daniel.M

Hey everyone,
I know that these types of threads have been discussed to death , but most of the tire comparisons I have seen are for weekend warrior cars (not daily drivers).

Anyway, after 12,000 miles, the GY runflats are done and I need to find a replacement tire.

-I daily drive my corvette (I think I put about 11/12,000 miles on it per year) and will occasionally make the trip up I-95 from fort bragg back home to Philadelphia.
-I regularly enjoy very spirited driving on the street
-I will occasionally (once a month or two) take my corvette to the dragstrip

I understand that generally treadlife is inversely proportional to grip, I'm just looking for a good balance that will handle DD needs. I was looking at Nittos (NT-05s and Invos) and possibly Michelin PS2s (please don't limit suggestions to just these tires if there's a magic tire out there that has everything I need).

Any suggestions/help would be greatly appreciated.

-Dan

obxchartercaptain

Dan...FIRST, thank you for your service.

I purchased Michelin Pilot Sport AS run flats yesterday. Took a ride last night and like everyone else, there was a tremendous difference between them and the OEM Goodyears. Besides the quietness, I think all new tires would be quiet, what I noticed was the tremendous cornering control of these tires. I was able to take sharp turns at a much faster speed without any squealing and in complete control.

Whatever you deceide on, be careful on Interstate 95. Especially, in Va. You get lulled into a speed with the other vehicles going 15 to 20 MPH over the limit and then when you least expect it....There are the blue lights. Also, I have found some of those idiots do not know how to drive at that speed. Stay Safe....

Seadawg

I personally like the Bridgestone Potenza tires. They grip like crazy in most temps (both straight line accelleration and curves), they have long tread life, and they are slightly less noisy than the Goodyears. They are a decent price too.

They are also runflats, so long trips are not a worry. They also handle very well on wet roads.

I've driven Michelin Pilot Sports, Michelin All Seasons, Goodyear Gen1 and Goodyear Gen2 tires (all run flats) on vettes, and so far I like the Bridgestones the best for the reasons stated above.

fogey0

Do the original tires really wear out at 12,000 miles?

Denny79

Mine did

daniel.M

@Fogey0: yes, and from what I understand, I actually did pretty well getting them to 12,000. I have heard of them failing even earlier than that (around 10k).

@Obxchartercaptain: thanks for the heads up on I-95, I've been driving it all my life and I have to agree, it is an absolute nightmare, potholes, cops everywhere, and narrow 2-lanes. I sweat bullets everytime I have to take the Vette through DC.

@Seadawg: Thanks for the heads up on the Bridgestones, I'll be sure to look into them.

Also, I don't know if this will make a difference in recommended tires, but I plan on getting the car blown (2011 GS MT) when I get back from Afghanistan in September.

Thank you all for the recommendations,
-Dan

JimmyLee

Grand Sport & up wear out early. I'm at 8K and my front tires are approaching the wear bars. Hope to get to 12K. I'm a conservative driver and never go to the track.

ShinodaVette

I'm on my second set of Invos. Got 26,000 miles out of the first set. I daily drive my vette; it's my primary vehicle. Spirited street driving regularly. FWIW.

Mad*Max

for a daily driver you will do well with the Firestone wide ovals - aside from the OEM my only experience has been with them and they have fared well - I am at 30,000 miles and they still have some life left and I am always "playing" with the g-meter

Mikev078

I enjoyed the Hankook Ventus v12 tires on my old rims. They didn't have too much road noise and grip was quite good. Now that I'm on 275/345s, I went with Nitto Invos. So far I'm pretty happy with them. Mine is a daily driver with the occassional spirited drive.

torquetube

Usually that's the case, but in my experience the Michelin PS2 ZP (non-A/S) has better grip than GY Supercars (much better grip in the rain) and lasts twice as long.

I got 18K miles out of my Supercars and by the end they were seriously gone - well into the wear bars. In contrast, my PS2 ZPs are just about at the wear bars at 32K.

I just put on my 5th set of tires, and my 3rd consecutive set of PS2 ZPs. My C6 has 106K miles.

JimmyLee

32k is darned good. Did you at some time switch from the aggressive factory alignment to a street alignment?

Keppler

Mine rear tires were done at 12,000 miles. The fronts still had about 5,000 miles left.

Wanted the Michelin ZP but for $500 less I went with the Bridgestone run flats. Satisfied with them. Much quieter than the GY's.

2010 GS

torquetube

I don't know if I'd describe the factory alignment as especially "aggressive." In any case, my car came from the factory with a good alignment (many C6s don't), that was similar to the one I've been using ever since:

http://forums.corvetteforum.com/1565502174-post14.html

Also, my car is a C6 Coupe, not a Grand Sport.

The fronts always wear out a little faster than the rears (though evenly across the tread).

daniel.M

@mikev708 Maybe I'm just dumb, but it doesn't look like the Hankook v12s come in sizes that fit a Grand Sport (closest I'm seeing is 305/30/19).

Also, I'm hearing a lot of love for the Michelins, do you think their performance really justifies the price difference from other tires? I know they are basically the industry standand (and there's a reason for that) just wanted to get your thoughts.

Thanks,
-Dan