Planet 9

Anyone experienced using the General Exclaim UHP tires? My younger brother put them on his Scion tC and loves them. I was told they are a lower cost alternative when replacing original tires which have a longer wear rating. They cost about half the price of Michelin Pilots. I have an 07 Cayman with the S wheels and Michelin Pilot tires. Any comments would be appreciated.

I'm not familiar with them, but did check them out at Tire Rack - Your performance experts for tires and wheels.

They are cheap indeed, have a relatively high wear index (380), and even come in correct CS sizes. Tire Rack tested them in May '05 against 3 other ultra high performance tires of that era. They finished 3rd in the test, behind the Kumho ECSTA SPT and Yoko AVS ES 100, but ahead of the Goodyear Eagle RS-A. Several of those brands may have released new tires for the ultra high performance category since '05; I know Goodyear did.

I've read poor reviews of the General on different forums. For a low-cost alternative I'd recommend the Sumitomo HTR ZIIIs. I see these everywhere up here in the NW, and a couple owners (BMW) I've talked to are thrilled.

Sumitomo HTR Z III

Just make sure you get the HTR ZIII, not the older ZII. I had a set on a Mustang Cobra and they hunted badly- they would follow every little imperfection in the road. Driving got to be a chore; I retired them with more than half their tread left. Went with PS2s after that, and they're great (but interestingly, less forward traction).

I see that the tread pattern is different on the ZIII. The older one was a "V" design that was great at clearing water, but I think that tread design gave rise to the terrible 'hunting'.

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chas

2006 CS Midnight Blue, Bi-Xenon, SportDesign Wheels, Heated Seats, Automatic Climate, Sport Shifter, SS Tailpipe

My two cents...never go cheap on tires. How do I know General's are cheap...Carmax put them on my 350Z immediately after I sold the car to them, just so they could turn around and sell the car with new tires. If I had a choice I would pick the used Bridgestones RE050A's I still had on the car over new Generals. I have been a believer in Bridgestone tires, you can't beat the R&D they get from F1 racing. Luckily for me the CS Sport I have came with the RE050's stock, while the other CS Sport on the lot had the Michellins.

If I had to go less expensive than Bridgestone I would look into Falken or Vredestein...I wouldn't touch General.

The HTR ZIIIs don't come in the front or rear OEM sizes anyway.

Yes they do. Follow the link in my post.

Blue: You're right. Wonder where I wandered off to.

If you have a passion for driving do NOT buy those tires. I have made that mistake on my M3 and put under 50 miles on them before I had them off and some PS2 on and have been happy ever since. They had such weak sidewalls it felt like the car had 4 low tires. I was happy to find out that the CS came with PS2's.

Remember that the tires are where millions of dollars of technology and R&D connect your car to the road.

We sell tons of them - more for our BMW division than for our Porsche division, though.

They are a great tire for what you pay. But yeah, if you're used to driving around on PS2's or SO-3's... you're going to be disappointed.

if your car is a commuter, yeah, get them, you won't be disappointed.
JL

If you want a cheap sporty street tire, these will do the trick. They are pretty good for the price and offer a nice level of performance in both wet and dry conditions. With that said, I would go with a better quality tire for a Cayman like Goodyear, Michelin or Bridgestone.

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i agree to a point: tires are what keeps you on the road and probably the biggest factor when it comes to whether or not you get into an accident. i've never used General tires but i recall long ago when Kumho tires were the cheap performer and i was an early adopter. the tires were adequate for street use, and in LA traffic you can't really do much anyway besides swinging in and out of carpool lane on the 405.

another point i have on the bridgestones: GREAT tires, but as a normal driver (no autoX, not a race car driver, not an instructor, etc.) i wish the RE50s i have could give more audible warning as it gives away - it's the same on S02s and S03s. i switched over to michelins on my other cars because they'll scream momma near the edge, and that's the cue i'm looking for

I have used them. Lots of value for the price.

Thanks for all the posts, however has anyone actually used them on their Porsche?

Aggie,

Did you ever mount these? I am out in BFE at the moment and didn't realize the wear on my tires and am in need for a quick replacement and this seems all they can get over night. I am going with them, but just curious on the ride quality?

Thanks
Tom