Nexen SUR4G Review

DarkJak

My review of the Nexen SUR4G in 275/40 R18 from an autoX event this last weekend, with an experienced codriver

I recently downsized to 18" wheels to reduce tire cost, going from a 9.5/10.5 19" staggered setup to 10.5 square.

In that move, I struggled with tire sizing. I was split between RS4s at 285/35 and SUR4Gs at 275/40. Ultimately I went with the SUR4Gs due to them being just $700 shipped for all 4, and from hearing that they are competitive autoX tires. This was about $100/corner cheaper than other tires in that size.

The tires took a run to get up to temps and were slippery until then.
Once up to temp, they were a lot to get used to.

I'm coming from PS4S's with a shorter sidewall, which while not as sticky as all the 200TWs, gave great feedback near its limits and I always knew when I was overloading the tire.

In contrast, the SUR4Gs felt grippier, almost as grippy as RE71Rs (or maybe just as grippy), but feedback when warmed up was very vague. I couldn't quite tell when the front tires got overloaded in a turn, with there being little noise, and not a sudden dropoff in grip either. As such, it felt like I was constantly guessing exactly what wheel angle was optimal. On the other hand, it also meant that I wasn't losing tons of speed from overturning a bit.

In the rear, my codriver and I had to drop pressures around 3 PSI vs the front. This may have been more an issue with my current setup. It seemed to grip well enough, but the inner tire was easily overpowered out of corners, thanks to the VLSD not being too great at being an LSD.
After runs, the inner shoulder was always scorching. In the end, my codriver sprayed down that inner between runs, which helped a lot.
It was a big downgrade from my E36 M3's diff, which never struggled to put power down out of corners.

The car is setup with Stance Pro Comp2's at 11k/7k spring rates and we had the rear turned down a bit softer to try and put power down better. Stock sways. It felt like the inside tire was almost off the ground while in a turn.

OS Giken LSD coming "soon", which I ordered all the way back in April.

Overall, it was a handful to get tuned, but a very fun tire to run with. And great for the price. .

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