Tyres - Falken 912 vs Dunlop Sport SP01

[.blue]

Afternoon all,

Looking for tyres for a bog standard hatchback. Turns out the PH Tyre reviews aren't so good for a 1.5l sub-100HP car :P

Currently looking at Falken Ziex ZE912 (4 fitted for £200) or Dunlop SP Sport 01 (4 fitted for £240).

Any suggestions in light of my requirements?

Cheers!

[HarryW]

Have 912's on a BM 5 touring and they are fine, they replaced P7's and they last a lot longer too.

[teabagger]

I fitted falken 912's all round on my girlfriends mx5- they were fine.

[Dog Star]

Couple of months ago put them on the OHs Murk C220 coupe and I'm very impressed. Seem extremely good in the wet.

[.blue]

Thanks everyone... leaning towards the Falkens atm but they're not that widely available (mainly through online dealers).

Anyone had experience of the Dunlops?

[DuncsGTi]

I've had the Falkens on my 318iS for about a year now, and would rate them very highly. Never tried the dunlops tho.

[v8will]

Had Dunlop SP01 on my 850 T5, great tyre. Follwed by Falken FK452's which get rave reviews, I wasn't overly impressed with them

[bigdods]

Falken 912's are pretty average, not good in the wet. I suspect the Dunlops are better . I swapped some ZE912's for dunlop sport maxx's on my Omega and found a massive improvement. But then it is a very heavy car, the SPort Max's are getting near top of the range rubber and the Falkens all have soft sidewalls.

Can you strech the the Falken FK452's ? I have those on my Golf and they are fantastic.

[redstu]

I've used sp01s on my passat. Two now gone and 2 to be replaced soon.
These were on the original 15 inch and 195/65 size, they were ok but rubbish in snow. I've since upgraded the wheels to 16 inch and 205/55 which improved grip as you would expect.
I think the design is quite old now and would try something else when I need to change as I'd be looking for more dry grip than the sp01s gave me.

[Mr2Mike]

bigdods said:

Falken 912's are pretty average, not good in the wet.

I thought they were very good in the wet on our Octavia, and pretty decent in the dry. The sidewalls are a bit squishy though as they are a comfort/touring tyre.

[.blue]

Mr2Mike said:

bigdods said:

Falken 912's are pretty average, not good in the wet.

I thought they were very good in the wet on our Octavia, and pretty decent in the dry. The sidewalls are a bit squishy though as they are a comfort/touring tyre.

How do they cope on "spirited" drives and do you think they would be suitable for track driving?

[bigdods]

.blue said:

Mr2Mike said:

bigdods said:

Falken 912's are pretty average, not good in the wet.

I thought they were very good in the wet on our Octavia, and pretty decent in the dry. The sidewalls are a bit squishy though as they are a comfort/touring tyre.

How do they cope on "spirited" drives and do you think they would be suitable for track driving?

They are a budget cruising tyre. In my experience (admittedly on a heavy RWD car) they are at best average. You wouldnt want to go near a track with them unless you like drifting and barriers. The FK452's on the other hand on a light-ish car (e.g. my Golf and My TVR) are exceptionally good for the money. I dont think they are a massive jump in price from the 912's.

[Twincharged]

In my experience the Dunlops are good (not tried them on track but on the road). Ihaven't tried any Falkens so can't comment on those.

[Mr2Mike]

.blue said:

How do they cope on "spirited" drives and do you think they would be suitable for track driving?

On the road they are fine when pressing on, though they obviously are not performance tyres so ultimate grip is lower then e.g. the FK452s. However I wouldn't expect them to take to track work very well at all - they simply aren't designed for that kind of abuse. Even performance road tyres have a hard time coping with track use if you are really pressing on.

Edited by Mr2Mike on Sunday 31st October 09:54