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Old 01-21-2020, 12:16 AM   #1
The Flash
 
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Drives: Firebird 95, Equinox 05, Camaro 2SS
Join Date: Aug 2009
Location: Panama
Posts: 293
Which one would you choose?


All right guys, it is crunch time again and I will appreciate the input of the forum as it always has proven not only useful, but plenty insightful.

Before I get to the issues, I sincerely hope each and everyone of you gals and guys had a joyous Holiday Season and that this year 2020 starts, develops and finishes as a great year of personal accomplishments, career success and individual realization for all of you and your loved ones.

I did not finished 2019 on a high note myself. In the final days of the year I turned a corner on the neighborhood next to mine and heard the loudest bang. Felt a slight shudder too.

Someone saw fit to leave a big chunk of a machine (looked like an industrial sewing machine to me) anchored right in a rain runoff sewer, which happens to be built right in the middle of the corner's curb. Drove there a few thousand times over the years and never noticed that sewer there... in a downhill street ??

Couldn't see it from the driverīs seat, just felt the hit as it tore into the sidewall of my right rear tire. Tire was damaged beyond repair. A little more than a quarter mile from home.

The tires are MICHELIN PILOT SUPER SPORTs. The rears are 285/35 ZR 20's.

All four tires were installed some 3,300 miles ago. Still a lot, a lot of miles in them.

Now, in my neck of the woods these tires are an import. This size, and even the original size for the 2SS, are as rare here as a two dollar bill.
I got mine from Tire Rack.

I went around tire shoping for a few days anyway and, yup, I will have to import the replacements again. Throw in extra cash for the shipping, handling and import duties also.

At this time of the year, I'm just fresh of spending a lot of money on the year's closing festivities plus an unexpected business opportunity that required a lot of cash committment, so I'm postponing buying a full new set of tires until after next May at the earliest.

I'm just going to replace the ones in the driving axle. I will take this opportunity to put in some exciting new rubber when the time comes, but for now I just need to get the CAMARO going again.

So I'm looking at a set of tires to last me until May-July which should not be too far off the handling characteristics of the front set, BUT which meet my budget.

I settled down on three candidates :
  1. 1) BF GOODRICH G-Force Sport COMP-2

    This is a known quantity for me. These are the tires I currently have in my 1995 Pontiac Firebird - I think that's the third set of G-Force tires from BF Goodrich that I have installed on that car.

    I would have bought those for the CAMARO on my last tire change, EXCEPT for the fact that they are not available in 285 size.

    The closest size I can get is the car's original spec : 275/40

    However these are ULtra High Performance Summer tires.

  1. 2) BF GOODRICH G-Force COMP-2 A/S

    Never before had used these tires. They're listed as Ultra High Performance All Season.

    I don't drive the car in the rain, so that's not a benefit for me. I'm more concerned with good, very good traction and reliablity.

    Being a BF GOODRICH product I feel comfortable with quality and reliability expectations. Just intend to have them on for a not so long while so those are my main real concerns, mostly the traction.

    However, these do come on the size I'm using : 285/35

  1. 3) KUMHO Ecsta PS91

    Never before had any tire made by KUMHO in any vehicle I drove so I have no bias either pro or con.

    I picked these as my third option because they are available in my current tire size (285/35) , they are Max Performance Summer , the pattern kind of resembles the one in the MICHELIN's , all of which are a plus, and their price fits the budget I've set for this emergency purchase.

    Above all I want to state that I mean no disrespect whatsoever to this tire manufacturer and/or its products, if it were so I would not have put these on my list. They meet the basic search requirements and pricing was a criteria to make my short list.

    If their traction is at level with current state of the outgoing doughnuts (3,000+ miles of wear and tear, ... of Fast wear and tear!) and they don't get out of shape for a few months , I'll be a happy camper with them in the back of my car.

So that's it, these are the "choices" which fit my needs and budget currently.

Two are the right size, but are unknowns; the third is a favorite, just not manufactured in my preferred size.

All are within the parameters of my needs.

Which one would you recommend??

I thank you all in advance for your time and your thoughts and recommendations on this subject.
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Last edited by The Flash; 01-21-2020 at 09:06 AM. Reason: spelling check
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