Are good tires worth the extra money?

[T5i drives a VW]

Is it worth dropping +$150 on rubber? I did some research and obviously summer tires preform the best in hot conditions. Which, down here in Florida is perfect. I found you get better breaking distance, faster acceleration, and just better traction in general if you go with season specific tires (Obviously). I was looking at Michelin Pilot Super Sports. Mainly because of the rating on different sites. I've heard that Pirelli is a popular brand. My grandparents are particular to Cooper. Haven't heard anything about other brands. I'm not an expert in the tire area but I know a good set can improve fuel economy, traction and other factors and would rather spend a little more to get all of these instead of drop a little cash on junk that wastes my gas or becomes the deciding factor whether I plow into the car in front of me.

What do you guys think I should look into?
What brand are you particular to if any?

[Grasshopper]

I'm very happy with my Continental Extreme Contact DW, I'll be buying them again when it's time for new tires. I've also heard good things about the Hankook Ventus Evo V12. Both tires are not over the top expensive but offer a good balance in handling/braking/treadwear. The Michelin Pilot SuperSports are fantastic tires but I don't think you'd be able to justify the extra cost in the small difference in noticeable performance between them and the two tires I listed. Good luck!

[Airy32]

I was about to post something very similar about the Continental DW. I had a set of those previously and could not find any real fault with them. Only replaced them because of the hype and rave reviews for the Pilot Super Sports.

The PSS has an advantage in steering response, and the tread wear does seem to be very slightly better than with the DW, which is no surprise since it is the only max performance summer tire I'm aware of with a 30k mile warranty. If you drive a lot of miles the PSS may break even in the miles per dollar equation but, other than that, I don't think I would buy them again. They are priced about $50+/- more than the DW, any additional performance wouldn't be usable 99% of the time on 99% of the cars out there. And contrary to much of what I have read the DW had better wet/standing water grip grip than the PSS. I occasionally get some hydroplaning/instability in heavy downpours now that I never experienced with the DW.

On a side note, I've never used any lower tier tires so I can't say I have first hand knowledge of how significant the advantage is to using the "+150" as you described. Most of the tests and reviews I have read generally show substantial wet grip/braking advantages, and more consistent predictability with the higher priced tires. For me, safety was always a priority in tire choice. I always want to feel like I have the advantage when sudden evasive maneuvers or panic stops become necessary, especially in areas that get a lot of rain - like Florida.

[T5i drives a VW]

I was about to post something very similar about the Continental DW. I had a set of those previously and could not find any real fault with them. Only replaced them because of the hype and rave reviews for the Pilot Super Sports.

The PSS has an advantage in steering response, and the tread wear does seem to be very slightly better than with the DW, which is no surprise since it is the only max performance summer tire I'm aware of with a 30k mile warranty. If you drive a lot of miles the PSS may break even in the miles per dollar equation but, other than that, I don't think I would buy them again. They are priced about $50+/- more than the DW, any additional performance wouldn't be usable 99% of the time on 99% of the cars out there. And contrary to much of what I have read the DW had better wet/standing water grip grip than the PSS. I occasionally get some hydroplaning/instability in heavy downpours now that I never experienced with the DW.

On a side note, I've never used any lower tier tires so I can't say I have first hand knowledge of how significant the advantage is to using the "+150" as you described. Most of the tests and reviews I have read generally show substantial wet grip/braking advantages, and more consistent predictability with the higher priced tires. For me, safety was always a priority in tire choice. I always want to feel like I have the advantage when sudden evasive maneuvers or panic stops become necessary, especially in areas that get a lot of rain - like Florida.

Thanks for the input guys.

Agreed with safety portion. From researching I found that summer tires preform quite a bit better in wet conditions than all season tires. I'll have to take a look at the Continentals.

[azunderg]

I just bought a set of Toyo Proxes R1R and couldn't be happier. One of the benefits of living in a place with no snow is running extreme performance summer tires. I've taken them through wet driving and they handle better than the OEM tires all the way around.