Hey guys,

no I haven't moved on from winter already, but I had some free time this morning and figured out I would check the summer tires. I know I'm soon

I was wondering, what do you guys have as summer tires in Canada ? The reason why I'm asking is because I'm wondering if I should get summer (performance) tires or 4 seasons. In Quebec, there's a law which states that in winter, you must get winter tires and 4 seasons are not authorized. And our weather in Canada is more impredictable than the US.

This is my first year with my own car and I have to take care of these tires. I'm not a speed type of guy (max 140km/h on highways and usually 120km/h), but I like cornering. I'm more a rally type of guy

But I take care of my tires, mostly because it is expensive. From my understanding, a 4 season tire would last longer than a summer tire. Please note that I'm talking about Performance and High Performance Summer and 4 Seasons tires. I still want some grip for my cornering and security.

So, what are you cars wearing in summer ?

So far, if I buy a summer tire I'm looking forward the General Exclaim UHP and for 4 seasons, Toyo Proxes 4. The Proxes is quite old but seem to be still top shape.

Thanks for your feedbacks !

Neo

 

Depends on what you want. I like to use a dedicated winter tire and a dedicated summer tire because all-season tires are no-season tires. For summers you have a lot of choices depending on your intended use. If you want to drive very aggressively (ie. go to the track), look at the Bridgestone RE01Rs, Dunlop Star Specs, Yokohama Advan Neovas (AD07 or AD08) and the Falken RT-615s. If you just drive around town with the occasional spirited trip, go for something like the Bridgestone RE050s or the Falken FK-452s. I used the FK-452s last season and even with some track days they held up fine. I'm going to switch to the Star Specs but that's more of a track grip thing. I suggest going to www.tirerack.com as they have a large selection of tires and can help with your decision.

 

yes I did visit tirerack, 1010tires and some other forums. This is weird though : Tirerack reports the Exclaim UHP as High Perf summer tire while 1010Tires and General Tire.com reports the Exclaim UHP as High Perf 4 seasons.

I'm not a race guy. I do not track, I'm just doing highways and some speed.

Anyone tried these Proxes 4 ? They've been around for a while. (I think 4-5 years or more)

 

TOYO PROXES 4 I have I think? I love them to shreads but very expensive my fast rims cost less than the toyos but next time I may want to try yoko or gt

 

Toyo Proxes... not the best tires and somewhat expensive from what I hear although I haven't priced 'em out myself. I run them on my EVO and they are sticky enough when hot but as soon as it gets cooler, lose lots of their traction.

I like the Falken RT615 for aggressive street driving. Dry traction is great and wet traction is more than good enough if you aren't into timed events. Sizes are somewhat limited though or at least they were when I last looked.

 

problem that I find with Falken is always the same : they don't last very long They are indeed very good tires, but I find them to be expensive for how much they last. But this is just my 2c.

Thanks for your comment on Proxes

 

Yes, I do concur. Sounds like you are going to have to slide along the sticky<-->longevity dichotomy to get longer lasting rubber.

Don't know anything about long life rubber, maybe someone else can help you.

 

haha yeah I know that debate. Had to debate for winter tires

I want one tire to rule them all. Isn't possible ?

 

I am getting a set of Potenza RE960AS Pole Position for evaluation from the same supplier for the winter tire group buy. the money raised will be used / applied to lowering the price of these tires. Usually these tires are an arm and a leg, but now they will only cost an arm lol

I will be installing in Feb to get an idea of what their winter performance is like.
the spec tire size will be increase to 225/45/18 . since they are unavailable in 215.

 

It's like trying to find one car or one motorcycle to rule them all... it's just not going to happen.



So are the cops enforcing the winter tire rule?

 

Everything is a trade off, if you want good grip, longevity goes down, if you want longevity, grip goes down, if you want soft ride, responsiveness goes down, etc.

 

run some slicks yo.

 

Sorry for the late reply guys and thanks for your answers. I guess I'm gonna stick with my first idea, which was General Tires Exclaim UHP. It's a bit confusing since some stores rate the Exclaim UHP as High Performance Summer Tires and others are rating them as High Performance 4 Seasons Tires (including on the GT.com website). But anyway, I know many people in Quebec who have the Exclaim UHP as summer tires and are very happy about them. They're cheap too compared to other tires.

I'm still open for other comments

Again, thanks.

 

on a serious note, i had yokohama S drives on my RSX. It was very nice when they warm up on a nice summer day. they could handle those occasional rainy days as well with ease.

obviously they are not raw performance tires but for what they are; i have nothing bad to say about them

 

Donlup DZ 1 star : http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires....t+Z1+Star+Spec

Tire Rack's Test Summary
What We Liked: We liked it all – handling, dry grip and especially wet traction
(On a Scale of 1 to 10)
What We'd Improve: A small improvement in ride quality
Ride Comfort
7.15
Conclusion: A new Extreme Performance Summer star is born
Noise Comfort
7.2
Latest Test Rank: 1st
Dry Track
8.64
Previous Test Rank: Not previously tested
Wet Track
7.57


Overall
7.8