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I just put a set of 18 inch Sumitomos on my car, 255/45 rear 245/45 front. They cost $555 installed at a local tire dealer. I think this company is trying to undersell Yoko. The car handles great and rides better than ever. Tire wear rating of 500.
News story from Jerry Reynolds "The Car Pro". (weekly news letter)
"Dubai is known for its extremely opulent rides. It makes sense, then, that a set of diamond encrusted, gold leafed tires, certified last month by Guinness World Records as the "world's most expensive tires", would be sold in the desert city.
According to Gulf News, Dubai's Z Tyre partnered with China's Sentury Tire to produce a one-of-a-kind set of performance tires to "Celebrate and recognize the true worth of its range of high performance tires". Starting with a set of four Z1 high performance tires, Z Tyre sent the rubber to Italy, where artisan jewelers studded them with specially chosen diamonds.
The tires were then sent to Abu Dhabi, where they were covered in gold leaf by the same craftsmen involved in building of the new royal palace there. Once back in Dubai, the tires sold for $600,000.
"We've always treasured the outstanding skills and dedication involved in developing our Z Tyre range, so we thought what better way to celebrate this achievement than with a record-breaking special set of tires especially commissioned for a unique buyer," Harjeev Kandhari, CEO of Z Tyres, told Gulf News. Kandhari also stated that Z Tyres is donating the proceeds from the tire sale to charity.
"In keeping with the spirit of the holy month of Ramadan, Z Tyres will donate all profits from the $600,000 sale to the Zenises Foundation, which focuses on improving access to education across the world."
Dubai has a reputation for being the playground where the mega-wealthy run rampant in eye-wateringly expensive supercars. They race the cars on the miles of desert roadway that leads into Dubai. It's a good thing, then, that the Dubai police have their own supercars, like a Porsche 918 Spyder, Aston Martin One-77, and Bugatti Veyron, to catch up with scofflaws.
This week, Dubai police seized 81 cars for illegal racing, and demanded thousands of dollars in fines before they would release the cars to their owners. Not that the offenders are required to return. As we've seen before, incredible supercars sometimes end up sitting abandoned and rotting away like so many hundred-dollar beaters."
Last edited by motorcarman; 06-22-2016 at 08:36 PM.
Keep us posted on your new Sumitomo tires. The primary knock against Sumitomo for many years is that their tires typically have very short treadlife even when properly maintained....
It works very easily and I've used it for decades....
For instance, these Yokohama YK580 255/40/19 rear tires come with a 60,000-mile treadwear warranty. My wife gets about 33,000 miles out of her rear tires before they are worn down to just over 2/32 of tread depth remaining. Do the math and she gets about 55% of the warrantied mileage out of her rear tires. So when I replace them, I get a 45% credit against the cost of the new rear tires....
A great deal indeed. It is up to you to rotate your tires per the required schedule (I always rotate my own tires when I do an oil & filter change every 6,000 miles), keep good records, keep the tires inflated properly, and keep the wheels in alignment. I've been doing this for decades and it has saved me a fortune on new tires because it is rare for most tires to actually achieve their treadwear warranty mileage. My local Discount Tire store manager knows me very well and never even asks to see my rotation records anymore because after more than five years of doing business with me, he trusts me implicitly....
Wait...our tires are not rotatable...the front is different than the rear...did you put the same size tires?
I am going to look into discount tires...the warranty/credit to the new tires looks like a good way to do this
"Rotate the tires" on my wife's 2006 XK8 with its staggered wheels simply means swapping from side to side on the same axle. That's the best I can do and it still meets my Discount Tire store manager's definition of tire rotation, so I do it every 6,000 miles....
"Rotate the tires" on my wife's 2006 XK8 with its staggered wheels simply means swapping from side to side on the same axle. That's the best I can do and it still meets my Discount Tire store manager's definition of tire rotation, so I do it every 6,000 miles....
I assume they're not directional tyres, then? Or at least I hope not!
"Rotate the tires" on my wife's 2006 XK8 with its staggered wheels simply means swapping from side to side on the same axle. That's the best I can do and it still meets my Discount Tire store manager's definition of tire rotation, so I do it every 6,000 miles....
I just talked to Discount Tires apparently the warranty is cut in half with staggered set up...so you got a good deal with the discount tire over at your location...looks like online shopping still going to be more cost effective for me.
Michelin Tires warranty says, in the fine print, that with staggered tires that cannot be rotated, the mileage coverage is cut in half. I found this out on my bride's Cadillac the hard way: don't ask how!
I just looked at the date code on my tires (Continental) that were installed by the previous owner and they look to be manufactured at the end of 2001. The car has just over 70000 miles but isn't a daily driver and gets garaged 6 months out of the year. Considering it seems almost everyone recommends replacing tires when they reach 6 - 10 years old I should probable look at replacing them even though the tread is still acceptable. All four tires are the same size (245/45z18) and the rims look to be stock. From what I am seeing the car originally came with 255/45z18 in back so I am guessing they were just replaced with 245's. Is there a stamping somewhere on the rims that specify their width? If they all show the same I will probable just leave them all at 245's.
All four tires are the same size (245/45z18) and the rims look to be stock. From what I am seeing the car originally came with 255/45z18 in back so I am guessing they were just replaced with 245's. Is there a stamping somewhere on the rims that specify their width?
The 245 tire is only 0.4" thinner than the 255. Does anyone know if these would be compatible on the wider rear rims?
But I guess if you put 255 to an 8 rim...it still can't be rotated, can it? you will ended up with different width rims...i guess you'll need to get 2 9" rims to make it work...but the question is how would that effect handling?
Presumably you'd have to dismount, mount, and re-balance each tire - which would cost more. So I think I'll just quit buying $250 tires since they can't be rotated properly.
Last edited by MediaBobNY; 08-05-2016 at 10:10 PM.
Took my tires off today and found a stamping inside which looks to indicate rim width. Verified by checking the backspacing. Front and rear axles both had a 9" and 8" rim so I rotated the tires so both 9's are now on the back. Seemed to handle ok with the mixed up rims with 245’s all the way around.
06-22-2016, 12:03 PM
