Replacement Tire Suggestions for Yokohama S32As

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Replacement Tire Suggestions for Yokohama S32As

Post by gizmo »

My Scion tC came brand new from the dealership with Yokohama S32As. Supposedly, these tires are "High Performance All Season" tires. Even if they were, what they certainly are is incredibly expensive: an entire set of these tires new costs almost as much as the car!

Well... not really but that sounded cool.

So, anyway, I'd like to replace the tires I have now with a new set of lesser expensive tires. Obviously, I do not want to upset the handling characteristics of the car so I am reluctant to purchase a different MAKE and MODEL tire, but I'm equally as reluctant to spend 300+ dollars to replace one (1) tire on my dinky little car.

If there is anyone who would be willing to suggest a tire that would not effect the car's handling characteristics and cost ~$120 dollars then that would be greatly appreciated.


YOKOHAMA S32A SPECS
FRONT/REAR: 215/45ZR17
LOAD: SL
Treadwear: 160
Traction: A
Temperature:
UTQG: 160 A A
MAX LOAD: 1201 lbs.
MAX INFLATION: 44 psi
TREAD DEPTH: 10/32"
RIM WIDTH RANGE: 7-8"
TIRE WEIGHT: 23 lbs.
...
etc.
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Re: Replacement Tire Suggestions for Yokohama S32As

Post by gizmo »

Also, as a side note, because I'm in a financial bind, I will only be able to replace the rear two wheels at this time. And, because of damage to the sidewall, my right rear tire must be replaced.

Meaning, if I replace it with a tire other than itself, I will need to replace both tires on that axle.
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Re: Replacement Tire Suggestions for Yokohama S32As

Post by jomotopia »

for summer tires i like my Kumho Ecsta MXs. they're like rocks in the cold though. for all seasons i've heard good things about the Kumho Ecsta ASXs. ~$100 per tire i think. they seem to be considered some of the best "bang for the buck" tires.
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Re: Replacement Tire Suggestions for Yokohama S32As

Post by Nychold »

Honestly, from what people have said, just about any brand name, ultra high performance tire (or extreme performance tire) has better handling than anything that comes stock. Can't speak from experience because I'm still on the S32As (which I find to be more than adequate), but Zender put some Kumho Ecstas on his 05 (?) tC, and said it handled amazingly. And for around $108 a pop, they're a nice price break from the $218 S32A.

That being said, I looked through the entire tire rack listing yesterday, looking for good performing tires in our size, and found that just about anything had better ratings. Even the non-brand name tire arena. Personally, and this is nothing against the companies, I'd stay away from Bridgestone, Goodyear, and Michelin tires. I've just heard too many bad things about their tires from friends, relatives, etc. I've never heard a bad thing about Pirelli or Yokohoma, though, outside the fact that the S32A aren't the best.

No matter what you choose, as long as you get something that's not an OE replacement, you'll probably have a great set of tires for anything.
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Re: Replacement Tire Suggestions for Yokohama S32As

Post by 94Corolla5Speed »

I would suggest BFGoodrich Traction T/A . They're not the best looking tires, but they're rated for 60k miles, and they are 440 AA A, one of the best ratings I've seen on all-seasons. I don't know how they are in winter, but in dry and wet they handle great.
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Re: Replacement Tire Suggestions for Yokohama S32As

Post by the dumblonde »

I LOVE my Kumho Ecsta ASXs. And Jomo’s right they’re less than $100. Several of my friends have Kumhos are their cars too and they’ve been equally happy. Great handling and they hold up absurdly well in the cold for all season. For the price i don’t think you really can do better.
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Re: Replacement Tire Suggestions for Yokohama S32As

Post by gizmo »

Okay, I called sears and they only have these in stock:

Falken FK-452 - 215/45ZR17

It seems like, everywhere I go, the tires I want aren't I stock (costco doesn't have bfgoodrich gforce in stock, sears doesn't have kumho asx in stock). If I want to autocross this weekend, I need to get something in stock, or I could just miss the event, or I could just replace the S32A. You guys tell me..

NOTE1: The sears guy said that the Falkens are better tires?

NOTE2: No one seems to want to verify whether different sets of tires on the front and rear will negatively impact the cars ability to turn.
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Re: Replacement Tire Suggestions for Yokohama S32As

Post by Nychold »

Note 1: Never heard anything bad about Falken tires, but I've never had any experiences with them either.

Note 2: Lack of knowledge on the subject. :D
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Re: Replacement Tire Suggestions for Yokohama S32As

Post by watkins »

2: Different tires have different tread patterns and rubber qualities. Any and all of the features may increase or decrease the relative grip level as compared to your other tires. So yes, having different tires front and rear can make a difference in handling in such situations as which end will break loose first under threshold maneuvers. Whether this will be felt in autoX is a different matter.
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Re: Replacement Tire Suggestions for Yokohama S32As

Post by AHTOXA »

Nychold wrote: Personally, and this is nothing against the companies, I'd stay away from Bridgestone, Goodyear, and Michelin tires. I've just heard too many bad things about their tires from friends, relatives, etc. I've never heard a bad thing about Pirelli or Yokohoma, though, outside the fact that the S32A aren't the best.
It's most likely due to those particular tires being OE tires, which all suck on regular cars. Those companies produce excellent tires with excellent prices.

Tirerack.com is your best friend when researching tires and reading the ratings but take it with a grain of salt.

I have an unnatural obsession with tires and I've done a lot of research on each set I bought. Tirerack has been great to me, and they are one of the better online companies out there. Their business ethics standards are very high.
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Re: Replacement Tire Suggestions for Yokohama S32As

Post by AHTOXA »

Reply to NOTE 2:

Unless the tires are closely matched, yes there will be a difference. The reason no one can answer directly is because you need to take a look at both sets and see what they were rated as on tirerack. Sorry, I don't mean to plug them so much, I just find the resource valuable. Look at the ratings and you should be able to decide whether they are better or not.

That said, seeing how many aftermarket tires are better than stock, you may not notice much as the front tends to understeer anyway.

Real llife example: friend on Jetta replaced two tires in the rear but with pretty generic rubber. It was a bit worse than what he has now. Now when it rains and he takes a turn fast, the rear end steps out in an oversteer....on a FWD Jetta. So there you go. New tires are less grippy than his old ones in the rain.
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Re: Replacement Tire Suggestions for Yokohama S32As

Post by permabanned »

theres a reason they call azenis RT615s autocross tires. they probably are the best street tires you can buy.

flame tread pattern KDWs are baller.

its time to ask yourself a question. i have absolutely no idea where you live so i dont know what kind of weather you drive in. but you gotta aks yourself, do you need a summer tire that grips and grips and will wear faster, or an all season tire which will work year round and last longer than a summer tire.

do you live in a snow climate? in that case, id rock out a set of summers and a set of winters.

if your just DDing your car and dont drive around carving 25mph circle offramps at 50 and step the back end out turning onto your side street, getting some all seasons might be the thing to do. they will be cheaper and last a long longer than summers but wont grip as good.

if your car is modded and you drive hard and need the traction that summers provide, then faster tire wear shouldnt be much of a concern

as far as different tires on front and back. if you have a stickier tire on the back it will make the car understeer more, and if you have a not as stickier tire on the back it will make the back end come around more. you can play around with that by rotating tires. but really, while tires are a big part of the overall handling package, suspension setup is a much bigger and a much better way to get the car to handle how you want. a stiffer back sway bar will neutralize the handling more. wrong wheel drive will never handle as good as a comparable RWD but you can get the car to rotate thru the corner a lot better. at the same time making it tail happy might catch you off guard and end you up spun around facing where youcame from if your not careful.

but if you have to ask these kinds of questions on the first place, chances are you dont drive your car nearly hard enough to need summers and all seasons will work just fine
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Re: Replacement Tire Suggestions for Yokohama S32As

Post by gizmo »

To be fair to yokohama and my dealership: I have no qualms with my tires. I mean nothing by that comment, the one which paul34 quoted, except to clarify that my car initially came with High Performance All Season Tires. I think most would agree that a stock scion is far from a high performance vehicle, therefore some might wonder why one would seek high performance tires for a run of the mill coupe. The answer, why I would seek high performance tires, is to keep in sequence with the dealership/factory.

To answer permastyx's question: I would say, generally speaking, I don't drive "hard" on public streets. I'm that guy trying to get from point A to point B without incident, and if, at one given point in time, driving "hard" is the only way to accomplish that, then in those circumstances driving hard I am.

As far as handling goes, well, I think it's about time I introduce you all to the Chevelle. It was supposed to be a "racecar". It'll probably never get finished. Money is something that's nonexistant around here. 1970 SS. Frame boxed. 502 merlin (why'd we get the bigblock?). engines 2 inches lower than stock, mounted directly to the frame, and the first spark plug lines up with upper ball joint. 10.3:1 compression. JRP pistions. mechanical rollercam, rollerrockers, rollerlifters. 16:18 lash. 683hp @4800, 657tq@3400. Jerico WC4 dogbox. Iron nodular reinforced ford 9" rear, 31 spline moser axles, 1350 yolk, detroit locker, nascar truckarm rear suspension (polyurathane busings :shock:), global west negative roll suspension, 12.3:1 steering box, intermediate steering column, and more. probably will swap out front suspension in year 2550 when I have money. Still needs plenty, but when it's finished, it'll be finished right. Then maybe I can convince Gary to take a ride with me, and with a little luck, maybe he'll let me try to give him a run for his money. Then again, maybe it'll rot awaiting a sponsor...
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Re: Replacement Tire Suggestions for Yokohama S32As

Post by permabanned »

nice drag car, got any pics?
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Re: Replacement Tire Suggestions for Yokohama S32As

Post by gizmo »

I was afraid of that... it's a road racer! I'd swear he disregarded that on purpose.

I can take pictures but most of the body is in a container. The car is in the same condition as it was when it left the last fabricator.
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