Looking for Summer Tires

gto

Track Ready
Moderator
Location
Los Angeles, CA
Car
05 FX35 RWD
Would love to get your input.
I want grip. Never see winter with the FX.
So far I'm finding the only tires that will fit a new setup I'm likely going with . . & that are softer than the Yoks & Kooks, which are all season anyway, are:

Falken Azenis FK-453CC (UTOG 300) & the Michelin Latitude Sport 3 (220). The Michelins are OEM on the Macan & run about 4 bills. The Falkens are dirt cheap, but tire tread & specs look pretty good.
I'm doubting it, but does anyone have any experience on either of these?

---------- Post added at 03:42 PM ---------- Previous post was at 03:41 PM ----------

http://falkentire.com/tires/truck-suv-tires/azenis-fk453cc-tire

http://www.michelinman.com/tire-selector/category/suv-crossover/latitude-sport-3/tire-details
 
I heard great things of Dunlop SPORTS from Aiya, what tire sizing are you currently running?
 
295/40/20 square or staggered at 295/40 & either 265/45 or 275/45. The Falkens dont come in a 265.
Which specific Dunlops are you talking about, & what size?
And I'm currently running 22 on rh06's in a 35 series, but looking for more stick
I believe my best option is to shrink down a bit. More meat may not be a bad thing on a smaller rim

I also have plans to drop it more with some BC's
 
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I still need to call you, been busy working all weekend from midnight Friday until yesterday afternoon and just got back home today. I actually spun out today in the rain on the transfer from the highway to the interstate. Car in front of me going slow, braked enough in the turn to shift weight from the rear, and away I went wheeeee. Thought I was going to hit a light pole for sure on the passenger side, but ended up almost facing forward again on the shoulder and just in the grass. Tires seemed to handle it pretty well I guess. I don't remember it well enough but I guess I kept going straight with the road but was just spinning in a circle.

I feel like wider rear tires get sketchy in the rain though because they float more. I notice that the few times I drive in heavy rain, but maybe not as much an issue for you.
 
Glad you're ok Stu.

Dave - I run staggered on 275/45/20 Yokohama Parada spec-x fronts and 295/40/20 Continental extreme contact DWS on the rear. I am also lowered on BC. So far the grip on heavy rains are excellent. I-10 on heavy rains can be very scary and can collect water fairly quickly.
 
It's too bad treadwear ratings are not very accurate to compare between brands, where you could just find a low rating to get the stickiest tire. I think most of the ones available to us are on the high end.
 
if you can get a wheel that would fit a michelin PSS (pilot super sport) you will be very happy. In running this on my m3 and love them, great wet grip and super sticky dry grip..
 
I've driven those. They are awesome. That said, the marketing they've been using is that the Latitude Sports come from the same tech. Dunno how much truth there is to that, & not sure if the pilots will handle the load. They likely will, but the sizing is what seems to be the problem here. I will double check though, ty
 
Are you dead set on the 295 width? It seems to limit options.
At one time, I was looking at Nitto street slicks (not too aggressive as far as slicks go, but pretty darn aggressive for a street tire.) Or go Hoosier! :)
 
Not dead set. Those pilots do come in a 295, but I would have to run a 35 vs. a 40 in the 20's. Might be a bit of gap on those
We're also looking at 525 msrp a corner. UTOG is also a 300
Dunno. those Falkens are starting to look not bad at 175. Might be worth a try?

---------- Post added at 10:28 AM ---------- Previous post was at 10:23 AM ----------

Tirerack has
PS2's for $492
PSS are $434
 
if you went down to 19s u will be amazed how cheap and good used conditions pss are for sale on bmw m3 forums. 4 staggered set of pss costs about 1250 from a tire shop, bought a full set for 600 new on the forum
 
I know, but I think 19's might look really small on the FX.
Do you recall seeing any setups on 19s on the site?
 
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295/35 gives you more tire options since at that point you're not looking at SUV specific tires. It would be more gap, but if you were planning on going lower with your BC's I think it would look fine. I'm running 275/40 and considering going to 295/35 in the future because of more tire choices. I'm only concerned because my car is already very low and a 295/35 is another 1/2" smaller in diameter. That's because I've maxed the drop on the BC's and then some. But I don't track my car like yours so I doubt you'd set up your suspension like I did.

I haven't seen any 19"s posted here. However, I would recommend not getting them and then running M3 tires. Their OEM rolling diameter is ~26.5" vs. the FX OEM rolling diameter of 30.4". The OEM M3 size is like 265/35/19 in the rear and your speedometer would be wildly high, 13-14% high. I run 20"s on both my 335 and FX. But the FX runs a 40 series tire which is already undersized and the 335 runs a 25 series in rear and 30 series in front. There is a huge difference in rolling diameter.
 
295/35 gives you more tire options since at that point you're not looking at SUV specific tires. It would be more gap, but if you were planning on going lower with your BC's I think it would look fine. I'm running 275/40 and considering going to 295/35 in the future because of more tire choices. I'm only concerned because my car is already very low and a 295/35 is another 1/2" smaller in diameter. That's because I've maxed the drop on the BC's and then some. But I don't track my car like yours so I doubt you'd set up your suspension like I did.

I haven't seen any 19"s posted here. However, I would recommend not getting them and then running M3 tires. Their OEM rolling diameter is ~26.5" vs. the FX OEM rolling diameter of 30.4". The OEM M3 size is like 265/35/19 in the rear and your speedometer would be wildly high, 13-14% high. I run 20"s on both my 335 and FX. But the FX runs a 40 series tire which is already undersized and the 335 runs a 25 series in rear and 30 series in front. There is a huge difference in rolling diameter.

right but i didnt say run m3 sizes. On the forum, allot of guys had different sizes going all the way up to 40 series that had for sale cheap

---------- Post added at 10:13 AM ---------- Previous post was at 10:09 AM ----------

GTO, i just checked on tirerack and found 285/35/20 and 295/35/20 PSS
 
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My only point was that if it fits an M3, it's going to be too small for an FX. A 35 series tire on a 19" is much different than a 35 series on a 20". Maybe M5 guys since some of them run 295/35/20"s and even that is slightly bigger than OEM. But 295/35/20 is a popular enough size that you can get lots of high performance tires especially since they fit GTR's.
 
My only point was that if it fits an M3, it's going to be too small for an FX. A 35 series tire on a 19" is much different than a 35 series on a 20". Maybe M5 guys since some of them run 295/35/20"s and even that is slightly bigger than OEM. But 295/35/20 is a popular enough size that you can get lots of high performance tires especially since they fit GTR's.

you're right, most guys on the bimmerpost forums got x5, x6 and all the Ms so thats the reason
 
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