+1 for the hankooks. cheap, sticky, and come in 245/45/16. i just got them on all 4 corners.

Ahh, thanks for your help Rynberg. I see TireRack has the same problem with the specs for the Kuhmo Victoracer V700 265/45R16 tire, which they also list as fitting on an 8" rim, but the Kuhmo site specs only for 8.5-10 inch rims. I guess there really is no free lunch.

For the record, here are the options I found that will fit stock FD rims (information a mix of manufacturer and TireRack info).

Make_____________Size_____Tread width(in)__Diameter(in)______Weight (lbs)
Hoosier R6______255/50R16_____9.8__________26.2_____________25
Hoosier R6______245/45R16_____9.2__________24.7_____________22
Hoosier R6______225/50R16_____9.0__________24.7_____________22

Kuhmo V710_____225/50R16_____9.0__________24.9_____________23
Kuhmo V700_____225/50R16_____? __________24.9_____________23.8
Kuhmo V700_____245/50R16_____? __________24.6_____________22.6
Kuhmo Vict V700__225/50R16_____8.6__________24.9_____________24.9
Kuhmo Vict V700__245/50R16_____9.1__________24.6_____________25

BFG R1_________245/45R16_____??__________24.7_____________22
BFG R1_________225/50R16_____??__________24.7_____________21

Avon Tech RA 225/50R16_____8.7__________25.1_____________24

Hankook Z214___255/50R16_____9.4__________25.9_____________?
Hankook Z214___245/45R16_____9.1__________24.5_____________?
Hankook Z214___225/50R16_____8.3__________24.8_____________?

I never look at the speedometer at the track anyway and might trade some straightline speed for cornering, so the diameter change with the 255/50 is not necessarily a stopper.

All these numbers are probably pretty noisy data, and obviously don't present anything about the most important thing - the quality of the compounds.

Well let's be honest, how competitive are you and how deep is your wallet? The Hoosiers are expensive and only good for a few events. The Kumhos and Hankooks will last longer, the BFG is brand new and I don't know anything about it.

I would suggest Toyo RA-1's to anyone, especially if you have never had a track tire. They seem to give more feed back than Hoosiers/Kumhos but last a long time and have very good grip, and are cheaper. Or maybe the Nitto NT01 which is basically the same from what I've researched but they supposably do alot better when not shaved compared to unshaved Toyos.

As for the Avons one of the guys at the track last week didn't like them at all, he said the Toyos, which was his other set, had alot more inital grip and didn't fall off as fast toward the end of the session.

I see TireRack has the Avons on closeout at $129 each, and I've been very pleased with them , so I might just get another round of those. If you rotate, and flip them on the rim at about half-way down, they wear very evenly and are good for 4-5 good HPDE days. They seem well suited for the RX7, although not for other cars. My friend with the STI had them scrubbed to the belts in no time, and switched to a harder tire.

After that, on to the 245 or maybe the 255 Hoosiers, I guess. If they don't last at least as long as the Avons, then maybe I'd back up to the Kuhmos.