Stupid question, but ..............

My rear RE040's are shot, originals, at 23,000 miles.
The front RE040's are still in great shape, replaced
at 16,000 by Nissan at no charge. I want to eventually
change to all 4 Michelin Pilot's but not right now if I
don't need them in the front. Anyway, can I put new
Pilot's in the rear and keep the Potenza's in the front
till they wear out? Is this a bad idea? How would this
effect the overall handling, ride and total performance
of my Z. Keep in mind that I don't track the car (at all) or push
it to it's limits very often. Oh yeah, I average about 4,000 mile
a year driving.

 

I have this exact same problem and would be interested in what people have to say.

I had my fronts replaced by Nissan just last week right before my 3 year warranty was up, and was having an inspection done at the same time (which they did after installing the RE040s) where my rears failed.

I was thinking Pilots, or Avon Tech M550s, but the guy at tirerack that I spoke to cautioned me against mixing Ultra High Performance Summers on the front with Ultra High Performance All Seasons on the rear.

I have 17" stock wheels so I have a VERY limited selection to choose from for Ultra High Performance Summer tires (basically Potenza RE040, Avon Tech M500) unless someone else has some good suggestions that doesn't include replacing my rims.

 

It's not a bad idea. If you're on a budget...it shouldnt hurt all that much for just street driving. maybe if you were tracking then there's more cause for concern - but then again, it's advisable to have tires and rims for just tracking. things like wet traction shouldnt be a thing to worry...the only thing that would be bothering you is the difference in tires - the logical aspect...the physical part - no problems.

 

There's no reason you can't run different brand rear tires than front. Get the tires you like and be happy.

 

In my case what I really want to do is put Avon Tech M550 on my rear. They're Ultra High Performance All Seasons, whereas the existing tires on the front are the newly replaced Potenza RE040s which are Ultra High Performance Summers.

The guy I spoke to at TireRack was talking about how Summers vs All Seasons meant you had a different tire compound, and some other stuff that I can't remember, but said that for most cases it would probably be OK, but if, and these his words, one were to engage in more "spirited driving" then you could have adverse handling problems.

Does anyone have any insight into this? Basically, I don't track my car, it's my daily driver to and from work, along with the odd spanking of some cheeky monkey on the highway or off a red light... nothing too outrageous... or is it?

 

The answer is no one knows, but it will definitely be different. That aside, if the rear tires are bald and unsafe, any new tires will be a better idea.

 

I don't see a big deal. In a turn, either the front or rear tires will break traction first. When you get the new tires, just test the car in an empty parking lot doing figure-eights. See what happens. Then you will be prepared for casual driving on the street.

 

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I had the same dilema, but in the end I decided to just spend the extra money and buy a complete set. Bite the bullet and get rid of those Potenza's....they suck. Now I've got 4 new BFG KDW-2's on and couldn't be happier.

 

Keep in mind that "all season" tires with never have the grip of a "summer" tire. All season tires us a much harder compound. You will however get more life our of all season tires, but to me, its not worth the loss in performance. You live in Texas, so you should run a summer tire.

 

I wouldn't. I had the same proplem and went with the RE050's on the rear. Close to the same tread pattern but they perform better in wet conditions.

 

Similar question came up in Road & Track, and the answer was basically that it is not a good idea to run different manufacturers tires on your car. Each mfr's tire is built to different specs with different compounds and as such will adversely impact the handling characteristics of the vehicle.

 

I had a rear failure and replaced the rears with pilot sports and then had the recall on the fronts. I ran this for a couple of months no issue.

 

I've been considering the same thing for when I replace the wheels. I really like the BFG KDW NT, but I can't find them in 275/40/18. I was thinking I'd get the NT tread pattern for the 245/40/18 fronts, and use the traditional tread pattern for the rears.

 

Actually, I was unfortunate to wreck my Z withing a month of getting it new when it lost traction on some ice during a storm in Feb '03... and this was at below 15mph going in a straight line down an offramp on a highway.

It is nice and sunny usually here in Austin, but when the weather changes it changes suddenly and violently, and I prefer living to the alternative.

 

It just makes sense, at least to me, to NOT mix tire brands or tread patterns. With the power of the Z plus spirited driving on occassion and wet weather I like to know I've got good rubber with all tires working together.

The cost delta between 2 & 4 tires just is not big enough to run the risk.

 

Thanks for everyone's advice. In the end I just ended up buying 4 Avon Tech M550s, which reviews on TireRack and here look to be very promising.

I wanted to go all season just because the car is my daily driver and, as I said earlier, I've already had one cold weather related accident and the car has never felt safe driving in the rain on those crappy potenzas.

I'm just going to sell my 2 week old RE040 fronts... hopefully I'll be able to get some of my money back seeing as they have less than 250 miles on them.

 

What ever you do don't wait too long like I did. Check out my thread "Loose the Potensas". Which by the way should have read "Loose the OLD Potensas" New they do fine in rain. I was a little POed when I started the thread.

I was in your shoes and I choose to replace the full set with pilot sport all seasons. Living in Maryland I know how bad the potenzas do in the wet snow common on the East coast. Couldn't see the sense in running tires with good traction in the back and essentially skis up front.

 

Yeah, I know exactly what you mean.

The good news is that the tires just got delivered to the install shop and I'll be getting them installed on Monday morning.

Here in Austin the weather is generally nice, but when it rains it is torrential, and we get icy conditions a couple of times a year. I know I'll feel a lot safer with decent all weathers for those bad weather occasions even if I am trading for a little bit of performance.