2020 Best (and worst) street tires thread, Let's collect helpful info on what street tires we like (and hate) for our teeners Options

[JoeSh]

People periodically post asking for tire recommendations - tire sizes, brands, and models. I’m needing new tires but, rather than repeat this process, I’d like to offer to collect and collate this info as a resource. I’ll even try to keep it up to date if people continue to post or send me new tire experiences.
Please chime in with, at a minimum, what tires you have and whether you love or hate them. Extra info very welcome. I’ll see what we come up with and make a format based on it.
PS: I am about to replace 205/50ZR15 Bridgestone RE 730’s. I loved them though highway ruts did tend to pull the steering. They are NLA as are my old RE 71’s before them.
Cheers!
Joe - 1973 2.0L, stock FI, 123 Dizzy

[RickS]

Conti DWs are quiet, grippy excellent tires. Have them on two cars.

[DickSteinkamp]

What size will you be replacing your tires with?

It will make a big difference on the validity of the responses. Someone may love their 165 15's on their bone stock 914 and another with a flared 6 cylinder car their 235 35 16s. How is that info going to help you?

You should probably limit the poll to the size of tire you will be buying and from owners with 914s powered (and suspended) similar to yours.

[DRPHIL914]

I have been running 205/55-16’s in my 6” x 16” Fuchs Potenza a/e 11’s now also not available. Have had them for about 5 years, the date code was /14 so I just put new Firestone Firehawk Indy tires on the rear, now on 7”x16” Fuchs and I really like them. Just a bit harder than the A/E 11’s, still pretty sticky. They have 2 types, the all-season and the summer performance. I got the summer performance . Should last more miles than the Potenza I just took off. I still have the Potenza in front but with only 30% tread
left I will probably replace them soon as well.

[horizontally-opposed]

It's a great thread idea, but tire choices for the 914 can be limited or overwhelming depending on what you're after. Or both! While there are some great choices, availability is constantly changing and it seems like 914 owners here have diverse objectives. Some are happy to cruise, some want maximum performance, etc. We almost need to split this into categories.

Not saying "size" is the right way to split them up, but…

15-inch tires in "stock" sizes, i.e. 165R15, 185/70R15
True OE-style tires (XZX, XWX, CN36, etc)
Period looks with improved performance (Vredestein Sprint Classic, Avon CR6ZZ)

15-inch tires in non-stock sizes, i.e. 195/65, 195/60, 215/60, 205/55, 205/60, 205/50, 195/55, 195/50, etc
Modern all-season (I'm not longer up to date on these!)
Modern performance (Toyo RA1 or R888, the new Yoko A-052, Direzza, etc)

16-inch tires in 205/55, 205/50, 225/50, 245/45, etc
All-season (Michelin Pilot Sport A/S3 is a great tire!)
Modern performance

And then there are the "outliers," whether stock 14s or aftermarket 17s and even 18s?

Or maybe it would be more useful to split them up by objective, whether originality, period looks with improved performance, maximum performance, nice all-around use, etc.? I'll be watching this thread, too, as the last tires I truly loved on my 914 were BFG Comp T/A 3s in 205/55R15 and, before that, A-008Rs. Both were a long, long time ago...

[DickSteinkamp]

Here are 26 different 205 50 15s available from Tire Rack. All have consumer reviews and ratings. Some are Tire Rack tested. Probably better info than someone saying they love their tires. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif)

Tire Rack 205/50/15

[gereed75]

Yes but the 205 50 15 are significantly smaller than the original stock size and that makes 5th gear pretty short for highway driving IMHO.

Closer to stock is the 205 55 for which there are only two offerings on Tire Rack. The last set I bought in that size were the Kuhmos’s which must be NLA. They fit barely under stock fenders, as did the Yokohama’s I had before that.

Anybody know about the two current offerings in that size?

https://www.tirerack.com/tires/TireSearchRe...rearDiameter=15

[horizontally-opposed]

Yes but the 205 50 15 are significantly smaller than the original stock size and that makes 5th gear pretty short for highway driving IMHO.

Closer to stock is the 205 55 for which there are only two offerings on Tire Rack. The last set I bought in that size were the Kuhmos’s which must be NLA. They fit barely under stock fenders, as did the Yokohama’s I had before that.

Anybody know about the two current offerings in that size?

https://www.tirerack.com/tires/TireSearchRe...rearDiameter=15

(IMG:style_emoticons/default/agree.gif)

I'd only run 205/50s for autocross, where the shorter gear ratio might be helpful. Ran 205/55s for years and liked them. As to the two available, I have heard good things about the Direzzas, and not just once or twice.

Wish we had more summer performance tires in 195/65R15 or 205/60R15 to choose from. The only one I know of is the Pirelli P6000 in 195/65R15. Anyone else?

[JoeSh]

Thanks folks for chiming in. I’m thinking mostly in terms of stock wheels - so 15”. But happy to include others on the list. Depends on the replies I get.

As to TireRack reviews, as a base this would be similar EXCEPT better for 914s because TireRack has reviews from widely disparate cars. Often the tires that fit 914s are mostly used on Toyota or Honda economy cars. A very different application. So the reviews are likely not useful.

Please do mention your criteria when evaluating your tire. And yes, tire availability changes a lot year to year which makes this even more important. We would be well served by collecting our experiences. Otherwise everyone is shooting in the dark.

[JoeSh]

PS just found this review of the Direzzas:
https://grassrootsmotorsports.com/forum/grm...ew/95996/page1/

[thelogo]

Cooper cobra 3 s or something
Good fit .great side wall .pretty cheap.

If the tires aren't squealing im not driving hard enough?

[JoeSh]

Mostly positive reviews of the Direzzas here from mostly Miata owners:
https://www.goodyear.com/en-US/tires/dunlop...2-tires/reviews

Undue vibration came up in a few reviews though.

[JoeSh]

Anybody have wisdom to add on 195/60-15 vs 205/55-15?

[VaccaRabite]

Well aware this is an older thread, but since I'm looking for tires its one of the more recent threads I found.

the 205/55s (which I have on my car now) have very bulgy sidewalls on stock 4 bolt wheels (Fuchs). It looks cool, but they flex a lot under hard cornering.

I'll be moving to 195s this time around I think.

Zach