I have a dilemma here. I just had my stock tires removed at 30,000 miles... boy were the rears bald! I went to Goodyear and had Dunlop DZ101s put on. 225/45/17 up front and 245/45/17 in the rear. To say the least I am not thrilled with the handling of these tires. When moving my car side to side on the freeway it feels like a freaking Cadillac! The side wall feels allot softer than my Bridgestone's. Anyway I don't really want to go back to Bridgestone's because of the boring tread design, noise, and 140 tread wear rating. I talked to the dealer and they are willing to take their crap tires back and set me up with Goodyear's Eagle F1 GS-D3 for another $200. I read the reviews on the Goodyear's and they seem to have the same sidewall issues as the Dunlop's. I'm not sure if the dealer can get any brand tire but I think he might be able to since he mentioned that he could get Bridgestone's for me. My original budget was $600 but right now I'm looking at $800 with the Goodyear's. What should I do? Am I over reacting about the handling? Will it improve over time as the tires get worn in?

 

Did you check to make sure the tire pressure is correct? If the shop under-inflated them, that would make them feel soft like that. Having said that, I'm partial to Michelin myself.

 

OVERALL SCORE as conducted by C&D magazine dec 05 issue. Continental sportcontact2 came in #2 and Toyo #8 with Goodyear eagle F1 #1.

Goodyear: 1050.4
Continental: 1031.9
Yokohama: 1027.0
Michelin: 1018.7
Hankook: 1015.4
Dunlop: 1002.2
Pirelli: 1002.1
Toyo: 999.7
Bridgestone: 993.9
BFGoodrich: 993.0
Kumho: 990.7

C&D was skeptical first when they first saw the continental tire data and it was double checked and verified.
i bought myself a set from tirerack when it was on special.... nice looking rubbers made in Germany. it blows my mind that the contis balanced like a dream(hardly any weights required)... all balanced like identical twins.

 

I'll check it but I don't think that I should have to inflate the tires to get the handling results that I want. Before I went to the shop yesterday one of my stock Bridgestones in the rear had a nail and 20 PSI in it and it still handled better than these.

 

References please. Thanks.

 

https://my350z.com/forum/showpost.ph...47&postcount=5
https://my350z.com/forum/showpost.ph...69&postcount=1
https://my350z.com/forum/showpost.ph...19&postcount=7
There are a few more reports on the forum but they are pretty deep in the search results.

Also some of the reviews on TireRack mention it.
http://www.tirerack.com/survey/Surve...3%26i1_Qty%3D2

 

The tires need to be broken in. The mold release oils will make the cars rear fell like it's sliding. This will wear off.

JET

 

+1
All new tires need to be driven for a while before the oil wears off. But that does not explain why you can feel the side wall flex on the freeway, something does not make sense. Have you tried going around some corners to test the tires? Did you check to see if they have front and back switched?Can't see how the DZ101 can be that soft. For the same reason, the F1 can't be that soft either.

 

I have DZ101s and am very pleased with them. I think they weren't grippy at first if I remember right, but I burnt off whatever was on them.

 

These are opinions not the result of quantifiable testing. I cannot assure you that you will be pleased with Goodyear tires. Still, after driving on Goodyear for 20,000 miles, I haven't the faintest idea how this soft sidewall phenomena began.

 

I just mounted new Eagles on my 05 touring with new wheels. Tires were an improvement over the stock tires. At 90 MPH they gripped the road good. The tread wear is 280 compared to 140 on the potenzas that only lasted me 15,000 miles. I keep 35 PSI front and back all the time..