This looks like one hell of a tire for $159 a piece. http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires....ehawk+SZ50+EP, great ratings, raving reviews, and just looks like a great tire. Got sizes 215/45/17 and 235/45/17, which one is better for acceleration/handling on an 03 Auto Cl-S.

 

firestone??? have you been watching THE BACHELOR too much lately???


seriously, i dunno, seems most people have negative feeligns about firestone since the whole ford explorer fiasco

 

Ok, so a company has one major fault, and that means they suck? The tire looks excellent all around, and the reviews on it are fantastic? What does anyone else have to say. Are 215, 225, or 235 better for acceleration and handling on stock rims?

 

get the 225/45-17. the 215 is too small and the 235 is too big and slow.

the sz50's are a good tire, i've personally installed a couple sets. not sure how long they last though.

 

i know this question has been asked b4, but how much does 225 affect odomoter/speedometer

 

the width of the tire does not affect the speedo...it's the overall diameter that will affect it .

 

but a 235 does have a larger O.D. than a 225, because 45 is the aspect ratio. the tires sidewall is "45% of it's treadwidth".

215, 225, 235/45 and so on, the wider the treadwidth, the taller the sidewall, the larger the O.D.

 

but stock is 215 /50 not 45 and the 235/45 is acctually slightly smaller not larger O.D.

 

MattG not necessarily the 235/45 17 in the Perellis Pzero Nero are smaller than the stock diameter. It does vary from different tire companies just like some 235s are wider than others.

 

type R not so the tire is smaller but the revs at 40MPH are lower than stock. What happens is the 45 aspect ratio with a stiffer sidewall keeps the tire in a more perfect circle dimesion while a higher aspect ratio the tires bend easier with the weight of the car.

My Michelin 235/45 has a 811 revs at 40 MPH
Stock has I think 819 at 40 MPH

difference of 8 revs less making the 235/45 slightly larger

the 235/45 is much better in the twisties and better for gas mileage and helps on the actual odometer...but it is suppose to reduce the torque a bit but since the difference is so minimal it may not effect at all.

 

i was comparing the differences between 45 series tires, not stock size. read the whole thread and it will become clear.

i know a thing or two about teh tires, biznatches. :whatbish:

 

I posted about these tires awhile ago. People here were saying that they are basically rebadged S-02's. It's got awesome treadware, performance and price. I think it sounds like an excellent tire.

 

I think the two different companies of tires that replaced the firestone ones had similar problems and were also recalled. It might be the way the explorer was designed.