The King of Cheap is Dead (HTR ZIII) - Long Live the King!

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FRUNKenstein
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The King of Cheap is Dead (HTR ZIII) - Long Live the King!

Post by FRUNKenstein » Wed Oct 30, 2019 11:32 am

I just posted a couple of threads in the 996 High Performance subforum, but figured I'd get a little more input here. My HTR ZIIIs are getting thin on the rears of my car. I've been happy with them - tread life, performance and noise all fine. So, I thought I'd just replace them with a new set. But, no go - the HTR ZIII is no more. (head bows in reverence) The king of cheap performance tires is dead. So, who is the new king of cheap?

Sumitomo replaced the HTR ZIII with the HTR Z5, but it is so new that there's just not much info out there. From what I've read, they are very similar to the ZIII and maybe a smidge better. So, maybe the son of ZIII simply ascends to the crown? Well, not so fast. Let's see if there are any other heirs to the throne.

I present for your consideration the General GMax. On Tirerack.com, the HTR Z5 is $563.24 for the set - pretty sweet, eh? But get this, the GMax comes in at $557.96. For those of you keeping track at home, that's a savings of $5.28, or nearly 1%!!! It may not be much, but it IS cheaper (and cheaper is better in crowning the new king of cheap). Plus, the GMax holds up pretty well in the Tirerack.com comparison tests against much more expensive competition.

Also up for consideration is the Falken Azensis FK510. Like the GMax, it gets very good marks in the comparison tests. It's downfall, though, is it's price: $581.70 for the set. That's $18.46 more than the HTR Z5 - which is a whopping 3+% premium. Now, I think the sub-$600 price still keeps it in the running for king of cheap in the Ultra High Performance Summer category. But, what say you?
www.kansascityautomuseum.com
Current:
2002 996TT X50, Guards Red
1987 928S4, Guards Red
1987 951, Guards Red
1973 914 2.0 Bahia Red

2006 955S, Lapis Blue
Other toys:
1988 BMW 325i Cabriolet, Alpin Weiss
1987 Bertone X1/9, Verde Chiaro
Gone but not forgotten: 1975 914 2.0, Laguna Blue; 1999 996 C4 Aerokit Black; 1990 964 C2 Guards Red; 2006 955S Arctic Silver

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5chn3ll
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Re: The King of Cheap is Dead (HTR ZIII) - Long Live the King!

Post by 5chn3ll » Wed Oct 30, 2019 11:41 am

I am still running Hankook Ventus V12 Evo2's on my 996 - and I'd run them on the 'Vette if they made that size.

Last weekend, I took the 996 up the mountains in the morning (60's air temps, 40's pavement), down into the desert and out to the Salton Sea (90's air temps, effin hot pavement), back up the mountains and home. I did about 400 miles, including some AWESOME carving down and up the Banner Grade, high-speed runs in the desert in the 130s, down a dirt road @ the Sea out onto the end of the harbor, and all the way back.

I know I sound like a fanboy - but they're pretty cheap, and they don't give up. I've had 'em up to 150, I've AXed them, and I've even seen how they hold up when they get speared by pipe @ highway speed. The original Ventus V12 Evo sidewalls were too spongy - even for my 986; this was rectified with the Evo2. I'll keep buying these as long as they keep coming from Korea...
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Understeer: You will hit the wall with the front end.
Oversteer: You will hit the wall with the rear end.
Horsepower: How hard you will hit the wall.
Torque: How far you will move the wall.

Gone hunting with Alec Baldwin and Dick Cheney. Back soon.

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Re: The King of Cheap is Dead (HTR ZIII) - Long Live the King!

Post by Einsteiger » Wed Oct 30, 2019 11:43 am

I'm definitely cheap, but I am not qualified to render an opinion on the releative merits of the various brands of summer treads. I will be most anxious to follow what will surely be an epic thread, as tires will be a springtime purchase for me.
Kevin
1999 C2 - Vesuvio Gray Metallic
Eastern Kansas

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Re: The King of Cheap is Dead (HTR ZIII) - Long Live the King!

Post by OceanBlue2000 » Wed Oct 30, 2019 12:25 pm

I don't have the performance experience Schnell has, but I am also very cheap. I just put Kumho Ecsta's on last winter, and don't have any major complaints. I still can't get the rear to kick out (not that I'm trying all that hard, but I did pull out of my street really fast the other day).

I would not have gone with this brand except I heard they supplied Porsche for one of their race cars. Good enough for me!
Mike
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Re: The King of Cheap is Dead (HTR ZIII) - Long Live the King!

Post by B3DAWG » Wed Oct 30, 2019 12:35 pm

In the five years of 996 ownership, I've owned Michelin Pilot Sports, Kumho Ecsta, and Sumitomos. By far, the Sumis are my favorite. I wish I hadn't spend the chunk of money on the pilot sports. Not sure about the new Sumis, but hopefully they won't be a let down. The Sumitomos have far exceeded my expectations for performance and price.

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Re: The King of Cheap is Dead (HTR ZIII) - Long Live the King!

Post by FRUNKenstein » Wed Oct 30, 2019 12:55 pm

Looking at my Tirerack.com order history, back in November 2013, I bought a set of Hankook Ventus S1 noble2 All Season tires for my '99 C4. $658 for the set. When I bought it in May 2013, it had a new set of HTR ZII, and those were horrible. So, the ZIII were a much better tire in my opinion. The ZIIs were so bad that the all season Hankooks were a huge improvement in handling.

Speaking of the Hankooks, looking at my Tirerack.com history I noticed that I ordered that same day a second set of the same Hankook all season tires for our 951 that my older son was daily driving at the time. Yesterday, I just had those tires replaced with a set of all season General GMax AS-05. Cost for just the set of tires of the GMax AS-05 was $376. The cost for the Hankooks I bought back in November 2013 was $380. The exact same Hankooks on Tirerack.com at today's prices would be $368 (with free shipping). I guess competition in the tire industry is a good thing for keeping prices down.
www.kansascityautomuseum.com
Current:
2002 996TT X50, Guards Red
1987 928S4, Guards Red
1987 951, Guards Red
1973 914 2.0 Bahia Red

2006 955S, Lapis Blue
Other toys:
1988 BMW 325i Cabriolet, Alpin Weiss
1987 Bertone X1/9, Verde Chiaro
Gone but not forgotten: 1975 914 2.0, Laguna Blue; 1999 996 C4 Aerokit Black; 1990 964 C2 Guards Red; 2006 955S Arctic Silver

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Re: The King of Cheap is Dead (HTR ZIII) - Long Live the King!

Post by gnat » Wed Oct 30, 2019 1:59 pm

I hate the price, but PS2s have carried her baby for 75k and 19 years so they'll keep right on doing the job as long as Mich keeps making them.

TR says they are currently $1266 for a set to go on the TurBro, so definitely not a competitor for the cheap crown.




Ugh. Come spring I'm gonna need new performance tires for the P!g and it will be time for new PS2s on the 996. That's not going to be a pleasant month...

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Re: The King of Cheap is Dead (HTR ZIII) - Long Live the King!

Post by 5chn3ll » Wed Oct 30, 2019 2:02 pm

I like the PS/2's on the Corvette - they hook up like no other tire. I don't drag the 'Vette very often, but I was able to bracket better on the PS2's than any other tire. I actually won a couple of decent races that night.

*edit* I almost fixed the PS/2 typo - but Gnat may appreciate.

Understeer: You will hit the wall with the front end.
Oversteer: You will hit the wall with the rear end.
Horsepower: How hard you will hit the wall.
Torque: How far you will move the wall.

Gone hunting with Alec Baldwin and Dick Cheney. Back soon.

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Re: The King of Cheap is Dead (HTR ZIII) - Long Live the King!

Post by Einsteiger » Wed Oct 30, 2019 2:47 pm

The Michelin PS__ series seems like the tire of choice for a lot of owners, but it also seems like: twice the grip, for half as long, at only three times the price - of the "others". :) I'm not worthy. :mrgreen:
Kevin
1999 C2 - Vesuvio Gray Metallic
Eastern Kansas

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Re: The King of Cheap is Dead (HTR ZIII) - Long Live the King!

Post by gnat » Wed Oct 30, 2019 3:10 pm

5chn3ll wrote: Wed Oct 30, 2019 2:02 pm I like the PS/2's on the Corvette - they hook up like no other tire. I don't drag the 'Vette very often, but I was able to bracket better on the PS2's than any other tire. I actually won a couple of decent races that night.

*edit* I almost fixed the PS/2 typo - but Gnat may appreciate.
I owned one for like a week when I was younger. I was not amused...

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