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[Rat3d ///M]

I am in need of new tires this winter, and wondering which way to go. Right now I have the Continental ExtremeContact DW's, and though they don't have a great reputation and I've been told I need to drop them like a bad habit, they've been great. Let me add to that, they were on the car from a previous owner. I've had the car for almost 2 years, and have put about 10k miles on them and as far as longevity and daily street driving goes, they are fantastic. On the track, I can't speak for their performance, because I don't have much experience on the track, and these are the only tires I have ever driven on the track, so I cannot compare them to anything.

Before I get off track (no pun intended), let me explain my setup and what the car is used for. It's an ESS Supercharged (550) w/ the OEM 19" ZCP wheels and a Stoptech BBK. The car is my weekend toy, and sees about 3k-4k miles a year. It's used for weekend cruises and car meets/shows (is driven very spiritedly on the street) but also pulls some light track duty (maybe 2 track days a year at most).

I really want to go with a tire that is more geared toward track use, but also streetable, yet has good longevity and good grip in both the dry and wet. Here are my wants, based on highest importance to lowest importance:
1. Track performance
2. Street performance (wet and dry use)
3. Longevity (i'd like to say I can get 10k miles or more from a set, even with track use)
4. Price (i'd like to be at $1200 or less)

Now my dilemma is this: The same tires I have now are dirt cheap at the moment on tirerack (see link below). Something tells me to go with a different set, but given that they have served me so well thus far for what I do with the car (again, I can't say they perform well on the track because I have no basis for comparison, so they could actually suck 100%) should I spend twice as much (or more) and change it up at this point, or save some money and get the same tires I am currently running? They seem to perform very well on the street. I can hit corners hard on my spirited drives (much harder than you should on the street) and have never lost traction, in the wet or the dry. The car feels planted 100% of the time on the street no matter what I throw at it. Track is a different story though. I don't push it hard on the track (maybe 50% of what my abilities are) but I suspect these tires won't hold up as well as some of my other options on the track.

Continential ExtremeContact DW:
http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires....tion%20Package

If it's times to change it up, what tire should I go with that will give me great track performance, yet some longevity and still be under my $1200 budget? For me to justify spending an extra $700 on tires over what the Conti's currently are running, these tires would have to be a night and day difference in track (or even street) performance.

Here are a few others I was considering, but know nothing about:

Bridgestone Potenza S04
Pirelli P Zero
Bridgestone Potenza RE11
Bridgestone Potenza RE71R
Dunlop Sport Maxx Race

Side Note: One thing that steers me away from the Bridgestones, is the lower speed rating. I feel as though that is a step down from even what I have now. For those that say "do you really need a tire rated at 186mph?" my answer is "yes, I live in Germany"

[shimmy23]

I ran two sets of Conti DWs on my daily driver (audi). Great tire! For the price, especially the "special" that TR is running, I wouldn't hesitate to buy them for the M3.

In fact... maybe I'll buy them now! lol

[Rat3d ///M]

anyone else. .?

[macdude357]

I have the RE-11's and really like them. I picked them because they seemed to have a good mix of tread wear life and track worthiness. I have 6 track days + 5k miles on them and they are about 50% gone. So I would imagine they would give you +10k miles if you only track a couple of times a year.

It's hard if you are only doing a couple of track days a year because you don't want a tire that will fall apart on the track, but if you use a softer compound like the RE-11, it's sort of a waste on the street.

I'd avoid the RE-71R for your situation though. They are really soft (they say 200tw but are really "cheater" tires). Great for a mostly track tire, but not worth it for a mostly street car.

If you don't really push it on the track, then I would think the Conti's would be fine and would give you longer tread life. My car came with Conti Sport Contact 3's and I used them for my first 3 track days. They held up fine but those were my first 3 track days ever.

[SSJTrunks523]

I'm going to be in the same situation macdude357 do you run RE-11 or RE-11A?

I have PSS (great tires btw, have them on 4 cars), but might be going higher grip and less wet usage as my DD E92 328xi is back.

OP - the PSS overheats on the track, but is a phenomenal street tire. Wet grip is on par with many other tires' dry grip.

[macdude357]

Originally Posted by SSJTrunks523

I'm going to be in the same situation macdude357 do you run RE-11 or RE-11A?

Pretty sure they are RE11. I can't find any recent info on the RE11A. Bridgestone's website doesn't list that model anymore.

[SSJTrunks523]

Hmmmmmmm maybe the re11a was replaced by the re71r

[dparm]

OP, I hate to burst your bubble, but you are asking for something that basically doesn't exist. You want it to be track-ready, streetable, long-lasting, good in bad weather, and cheap. Sorry, but you can't have all of those things, especially for $1200. Remember the saying of "cheap, fast, and reliable -- pick two"? This is sort of the same thing.

If you like your Continental tires, and they are fitting your needs, buy another set. The other popular alternative is the Pilot Super Sport, but you will not get those for under $1200 (unless tires are super cheap in Germany, which I doubt).

The next step up is to tires like the Yokohama AD08R and Bridgestone RE71R, but those do not last long and are not great for street driving. I run the AD08R and the ride quality is pretty bad compared to the PSS. They're also noisier and don't last as long, but they are far better on the track than the PSS was. Again, not even close to $1200. I think I paid about $1700 out the door including mounting/balancing.

[rymerc]

If you're budget-minded I can't recommend the PSS for as much as they cost. I've ran htrz3 and they're close to as fast and dirt cheap, really an excellent tire for the money. They do alright on the track- I haven't had any of the chunking issues others have on PSS, and they're half the cost. Should have no problem getting 10k out of htrz3 with mixed street/track use.

The re71r is purely a cheater tire- they cost a fortune and won't last anywhere near 10k miles. If you autox, you need them to be competitive. The grip is just stupid, closer to soft slicks than street tires.

Another nice thing about running cheaper tires is you don't feel bad spinning and sliding them like I do when I beat up on tires that cost twice as much.

[Nihilation]

Aren't the Pilot Sport Cup 2 tires supposed to hold up well to track days?

[dparm]

Originally Posted by Nihilation

Aren't the Pilot Sport Cup 2 tires supposed to hold up well to track days?

Yes -- they're basically street-legal track tires, but they are expensive and not something I would want to run on the street.

As I mentioned above, stuff like the AD08R and RE71R is really borderline for the street. You can't have your cake and eat it too.

[shimmy23]

priced dropped even further on the conti DW tires. I went to my local Discount Tire and they couldn't match the price.

just snagged a set for my daily driver.

[tdott]

The new PS 4S is suppose to raise the bar of the PSS. But you can almost bet then won't be cheap.

They'all be out in January if you can wait.

Otherwise you'll need to give up something to get better track performance. Since you don't drive much, I'd say give up your requirement for long lasting and try a stickier tire.

[Rat3d ///M]

Originally Posted by shimmy23

priced dropped even further on the conti DW tires. I went to my local Discount Tire and they couldn't match the price.

just snagged a set for my daily driver.

This is what I decdied to go with as well. At their price it was difficult to justify an extra $600+ and they have worked well for me for 2 years. I wI'll probably just pick up a square 18x10 track wheel setup in the future.