all on wet pavement.)

However, the designation (as a summer tire, an all-season tire, or a winter tire) also has to do with its optimal range of ambient temperatures. A summer tire is designed to be used in fairly warm temperatures - basically, above freezing - and most summer tires are terrible in snow. A winter tire is designed to be used in cold temperatures, and will stick better in very cold temperatures than a summer tire, even on dry roads - but will give mediocre handling when the temperatures moderate. An all season tire is designed for a wider range of temperatures, including cold weather as well as warm - it's a compromise tire - not as good in warm as a summer tire, not as good in cold as a winter tire, but does okay (not terrible) in either one.

What you do with your tires really varies, depending on your climate. I live in Chicago - you've probably heard that it gets cold here - and lots of folks (including me) switch to winter tires for the winter months.

Seattle is generally not super-cold in the winter, but does occasionally experience winter weather (average January highs around 45 degrees F, average annual snowfall 11 inches). Here's what I would do if I owned an Integra in Seattle:

a. If I had access to another car if and when it snowed, I would use it, and I would use summer tires year round on my Integra, but leave it home when it snowed.

b. If the Integra were my only car, and I really cared about performance driving (as many of us do), I would have two sets of wheels, with summer tires on it nine months a year, and all-season tires on it the other three months. (I think the climate there is basically mild enough that you don't need to go to full winter tires.)

c. If the Integra were my only car, and I didn't care about performance driving, I would probably use all-season tires on it year round.

As usual, you can get knowledgeable advice on tires for your needs from the experts at the Tire Rack, who can ship tires directly to one of their 2000 local installers across the country. (Disclaimer: I have no affiliation with them.)

 

AznJohn - I used to live in Seattle and I can assure you that ES100 is more than enough for Seattle's "winter" months. Just be careful when it gets before freezing, but as we know that seldom happens.

ES100 is a great "rain" tire as well. It'll serve your purpose fine being a rain + summer tire. If you want to spend less, I would go w/ Ecsta 712's, but the ultimate grip isn't as good and 712's have softer side wall.

S-03's are extremely good tires that will do everything you ask... in the rain, in the heat, etc.

Disclaimer: if you drive your car up to the mountains (stevens, snoqualmie, whistler, etc.) for snow-boarding, skiing, leave your car at home. These tires will get you nowhere.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Cosworth &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Just be careful when it gets before freezing, but as we know that seldom happens.</TD></TR></TABLE>

Seattle averages 30 days per year when the temperature drops below freezing.

The more flexibility you have - with another car, or with the ability to stay home if the winter weather turns bad - the less important the need for anything other than a "summer tire". But if you have to get somewhere at any time, in even the foulest weather, then consider some kind of alternative to summer tires. Remember, an extra set of tires is less expensive than repairing body damage from a bad-weather accident.

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Cosworth &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">ES100 is a great "rain" tire as well. It'll serve your purpose fine being a rain + summer tire. If you want to spend less, I would go w/ Ecsta 712's, but the ultimate grip isn't as good and 712's have softer side wall.</TD></TR></TABLE>

The 712 is actually more expensive than the ES100 in the stock Integra size of 195/55-15, not less. You're right about the ES100 having better grip, though; it spanked the 712 in Tire Rack testing.

 

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

Seattle averages 30 days per year when the temperature drops below freezing.

The more flexibility you have - with another car, or with the ability to stay home if the winter weather turns bad - the less important the need for anything other than a "summer tire". But if you have to get somewhere at any time, in even the foulest weather, then consider some kind of alternative to summer tires. Remember, an extra set of tires is less expensive than repairing body damage from a bad-weather accident.
</TD></TR></TABLE>

that won't really be a problem, daily I mostly only use the car for going and coming home from school, which is only a couple miles each way. I go out on weekends n holidays n stuff but if it's freezing I'll just hitch a ride.

Thanks for all the input everybody!
looks like the the es100s are for me

 

I've never heard anyone who didn't like the es100's. maybe the occasion comment about azenis being a little better, but that's about it.

Awesome tires, perhaps the best value in the tire market right now.

rain traction is very good (obviously much better than Azenis), and cold traction is great once you warm them up (like all tires made of RUBBER).

If it snows alot, buy a truck or get snow tires....I have no problem using these in light snow.

 

Sorry to get a bit off topic, but how long do the es100s last?

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by redGSRguy &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Sorry to get a bit off topic, but how long do the es100s last?</TD></TR></TABLE>


I would think your alignment the way you drive the tread rating are all factors..

 

Here is my opinion on ES100s
I love them in summer like everyone else.
And in rain Me and a buiddie of mine trust them with our lives, we don't get anyhting else, they are fantastic in the rain, period.

 

you must drive like a madman. 6+ autox events and 12k street driven. Still have some meat left.
<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by neo1z &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">
That and azenis last like 5000 miles...if you want to replace your tires every other day. They do grip better than the es100s for a couple thousand miles...but they just wear so fast I just cant justify getting them unless I was only tracking the car.</TD></TR></TABLE>