I have had both sets on cars I have owned. the kh16 is more of a highway tire, it grips good in all weather conditions. The LX platinum is good in all conditions accept snow, it gets ok traction because of the softer rubber used. It grips better than any tire I have had for the price of them in dry conditions
Best Tires for Volkswagen Passat
We choose to wrap the wheels in Nexen N3000 235/35/19. To be honest they were the cheapest Tires I could find. Another review will come after Jen racks a couple of miles on them.
A large part of the noise is indeed the tires. They are the OEM contintental touring 235/45-17 and they were inflated to 38lbs. I dropped them to the recommended 35 and the noise and ride improved. I am now realizing that 50% of the sound I'm hearing that is objectionable is indeed these tires.
I've happily used UHP 235/45R17 tires on my Passat and Beetle 18T convertible with nothing but smooth cruising. I tried 38 psi but backed off, the slightly tauter steering wasn't worth the harshness on SoCal's crumbling surface streets. Mine were all German origin.
My RE50s were also loud at 16K. I replaced them with Falken Ziex RE 912s at 20k and they are very quiet.
A good option for budget minded summer tires is the Kumho SPT. Long life treadwear rating and decent performance at a great price.
Recently upgraded a W8 wagon to 17 inch wheels and General Exclaim UHP Z-rated tires from Tire Rack. So far delighted. General is a Continental subsidiary, tires are mfg in Germany. Amazing level of comfort for a Z-rated tire.
I installed a set of Dunlop SP Winter Sport M3's. This is a quick review of my thoughts on the handling and performance, so far. Wet Grip: Amazingly capable. Dry Grip: The tires grip reasonably well. Snow Grip: Amazing. Truly amazing. Ice Grip: grip was still very good. Low-speed Handling: I am fairly impressed with how these handle. High-speed Stability: Well, these are winter tires and feel well-suited to a sedan driven in a commuting style. Noise: None, so far. Comfort: Still, these are quite comfortable.
Around Thanksgiving last year, I had two Michelin MXV4 Eco+ OEM stock tires that were worn and need of replacing. I followed suggestions of colleagues and Consumer Reports and bought two Falken Ziex ZE-512, and installed them on the front of my 1998.5 Turbo Passat Wagon. Although I kept the same size (195/65/R15) I was impressed immediately: much better handling, steering response, road feel, as well as seriously improved wet and dry grip. Extremely stable at 90mph+ speeds, and good cornering. After about 1000 miles however, I thought I had front-end or transmission problems, as there was this terrible WHOO=WHOO sound coming from the front. I took it to a shop and they said no trouble, just tire noise. Noise worsened, so took to VW dealer in Maine while on the road; they said that car was aligned perfectly per spec, but Falken tires were \"cupped\", and worn on the inside.
those sumitomos are a good deal but i put those on my wifes passat wagon in april and all them ****s is hopping now. its like they are 'almost' shifted belts.
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