Tire question
Thread Starter
Intermediate
Joined: Mar 2012
Posts: 33
Likes: 0
From: HANOVER PA
Tire question
IS ANYONE RUNNING OR HAS USED THE KUMHO XS TIRES ON THERE CARS FOR STREET USE. KUMHO SAYS THERE A STREET AND AUTOCROSS TIRE, BUT I WOULD LIKE TO HEAR FROM SOME MEMBERS THAT HAVE USED THEM ON THE STREET. GOOD, BAD, UGLY OR WHAT!!
Race Director
Joined: May 2001
Posts: 14,165
Likes: 9
I have run the Kumho Ecsta Supra 712's and the Ecsta ASX's. Both were good tires for the money, but not what I would consider a really great tire. I imagine the new XS's are similar.
Ask yourself what you want to do with the tire. Is it something that you will just cruise on, or is it something that you want to throw through the twisties? If you're looking for a maximum performance tire, look elsewhere. If you're looking for a tire with decent tread life and only marginal grip, consider them.
Ask yourself what you want to do with the tire. Is it something that you will just cruise on, or is it something that you want to throw through the twisties? If you're looking for a maximum performance tire, look elsewhere. If you're looking for a tire with decent tread life and only marginal grip, consider them.
Oh yeah I have a few friends that use Kumho tires not sure if it's what your looking at but they've had no issues so far.
Safety Car
Joined: Sep 2010
Posts: 3,752
Likes: 190
From: Indiana PA
I have run the Kumho Ecsta Supra 712's and the Ecsta ASX's. Both were good tires for the money, but not what I would consider a really great tire. I imagine the new XS's are similar.
Ask yourself what you want to do with the tire. Is it something that you will just cruise on, or is it something that you want to throw through the twisties? If you're looking for a maximum performance tire, look elsewhere. If you're looking for a tire with decent tread life and only marginal grip, consider them.
Ask yourself what you want to do with the tire. Is it something that you will just cruise on, or is it something that you want to throw through the twisties? If you're looking for a maximum performance tire, look elsewhere. If you're looking for a tire with decent tread life and only marginal grip, consider them.
I'm running Kumho's Escta SPT's which are their older summer performance tire. They are ok, I want more grip, but I drive hard. No complaints in the straight line traction department or in the rain. The XS is a extreme summer performance tire, and is popular amongst stock tire class auto-x'ers.www.tirerack.com
Team Owner
Joined: Dec 1999
Posts: 34,873
Likes: 487
From: Lacey WA RVN 68-69
NCM Sinkhole Donor
I have used the older design Ecsta MX tires for autocross and track days and they were a very good tire as long as I carefully watched pressures. For track use, the MX would let you know when traction started to go away. They did take a couple of laps to build up enough heat to get sticky.
I looked at the new XS tire but decided on the Nitto NT05. So far they seem to grip slightly better and warm up quickly.
For street use either tire (XS or NT05) is OK for dry weather but I would not recommend them for freeway driving during heavy rainfall. Just have to go slow and not do quick lane changes.
For the price, either tire is an excellent value for what you get, but don't expect 50K worth of treadwear.
I looked at the new XS tire but decided on the Nitto NT05. So far they seem to grip slightly better and warm up quickly.
For street use either tire (XS or NT05) is OK for dry weather but I would not recommend them for freeway driving during heavy rainfall. Just have to go slow and not do quick lane changes.
For the price, either tire is an excellent value for what you get, but don't expect 50K worth of treadwear.
Melting Slicks
Joined: Apr 2002
Posts: 2,943
Likes: 0
From: North Aurora Il
I just put new ASX's on all around. I wanted the all weather tire to have better traction in the spring and fall. I had Firehawks and they had poor grip once the nighttime temps got below 50.
Burning Brakes
Joined: May 2009
Posts: 1,027
Likes: 1
From: Woodland CA
I've been running the Kumho Ecsta SPT Ultra High Performance Summer tire, and I'm not really happy with them. They make the car wander in ruts in the pavement. Never had this issue with the old BF Goodrich tires. Also, the tire does not stick as well as the old BF Goodrich. It also has a lot of sidewall flex in corners. I ended up experimenting with the tire pressure to reduce the amount of flex.
