R comps

[mpg9999]

Since I've been bumped to street mod with the SR20VE swap, its time that I replaced my 205 50 15 azenis for some R compounds. The wheels I have right now are 15x7 Kosei K1's. I would like to upgrade to the 15x8 Kosei k1's, then get some 225 45 15 R compounds for it. In the tire size, tire rack has the khumo ecsta V700's, Hoosier R3S04, R3S05, and Avon Tech R. If I go with a 225 50 15 instead then I could run the victoracer or V710. So, here are my questions:

1. Should I even be running a 225? I could stick with 205, but the prices look to be only a few dollars more to run the 225.

2. Should I run a 45 or 50 sidewall? I want to stick with a 45 to keep the car lower. Cost is a big issue here as well, so I want to run a tire that will last a long time (for an R compound).

3. How important is the 15x8 wheel? I know 225's can fit on the 15x7, but how good is it to do that? Buying a set of 4 15x8 k1's will cost me over 800 dollars, so is it really worth it?

4. What other tires options havn't I looked at? Toyo? What sizes do they come in?

TIA,

-Mike

[Mike]

1. the bigger the better
2. 50 is pretty tall, it'll whack out your gearing and probably rub pretty good
3. 225 are just fine on a 15x7
4. how serious are you? if you're looking for every hundredth of a second the hoosiers are your only option it seems. the v7110 rivals it in stickiness, but i don't dig 225/50.

[.RJ]

1 - Get as much tire as you can up front - 225/45/15 is going to be best, but a 225/50/15 wont kill you. If you are going to look for some 15x8 wheels (I think kosei can do those, check with tire rack) then look for a 245 width front tire. Everything I've heard so far is that the V710 is the shizzle dizzle and Hoosier had to release a new tire this year to keep up (AS305) - and the V710 is still faster.

2 - 45 is best, but 50 wont kill you I dont think.

3 - You really only need the 8" wheels up front, 7" will be fine for the rear. Even if you can find some cheap steel wheels in that size (diamond racing maybe - <!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://www.diamondracingwheels.com/">http://www.diamondracingwheels.com/</a><!-- m -->) that will be better.

4 - Toyos wont work well for autox. Hankook also sells a really sticky tire, but their size availability isnt so good. <!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://www.hankooktireusa.com/products_view_info.asp?Item_ID=73&CatID=3">http://www.hankooktireusa.com/products_ ... 73&CatID=3</a><!-- m --> .

How big are your brakes and whats the smallest wheel you can fit? If you can get a 13" or 14" wheel that would better - I think kuhmo makes the v710 in a 225/45/14 also.

[Mike]

brake size doesn't matter when you can run negative offsets

[mpg9999]

1. the bigger the better
2. 50 is pretty tall, it'll whack out your gearing and probably rub pretty good
3. 225 are just fine on a 15x7
4. how serious are you? if you're looking for every hundredth of a second the hoosiers are your only option it seems. the v7110 rivals it in stickiness, but i don't dig 225/50.

4. I'd rather save some money and run a harder r compound tire then get ever last hundredth of a second.

[mpg9999]

1 - Get as much tire as you can up front - 225/45/15 is going to be best, but a 225/50/15 wont kill you. If you are going to look for some 15x8 wheels (I think kosei can do those, check with tire rack) then look for a 245 width front tire. Everything I've heard so far is that the V710 is the shizzle dizzle and Hoosier had to release a new tire this year to keep up (AS305) - and the V710 is still faster.

2 - 45 is best, but 50 wont kill you I dont think.

3 - You really only need the 8" wheels up front, 7" will be fine for the rear. Even if you can find some cheap steel wheels in that size (diamond racing maybe - <!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://www.diamondracingwheels.com/">http://www.diamondracingwheels.com/</a><!-- m -->) that will be better.

4 - Toyos wont work well for autox. Hankook also sells a really sticky tire, but their size availability isnt so good. <!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://www.hankooktireusa.com/products_view_info.asp?Item_ID=73&CatID=3">http://www.hankooktireusa.com/products_ ... 73&CatID=3</a><!-- m --> .

How big are your brakes and whats the smallest wheel you can fit? If you can get a 13" or 14" wheel that would better - I think kuhmo makes the v710 in a 225/45/14 also.

1. No way I can run a 245 up front short of taking a saw to the fender. 225 will the the max, and fender rolling will be required. Even then it may rub, we'll see. If I get a 15x8 it will be the kosei k1. They are 199 from tire rack, 22mm offset (I think), and I will have to enlarge the center bore for it to fit. I think one of the guys at tirerack can actually take care of it for you before its even shipped.

4. I'm not looking just for autox. It would be a good combination of both HPDE's and autocrosses.

My brakes are currently from an NX2000. The rotor I think is around 10 inches in diameter. I will probably get a fastbrakes 11 inch kit at some point. I dont think those will clear a 14 inch wheel.

[Mike]

double duty, eh? might want to take a look at advan a048s. not super duper soft, has decent tread for rainy days, good grip. ricej had some for a bit, he'll chime in with his thoughts.

[.RJ]

A048's are rather expensive.

For track use, if you dont have much seat time on track then stick with street tires - just use whatever you're coming up with for autox use, and toss some falkens, or even something less sticky on the stock wheels for tracking.

[mpg9999]

A048's are rather expensive.

For track use, if you dont have much seat time on track then stick with street tires - just use whatever you're coming up with for autox use, and toss some falkens, or even something less sticky on the stock wheels for tracking.

The plan is to run the 205 50 15 azenis 215's until they are dead, then upgrade to r comps.

[mpg9999]

I hear the Toyo RA-1's last a decent amount of time, and they are available in a 225 45.

[Evan]

RA-1s should fit the bill, but personally I have spent my entire HPDE life on falkens, and Im only upgrading to R-tires now that I am starting to race. IMO it is a waste of money to use expensive racing tires that get burned up quickly when you arent competing.

the more wheel width the better, but since 15x7s are so cheap, it doesnt make sense to pay the extra $$ for 15x8s

[white_2kgt]

RA-1s should fit the bill, but personally I have spent my entire HPDE life on falkens, and Im only upgrading to R-tires now that I am starting to race. IMO it is a waste of money to use expensive racing tires that get burned up quickly when you arent competing.

the more wheel width the better, but since 15x7s are so cheap, it doesnt make sense to pay the extra $$ for 15x8s

my RA1's are on course to last me 2 years. ~20 events. That's pretty good if you ask me.

[.RJ]

it doesnt make sense to pay the extra $$ for 15x8s

You forget its a fwd with some HP

I would love me some 15x8's.

[Evan]

my RA1's are on course to last me 2 years. ~20 events. That's pretty good if you ask me.

heh. when you actually drive them hard they last 4-5 events

hell my falkens only last 8 when i beat the piss out of them

[mpg9999]

RA-1s should fit the bill, but personally I have spent my entire HPDE life on falkens, and Im only upgrading to R-tires now that I am starting to race. IMO it is a waste of money to use expensive racing tires that get burned up quickly when you arent competing.

the more wheel width the better, but since 15x7s are so cheap, it doesnt make sense to pay the extra $$ for 15x8s

my RA1's are on course to last me 2 years. ~20 events. That's pretty good if you ask me.

Did you shave your RA-1's?

[G.Irish]

Did you shave your RA-1's?

I was gonna ask the same thing. Apparently they last A LOT longer when they've been shaved.

[.RJ]

Not really........

If they havent been shaved, and you dont abuse them, they will last quite a bit longer - however if you're racing or run them hard, the shaved tires will last marginally longer than the unshaved.

[white_2kgt]

Not really........

If they havent been shaved, and you dont abuse them, they will last quite a bit longer - however if you're racing or run them hard, the shaved tires will last marginally longer than the unshaved.

werd. The only beinifit you get from shaving them is you prevent the tred blocks from ripping off. I drive them pretty hard, but I do take care of them on certin turns. Unshaven RA1's will last a TON longer than 4-5 events even driven to the max as long as you don't rip a tread block.

[Evan]

Even light little miatas chunk them up unshaven

[.RJ]

Even light little miatas chunk them up unshaven

In racing, yes

We've run toyos of all different depths on the 12 hr on the Integra, for hard track use then they should definately be shaved, IMO.

That said, for an autox tire they arent so great - they may wear well but they arent any stickier than Falkens when they are cold - get some R-tires for autox, and when it comes time to get it on track run street tires for the first year.