Looking for new tires

[fallenauthority]

Ok so with recent additions to my car, aka a tune and more boost, it doesnt like to keep traction in 2nd (big shocker FWD). I have some crappy GoodYear Eagle tires on there now, What im looking for is a good grippy set of tires for this thing. I have never had traction in 1st gear when boost hits, and now im losing it in 2nd. Im even going as extreme as considering running drag radials permanently on the front. If they could hold up to like 8k miles a year im more than fine cause I dont drive very much in a year and dont mind replacing 2 tires per year. But i would like a more tame suggestion than just running some d/r's on the front . Im running the stock 16" swirly talon rims. Thanks for any help you can provide.

 

[tstkl]

you could get larger rims and go with wider tires.....as for straight line traction, your going to want to look at the tread pattern and see which ones put the most rubber on the ground. Of coarse there are other things to look at too, but for traction issues, that should be the biggest factor. And remember, not all 225's have the same tread pattern width. Its close, but some will be larger than others.

 

[Defiant]

Almost anything new is going to be a huge improvement, if only because the rubber's newer and still has grip.

 

[Zero Bar]

Falken Azenis are good sticky tires and not very expensive. Just look on Tirerack.com and you'll find something you like.

 

[unlmtdndeavor]

my buddy zack (98eclipsers) was running street radials in the front permanently. its not a bad idea if you can afford them, as long as you swap back to normal tires in the rain. falken azenis as mentioned before are one of my top pics, as are the hankook ventus rs-2.

 

[jtmcinder]

It sounds like the thread-starter is mostly concerned with straight-line acceleration, so you probably shouldn't be suggesting tires with stiff sidewalls, like Azenis. I'd go with something like Kumho MXs if the tires need to be driven normally on the street or something like Nitto 555Rs if street driving doesn't matter much.

A bunch of (mostly) autocrossers went drag-racing last night. The FWD guys on Azenis were all doing 2.5s 60' times, even after dropping the pressure to 25 or less. Those on MXs did much better. The MX is a great compromise tire. Just don't go crazy in the rain, because they stink in standing water.

- Jtoby

 

[daren_p]

Like jtmcinder said, the Kumho MX's seem to have pretty good reviews from what I've heard. I'm in the same boat as you, will be getting new tires next spring, my current tires have some tread left but being I've used them for 3 summers means they are 3 years old and getting hard. Also heard good things about the Hankook RS-2's or there is a pretty aggressive looking bridgestone tire the RE-01R that is fairly new, think it is something I may check into.




Or also here for a large pic:

http://www.tirerack.com/images/tires/bridgestone/bs_potenza_re01r_1000.jpg

Most importantly what size tire are you running? If your still running a 205 you will notice a big step up in just increasing the width to a more respectable 225 or 235.

 

[fallenauthority]

Yes Im still running a 205 . Im kinda torn between buying new tires for these stock rims or waiting for a few months and dealing with traction issues until i can afford new rims and tires.

 

[jtmcinder]

You really need to think this out before going any further.

The rims you have are only 6" wide. Yes, you can go to 225s, but the tires wouldn't be happy and you would never get anything close to 100% from them.

If I were you, I'd put a set of stock-sized Kumho SPTs on your stock rims. They are cheap, great for everyday driving, and absolutely rule in the rain. They are also surprisingly good for drag-racing. Then save up for some 17x8s for your "real" tires, such as 245/40/17 MXs. These are much better in the dry, can do anything from autocross to drag-race, and can be removed for the winter and/or rainy season.

- Jtoby