I noticed when I was at the dealership waiting to get my car that all the models in the showroom had different brands of tires and that the sticker for mine did not reference the brand I would get. I saw goodyear, michelin, bridgestone's but none had the one my car came with, the dunlops. I have never had dunlops before and I'm not sure whether or not I like them. Does anyone else have dunlops and if so, what do you think of them? I have always had bridgestone or michelin's. I can state that there was a significant difference in the smoothness of my MB that had michelin's compared to the loaner I got that had another brand. When I asked them in the dealership how they determined who got what brand of tire they looked at me like I had three heads so I am guessing that the vehicle showed up with those tires and as long as they had the rating they were supposed to that's all that mattered to them.

They handle nicely in the snow, but the ride is not as smooth as I think it could be, but again, the only benchmark I have is the car I have.

I did not see any threads on tires so I'm starting this thread.

 

I have the Dunlops, they came on my Limited Edition sedan (and as I understand it, they are now the standard tire for sedans with sport package)

So far, not very impressed. You can see the Tire Rack reviews for the exact tire and most of them have the same complaint: LOTS of road feel through the tires, they ride pretty harsh and traction isnt the greatest.

I know most OEM tires have the same complaints, but Ive ridden on other OEM tires that were a lot better. Heck my loaner G37 had RS-As and they felt a ton better than my Dunlops.

You can probably mention it to your dealer, or maybe even complain directly to Infiniti, but I dont think much will come of it (individually, anyway). Ive just accepted it...since it hasnt been without snow/ice here since I got my car Ill reserve judgement on dry/summer performance, but I definitely do not like the harshness or road feel of them (some people have mentioned they are much worse in the cold than warm weather so maybe they will feel better to me in the spring/summer)

 

Thank you for the reply. I loved the bridgestone's that came with my 350Z track model so much I nursed 40K out of them and then had another 47K on the second one's before I traded it in. I noticed a marked improvement when I replaced the tires.

I do have road noise but not as bad as I had with the Z.

I would venture a guess these tires are priced a lot cheaper than the Michelin's. I hope by the time I replace the tires someone will have put another brand on them. I do have the 2011 G37Xs model too.

 

Well, just about anything is priced less than Michelins and in my experience, Michelins arent worth the price. True, they "last forever" but at the greater expense of traction. My Accord coupe came with Michelins....at 32K miles they had plenty of tread left, but no snow/wet traction. I literally slid thru an intersection because even with ABS the tires didnt have enough traction to stop the car.

There are much better choices out there at much better prices. I put Continental DWS tires on my 01 i30 and they were REALLY good tires. I put General Altimax tires on my wifes TL and they are also very good.

 

The 2010 sedans came with Bridgestones which were OK, but I've since upgraded to 20" wheels with Hankooks.

Probably the reason your 350Z had lots of road noise is that, compared to the G, it is not as sound proofed from the outside environment.

There are a lot of tire options out there, but Dunlops are definitely not one that I would consider. Keep in mind your driving conditions as well. Winter tires are a lot different than summer or performance tires. Since you have an "X" they put on tires that relate well to snow conditions.

 

I've got Dunlop Sport Signatures on my G (w/ 20s) and I like them much better than the Goodyear RS-As which really belong on a Camry IMO. What Dunlops do you have? Dunlop makes some very good tires, of course every brand has different quality and performance ratings within their lineup though.

 

RWD sport package comes woth re050as, which are noisy and rough but they make up for it in the grip department. Base 17s come with RSAs which from my experience are crap since tey dont grip at all, and the 18 inch tire and wheel package and the XS come with those dunlops.

 

They are Dunlop SP Sport Maxx A1-A A/S

 

I have the Dunlop Sport Maxx and don't mind them. A little noisy if you like them pumped up as they ping over highway joints.

 

I have heard good things about the Michelin Pilot Sport A/S tires? Anyone out there tried them? I think they are expensive but supposedly offer a good combo of performance and durablility.

 

I was thinking about the pilots when I went shopping for tires for my 350Z but the turn off was how they handled in the rain. The RE050A's were rated better (and reviewed) in the rain so that's what I got for THAT car and I loved those. That car NEVER left the driveway in the snow or even when there was salt on the road. My Benz came with All season Michelin tires and when driving a loaner car that had continental tires there was a distinct difference in how the car drove. The Michelin's were so much better.

Now while I am still not thrilled with these dunlops, I had synthetics put in the car last week and I am noticing not only smoother acceleration, but a slightly more even drive as well. I hope that since I got over 40K miles out of my high performance RE050A michelin's that are only supposed to get 20 I can go a while before I need to replace the dunlops. Either that or maybe I'll see about getting different tires for the summer.