I've not driven on RS-3s, but I loved my Star Specs. They didn't seem to have a weakness at all other than a slightly higher price. I also got 20k out of them. I got 9500 and my Advans were dead.

 

well the NT05's are also cheaper

it was nice to hear your opposite input. I'll be going the other way around and trying Star Specs next.

I was having buyers remorse like you (and other posts after digging around), but have grown to like them for the balance of tread life (most important imo, these seem to last much longer) and performance. definitely very DD friendly AND lower cost

so I wouldn't call these tires terrible for anyone else reading. unless you've driven on higher-level performance tires, these will still be an upgrade to most other options

 

if you don't race your car you really don't need a tire like this... something like a Michelin Pilot SS would prolly be a better match for your needs... or some other summer tire as opposed to autox tires

 

Temperature is key!! Some high-performance street tires are made to come up to temp quickly - others not so much. Bridgestones for example, take forever & a day! I'm currently finishing off a set of REO50A Pole Positions. I've put 39K on them, & only now they're down to about 2/32"! They are rock hard during the winter & have marginal grip below 50*. During the summer they perform great once they're up to temperature. This atribute in any tire will always contribute to longer wear life, but marginal grip unless warmed up (like the NT05).

I've also gone through a set of Yokohama A13C's back when I had X GSR wheels on my car. They warmed up in 2 seconds, & stuck like glue to the road in a wider temperature range. They also had better manners in the wet when temps were down in the 30's/40's*.. A very practical tire for the street overall, but their life-span was less than half of what I've gotten out of the 'Stones. A tire that warms up as fast as the Yok's did (or any similar behaving tire) will usually get greasier faster at the track & hit its limit quicker than a tire that takes longer to warm up - I've read reviews directly comparing the Star Specs vs the RE11's. The Star Specs would warm up faster, provide argueably the same grip as the RE11's, but they'd hit their peak sooner. So based on the reviews & personal opinion, I'd say the Star Specs would make for a better street tire/AutoX, while the RE11's might be a better choice for longer track sessions.

I wanted to try the Star Specs or the NT05's next, but I found some Toyo R1R's for a steal so I'm putting those on next. I'm thinking the R1R's will be impressive..

 

The answer depends on at least two things: whether it's raining (with StarSpecs gaining over R-S3s in the rain) and who you ask (with it being darned close to an even split, regardless of weather).

 

I'd defintely be willing to give the Star Specs a chance, my RS3s are almost down to wear bars after 6500 miles, I could probably get another 2k miles or so till they're completely shot.

It would be nice to see 10-12k out of the Star Specs.

 

I hear alot of people raving about these,but mostly I believe its due to their price point and not performance

I love my RS-3's and just hit 10k on them I have at least 40% left.

 

You have to compare tires within the same performance category. With how much so many of us drive we'd be replacing tires every 4 months running "extreme performance" summer rubber. The V12's are not that cheap, but they are a nice daily-driver street tire (I'm currently on them). My driving style got only 10k miles from the OEM Advans, but I'll get about 25k out of these.

 

I run the V12s. Honestly, I don't know how anyone could exceed their performance envelope on the street.

To give a point of reference, my stock tires lasted ~7500 miles, the second set of Advans lasted ~5K and I'll likely see ~12K from the V12s. I've auto-x'd the tires, as well. They're not the top of the heap by any means, but they hardly embarrassed themselves. On the street they're not as crisp as, say, the Star Specs, though it's not a night and day difference, but they are more tolerant of lower temps, better in the wet, they weigh less, and they reduce tire noise significantly. Pick your poison.

 

Ever thought about looking into continental extreme contact dws? Its Ultra high performance all season. If you don't really track it and just need an all around good tire I would look into them. They are reasonably priced to(Cheaper on some sites then others).

 

Totally agree here. You should know what you're getting from the V12's especially for the price. For the price they are absolutely fantastic. They don't inspire confidence, but they do have a good amount of grip. As mentioned before, performance in the wet is fantastic and they are super quiet to boot.

 

I've had my NT05's for about 3-4k miles (got them in Nov). I have to say in the cold they suck (and I'm talking 40-50F so not that cold). Now with the warm weather here, the tires heat up faster, and WHOA it's like a day and night difference. They are grippy. I have yet to really push the car but I must say, the few times I have (once the tires are up to temp), I'm happy I got them. Not the best tire out there, but for the price, they are a good buy (at least IMHO). The only thing I've noticed is that it's hard to get them up to (the right) temp, I'm still trying to figure out what 'temp' is best for them (I thought I had them up to temp once and whoa.. I was wrong).

 

wow this is all useful inputs. i was considering get these tires but im also looking at a few others. i just tried the nt555 for daily with 25k+ and have seen everything from canyon, drag,track,drift and there werent bad at all. I live in Socal so the weather here is pretty warm most of the time. ive been looking into the nt05 and the invo's.