I've been studying tires and postings by all the folks here for the past week and still am way up in the air about which tires to put around my new Murano rims. I hope I can come to a solid conclusion soon. It's driving me nuts.

 

Consider where you live, if you will drive on these all year, what is important (price, treadwear,rain performance, winter performance, noise etc...)

 

Excellent advice, Jeff. I live in Pennsylvania an hour north of Philly. I plan to use these wheels/tires only in the summer and then put my stock wheels back on for winter. So, living where I am I need to consider a lot of dry weather driving but plenty of rain at times. I have my tire guy at home researching tires for me. He has always been very square with me in guiding me toward what he felt was best regardless of cost, meaning he has lost a lot of money on me over the years because he has often recommended cheaper tires. One example is the Toyos he steered me to years ago for our mini van. They were way cheaper than the Goodyears he also offered. If anyone here wants to give their advice on a good tire that won't cost a fortune, I'm all ears. What I want is a tire which will combine excellent dry and wet weather grip and handling. I also will need something with a strong sidewall because of the low profile 40's.

 

Toyo T1-S - highly rated for dry and wet (can't tell 1st hand - they're going on the car this weekend)

Pilot Sports - same, but pricy (I didn't care for their wet traction)

Yokohama AVS ES100 - excellent dry traction, good wet traction, excellent prices. This is a good value tire, and what I ran last summer. I'm switching to the Toyo's this year for no good reason except I want stickier tires.

You can't go wrong with any of these, and there are plenty of other options, as well.

 

Avon Tech M500 check them out.

 

Thanks MoCo for your input-helpful.
Gunmax-I'm looking into these, however, I haven't seen them offered in the 235/40/18 I want. Can I get them in this size somewhere that you know? Also, do you have these, or are you going by the reviews? I've seen tremendous reviews for these tires.

 

I've driven on both the Pilots and ES100's. The T1-S's are going on the car this weekend.

The Pilots were my OEM replacement, and purchased in the stock 225/50-17. At the time, there were just very few other options available. I loved the tires at first, but was not as impressed with the wet traction as others have been. As the mileage increased, the tires got hard very quickly, reducing their wet performance significantly.

The ES100's are a great tire for the money. I've always liked Yokohama's products, going back to the A509's I used to run on my '85 Civic. The ES100 is not quite as sticky as the Pilots, so they weren't quite as good in the dry, but I found the wet traction just as good, hydroplaning is a non-issue, and they are far less expensive than the Pilots. I ran 245/40-18's, but they are available in a 235, as well. (TireRack has the 235's available for the ES100's and the Pilots).

I just purchased a set of the Toyo T1-S's, in 235/40-18. I'm switching to the 350Z wheels, and others have reported rubbing issues with 245's, which is why I'm sizing down. From everything I've read about the Toyo, I expect to be highly impressed, both in the wet and the dry. I'm one of the few people who is OK with a 15-20k mile tire. Treadwear is far less important to me than traction and hydroplaning resistance.

Hope this helps.

 

Certainly did help. Treadwear is an issue with me, but not to the point where my preformance should suffer. I value your input and thanks.

 

I'd hit up tirerack.com and use the tire section's search thing. Pretty good. But they don't offer all brands that are available.

 

I've been studying tires and postings by all the folks here for the past week and still am way up in the air about which tires to put around my new Murano rims. I hope I can come to a solid conclusion soon. It's driving me nuts.[I][B]


Thanks, Jeff. My search has taken me into tirerack and about every other tire web site I know. I've read reviews, etc. and paid attention to what people here have had to say. Still a tough decision. I am considering Kumho's, Falkens, Fuzions, Toyos and Yokohamas. The problem is I am also trying to spend sensibly. I think I may need to go at least as much as $160/tire to really get something that isn't bottom of the barrel.

 

since i live kinda close to you, ill say what im getting. I decided to go with an all performance all season tire, kuhmo ASX, because well face it, we live in the US where it can be 60 today and snow tomorrow, and I dont want to be stuck in a ditch in april because my summer tires couldnt handle the snow. I am going with those tires based on reviews and all that bla bla stuff. Just my 2 cents. They say they are a great tire bang for buck style.....but i still dont know exactly who they are....lol

good luck with your search.

 

The Kumho ASX is another tire I am considering. I think by tomorrow ZM I may have made my decision.