Hi All,

I have an 02 Maxima GLE and I want to change the tires on the car...Could people please provide their opinion and list the top 3 tires for the car...I would need all-season tires (since I live in NJ and it snows here)...I am more interested in ride comfort, then handling and then treadlife...The rims are stock...just replacing the crappy tires, that's all =)

Here are some choices that I saw:

Michelin Energy MXV4 S8
Toyo Proxes TPT
Goodyear Eagle RS-A
Bridgestone Turanza EL-42 (I have these on my 04 TL and they suck, so I am really not interested in these)
Bridgestone Bilzzak WS50

Are there any other ones that I should look at?

Could people please provide their opinions on these tires and also where are some cheap places to purchase these tires...Thanks in advance...

 

go to the tires and wheels section, but I'd recommend either the Michilline Pilot Sport A/S or Faulkins. I'm on my second set of Pilots now and love 'em and I've heard good things about the Faulkins.

 

Costco has good deals on tires. They mount, balance, and have a hazard waranty included in the price.

Try looking at reviews from tirerack.com

I've got Michellin Pilot Sport A/S on now. They are great but are $$$.

I had Potenza RE950's on before. They were a good tire, just decent in the snow.

You can consider:

BF Goodrich Traction T/A H
Continental Extreme Contact

 

I was also looking at the Falkens, but they don't make it in the 215-55-17 size...the next best bet is 225-50-17...

I called up the service manager at Nissan and he said that if I bought the wider tires, then the sensor that detecs mileage and all would get screwed up and that the check engine light sign would come on and stay on...are other people experiencing the same problem?

i could get the falken 512's (all 4 of them) for around 427 dollars at hptire.net but they would be wider tires, so i am not sure what to do

 

Craptenza's suck! Stay away from them if you value your life and your car (hopefully in that order...). I try to stay away from Costco and Sam's Club. Had a problem w/ them stripping three lugs on one tire. They actually wanted me to drive to another tire place to buy new lugs! Told them they were nuts and that they were going to have to get the studs and install on site. Once they got them, I even had to show them how to install them. Idiots! It came out to be a 6 hr job to plug a nail hole in a tire just because of stupidity (the guy tried putting the lugs nuts on NASCAR style, you know, insert in gun, jam gun on lug, pull trigger....)

 

"I called up the service manager at Nissan and he said that if I bought the wider tires, then the sensor that detecs mileage and all would get screwed up and that the check engine light sign would come on and stay on...are other people experiencing the same problem?"


he is full of s**t!

i have 235/45/17's on my car and have had them for over two years. no problems, as a matter of fact the nissan service manager told me i should get the 235/45/17's.

 

235/45/17 Pirelli P Zero Nero M+S. Best all season tire out there. I love them . Go to tire rack & check out the reviews plus there own testing. The pirelli won in all catergories.Click this link for test results http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tests/kumho_ecsta_asx.jsp

 

Since I have the 02 Maxima GLE, the size that the car has now is:

Turanza EL - 42: 215-55-17

Since Falken does not have the exact size, I would have to purchase:

Falken 512: 225-50-17

I have heard that it is always best to stick to whatever size the manufacturer suggests...By switching to the Falken size, am I asking for trouble? Is it safe/recommended to make such a change?

 

The only way the SES light could come on is if you had different diameter tires front to back or side to side. Then the sensors could pick up something, but I doubt it even then.

 

235/45/17 Conti Extreme Contact is very good, #1 selling allseason for the north east, that is why at tire shops they shot up in price. goto tire rack to get them, $120 a piece and just as good as the Nero's if not better and cheaper.

 

you will have no problem.

 

Check out the link above in my last post here is a quote from that article I beg to differ from the above post. "In wet conditions on the test track, the ContiExtremeContact could not keep up with the other three tires tested. Steering response felt a bit sluggish as this tire struggled to find traction when compared with the other tires, especially the Pirelli PZero Nero M+S." quoted from tire rack testing.

 

lets get to the real test for north east driving... snow... who really drives like the test in the rain? the conti is selling like crazy because of its great snow traction, i would rather give up some lateral wet traction so i dont put my car into a guard rail in the snow. the nero is more of a performance tire that can handle some snow, while the Conti can handle well in all conditions... the question is what do you want?

 

My sugestions would be
1.) Toyo Proxies 4 (I have these now and theya re great
2.) Michelin Pilot Sport A/S If u can afford these

 

Excellent replacement size for OEM GLE rims. Mfgr./tire of choice? Your call dependant upon needs, driving style, expectations, pricing, etc. My only comment, as Mfgrs. products vary somewhat even within the same size just consider the load rating, diameter, etc. in your decision process.

 

Okay, so now I am getting even more confused with more options for tires lol..

If I were to purchase tires for the car, I would be interested in the following:
1) Falken 512's
2) Michelin (not sure which sub-type would work well with the car)
3) Toyo Proxes (also not sure whether to use TPT or Proxes 4)

I really don't want to spend more than 500 getting the tires...I'm hearing that Falken's are the best bang for the buck and I could get them for 427...Since people are suggesting that a little wider tire would not be a problem at all, I have decided to go with 225-50-17....

I really don't want to go with Continental because I've had a bad experience with those tires...so i really want to stick to one of the three tires mentioned above...

any feedback / opinion is greatly appreciated =) thanks....

 

Sounds like Pilots are out

 

I just did some quick research and the Michelin Pilot Sport A/S are coming out to be wayy too expensive...so I've deleted that from my top 3...now I'm left with two options:

1) Falken 512's
2) Toyo Proxes (still not sure which one TPT or Proxes 4)

Anyone know of places/websites where I can get a really good deal on either one of these tires? thanks....

 

yes lol...sorry for my repeat post, i guess we must have posted at the same time...

 

Sound like the Turanza LS-V ( not the OEM stock EL - 42) is the best tire for you.
http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires....rtnum=25VR7TLS

Tire rack say they should have this tire in stock on 1-5-05.

 

http://www.edgeracing.com/2002/Nissan/Maxima/tires/17/
http://www.discounttiredirect.com/di...84&rd=17&ar=50
( in toyo in stock size ) http://www.edgeracing.com/tires/2155517/
( 235-45-17 size )http://www.edgeracing.com/tires/2354517/

 

wow this is the first time i havent heard anyone praise the falken 512s like crazy...

falkens are pretty good for its price. Rated a pretty awesome tire. I have heard that its blackwalls are softer than the pzeros and toyos, but if you are just using the falkens for daily driving, then i suppose they do their job.

For 97 bucks a tire... you getting a bargain.

 

If you take the tireRack printout to NTB they will pricematch for you, plus throw in the lifetime balance, rotation, and possibly road hazard. It worked for me.

 

I just got the Falken 512's. Im satisfied with them right now, still too soon to praise them. I got them from sears. Check out there website.

 

That was one quote. If you clicked the link & checked out the graph the P zer nero topped the continental in every catergory.... traction, handling, cornering , noise comfort , steering response , braking distance feet 50-0, and this was done in both dry & wet conditions & the P zero Nero won in every catergory. Snow was not one of the tests but as far as snow handelng goes they work great for me. All season tires in snow will be comparable. You will never get great snow handlling out of any tire except a dedicated snow tire.

 

Can you put 235-45-17 on stock wheels?

 

You guys are crazy. I have falkens and I think they are about a 5 out of 10 in traction. IF you want traction in an all season tire that will last 40+ thousand miles then get BF Goodrich Traction T/As. I would never drive falkens in the snow when compared to the traction t/a. The name is for a reason, they are built to get the best possible traction an all season tire can get. I hydroplane in medium rain storms so easily with the falkens and never with the tractions. I am the only person I know of on here that has them.

Mark

 

... and that's why I spent an arm and a leg for the Pilots. I can pass about any other FWD in snow with these bad boys.

 

How many miles on your Max? What kind of mileage did you get from your first set of Pilots?

 

ugh so falkens are out? how about continental contiextremes, mdlopps whats the BF goodrich tire you have Traction T/A??? Get back to me.

 

Yes Traction T/A. They have great tread for an all season tire and sears will warranty them up to 60,000 miles. I doubt they will last that long but I am pretty sure they will last about 40K or more. All I can say is after having 4 tractions, and then moving to 2 tractions in rear and 2 falkens in front I wont use falkens for winter. I do not trust them that much in heavy rain let alone snow and ice. They are a little more expensive then the falkens but more than worth it. I would not buy continental tires man.

 

A tire shop owner told me that BF Goodrich tires were made by Michelin.

 

I just got the Falken 512's and i love them. I do admit they do not handle as well, but that's what I have a corvette for. Falkens give most bang for the buck and also are top rated on consumer reports.

 

hey mdloop, thanks for the info, one more question though. Does he traction t/a come in 225/50/17 or is it some other size? I assume these arent performance all season tires rather just all season tires?

 

all i see for the bfgoodrich tractions are 215/50/17.... isnt the smaller the first number, the thinner the tire?

also, ive been reading the reviews about the Traction T/A, and people have said that they decrease the MPG of the car after putting them on... you have that problem mdloop?

 

I'd recently changed 4-tires to BF-Goodridge T/A tires (225/50/16). So far, I like them alot. My previous set was Bridgestone Turanza LS-H tires (215/55/16). They are good tires (much better than stock Goodyear RSA) but were not as good w/traction as the BF-Goodridge T/A's. The BF's are noisier but handle the wet road much better. I have not encountered snow yet so I am not sure how they will perform?

As for my personal rating...l give the BF's a 9 out of 10 & 8 out of 10 for the Turanza's.

 

The first number refers to the width of the tire. 225 is wider than 215...235 is wider than 225 etc...The second number refers to the height of the sidewall (ratio). And the last number refers to the diameter of the wheel.

 

so 215/50/17 will actually be thinner than my 225......

right now im just looking for something better than my potenzas... i guess falkens are the way for me. I can get them for 420 bucks. Might as well

 

I got my toyo proxies 4 for 470 dollars. This included mounted, balance and tax. The only deal with the proxies is that you will have to get them in the size 235/45/17

 

Two dozen posts and no one has mentioned the Bridgestone Turanza LS-Vs....amazing...

I have these tires in OEM 225/50/17 size; they replaced a set of harsh and noisy Pilot A/Ss and they are better han the Pilots...better wet grip, nearly as much dry grip and much, much smoother and quieter.

They are also very large tires for their rated size -close to a half-inch wider and taller than the Potenzas and the Pilots so....one can safely install 215/50's in lieu of 225/50s and save a few more bucks