The 225/50R16 has no rubbing issues on my car at all. I had that size on it before in a different tire (Continental) for 60,000 miles and there was no problem even with four people in the car with luggage for a family trip (two adults and two teen age girls).
The KDWS is actually slightly wider than the Continentals were, but they still clear. It is closer in the rear than in the front. It is close to the strut and also to the lower suspension arm that attaches to the lower part of the spindle and goes toward the front of the car.
The tread pattern on the KDWS is entirely different. The ride quality is stiffer than the Continentals or the original Goodyear GS-C but not at all objectional. Kind of feels like a new set of stock struts. They are quiet, much quieter than the GS-C and some quieter than the Continentals.
I don't tend to drive agressively when cornering (I prefer to use finess) so I may never know the limits of these tires but they are hard to break loose on hard acceleration and they feel very secure in the rain. They also feel very secure on canyon roads at speed, wet or dry.
The only slightly negative thing I can say about them is that they feel slightly squirly when traveling on concrete freeways with rain grooves that are not exactly parallel with the lane. It is not objectionable, but noticable. I don't remember if the GS-C did this or not, but the Continentals did not. Of all the cars I road test on a daily basis, this is really pretty much a normal condition and these tires do it less than some I have driven.
By the way, they were only $109.00 each from Tire Rack. (Thanks Luke) They are probably slightly less in the smaller sizes (205?55R16 or 215?50R16).
Jim Johnson
98 SVT
Originally posted by chris99svt:
what a minute....kdws AND kdw???? whats the difference? any problems with the 225/50's rubbing?
