cjamie

Tire buying decision...How do they stack up against Dunlop SP8000E?

Bob Petruska

They handle very well. Noise and ride harshness increased about 10% over the stock Goodyear Eagle RS-A's. I ran the tires since Oct. last year through the winter in northeastern PA. Up and down 3 mountains, 40 mile round trip from home to work every day with out any problems in the snow and ice. I passed a few AWD Bimmers on those mountains, you should have seen the look on their faces when I pass them. This rubber does not act like standard Z rated rubber which will kill you on ice and snow. They work great at any temperature. These tires are a little pricey. I bought them locally for $170 each mounted and balanced. Tire Rack has them for about $150, with shipping, mounting, balancing it was cheaper locally than tire rack. I just put 205/V55-16" Pilot MXM4 all-season on my sister's Subaru Legacy GT. Very close to the XGT-Z4's but quieter, smoother. Car handles great! Were $160 locally, $138 Tire Rack. Again with shipping, mounting, balancing...locally was cheaper. Also you get free - 2, model 5200 Motorola FRS radios (worth $89) when you buy four certain Michelin tires. These MXM4 tires are hard to find, some dealers will tell you that they don't exist, but they do. They will be standard equipment on the 2002, A4. They are OEM on Accura, Saab, Volvo...

Kirk

... I really liked the Dunlop SP8000Es, but thought I'd try something different. The Pilot Sports have more traction and are a smoother tire but seem to make a bit more noise when rolling. I went for the same size tire as the Dunlops and would recommend that you don't do this... go for the 225/50R16... I think this will give you a better looking tire. Other than that, I'm please with the Pilot Sports and Michelin is a great company to deal with.

Kirk