THSCC Forums

With the announcement of Chris and Kevin coming into STS next year and everyone running new tires this year, there will be a heck of a battle for the STS crown next year and it's time for me to pony up the bucks to be competitive.

So the search is on for a new replacement set of lighter wheels for the bimmer. My 215’s are done after the Sanford drifting event. Edgeracing.com has a set of wheels/tires for about 939. It’s a set of Enkei Wheel Or52 17” wheels (19lb) bundled w/ a set of 225 Falken 615’s. It’s about the best bang for the buck I’ve seen so far. Does anyone have a recommendation for wheels and/or tires for STS?

Just looking right now and I want to pull the trigger with in the next few months.

Thanks

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Rodney

'08 Bullitt mustang, CAM 7
Autox VP '09-'10, President '11-'12, interim President 2nd half of ‘14
proud recipient of the Bowie Grey service award '12
Now just a guy driving a mustang....

What wheels do you currently have?

IMHO, the 615 is gonna be a big backmarker next year.

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02 Focus SVT
STF 9

I agree.

If you don't want to put money down on new wheels I'd just slap on a set of new full-tread Bridgestone RE-01R's and be done with it. They make a great daily driver tire and wear very well from what I've seen. That will get you ~97% of the performance you are looking for and should be good enough to compete with locally.

Jim

I saw a set of team dynamics pro race wheels on ebay last night - you might want to jump on those.

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One of those LeMonHeads...
91/95 Miata, 02 Focus SVT, 01 Ford F250, 09 Suzuki SV650SF
rusty 84 C4 Vette, tiny piece of the General Lei
Irish Sport Horse - 1hp NA!

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02 Focus SVT
STF 9

Interested to see this thread. I TOO toasted my tires at the Sanford event. I'm trying to decide what my next tires are, and was very close to pulling the trigger on some Falkens, until reading this talk about the Falkens being "backmarkers". I'm not looking for wheels, just new tires. I see I can get a set of Falkens for ~$460 (225/45-17), while the bridgestones would run me ~$620. Are they really worth the extra $160? How much time are we talking on a 60 second course? For me, waiting for the new ST tire entries from Toyo and Khumo to come out isn't really an option, I need to buy tires within the next couple weeks (and Rodney apparently gets to test them out for me)

Other considerations in my case:

-these WILL be my everyday tire. I don't care about ride/noise, but wet performance is a small concern for me, considering I have a 50 mile round trip commute on US1 each day, I don't wanna be hydroplanning everywhere. Everything I've read says the Falkens will be tolerable, so long as some reasonable caution is taken, but more opinions are always welcome.

-I'm not shaving them, they will be run from full tread depth all the way until they are showing wear bars before I throw them out. I'm on a limited budget

-I'm running them on 7" wide wheels. How does the sidewall stiffness of the bridgestones compare. Part of the reason I was attracted to the Falkens is b/c in my camber challenged car, with tires stuffed on the narrow wheels, I've had BIG rollover issues.

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2012 MX-5 Sport SUV

I have found the RE-01R to be a much better tire than the 615's. I'm not consistent enough to state that they are x% better, but I can tell you that in a heavy high HP car they provide better lateral traction during transitions and better lateral and forward traction under throttle. They're also much better in the rain and last longer. I wouldn't buy 615's again and will be buying 01Rs again.

The sidewall stiffness of the 01R is good enough for me to be driving around on 14psi without noticing it. Not much compression (didn;t look like it was getting flat). Only became apparent during a spirited turn when the tire gave some sidewall screach.

Patrice and I were discussing 01Rs Sunday...maybe he'll chime in. He's not a hack like me

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Beauty is in the eye of the beer holder.

Those might be the magic words that I needed to hear. Do they last longer b/c the compound wears better, or just b/c of the extra tread depth when new? Anyone who's run both tires shaved care to comment on that (I guess that would be Jim, right)?

If it lasts longer, then I can justify the higher price, right?

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2012 MX-5 Sport SUV

Having driven my own cars on Falkens in the past and two different cars on the RE01Rs. The 'stones are better period. They seem to last longer and one of the cars I drove on them was a 318is on full treads. It has some serious suspension work but the full tread tires worked very well and seem extremely durable. IMO the 'stones are worth the extra because they are much more durable and they withstand heat much better from my experiences. JMHO

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2010 Honda Fit Sport
Couple of bicycles

Right now I'm running a stock set of M3 contours non staggered. I weighed them while I was at Marks and they are a heafty 25lbs per wheel, too much in my opinion. With Brice, Lee and Chris running lighter weight wheels, my hand is being forced and I want to be in the hunt next year. I remember reading a few forum entries and in GRM where the lighter wheels on a modest horse power car is a good return on the money.

Ryan, I appreciate the ebay link, but those were 16". I think for now I want to stay w/ 17'. When I pull the trigger on STX in a few years and go w/ the bigger brakes, I wont have to buy new wheels.

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Rodney

'08 Bullitt mustang, CAM 7
Autox VP '09-'10, President '11-'12, interim President 2nd half of ‘14
proud recipient of the Bowie Grey service award '12
Now just a guy driving a mustang....

The RE-01R's are worth the price premium IMHO. They stick better, last longer and are *tons* more forgiving when pushed hard. How they do that I have no idea but you can't argue with magic!

They are better full tread than the Azenis but they really do come into their own when shaved. Honestly, for a top-level driver, you won't see much more than a .5 second improvement (if even that) over the Azenis on a 60-second course. However, if you are a not quite at that level, you could easily see well over a 1 second improvement-- they are that forgiving.

If I had the choice of buying Azenis & wheels versus just buying the 'Stones, I would buy the 'Stones every time. The wheels aren't going to be more than a couple of tenth's improvement on a (relatively) heavy car while the pickup from the 'Stones will be much more than that. Obviously having the 'Stones and new lighter wheels is the best alternative but don't expect miracles from lighter wheels.

Jim

+1.

I'm fairly sure that some National Championships have been won in A Stock in S2000s with factory wheels. They're not as heavy as the described BMW wheels, but they're not the lightest thing out there either. If it comes down to tires versus light wheels, I say tires every time.

Besides - aren't the Falkens known for being impossibly heavy anyway? I know the old 215 Azenis felt like they were made of lead. Might be a wash once you factor that in, if the 615 is similarly weighty...

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Karl S.
2014 Baby, 2014 House, 2013 Ford Focus ST, 2013 BMW 328i, 1994 Mercedes E320
(Insert passive aggressive signature line here)

I'll probably be using stock 99 2.5RS wheels, which are 16 lbs & 16"X7" and the tires will be RE-01R. I'd like to use something like 225/45/16 or 215/45/16 for quicker throttle and steering response, but the closest I've seen is 225/50/16. Anybody know if there will be more sizes next year? If not, I may just get the 225/50/16, which is the stock diameter.

225/45-17 Falkens are 25.3 lbs, Tire Rack has the 'stones listed at 26 lbs, so its a wash there. The stones are apparently made of lead as well, thats 4 lbs heavier than my wifes RUNFLATS.

I like how Rodney is blaming the guy who he whooped on a regular basis for "forcing his hand". Chris and Lee, ok, you got a point, but me?

Frankly, I bought my wheels cuz they look GREAT and were reasonably priced for their weight. If I had it to do again, I'd have picked something 16" and 7.5" wide instead, but oh well, at least I'll win the STS car show .

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2012 MX-5 Sport SUV

No, Rodney has that one wrapped up. As well as the burnout competition.