meilers

My stockers are starting to "sing" on the highway and rumble like a tank around town, so it is time to upgrade. As I live in Arizona, a Max Performance Summer tire is the obvious choice. However, I have some concerns!

After reading the tire reviews at TireRack, it seems a few of the most popular max perf. tires for the WRX (S-03s, Khumo MX, Nero Zeros, F1DS) have generated numerous reports of handling problems with "rain grooves" or "tramlining" at highway speeds, as well as some hydroplaning issues.

Here are some quotes from the SO-3 reviews that have me concerned:

"My biggest complaint, and why Ill probably not buy them again, is that they have a wicked tramline characteristic. Both hands on the wheel with these puppies. Swapping back and forth between two other brands confirmed this condition. But otherwise a cracking good tire. Just a little hard to relax and drive."

"However, on the highway these tires can be annoying as they tramline (follow ruts, uneven pavement, grooves) like mad, sometimes even violently."

"While the tires handled very well, I often felt the tires were controlling the car. My car seemed to pull left and right on the highway suddenly, like I had gotten caught in a gutter or track that was sucking me in, even when I was driving on perfectly paved highways. I originally thought my problem was low power steering fluid or something, and I brought it to BMW and couldnt find the problem."

I found similar comments in the other tire reviews; one person said that his max performance tires were so twitchy on the highway that he was pulled over on suspicion of driving drunk! Granted, these comments are balanced out by a HUGE number of positive comments, but the "darty" nature on uneven roads really concerns me.

This is actually a pretty serious problem for Arizona drivers. Because we have so little rain (6-8 inches A YEAR) the cities and state do nothing to actually control water when it falls -- no drains, sewers, gutters or grates. Thus, when it rains, we get instant puddles everywhere (along with a nice slick coating of brake dust and oil). They also tend to build freeways (rated at 65, but everyone drives 80) out of grooved concrete, rather than asphalt.

The highway I drive every day is concrete, not asphalt, and is cut with rain grooves/tramlines about 80% of its length. Most of the grooves are perpendicular to the road surface (across, not with the direction of travel) but on the bridges they run parallel.

Originally being from Ohio, I've never driven on anything else but cheap-*** multiseason tires (with the exception of the Pirellis on my father's M3). How serious of a problem is it driving at highway speeds with max performance tires on a surface cut with rain grooves? Would I be better off with a M/S tire or something with a harder tread compound?

dropkick_muppet

iTrader: (4)

i have S0-3s, so i can only really comment on those. there is some tramlining, but it really isn't that bad. here in northern california, we have some pretty crap freeways, many of which are built out of groove concrete. i can easily control my car with one hand on the wheel.

as for wet performance, the S0-3s are the absolute business. i have gone driving in the mountains during rainstorms, and have never had issues with hydroplaning. i've found that they offer mre grip in the wet than my RE92s did in the dry (though i did change tire sizes and wheels).

if the grooves run perpindicular to the direction of travel, you don't have anything to worry about. you'll get a nice humming noise, but they should steer just fine. it's the ones that run with the direction of travel that cause the tires to wander a bit in my experience.

Kevin M

iTrader: (12)

I noticed that the tramlining issue gets better as the tires season. The first few hundred miles they are very squirmy. Also, the tramlining comes from having solid ribs that completely encircle the tire- which is also the feature that improves turn-in and response, along with sidewall stiffness. That unbroken rib also helps reduce road noise.

I am a complete S03 *****, as most who have talked to me about them know, but since you live in such a dry climate, you might be just as well off with the Kumho MXs. Just about as good in the dry, and much cheaper. Check on the wear characteristics too. Depending on how you drive, S03s may actually last longer.