Alright, time for me to buy tires for the new wheels, 17x8 front and 17x9 rear. I have narrowed it down to two choices:

Toyo T1-R (around $650 shipped)

245/40/17 F
265/40/17 R

or

Kumho MX (around $550 shipped)

245/40/17 F
255/40/17 R

I have heard great things about both tires, except that both of them supposedly have sluggish turn-in due to soft sidewalls.

I would appreciate hearing any opinions on these tires. Are the T1-R's worth the extra $$? I know they are supposed to be light weight like their predicessors (T1-S), but I haven't heard any weight info on the Kumho MX's. The extra rear width with the T1-R's looks nice on paper, but probably wont make a huge difference. Thanks a bunch guys.

PS. Yes I searched, but the T1-R's are a fairly new tire so I know there are some of you out there who still have something to say.

 

The current Car and Driver issue has a test of 11 tires, including these. The August 2005 Grassroots Motorsports tests the MX also, you can download it for free from their website.https://www.rx7club.com/suspension-wheels-tires-brakes-20/nice-review-car-driver-top-11-tires-481180/

 

'doh! I suck at searching, don't know how I missed this thread:

https://www.rx7club.com/showthread.p...ht=kumho+mx%2A

I am going to go with the MX's, the only downsides seem to be a soft sidewall and some road noise, but nothing terrible. I'm not experienced enough for the soft sidewalls to effect my driving that much anyway.

Thanks rynberg.

-edit-
Oh and for those wondering, the weights of both tires are very close. The MX's are only a few tenths of a pound heavier than the T1R's.

 

I'm wrestling with the same question as I'll need new tires in the next couple of months. Seeing as how the Kumho MX is $770 in my sizes, and the Yoko Advans/Michelin PS2s are about $1050, it's probably not that difficult of a decision.

 

Hehe. I had a little deja vu when I saw your thread

I'm really liking the Kumho MXs.

I googled for days on both tires and read reviews on more forums than I can count. A few of the reviews brought back memories of when I put Toyo T1s on my old e36 BMW. I remembered at first I didn't like them b/c they felt somewhat vague or disconnected especially compared to the stiff Michelins I was coming from on the BMW. A few people had similar complaints about the T1R.

I eventually built up confidence in the Toyo and drove them very hard on the street. They were very quiet and had nice soft sidewalls resulting in a great ride on rough NY streets and they were absolutely amazing in the rain. They had decent overall grip with a pretty communicate and smooth break away at the limit. Overall limit was lower than the Michelins I was coming from.

I drove through the rainiest October in NY history with the Kumhos and I gotta say the wet weather performance was impressive. They never left me feeling out of control and dealt very well with hydroplaning situations.

They have been great in the dry too on the street. They provide a comfortable ride and are quiet. I don't notice any issues with sidewall being too soft or anything like that. Turn in is pretty crisp. Overall grip seems good, but I haven't pushed them all that hard just yet.

Based on the above, I feel comfortable recommending the Kumho MX over the T1R since I feel the overall characteristics of the T1R is still similar to the T1S with all its advantages and disadvantages.

 

Rynberg, you cannot go wrong with the MX. I am trying to get my T1S tires to last until 615s come out in my sizes, otherwise it will be MX for sure for the Supra. Obviously this has been beaten to death, but I do not know anyone coming from T1S/R, to an MX that complained, but the reverse, I have heard, ie MX to T1 was negative. Carl

 

Thanks, Carl. Hope to attend a track day or auto-x with you again this coming year.