Mazdaspeed Forums - Sumitomo HTRZ III review

I bought these tires in october '08 after my second set of the OEM 'stones were shot at less than 10k miles. I was browsing tirerack and the sumi's were apparently the best deal at the time at $114 per tire (225-40-18). I was actively autocrossing and my car was a daily driver as well so I was looking for something that would perform decent on autox sundays and have enough treadwear rating for daily driving. The HTRZ III is a max performance 300 treadwear rating (compared to the stock RE050A's 150 treadwear rating) and I'm happy to tell you that it lives to its rating. 17k miles later and a few autocross sundays and these tires have at least 10k more miles of life. If I had SPC ball joints, I'm confident these tires would last 30k+ miles no problem, since the only real wear on these tires are on the outside edge.

Ok now to what really matters. How do they perform? They perform just as if not better than the stock 'stones, turn in response is good and are predictable when they start to give. They heat up pretty quick and the grip is good when cold or warm. On a 30 second autox course the tires would feel overheated by the third run or so, but I blame that to the stupid 0 degree front camber for that. The sidewalls are a bit on the soft side, but not any softer than the stock tires. I was pumping them to 55 psi and experienced very little rollover and seemed to perform best for autox. For daily driving I pump them to 45 psi.

The grip degrades a little after 10k or so miles, the compound feels a bit harder than when new. But they still perform great wet or dry. And speaking of wet traction, these tires are way better than the 'stones on the wet, they're very confidence-inspiring with great wet grip on the street or track. As for road noise, they're not that quiet but much more quiet than the 'stones. They're noticeably noisier after a while but nothing you will really notice all that much.

In a nutshell, these are one of the best deals available. The level of performance and durability you get out of these tires is simply incredible. these tires could cost 50 bucks more per tire and they would still be a great deal. If you're looking for a good compromise in between grip, durability, and value, look no further. :bigok: