I just replaced the stock Advans with some comparable all-season tires (~$500). Additionally, I told the alignment technician to abide by the dealer specs that I provided, indicating that I hoped that the tires would wear evenly (my Advans wore much more quickly on the inside of the tires because of an aggressive camber setting). From what I recall, he said that he set the camber to zero on all tires. Of course this will allow the tires to wear evenly and increase the longevity. Ah, but here's the rub. I was cornering hard today on a back road and I noticed a disturbing increase in body roll. Gone was the go-cart feel of the car. It now feels so-so and not as razor-sharp at high speeds. I supsect that the alignment is the culprit. I was tempted to think that the tires would be the cause, but they are high performance (though not as soft). Am I correct in assuming that? If so, I'm going to have to choose between the car handling like it's on rails (which I love) while getting tires every 6 months and getting 30,000+ miles on the tires and missing that wicked perfomance edge. Ah, if I could have the best of both worlds...

 

This was a known entity before you bought the car. It's high maintenance in terms of effort and price. Your "comparable" all-seasons may be called "high performance," but they are still all-seasons. There's no way they are close to the Advans in terms of handling and grip (on dry pavement), and the neutral alignment exacerbates the tire deficiency.

 

This is just the difference between quality performance AS tires and less expensive ones. The sidewalls on your present tires are probably very weak

I have Michelin Pilot Sport AS. Although they are nowhere as good as the Advans they are very respectable to drive. I find them to be a good compromise for the winter out here in CO

 

BTW -- what are you doing putting on AS in Cali???

 

He was just being cheap.

 

This is exactly what I supsected. Thank you. Since the car is for me a daily driver, I will for now live with the decrease in performance. It was fun while it lasted.

 

Perhaps. However I have read, on this forum, that Advans are not that good for snow and other inclement weather. I do plan on driving in the snow (one hour away). So safety and cost were both considerations. If I were more of a purist I would never have compromised.

 

Mine is a daily driver, too...as I think it is for the majority of Evo owners, but I will still only ever use Advans or something just as good, except during the upcoming Winter in Colorado. I'll be using Blizzaks during the bad weather days, but Advans during the clear days. My Advans are at 13.7k right now after 13 months, so I'll be making it about 1.5 years per set. When it's time to replace my Advans, I will just get a set of barely-used Advans for less than $500 off someone who upgraded their rims/tires just after purchasing a new IX.

 

They aren't good for snow, which is why you get snow tires for sustained exposure. Are you going an hour away to drive in snow on purpose? Is it unavoidable? I prefer not to sacrifice 99% of my driving time just to have decent traction in snowy conditions. As for inclement weather, the Advans are great in the rain.

 

I would be going to the snow on purpose, but only a couple of times per year. If in fact the Advans are functional in the snow, and great in the rain (as you say), I could see the point of using only Advans. However the issue then becomes cost. I drive between 30,000 and 35,000 miles per year. I don't regret buying the Evo at all, it's "expensiveness" notwithstanding. It's a blast to drive. In one year, however, I would go through 2 sets of Advans (~$2K/yr) versus one set of all seasons (~$500/year). In this case, frugality is the better part of valor.

 

I have 18k on my current advans....I rotated them at like 15k and they looked great, rotation at 18k and the insides of the front tires are BALD!!. I heard that when they start to wear they really wear hard, and I guess this is true.

 

Just a matter of opinion but if you are getting 18K out of a set of Advans you are not really driving the car

 

In the winter I have had good success with Toyo Proxy 4's. They are M/S rated which allows you to ge thru chain checks and through light snow. They are not true snow tires so if you have lots of snow get snow tires. I also went with a 255/40/17 little wider foot print and a little stiffer sidewall. Just a reminder the advans are very dangerous in the snow!!

 

So there is a happy medium, after all. A stiffer sidewall should apparently help reduce a little of the body roll. Next time, I'll remember that.

 

Ok ... Mathgeek, here is a small lesson in suspension geometry ...
1. CAMBER doesn't eat away tires, TOE does
2. You should have zeroed out your front and rear toe settings
3. You should have maxed out your -ve camber setting to get better handling and more neutral handling at the limit
4. Tire side wall stiffness and air-pressure will determine how much additional body roll you will gain/lose
5. With your zero camber setting you will wear out the outside walls of your tires quicker if you like to take corners aggressively

Ooops