Bought my second FD last week and am excited to get back into one! 400rwhp on pump gas.
it came with a set of Faulkner FK452’s (225/40zr18 front, 265/35zr18 rear). Previous owner said not to trust them as he’d had them spin out from underneath him and just weren’t very sticky/had no grip. They’re 300treadlife tires, so is that the issue?

Ill mostly be on the street so was looking at something in the 200tread AA/A range. I found this article to be helpful but it’s 5 years old.
https://www.hotrod.com/articles/21-best-grip-tires/

Frim this the Dunlop z1, Goodrich rival, or Nitto NT05 sound like good options.
Has anything risen to the top since then? Something newer that performs better? Thanks!

 

I havent been into the tire wars super recently but I know the Bridgestone RE-71R is/was at the top of the list in the 200TW tires. They grip great but wear fast. The latest dunlops may have improved. I had a set of ZII’s on my S2000, they were loud but gripped great also. However, they lacked in the rain. Before those on the S2000 I had the Hankook RS3v2’s which seemed to be the best jack of all trades if you like, for longevity, noise, and wet grip where they were slightly slower than the rest on track.

I didnt want to buy any of those for my FD as I planned to drive it quite a bit and not on the track any time soon. I went with firestone indy 500’s, which are a 300tw tire, iirc. They are a great performer in the rain, pretty good in the dry, and are decently quiet. I should be about 300whp with those in 255/40/17 and it will not light them up without dumping the clutch from a stop, even a hard shift to 2nd is just a chirp.

 

RE-71R, end of thread

 

RE-71R are still the best gripping 200utqg wthout needing heat.

Rival S 1.5 wants a bit more heat and likes more slip angle as well as coming in sizes wider than 285/30-18 so it has its place.

A052 is probably the fastest on the track so it has its place.

RS4 are fast and can take the heat of track driving.

AD08R are still pretty good.

V720 try real hard.

 

^ havnt tracked them yet but actualy really impressed with the v720.
Ive had dunlop star spec and rs3, and the kumho hands down ***** on them for straight line grip.
Again not tracked or anything, just street use in my 400+ fb. The dunlops toward the end of their life in heat cycles were basically spinning any gear any speed above 5000rpm. The hankooks were much better, could do power skids at will in 3rd but very controlled.
The khumos after 1 skid just grip. And they were cheap as dirt.

 

I was just getting an alignment done and saw the new(ish) Firestone Indy 500's. Read some reviews while I waited and people have very positive things to say and they're only about $120 each. Tirerack does tire reviews that you can check out as well. These tires generally won't last a long time and you'll probably have to change them out every year, but if you're producing 400hp I'd want something grippy just to be on the safe side, even on the street.

https://www.tirerack.com/tires/tests...y.jsp?ttid=217
https://www.tirerack.com/tires/tests...y.jsp?ttid=234

 

Haven’t checked my thread in s few days. Thanks for the input everyone! Going to have to read up on a couple of those recommendations.

After doing some reading/google searching I was coming up with Michelin’s PILOT SPORT 4S for a street tire. Anyone have experience with them?

https://tirereviewsandmore.com/top-1...-summer-tires/

 

Bridgestone Potenza s007a are supposed to be the successor to the RE-11s, not sure if they come in those sizes. A bit of grip tradeoff from the RE-71s for some longevity.

 

The MPS 4S is a pretty great street tire. It all depends on how 'extreme' you want to go with grip levels. I'd consider it for maybe 400 rwhp FD but not 500 rwhp.

 

My research on them shows that they dont really last much longer than the RE-71, nor its better than it under any circumstance. On the positive side, the S007A comes in a 275/40 17.

 

Azenis 615K's are still available too.

Still near the top on the bang for the buck list, you can get em for $120 or so apiece for a 235/17

 

If you're looking for mostly a street tire that is capable for an autocross here and there, look into the Continental Extreme Contact Sport. It has better tread wear the RE-71s and almost the performance. I would compare it to the Pilot Sports but a little less $s. I have them know on my DD and had Pilot Sports on my previous DD. I run RE-11s on my FD which is mostly a track car. RE-11s have better wear then 71s, but think they are out of production

 

How much RWHP on your DD running the Continental Extreme Contact Sport?

 

0. Its FWD

 

LOL, thought it was a FD!

 

Current DD is a Mazda 3. Previous DD was an E90 335 with Pilot Super Sports. FD runs RE-11s

I find the Conti ECS a very capable "street" tire, especially for the price. They are not PSS's, but they are about 90%.

I would consider them for a FD that doesn't see any track time (other than maybe a auto-x every once in a while)

 

^that 10% goes a lonnnnng way

 

The PSS is useless on a car without traction control and over 300 WHP.

 

That's exactly where I was going with my question. I've been thinking about switching from kuhmo MX(?) 275 to RE11 255, or stick with 275 and get the Falken Azenis RT615K+ Decisions, decisions...

 

The market is flooded with 200tw UHP tires. No need to spend through the nose.

 

My google skills must be lacking, cause I am only seeing a handful for 275/40 17

 

The Falkens aren’t the best anymore, but are pretty good and the price is decent.

 

Do you have any experience with these tires, or any of the others you have weighed in on?

 

I do. It if was me and I wanted that size, with that level of power, I buy NT01s and move on with life. The 200 treadwear tires age and heat cycle out much sooner than a set of NT01s or R888s will.

 

How do you guys feel about the Hankook VENTUS V12 EVO2?? I need a set of tires for my 16" Infini wheels that MIGHT see a rare autocross or two in the future.

The car is driven about 4 days a month.

-M