Chumpman

Has anyone tried these tires or heard anything about them? I'm particularly interested in how well they perform in the wet.... thnx!

temrich

I've read a few things on the net, mostly from Australia, and they sound like very good tires, sticky and stiff. As with any 'racing tire for the street' they're designed for warm, dry pavement. Due to the rubber compound and lack of tread depth, they don't do so good in the cold and damp, as we have around here. When it gets really cold (like it was last night, freezing) forget it, they won't stick at all.

I've got Dulop SP8000s right now and they're a disaster in the winter, and when I get my Falken Azenis they'll be racing tires only.

IMHO,
tom

rowan

There is also a lot of info from Japan .. but I can't read the pages Seems they have been out in Australia and Japan for a while now (Called Forumla FM901 in .jp). Just try a google search and you should come up with all that plus some threads from vwvortex about the tires.

Feedback seems positive so far although I haven't read anything from anyone who has tried them in a competition situation (autocross or track).

I think I will be getting them for solo2 and general summer use this season as it looks like they are the best tire that will fit my stock Protege5 wheels. (My budget is not currently big enough for wheels and tires).

So .. I hope they perform well! And that the sidewalls are actually nice and reinforced as claimed in the Dunlop info on the tire. Anything would be better than my stock Dunlop 5000's right?

obender66

FM901 is my choice too-$140 CD for 205/45/16 at Tire Depot seem like a deal to me!
Dunlop 5000 is a very good tire taking into consideration it treadwear rating and "all seasoness". It holds really well even when abused at the track-no chunking or anything and I had to be really an animal to make them squeal.
So if "all season" Dunlop performes well, then "summer" only should not dissapoint you ?
Share your impressions after you get them
Alex

rowan

Well my 5000's didn't hold up that well after a day of Solo2 schooling but I suppose they're not in terrible shape either (badly in need of rotating though). Made a fair bit of noise too ..

Do you have stock rims or not? (If so, how well do those 205's sit on them since they are meant for a 7" width)?

Chumpman

thanks for the input guys... i was actually hoping someone would slag em so my decision would be easy to make... but I guess not! hahahhaa! If you could choose between the Dunlop 901's and Kumho 712's, what would you go for (keeping in mind that it's only really sunny for 3months of the year in vancouver and wet for 6 months with snow in the last three). I'm thinkin of getting new rims/wheels for the sun/rain, and getting real snow tires (Pirelli WinterSport210's) on the stockers for winter...

Huey

I've spoken to guys at Volco (local wheel & tire chain in Vancouver) & they highly recommended the FM901. They said that it was a better performing tire than the Kumho's. My friend was looking for wheels & rubber for his car & was thinking about Kumho's but then they recommended the FM901's which in his application was cheaper. They also said it's a lighter tire too & I can attest to that as we lifted both a FM901 & a Kumho in the same size & the FM901 definitely felt lighter. I know a few guys with hardcored JDM Civic Type-R conversions (over 200 whp on a dynojet) & they have nothing but praise for the FM901's. The tread is fairly deep as well so they look like they'll be able to channel water fairly well.

rowan

Saving up for my set right now.

Huey

They're pretty reasonable for price too. I just checked yesterday for a 205/40/17 & it was $170 cdn. Not bad. I might be getting a set soon if I decide to get new wheels for my car.

rowan

Something is really confusing me now though..
I've seen people post Canadian prices in the range of $140, $160, $175 ....

But these are $68 tires from Tire Rack (for 195/50R16 - stock size)!!
$68 USD ~= $105 CAD

So where is the big markup? Or does Dunlop Canada just charge more for all it's tires straight from the factory.

obender66

Markup is from tire dealers. I believe Canadian corporate/payroll taxes and fringe benefits are higher than those in USA, so dealers have to cover their costs.
If you have friends living in Detroit or Buffalo, have them order tires for you and install them in USA, saving stupid brokerage fee and GST/PST. Or maybe somebody from fellow Protege owners can help?
Alex

rowan

I'm goign to register for the Regional Solo 2 series next week and see what kind of prices Wheel & Tire Zone offers competitors ... might just be normal prices anyway though. Unless I get lucky and win some coupons

Makaveli

post in the regional section and see if anyone will help you out.....

P5er

I'm also thinking about them, 205/50 16" ones.
My next choice would be Potenza S 03, but those are twice the price of Dunlop's FM 901's.
205's should fit very well on stock 6.25" rims.

Chumpman

thanks for the info Jesse!
If it's not too much trouble, could you post another evaluation after either your president or yourself tries em in the wet? thanks dude!!!