a1machinista1 Posted April 9, 2016 Report Share Posted April 9, 2016 Just thought I would post a few words in case anyone was searching these. I purchased these a few days ago and have about 100 miles on them. They are the Nitto Motivo 295 30 20 rear and 255 35 20 front. The reason I choice these was price first, then the Nitto (toyo) made in America brand. Lastly I really wanted an all weather tire that performed well in all situations. According to a couple articles I read ( motortrend and Car and Driver I believe) these looked like a good tire to try.. So here are my opinions and observations thus far: Right away I noticed the ride was noticeably firmer but very sure footed. First 80 miles or so were all city driving with lots of stop and go and plenty of left right left right. Steering feels very tight and precise at city speeds, of course I attribute this to suspension more than tires. Tonight I took a short freeway cruise to our local ford dealer to get parts for our ford flex (do not buy one). Freeway driving feels very good except for a very small decrease in what I believe is best described as tracking stability. (Old tires were Hankook v12s) my first experience with turning these tires happened to be a 270 degree off ramp. Posted caution limit is 40 mph, I decided being it was really light traffic and the off ramp is very isolated I would see how it felt at 65 mph. The car felt very solid and held the road without making a sound. There is a noticeable amount of oversteer but did not feel unmanageable. My return trip home puts me on a loooooong left freeway turn that has 2 lanes and a few degrees of banking. I usually travel this section at 65 in our 2010 flex, again traffic was very light at this time so I ran the turn at 85 mph. (I do not endorse speeding) this was a new driving experience for me at this point. I decided to turn to the inside lane mid turn to see how the grip felt, and it felt more than sufficient. But it did feel like the car was lighter. I mean the car felt very well grounded and gave me no signs of passing their limits but i guess the best way I can explain it is that it felt like the suspension wasn't keeping up with the tires?? If that makes sense?? This feeling I was getting was very new to me but did not cause me alarm.. any thoughts on that would be great. We have had 70 and 80 degree weather since I have had these so I am not yet able to give an opinion on the most important aspect of these for me.. RAIN. we are suppose to get some pretty good showers next week so I will chime back after I see how they feel... reviews are VERY good on the wet handling capabilities of these tires. By the way I paid $780 mounted and balanced for the 4. Which I think is a great deal on an American made tire.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shel-b001 Posted April 9, 2016 Report Share Posted April 9, 2016 Nice write up let us know what they are like in the rain wet conditions. I love my Nitto`s Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frank S Posted April 9, 2016 Report Share Posted April 9, 2016 Tire Rack says: "Tires are comprised of many layers of rubber, steel and fabric. Due to these different components, your new tires require a break-in period to ensure that they deliver their normal ride quality and maximum performance. As tires are cured, a release lubricant is applied to prevent them from sticking in their mold. Some of the lubricant stays on the surface of your tires, reducing traction until it is worn away. Five hundred miles of easy acceleration, cornering and braking will allow the mold release lubricant to wear off, allowing the other tire components to begin working together. It is also important to note that your old tires probably had very little tread depth remaining when you felt it was time to replace them. As any autocrosser or racer who has tread rubber shaved off of his tires will tell you, low tread depth tires respond more quickly. Don't be surprised if your new tires are a little slower to respond (even if you use the exact same tire as before). Their new, full depth brings with it a little more tread squirm until they wear down." Good that you wrote how your new ones behave in the first one hundred miles; it'll be ineresting to read your remarks after five hundred. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Larry T Posted April 9, 2016 Report Share Posted April 9, 2016 Great write up ... I love my Nittos. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
William Rodgers Posted April 9, 2016 Report Share Posted April 9, 2016 Good write up, but I agree with Frank. Break them in first then post again, they should get better. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
a1machinista1 Posted July 20, 2016 Author Report Share Posted July 20, 2016 Apologies for taking so long. We really haven't had any rain so I can get a good grasp on the wet capabilities of these tires. The rain that we have had has come after a couple days stretch of very high heat so the traction was not very good because of the oils on the road I'm assuming. But as a general consensus the tire has definitely improved with time and wet traction that I can get to this point seems to be reasonable. The tires look great and perform above satisfactory for me.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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