200 treadwear will last you a decent amount, of course you pay to play. I had the Star Specs on my old Snisen and every other Sunday was doing auto-x and they were my daily as well and I easily got a year use out of them with traction control always disabled. To me that is really good for a tire, others may not think so

For me I won't go with anything more than a 240 treadwear as I want as much grip as possible no matter what driving I might or might not be doing. When it all comes down to it, tires are what keeps you on the road, I don't believe in sacrificing this bit of safety for long life. Not that those long life tires won't work effectively, I just like pushing my cars when able to and want that extra grip to be able to push even harder.

 

that was actually very helpful to know, i think the dunlops will match my tein coilovers very well ! thanks for the info!

 

Any updates? How do you like the ride/handling of the Generals. Have you been able to notice any mileage changes?

Thanks

 

I'd like to hear if people have legitimate gas mileage results before and after the tires.

 

I have slightly lost some km/l with the change to 205/50, even with the lighter wheels. Not a huge loss, but a loss nonetheless. I was averaging about 28~29mpg city and it is now about 26. And a recent trip I took over to Suzuka Circuit (365km) granted sometimes was going over the speed limit somewhat and I averaged I think like 33mpg, but also had the throttle controller set to SP7 the whole way. Compared to when I went over to Mt. Fuji and I averaged like 37mpg (no throttle controller), but I also was never really going at the same speed for the same amount of time. On top of all that, I have a right foot that is quite heavy and only really knows the word GO.

 

Well ........ Here's my update.....The tires havent made me extremely happy, but they are very good for the price. They kick up allot of rocks due to the thread desighn, and may be a little quieter than stock but not much, i have only put about 800 miles on them but have seen mpg loss of about 1 to 2 mpg. I rub in the front but thats because im lowered. It does help with highway swaying that i had with the stock bridgestone, and thats why i lowered the car also. Handling is a little better but not significant. If i could do things again and not in a rush i would have gotten some yokohamas and gone with a skinnier sidewall and better tire, non directional. They do have a slight pull because they are directional so just keep that in mind. Other than that they are for sure better than the stock ones and if you want long thread life get them.

 

Thanks JDM-Taffeta-S; that’s very helpful. If you have any further thoughts about the tires, in terms of noise or otherwise, please post again. Btw, what you say about the noise agrees with what I’m seeing on the Consumer Reports evaluation of various tires, where they show that the Bridgestone Turanzas are no different from the General HPs (both get a ‘Very Good’ rating). So I might stay with the Bridgestones for another year and see whether there’s anything better on the market then. It’s interesting that none of the tires CR evaluates get an ‘Excellent’ rating in terms of noise, which I suppose suggests that they’re hoping for some quieter tires in the future as well.

 

will 205/50/16 or 215/45/16 fits perfectly on stock wheels???

what is the width of the stock wheel of GE8??? 205 and 215 is wide compared to the stock tires(185/55/16)... what can you say??

 

Stock wheel is 6". A 205 will fit, the perfect fit though is on a 6.5" wheel with a 50 series profile. But recommended fit is on 5.5 ~ 7.5". Of course you will see people put them on wider wheels and stretch them. I wouldn't put a 215/45 on the stocker, 7"~8" is recommended widths with 7" being the perfect width. 195/50 or 195/55 is a perfect fit for the Fit's stock 6" wheel.

 

thanks, very informative...

 

Does it mean the wider the tires, more contact area with the road, more tire flapping and therefore more road noise compared with stock?

 

That's a good question, and one that I'd never considered. Does anyone know whether, all else being equal, wider tires make more noise than narrower ones?

 

Yes.

More surface area means more friction. And because friction causes noise...

Whether the relationship between tire width and noise level is linear, I have no idea. So I don't know if or how much the noise increase is perceivable.

 

not necessarily, the tire model and how the tread is design will help with road noise, i got 215's falken summer tires and its way quieter than my 205 width advan's, the advans just howl like mad, sounds like i have a supercharger, just look for tires that are design to keep noise to a minimal, usually touring/comfort tires will be quiet, any performance tire will be a bit louder

 

That's why he said, "all else being equal." As in, tire brand name and model.

 

Thanks for the helpful replies. A few weeks ago I was ready to ditch my stock Bridgestones and replace them with what I hoped would be quieter tires, so that I’d have less of a problem hearing the stereo. But this helpful thread and a look at Consumer Reports made me re-think that plan. And now just this afternoon I replaced the stock head unit with an Alpine CDA-105. The sound with the Alpine is so much clearer and so much more natural that I no longer notice the tire noise. I’ve posted about this at length in the I.C.E. section, in case anyone wants the details.

 

anyone else pick up some General Altimax HP tires? I"m thinking about ordering some today.

 

^ Make your own thread, you'll get quicker and better responses. Along with that, check out the review on Tire Rack or punch in the tire's name in the site's search box.

 

Yeah I was thinking about them last week. I called tirerack and asked them if the atlimax or the Yokohama avid envigor was a better tire, based on noise, ride, and wet traction. They said go with the yokos. I figured I'd give em a try.

 

I decided to save $100 and ordered Firestone Wide Ovals. Great reviews from sports car owners.