Wouldn't touch the falken's myself. They're the oldest tyres mentioned yet. On mine, which is only a chipped 1,9TDI, grip levels in the wet were not great. Cupping was a big
problem at 9k miles! Had to be replaced all around since they were rotated once. The noice drove me nuts. Also no rim protection worth mentioning.
Then had the Continental SportContact 3 which where great: good wear rate, good alround performance, very good rim protection and NO cupping.
Now have the Goodyear F1 Assymetric on the rear, no cupping as of yet ca 10k miles. Good wet&dry performance. The rear used to step out once in a while but with the F1 assymetric's there's none of that!
Now have Michelin Exalto's on the front since my the company will only let me put michelin or pirelli on the car as of this year
The michelin's are superb, wheel protection is less than on the Goodyear&Continental and wear rate should be good aswell since almost every michelin has good wear rate.
HOWEVER, the SUCK in the wet from a standing start!!! The dash is blinking away at me every time I try and get away. Wet braking is acceptabel as is wet cornering but not more than that.
Despite the lengthy post only my 2 cents