what is the best tire for the stock fd rim? i was looking around tirerack.com and i only found one tire in 245/45/16 that wasnt a full on race slick. any opions are welcome as finding nice performing tires in the wide 16 range is somewhat difficult.

im looking mostly for a street tire that can be used for spirited outings (few auto-x's but that will not kill me in the rain)

thanks

 

anyone? i have found these

BF Goodrich g-Force T/A KDW NT in 225/45/16 but people complain they are very noisy. i have also found these

Dunlop Direzza Sport Z1 Star Spec in 225/50/16.

does anyone else have any opinions or feed back on either of these tires?

 

The Star Spec is a much better tire than the KDW (which gets hard after too many miles).

You'd be giving up some width with a 225, but I think you will be happy if you are not competitively autocrossing.

I found this thread, too. https://www.rx7club.com/suspension-wheels-tires-brakes-20/what-tire-size-autox-stock-fd-rims-856146/

 

I am thinking of trying the Falken Azenis RT-615K in 215/45-16 for street tires.

If it was going to be 225/50-16 I would be hard pressed to decide between the RT-615 and the Z1 Star Specs- I have auto-xed them both on other peoples cars and really impressed.

I like the feel of the big tread blocks on the RT-615K but the Star Spec would be great for a sleeper look if you are running stock body/understated FD rims.

 

Star Spec, AD08, and Ecsta XS. Those are the top contenders of extreme performance summers. The KDW have a loud/harsh ride and less grip. Though the KDW does have a great looking tread pattern and higher tread wear rating.

The Falken Azenis RT-615K tend to lose grip and get greasy after a few heat sessions. Though it is in the same category as the Star Spec, AD08, and XS, it is quite under performing for what it is.

 

awesome feedback guys. it looks like im going to go for the star specs in 225/50/16. thanks everyone for your help!

 

you should look at getting the star specs in 245/50/16 all the way around. why give up the extra rim? i was running 225's on my 16x7's, now that i have 17x8 and 17x9 i run 245/50/17 and 265/50/17. just my .02

 

star specs dont come in 245.50.16

 

Don't forget the Bridgestone RE-11's
I just got a smoking deal through tirerack for some Star Specs.

 

I have some 245/50-16 on FD rims on an FD... and it is a truly horrible feeling.

I would gladly give up the tiny bit of ultimate traction to know when the tire is going to breakaway, for how long, have some turn in response and the better acceleration of the shorter/lighter tire.

 

What tire are you running?

 

Some horrible Kumho....ASX?

 

I had some 245/50/16's I got for free with 9/10 tread, I thought about running them, I looked at them from every angle and searched for every fc I could find running them to try to justify it. In the end I just couldn't do it. Running 225/50/16 azenis up front, and those in the back would have looked like a baby camaro. I ended up giving them to a tire shop in exchange for mounting/balancing some advan A032's (245/45/16) I found for $50.

Compared to the old dunlops that came w/ my fd wheels the 225/50/16 azenis feel great, but if I could do it over I would have gone 225/45/16 for the same grip and a more responsive feel. Obviously 245/45/16 would be ideal, but they are hard to come by.

 

The Falken Azenis RT-615K tend to lose grip and get greasy after a few heat sessions. Though it is in the same category as the Star Spec, AD08, and XS, it is quite under performing for what it is.

Missed this the first time around! This aptly describes the performance of the older RT-615.

Wasn't the RT-615K supposed to address this issue with the new compound?

 

I'm running the Yokohama advan ad08's. Best cornering response of any non race tire other than the ad48. The RE11's give the best sustained cornering G. The kumho's are good in braking and straight line acceleration traction.

 

^^^This is what I have been told. I ordered the original [cheaper] azenis, but by the time the order was filled only the 615-k was available, maybe its true or maybe the sales person thought he would lose the sale if he didn't somehow justify a $15/tire increase over the quoted price.

Although I only have 2 and have been sorting out some suspension/alignment issues so I haven't really pushed them.

 

i've heard good things about the hankeek ventus rs-3 thats what i'm about to get

 

damn double post...

 

Yup. I heard great things about those too, but I cannot comment on the RE-11 or the Hankook RS-3 (which is the cheapest in the class in most cases) since I have never tried them.

I was not aware that they changed their formula. But the ones I tried were about a year and a half ago, bu still had a decent amount of tread with zero serious track time..

 

Last time I checked (a couple of weeks ago) they were on backorder for most sizes with no ETA. I've heard rumors of them not being in until October.

 

im running riken raptors on my fd wheels. staggered 225 245 50 series tires. And for street tires i am very impressed, they held up great on the dragon and respectable at auto x this past weekend. But if your going to be autox every weekend the star specs are what you want, everyone competitive in my class are running them.

 

I had 265 kdw2 on my fd and could spin donuts with little effort. My 225 ad08 are a different story;lots of grip and factory sizing. I will be buying another set