Yokohama  ADVAN A052

Best Autocross tire for an AST class Mazda ND2 MX-5. Superior grip in cold, wet, or dry.

2020 Mazda Miata Sport
Great autocross tires. Fantastic traction. Instructors at Lime rock hadn't seen these tires in action yet when I showed up with them for an advanced coaching session and they were very impressed. The second half of the session was in the rain and they were even more impressed with the performance in the rain even saying "Those tires are great in the wet, we you were going off of the track for sure on a few of those turns". Believe me it wasn't my driving skill that kept it on the track.
These tires have 3/4 of a season racing with two autocross clubs and several training/practice sessions at Lime Rock and they are finished. This did include a 100 mile round trip to either Lime Rock or the autocross venues and some local driving.
I wasn't going to buy these again this year only because of the cost, some of the other 200 thread wear tires are a hundred dollars less per tire, but availability was a challenge so I ended up with the 052's again on a different rim. Now that the money is spent I glad I did, these tires are just amazing.

Few reviews so far, but here is mine. Replaced Nitto NT 01s which were great, but one had puncture and resultant structural failure five years out so replaced all four. Car is a highly modified Miata, not tracked but driven in a vigorous fashion thru So Cal canyons.

Nittos were great. With asterisk. Very noisy. Harsh over lousy LA streets. Never drove in standing water but suspect like being on skis. Just fine in a little wet. Nonetheless loved them. Also have Nittos on 1978 Porsche 930 but due for replacement soon.

Early on comparison (just installed today): Yokos much quieter than Nittos. Barely noticeable noise, although the sound of a happy mechanism in the Miata is pretty loud. I cannot appreciate a problem with steering response as described by Tire Rack. Steering tight and instantaneous, just like Nittos. Yokos less harsh over horrible LA streets in Miata running Xidas with high spring rates but adjustable active shocks.

Previous experience in this car over the years with Dunlop 8000s, Bridgestone SO3s, Bridgestone RE-11s, and Nittos. Early on. the Yokos are the best compromise. Dunlops relatively low limits. SO3s terrific. RE-11s quite harsh, heavy. Nittos great but noisy, do not do bumps well. But in dry stick like glue, ride well, great steering response.

Over the years have loved Yokos, from 008 Drys on 930 to current V105s on Porsche Cayman S and Boxster S, which were an incredible bargain. Cannot speak to trackability, but for aggressive street driving I think the 052s will be hard to beat.

I love the "200 TW" tire wars! I used to cart Hoosiers to every track day but gave that up in favor of the convenience of "arrive and drive", With these latest generation of tires the penalty is just not that bad, Love it! These are definitively faster than the RE71R I had before, FWIW, at Buttonwillow I was able to match the best time I had set on Hankook Z214. Keep it coming tire companies!

Did my first autocross on these tires. Grid is unreal. Launched at 4000 rpm with very little slip. Cornering was better than any other tire I've owned. Would definitely recommend

Great tire for the track. Tires need to be heat cycled. The tires were terrible the first few track sessions, the first day. After that, they were great. They wear similar to an NT01. The car is set up with 3.5 degree camber so the tires are wearing out evenly but fasterthan the 200 tw rating. Basixally a 200tw cheater tire. I may try the Nankang next time. Similar trait as the A052 but a bit cheaper.

Bought these tires to run DEs. They replaced the used Hankook R-S3 tires that came with the used OZ wheels I bought for track use. I ran the Hankooks for one evening test & tune at Gingerman and one two-day DE at Grattan. The Hankooks were somewhat greasy but did decently. I wanted tires that would stick. I was told that these tires would blow me away. I chose to have Tire Rack heat cycle them to make sure they would stay consistent for me. I just completed another two day DE at Grattan. While the A052s didn't blow me away, they were easily more consistent in the corners when compared to the Hankooks. After getting the pressures dialed in when hot, I was able to run consistently in the 1:28s and 1:29s, which is darn good for a stock (3100 lb) car on DOT tires. But the lap times came at a cost. After 56 mostly hot laps, the left-side tires are gone. The left front is well past the wear bars on the outer half of the tread and the left rear is at the wear bars on the outer half (Grattan is a clockwise track with only three left-hand slower-speed corners). The right-side tires are in decent shape. In my opinion, cars running these tires on the track need to have the camber settings adjusted accordingly--which is not something that is going to happen with most stock cars.

Providing this rating for 215/40R-17 Yokohama ADVAN A052 in comparison to 215/40ZR-17 Kumho Ecsta V700 Star MINI SL.
I have only driven my Mini Gp2013 (sustantial negative camber in rear) with the Kumho V700 tires and decided to try the newly released Yokohama ADVAN as the tread wear was much higher at 200 vs 50 for the Kumho. Initially, i found the ADVAN to be un-predictable in steering. The tires would seem to either steer on the single large groove of the tire or possibly more prone to tramling (tendency of a vehicle's wheels to follow the contours in the surface upon which it runs). Cornering was also much less solid/planted/stable, thus lowering safe cornering speeds on on/off ramps in particular. It should be noted that the beginning tread depth of the advan is 7/32 v/s 6/32 for the kumho. After approximately 3,500 miles, these tires are completely LOCKED-IN. All of the previous mentioned negatives have completely faded. Initially these tires, on my vehicle, i'd argue were somewhat dangerous and that care/attention was warranted. 3,500 miles later these tires respond completely different from new. This i believe is expected to some degree, the kumho v700 were slightly different new, but not nearly as substantially. I absolutely recommend these tires as an alternative to the K v700. If they last nearly 3-4 times as long, i will be super satisfied. Drive carefully for a few thousand miles and you should be very satisfied with the Yokohama ADVAN A052. My experience with these 2 tires is completely isolated to a mini gp 2013, as such these tires may handle completely different on any other vehicle. I hope that this review proves helpful to you in your purchasing decision. Best, Johnny