The Falken ZE912 is most consistently praised for dry grip, quiet running, comfort and value, with wet grip also receiving more praise than criticism. Wet-road confidence is not universal, with concerns in around one in nine of the 173 reviews. Tread life attracts more praise than complaints overall, but short-life concerns appear in nearly one in five reviews and both end-of-life accounts are critical of wear. Almost all reviews lack a stage of use, which limits any typical-mileage or grip-retention claim. Repeat accounts range from continued satisfaction to reduced confidence, without a common ageing pattern.
What owners mention most counted across 171 reviews
As soon as I had these tyres fitted (front only), tramlining was very evident and was the worst of any tyres I've previously had i.e. Goodyear, Continental, Avon, Hankook. Although never really pushed to the limit, comfort seems ok as is the grip level in wet and dry conditions (mix of motorway and country roads). Having said that, I was horrified to find that the tyres have worn out (evenly across the tread) in just over 5000 miles, by far the worst wear rate I've experienced so far.
I have only driven ~1000 miles on the Falken ZE912's (205/55 R16). Here are my initial impressions:
The ZE912 is very quiet and comfortable compared with the Goodyear NCT's that were fitted previously. The shoulder shape is rounded rather than squared. Whilst this probably helps with noise reduction it also results in a slightly smaller contact area. The grip and traction (mainly in the dry so far) seems to be better than average.
The sidewalls of the ZE912's are softer than the NCT's. They seem to absorb the bumps well keeping the tires in contact with the road surface. This is an advantage on some country roads. However, the turn in response is not that sporty. It feels as though the sidewalls flex at the entrance to the corner. Once settled into a bend there is plenty of grip though.
The compromise between comfort and performance is probably OK for most drivers. Some faster drivers may prefer a more responsive tyre. I would consider buying ZE912's again if they prove to have a long tread life in addition to good grip .... time will tell!
Check out how the BEST all seasons tyres perform against premium summer and winter tyres!
under the surface they seem amazing for the price but push them hard round a corner and the traction control kicks in every time - unlike the standard bridgestones. they suddenly just give way. so if your a fast hard driver and like taking a hard bend - think again. If u wanna drive well within normal limits this is an excellent tyre...
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Researching the Falken ZE912? Rate the tyres you actually drive - and help the next buyer choose.
The ZE912 is a quieter tyre than the FK452 I had fitted previously. You can swap these front to rear and side to side since they are assymetrical and not directional which means better tyre wear is possible by rotating the locations periodically.
They balanced up well (despite the fact that a pothole has recently bent one of my wheels); this wheel is on the front and it feels fine, no wobble at all.
The FK452 is a summer tyre but the ZE912 is an all season tyre.
I can feel straight away that the ride is more comfortable. The wear rating on the ZE912's is 360, the FK452's are 300 so the ZE912 should be harder wearing. This is usually at the detriment of grip but I noticed both 452 and 912 have the same AA traction rating.
Michelin Pilot Sport 2 are considered to grip extremely well and to wear very well but they are only 220 and even the later Primacy is only 240, both are seriously more expensive! Softer tyres offer more grip in the dry of course but to give you an idea about wear rates, track days tyres are rated around 200 so are not much different to MPS-II at 220.
What I was also pleased to see is that the ZE912 has a bit of rim protection whereas the FK452 has none. It's not huge but it would make a difference between a scuff and lumps missing!
Where I have noticed a huge difference is in snow and the wet cold conditions, these tyres feel a lot grippier in adverse conditions than the FK452's and also better than the Bridgestone Duellers on our other car (they are mud & snow tyres).
I've done maybe 200-300 miles on the ZE912 tyres now and they have much better grip whilst still scrubbing in than the FK452's and the grip in the cold and wet is very very impressive!
I expect the FK452's are better for grip in the summer on dry roads but I like the all year round capability of these ZE912's and I don't think I will go back to the FK452's again.
Have fitted these to my Wifes Nissan Note which has an odd tyre size and there are only a limited number of tyres in this size and they tend to quite expensive given the car they are going on. We were also looking tio improve the ride and noise levels as the OEM Continetal Premium Contact 2's give a harsh and noisey ride. Certainly grip comfort and noise levels have improved considerably its too early to tell about wear but fot all those Note drivers with this odd tyre size they represent much better value for money than the Continentals.
I just put a set of Falken ZE912 on my BMW 535d, replacing the OEM Bridestone run-flats. Ignoring the change from run-flats to normal tyres (which produced a massive improvement in ride quality and noise, vibration and harshness - why do BMW fit them!?!) I've noticed significantly increased grip in the current cold damp conditions. The sidewall is obviously softer than the run-flats and you can feel a very slight delay on turn-in, but the grip levels and feedback mid-corner are much improved. The handling doesn't seem to have suffered at all and these tyres do seem to be particularly quiet. For a tyre to out-perform the OEM fitment at much less than half the price makes them a certain choice when they need replacing.
Only driven for a couple of hundred miles so wear and progressiveness haven't been given a chance but compared to Dunlop SP Sport 3000's that I had before these seem better. The biggest thing is more grip and less aquaplaning for sure. Seem to cope well with lots of water.
The ride is slightly improved with a much more solid feel coming from the car, and there's no change in handling over the stiff walled run flats which is great. A very good value tyre.
I've tried many makes of tyre (Goodyear, Pirelli, Dunlop, Michelin etc) on my 530i Touring but never been truely happy with any of them.
Fitted 4 Falken ZE912s on a recommendation from Protyre.
Absolutely fantastic tyre! At least as far as wet/dry grip and comfort is concerned. Not had them long enough to comment on wear and on a commute I'm hardly going to push it to the max to check progressiveness!
Grip is far superior to any of the previous tyres in wet or dry and the road noise is vastly improved.
Just bought 4 for my wifes 330i and will definately buy again for my car.
Purchased Cooper S 2007 model which was fitted with Dunlop Run Flats 205/45/17. The ride was dreadful with too much road noise. The handling really concerned me as it would bounce over poor road surfaces and I really did not trust the car!
Purchased 16" mini wheels and fitted four Falken Z912's
195/55/16W.The difference immediately was a much quieter, better riding car. The tyres transformed the car
Handling feels much safer in wet and dry conditions.
The Mazda 6 MPS is recommended to be driven on the relevant Bridgestone tyre, however due to working in Australia for 3 months I was reluctant to spend ?150 per tyre this time and so was recommended the Falken ZE912, 215 45 R18. I know they are not quite as good as the Bridgestone in terms of grip but comfort and wear they are fantastic. The 6 MPS is an all wheel drive sports saloon and yes I do love to throw it around now and again, to be hand on my heart honest they have not let me down once and still give me the confidence to push on. To be fair I put that down more to the car than the tyre but for the money saved on these tyres I think they are a bargain and a good all rounder for the spirited motorist who knows their limit. I will comment on wear more after a year of driving.
I bought these Falkens for my CTR as a cheap winter tyre, as the Pirelli P Zero's on there cost ????.
The first thing I noticed immediately is the loss of feel in the steering - it makes a massive difference to this type of car. Dry grip seems good though, but you can feel the tyre wall flex when you push in a corner, as they are much softer than the Pirelli's or Bridgestones. Wet grip seems average, but I'd need a few more miles on them to say for sure.
For me I wouldn't buy them again because of the loss or feel in the steering and soft sidewalls during cornering - but I got 2 for ?113, so a good tyre for that price.
I put them on my 02 plate Civic Type R this time last year. I do a lot of motorway driving and I am don't often drive the car on the limit. I have 3 types of tyres fitted on the same car before (Bridgestone RE040, Dunlop Sports Maxx GT, Falken ZE912 and here is my view.
For everyday normal use, the Falken is the best, very quiet and very comfortable. I have so far put on 24000 on them and I think it is possible to get to 30000 on the front and even more from the rear. Let me stress again I drive within the speed limit but and never throw the car around. Once I put them on, I can immediately notice how quiet it was compare to the other 2 and how good it is over the bumps.
In terms of comfort, noise + wear. I rate it Falken, Bridgestone, Dunlop.
However, the softer sidewall has an affect on the handling. In fact, I would say Bridgestone is the best for cornering, then Dunlop, and lastly Falken.
Dry grip I prefer the Dunlop, Bridgestone, Falken
Wet grip I would go for Bridgestone, Dunlop, Falken.
Based on my ratings above, you can see that in my opinion if you want a comfortable ride, go for the Falken. If you want to drive at speed, I would go for the Bridgestone.
One thing I would like to mention is that when the Falken was new, driving it in the cold weather on A12 was really scary. You can feel the tyre move around and the rear was very light. That went away after about 7-800 miles.
For value, you can't beat the Falken. Just make sure you choose it for the right reason and not just for the price. I personally would go back to Bridgestone for the front next time round just to feel more confident.
