Tires tires, what to get? Options

[wortdog]

I'm in need of new tires for the Talon, the OEM Goodyears are quite toasted.

Does anybody have a good stock size tire they'd recommend?

I was looking at maybe the BFGoodrich g-Force T/A KDWS, the Continental
ContiExtremeContact, the Kumho ECSTA KH11, or the Kumho
Ecsta MX.

[wortdog]

bringing this one back from the dead......

wort, what did you end up choosing and what are your impressions?

I'm looking for 275/40/17's for the evo and I'm choosing to be honest with myself and get tires that fit my average use, rather than what I'd just like to be able to say I'm running.  So, I'll be looking for somethin with a decent treadwear rating (360 and above), all season characteristics (particularly considering the wide nature of the tires), and of course, the budget is a factor as well. 

At this point, I'm looking at Kumho Ecsta ASX's, Continental ContiExtremeContact, Avon
Tech M550 A/S, Sumitomo HTR+, and finally, the BFGoodrich g-Force T/A KDWS.  If I had to choose at this moment, I'd go with the Kumhos as I think they'll be comparable to the Supra 712's I've had a lot of experience with, but there seems to be a lot of good offerings out there. 

Anybody with experience care to chime in? I figure tire choice is a crucial decision so I want to have as much information as possible.

Well, I ran the ContiExtremeContact for a while until I destroyed a wheel, they were ok, no major complaints, like Kumhos they tend to flatspot a little bit when it sits overnight.

The next tire I ran was the Kumho MX summer tire, which was a great tire (comparable to the newer Falken Azeni), but wore out really quickly of course. That last track day I did this summer really finished them off.

Now I have the Kumho Ecsta ASX's, and they're better than the Contis were as far as grip goes, and they tend to have better communication with the driver near the limits. My parents have ContiExtremeContacts on their 96 Impala SS, and they can be a bit noisy in the wider sizes. The Contis do seem to be a good bit better in the snow than the ASX's, while the ASX"s work slightly better in the rain.

Haunter had the Sumitomo HTR+ on his Saturn, I wasn't too impressed with them. People seem to have problems with them wearing funny if the air pressures aren't absolutely perfect.

Of couse, what I have to say is pretty subjective, as I did quadruple the spring rates, lower the car, stiffen some suspension points, and put new tie-rods on it in while I was running the MX's, so its not really a fair comparison between the Conti's and the ASX"s. Neither tire is really super perfect, they're just decent for the price.