Applicable to: '90 - '97 1.8 liter
High Performance Summer Tire, 195/50-15 size mounted on the stock wheels on my '97 M-Edition with 108K miles and stock suspension (Gabriel shocks).
These are the first tires that put on my Miata, 3 years ago, about a month after I bought the car. In the ~18K miles since, they've held up reasonably well and probably have another 3-4K miles on them before they're down to the wear bars. Not great mileage, but that's a secondary consideration for me. These are impressive tires, regardless of price (I paid ~$320 for the set). Traction is very good, and breakaway is controlled. Wet weather traction is also quite good. I would get them again, but they are no longer made in the 195/60-15 size. I don't have anything to compare them to as far as ride comfort, but they seem reasonable, and they don't seem to be noisy although differing road surfaces certainly make a difference.
Decent wear- I'll probably get 22K out of them). Excellent traction, even breakaway Good rain performance Relatively inexpensive
Over 30 minutes to remove completely
Applicable to: '90 - '97 '99-'05 1.8 liter
Round, black, and holds air
I had Kumho 711 series tires on my '95 Eunos. I had them mounted on a set of Rota Slipstreams in the size of 195/50/15. Though I enjoyed them a lot because they were my first "performance tire". I don't feel that they did near as much justice to my car as the Kumho ASX line did. I mounted 205/50/15 kumho ASX on the very same Rota Slipstreams and bolted them on to my 2000 NB. Never been happier with these tires. They seem to last a lot longer than the 711 series. I really liked the look of the 711's. They had a much "box-ier" look to them. Kinda giving the car a classic roadster look. But the ASX's had a much more agressive tread pattern. Great for these rainy north-western Oregon weather!
Kumho ASX Vs. Kumho 711 series: TKO Victory awarded to ASX!! And the crowd is still going wild!
Under 5 minutes to remove
Applicable to: '90 - '97 '99-'05 '06+ 1.6 liter 1.8 liter
sort of all season, sort of performance tire.
2 months in summer.
Car: base '93 with jrsc and some other stuff. Suspension: Eibach Pro and Koni Yellow set in the middle. Tire: Kumho Escta 711 205/50/15 on 13pound 6.5" rims. After reading all the moaning on the 'net about these I expected worse. Like Icehawk said, these are not T1-S's. They just won't hold on as well. Having said that they're not bad at all, progressive breakaway, good grip for the price, fine in the rain as long as you don't do anything stupid. The sidewalls are a lot softer than the T1-S, I can't say I'm in love with that, but it says H on it after all. From what I've read, no good in snow even with the M+S designation - I plan never to find out. I'll look for something better that I can afford next time around, but if I had to get these again I wouldn't cry over it. But I wouldn't breathe a sigh of relief like my last set of T1-S's, either.
Over 30 minutes to remove completely
Applicable to: '90 - '97 1.6 liter
Kumho Ecsta ASX are all-season tires, chosen over the other Kumho brands because I did not want to have to deal with tire-swaps for the winter. I chose 205/45-17's to complement my new lightweight racing 17-inchers.
Several months now and I must say these are extremely quiet and sticky. I had heard about the quietness, but the stickiness in wet weather gives me much extra confidence. My '90 engine is not modified, and I have yet to break these tires free in my normal "spirited" day-to-day driving. I can hardly break them free by dropping the clutch on wet pavement! The wear rating is high enough, I should get several seasons of good use out of these.
Over 30 minutes to remove completely
Applicable to: '99 + 1.8 liter
Kumho Ecsta 716 tires
I have the 185/60 14 factory aluminum wheels on my '99. The tires perform quite well in the rain, much better than the Defender tires they replaced. It is a night and day difference. The dry cornering is good, although turn-in is not that crisp feeling. So far, I am happy with the tires as an every-day choice.
The price was $33 each from tirerack.com, a great value.
Not an installed item
Applicable to: '90 - '97 1.6 liter 1.8 liter
Set of four Kumho 185/60-14 stock size all weather rated tires.
Just installed these tires last week and have only driven them a few miles but I can sure tell the difference in handling from the 3 "Road Hugger" and 1 Big "O" tire that were on the car. In a few weeks I will drive it over US 191 from Clifton, AZ to Alpine, AZ (the road that was built for Miatas). I'll follow up after that trip.
Tire were on sale for $32.95 at Sears. Discount tire matched their price. $207 out the door for four tires complete!
Under 30 minutes to remove completely
[1/25/2004] Reviewed by: Larry Steadman - stead@netdoor.com
Applicable to: '90 - '97 1.8 liter
195/50-15
I don't see how you could buy a better tire for the money(about $60 including mounting and balancing).Very smooth ride with good traction.I drove about 60 miles in very hard rain the other night with no problems.
Have tires mounted on Rota Sub Zeros,look good on my red 96.
Under 30 minutes to remove completely
Applicable to: '90 - '97 '99 + 1.6 liter 1.8 liter
"Ultra high performance" Tire.
I removed worn Bridgestone Potenza's for a set of the Kumho's. I believed that the positive reviews I had read would make up for the difference in tread wear versus ultimate traction tradeoff. The Kumho's have a tread wear of 340 versus the 140 on the Bridgstones. Boy was I wrong! The Kumho's were utterly inadequate, with tire squeal and breakaway at low speeds. I was able to overpower the rear tires in corners with my bone stock '96 M edition. I called in a favor with the tire shop and promply returned them.
I replaced the tires with 4 Kumho Ecsta MX 205/50/15 "Z" rated. For about $20.00 more per tire I was rewarded with phenomenal performance. Noise occurs just prior to breakaway, and re-establishing the line is effortless. The handling limit is just north of scary. Still alot less money than most competitors tires.
Under 30 minutes to remove completely
Applicable to: '90 - '97 '99 +
Kumho I'Zen Stud KW-11
I have run 4 new tires these for one season so far and they are excellent you can even stud them if you want with #11 , but I did not.
I have had similar results to the people who have purchased blizzak W-50's. You just go in the snow and stop on ice -- for real. A great safe tire for those of us who drive every season. I drive Dunlop A2 Sports when it warms up.
Under 30 minutes to remove completely
Applicable to: '90 - '97 '99 + 1.6 liter 1.8 liter
235/45/13 shaved and heat cycled Kumho Escta V700 (later tire compound). DOT R tire for competition use.
Sticky. These suckers are great, loads of grip and good wear characteristics so far. Also pretty reasonable cost.
These tires work great and don't seem to require much heat to be effective. I'm running 33F/31R pressures after some experimentation and wear seems dead on. I've driven to/from one event and they don't make terrible street tires other than they pick up ALL of the road debris and toss it on (and in!) your car. They do OK in the damp/rain but with my shaved ones I would not want to hit standing water.
Under 30 minutes to remove completely
Applicable to: '90 - '97 '99 + 1.6 liter 1.8 liter
195/50R15 V-Rated
Excellent summer tire. I live in Florida and can attest to their excellent handling in both hot/dry weather and torrential downpours. With some extra air in them, they're rather quiet as well.
I haven't found another tire that beats the Kumho for this price. You get near-Toyo T1S performance for about half the price. I don't race or autocross so until I can justify the cost of the T1S, these tires will be on my wheels.
Under 30 minutes to remove completely
Applicable to: '90 - '97 '99 + 1.6 liter 1.8 liter
Kumho Esca 712 215/40/ZR16, 21lbs
A decent inexpensive summer tire. Excellent in the rain. Moderate grip when warm, low grip when cold. Faint cornering squeal @36psi, loud below 32psi and very loose but quiet @44psi. Othewise quiet and a relatively decent ride.
I have had these for a few thousand miles and with the increasing temperatures and miles grip has improved a bit over their initial weak bite. They are quiet and ride decently, I run 36psi on the street and when I auto-x. Wear so far is quite good, 3 events and several thousand miles and looking good. I plan on replacing these with something stickier next year and I expect that these tires will still have plenty of tread and life then. Bottom line, if you want a decent cheap tire this is a nice one. If you are looking for the next Toyo T1-S this ain't it.
Under 30 minutes to remove completely
Applicable to '90 - '97 '99 + 1.6 liter 1.8 liter
215/40 16 tire mounted on SSR wheels
So far they are great tires. They are very predictable and have a smooth breakaway trait. they are quiter than my friends Yoko tires of the same size. I have not had them in the rain but they look like they will be a good rain tire.
After running Khumo race tires on the Miata this season I decided I would try the 712's. They are a great bargin for the price and performance. I am as happy whith them as any tire I have tried in the past five years, Dunlop, Toyo, Yoko, and Bridgestone. I have several cars I run ZR rated street tires on.
Over 30 minutes to remove completely
Applicable to '90 - '97 '99 + 1.6 liter 1.8 liter
205/50/15 Aftermarket tire to replace Toyo T-1 215/45/15 that had tuned into that famous Italian tire, the "Baldino."
Excellent wet and dry traction, not on a par with the Toyo's in the dry but for about half the price a major bargain. Wear appears to be more than acceptable, shouldn't have to replace these sneakers for @ least 2 seasons. Stiff sidewalls with good breakaway communication, no snap spins as the B.F.Goodrich G-forces are getting a reputation for.
When shopping for replacements for my aged Toyo T-1's, (1st Gen), had a slight case of sticker shock combined with new home wallet drain. So I looked for more economical alternatives. Good initial reports on Miata.net firmed up the decision and Tire Rack had just tested the tires and wholeheartedly recommended them. Now I can too. An affordable tire that offers way above average performance, and indications so far point to long tire life. Just wish the name didn't sound like an off brand condom you buy at the local Quickie Mart!
Over 30 minutes to remove completely
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