1999-2009 [Subscribe to Daily Digest] |
Here’s a suggestion for you on the tires. I recently replaced the tires on my ’99 9-5. I did so because my lease is up soon and I don’t want to have to replace the tires for someone else. In the process I purchased a set of Borbet wheels because I intend to buy or lease another 9-5 (2001 or the refreshed 2002 if not too pricey!) and I’ll just transfer these to the new vehicle. The tires and wheels and balancing with non-clip type weights were purchased from the Tire Rack for under $1,000 total, shipping included. The tire cost was $102 ea. which is reasonable for such a great quality tire. I was very pleased with the pricing and service from the Tire Rack.
The tires I chose are the Yokohoma AVS dB tires. I chose the 225/50WR16 size tires as a modest upgrade for handling. Though they’re are a very bit smaller in diameter than the OEM tires, this is completely negligible and has had NO effect on gas milage (its actually a bit better, see below) or speedo/tach response. I think they are outstanding.
We’d bought these for the ’98 SE Convertible and they were so wonderful on it, I decided on them for the replacements for the 9-5. They are amazingly quiet! As you have seen by many posts here, this is a problem for the 9-5. These tires really tame the road noise that comes through to the passenger cabin! Sure, if you are on really rough roads there is some noise, but MUCH less. I also notice much less tire slap noise. On smooth paved surfaces they are amazing.
Their handling is outstanding. This tire is billed as an “ultra high performance all weather” tire. Actually I think it’s better balanced than most “ultra high performance” tires. It doesn’t have the twitchiness that some of these tires do. They don’t have that darting, razor edge, nervous feel that some high performance tires do. They seem very composed at all speeds and particularly higher speeds. Steering and turn initiation also seems quicker at lower speeds as well.
Amazingly their ride is also very comfortable. I had some minor concern about this replacing the 55 series tire with a 50 series tire. The comfort level is certainly better than that of the very mediocre Michelin MVX’s they replaced. Bumps and pot holes are less jarring and taken in better stride. The gas mileage I’m getting is the same or better than the OEM tires. I’m getting around 24-25 mpg daily driving and 30+ mpg highway (this was a 440 mile trip to Palm Springs with the a/c running, temps in the 90’s and 100’s, and an average trip speed of 70 MPH!)
They seem quite capable in wet weather, but I’ve had no opportunity to use them in snow. I’d heard this was their only weakness, but a post on the Tire Rack site from a Halifax CDN owner seemed to think they did well for a high performance tire on his Audi S4.
I’d HIGHLY recommend this tire for any 9-5 automobile. If you like racer boy “edgy” performance tires, then this probably isn’t the tire for you. If you want a very solid, comfortable, great handling and QUIET tire, then by all means consider the Yokohama AVS dB!
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