Kumho Ku31 Or Ku36? Help!

[DRFT31]

Hi guys this week ill be purchasing some new 265x35x18 for my R34 GT-T with approx 200kw.

My budget is max $250 a tyre and for that price range from the reviews ive read its either Kumho KU31 and KU36.

I don't do any track days, but i love the feel when you hit a gear and your not facing houses

Both tyres are roughly the same price. Just wondering what you guys would choose if you were in my situation & please if you know of another tyre within my price range please feel free to recommend one.

Much apperciated. Terry.

[DRFT31]

double post....

[Brandon]

36 for more grip and 31 for better wearing

[DRFT31]

36 for more grip and 31 for better wearing

Comparing the two how do they perform in the wet/dry?

In regards to the wear how many k's roughly do you think you will get with each tire?

[Dani Boi]

I'm in the same position as you. I've decided I'm going with KU31's though.

Semi slick IMO is a bit overkill for the street unless your running some pretty high hp which I am not plus I wanted better tread wear

http://www.skylinesaustralia.com/forums/Ku...ct-t302712.html

Edited April 11, 2010 by Dani Boi

[Gunnar_11]

Go the 31's - more suited for street

The 36's are not a dedicated semi slick - the tread pattern is that of a semi slick but the tyre compound is not as soft a a semi slick

[DRFT31]

2 so far for the 31 im still steering towards the 36 thou. Anyone else?

[R34P3R]

i have ku31's on my r34 and they are pretty good. dry grip is great and in the wet they have kept me away from poles when turning. accidentally boosted too one time while raining to overtake someone and they regained traction pretty fast

[Brandon]

Comparing the two how do they perform in the wet/dry?

In regards to the wear how many k's roughly do you think you will get with each tire?

Personally I havent got experience with them at all to comment on wet/dry but my previous comment was based on talking to people who used them before.

Your 2nd question is a million dollar question. Depending on how you drive and if you rotate your tyres at all. I know of someone that got more than 40,000km out of a 36 but that with rotation (still not bald yet). On the other hand, another friend with 36 only got 20,000km+ because he doesnt rotate and he track his car occasionally (bald).

[Russman]

Go the 31's - more suited for street

The 36's are not a dedicated semi slick - the tread pattern is that of a semi slick but the tyre compound is not as soft a a semi slick

Not always the case.

Comparing real semi's to 'road' semi's like KU36's is more about construction than tyre compound.

I reckon the 36's are about as soft as my advan AO50's and bridgestone RE55's (real semis), but if I was doing track work the KU36 would be destroyed and the AO50 or RE55 would be only half as worn. It all comes down to heat really.

DRFT31 - Depends how often you wanna replace tyres really. KU36's will wear a lot more. How deep are your pockets?

My opinion - 200rwkw's go the 31's. They're 265's afterall, how much grip do you need?

Try Traction tyres, or option 1, or OTR motorsport for prices.

[MrStabby]

Comparing real semi's to 'road' semi's like KU36's is more about construction than tyre compound.

I reckon the 36's are about as soft as my advan AO50's and bridgestone RE55's (real semis), but if I was doing track work the KU36 would be destroyed and the AO50 or RE55 would be only half as worn. It all comes down to heat really.

The treadwear ratings of S spec (like KU36) and R spec (like RE55s) are completely different (about 180 vs about 60). All things being equal the KU36s will last far longer on the street. RT-615s which i imagine are similar to KU36s, dont get chopped up like street tyres when used at the track.

[hrd-hr30]

Not always the case.

Comparing real semi's to 'road' semi's like KU36's is more about construction than tyre compound.

I reckon the 36's are about as soft as my advan AO50's and bridgestone RE55's (real semis)

they're not

but if I was doing track work the KU36 would be destroyed and the AO50 or RE55 would be only half as worn. It all comes down to heat really.

and they don't

KU36 outlast the much softer proper semis on the track as well as the road.

[Russman]

they're not

and they don't

KU36 outlast the much softer proper semis on the track as well as the road.

Ok well I was only going by the wear that I have seen on mine and others KU36's vs my AO50's on a 32 GTSt.

I did one motorkhana and the KU36's were great but wore a lot and most of that was on a concrete skid pan! My AO50's have done multiple track days and haven't gone down much at all???

We've obviously had different experiences then.

[Munkyb0y]

ive got ku31's in 265 on the rear. theyre a great tyre. you cant go past them for the price.

dry grip is excellent. wet grip is quite satisfactory. i mean really, how good can wet grip ever be? and if you're driving like a maniac in the wet, then you need to look at other things. such as dont be a douche.

Edited April 13, 2010 by Munkyb0y

[hrd-hr30]

Ok well I was only going by the wear that I have seen on mine and others KU36's vs my AO50's on a 32 GTSt.

I did one motorkhana and the KU36's were great but wore a lot and most of that was on a concrete skid pan! My AO50's have done multiple track days and haven't gone down much at all???

We've obviously had different experiences then.

so did your tyres. motorkhanas vs track days.

after the first track day (Lakeside) on my 1520kg Supra the KU36 had barely worn at all. Could still read the writing on the tread surface! It must have done a dozen track days (heaps at Lakeside, 1 each at QR, EC, & OP) & 15,000km on the road. The front were still going strong, rears were just down to the TWI.

my R888s (GG compound) which have only done 3 track days at Lakeside and 0 road km on an ~1100kg S13 are more than half worn! The lefts are just at the TWI now! And the internet would have you believe the R888 is one of the more durable semis around...

and there is certainly no doubt about the compounds being much harder on the KU36. All you have to do is look at the UTQG ratings.

[luke gtr]

hi, dont know if youve purchased yet, another thing to keep in mind is the ku36 is assymetric design, you can rotate side to side

the ku31 is directional, you can rotate front to back

but, you can swap the tyre round 180 degrees if wearing one edge(ku31)

in regards to traction, it doesnt all come down to power, how hard do you corner normally?

the 2 different tyres are designed to do 2 different things.

ku36 will be great for someone who pushes their car a little harder.

if you drive more sedatley, grab the 31's, they'll last longer.

[frozenpod]

I have KU36's they are not a semi slick they are extreme performance dry tyres not intended for wet use but they can get you home if you drive ultra carefully.

I would suggest KU31's they way to go for a street car as the KU36's are horrible in the wet, they have poor feedback and they randomly let go even when maintaing constant speed around a constant radius corner.

KU36's great in the dry once they have a very small amount of heat into them but not as nice in terms of ride, noise and feel/feedback compared to all weather tyres.

They wont last as long as KU31's with the same car same driver under normal street conditions.

[BTM]

Personally I havent got experience with them at all to comment on wet/dry but my previous comment was based on talking to people who used them before.

Your 2nd question is a million dollar question. Depending on how you drive and if you rotate your tyres at all. I know of someone that got more than 40,000km out of a 36 but that with rotation (still not bald yet). On the other hand, another friend with 36 only got 20,000km+ because he doesnt rotate and he track his car occasionally (bald).

I usually get 3,000km out of a brand new set of rears, so sounds like the 36s should be fine Wish I could get 20-40k out of them, but that would be so boring lol.

[89CAL]

I had KU31's

performed very well in the wet and dry, awesome tyre for the price i thought

the only reason I dont have them on the car now is cause i needed tyres and couldnt get KU31's for under 800 bucks for a set of rears so had to go a cheaper option, found a place to source them cheap now so next time will definently get them again

[Dose Pipe Sutututu]

I run KU36 on the front and KU31 on the rear, even though the KU31 is the cheaper out of the two ($160 per side fitted and balanced 255/40/17) they grip better than my previous Toyo Proxes 4 which costed 1.5x the price