Yokohama S Drives

[JupiterBMW]

Ok, so I'm in dire need of tires as I have a half dozen bubbles on the inside of 1 rear tire, a large cut in another, and I think one of them has a slow leak... Plus, I got into a roundabout near my house today a little too hot and just got nervous that the ass end was going to step out...

Sooo, tires are more important than mods right now... *sigh*

I ran the Yoko S Drives on my last car for years and I really like them. Great grip, low noise, great tread wear, and really good in the rain.

The price for 4 in stock size is $666 on Tire Rack, which all of you know is a big jump down from the Michelins that everyone loves. And honestly, right now I just can't justify that kind of money on tires...

So, does anyone have any thoughts on these tires or ANY of the more economical tires for our car? Assuming I DON'T want to buy the big dollar tires (Michelin, Pirelli, Continental) what would you recommend?

Thanks guys.. :)

Yokohama S Drive... http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires.jsp?tireMake=Yokohama&tireModel=S.drive

[imola red zhp]

I had the Sumitomo HTR Z III on my M5 $750 for the set on tire rack might be cheaper for the ZHP good tire IMO.

[JupiterBMW]

Yeah, I had a set of those back in the day too, and I really liked them. They're actually a bit more than the S.Drives though. The only thing I'm finding is that for an OEM size set, the S.Drives aren't matched. The fronts are W rated and the rears are Y rated... Not that it matters much, but something to think about. I really don't want to buy a staggered set though, I want a square set so I can rotate in the future... Hmm, what to do what to do...

[brettbimmer]

John, I have been running the S. Drives both on my ZHP and e36. I like the tires, they are as you described; good in the wet, decent in the dry, ok for a run or two on the track before heating up too much, though as wide as the tires are on the ZHP, they are getting a little loud as they are getting near the end of their life. I have heard great things from the owners of the MP Super Sports, but I believe cost is double what you would pay for the S. Drives. The question is, would I buy them again? I would put it in as 'very likely', unless I hit the lotto (not very likely), and suddenly have loads of cash for tires. If you need more info on their handling, etc. on the ZHP, please let me know.

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[blablac]

I was going to put some Continental ExtremeContact DW before I sold the car. Price is good, wear numbers look good and performance is just a tad under the Michelin.

[blablac]

Also there is a deal on tire rack right now on the pilot super sport...847 for the set.

[UdubBadger]

I was going to put some Continental ExtremeContact DW before I sold the car. Price is good, wear numbers look good and performance is just a tad under the Michelin.

these are what I run, fantastic tire and almost pilot super sport performance.

also check out the hankook ventus v12's - always heard great things about them for the money too.

[UdubBadger]

Also there is a deal on tire rack right now on the pilot super sport...847 for the set.
thats actually a STEAL

[JupiterBMW]

Brett- Yeah, I found that if not rotated very regularly and kept aligned, the S.Drives will get noisy. Although, as most of you know, I recently drove my Altima SE-R up to NY to sell it and then to buy the ZHP. On the drive up there, the tires performed beautifully without any awful road noise, and this was after about 15K miles of driving down here... So, yeah, I'm happy with them...

Yeah, I saw the deal on the Pilot SSs, but damn, that's STILL almost $200 more than the S.Drives... I just can't justify it. I don't drive that hard anyway... Roads in Florida are all flat, straight, and in pretty good condition... The only handling hazard we have to deal with is rain, and old people... So, wet traction is very important to me.

Thanks to everyone for the input though... I'm slowly settling on a set of S.Drives... Now, if I can just get my hands on a square set of CSL reps for a good price... I'll be stoked. :biggrin

[328ioc]

also check out the hankook ventus v12's - always heard great things about them for the money too.

+1 on the v-12's I have heard great things about them. Especially in the Florida heat.

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[dotslashapex]

The S-drives are fantastic tires! I've run a set on a variety of vehicles and sizes. They're very consistent. The V12's are quite good too. If you want to try something, you should try and look at the Toyo R1R's if you want something that's a great performing tire as well:

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires.jsp?tireMake=Toyo&tireModel=Proxes+R1R&frontTire=24WR8PR1R&rearTire=535WR8PR1R&vehicleSearch=true&fromCompare1=yes&autoMake=BMW&autoYear=2004&autoModel=330Ci%20Coupe%20Sprt%20Pkg&autoModClar=

[madman23]

I have the S.Drives on my E30 and my E36 M and they are amazing tires for the price. Would definitely recommend them to anyone looking for a good inexpensive tire.