I Donated bucko3the7man Posted July 2, 2012 I Donated Share Posted July 2, 2012 I'm getting ready to pull the trigger on some summer wheels/tires for my 05 LGT. I do a decent amount of autocross, so i'm looking at the dunlop direzza z1 star specs for tires. The car competes in STX (or will very soon) so i'm not limited by stock wheel/tire size. The wheel/tire combos I'm looking at are: 235/40/17 tire on sparco assetto gara 225/45/17 tire on enkei EDR9 235/45/17 tire on kazera kz-p I know the sidewalls of these tires are supposed to be quite stiff, does anyone have any experience with these tires in these sizes to give me any advice? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joelwatts Posted July 2, 2012 Share Posted July 2, 2012 225/45r17 hoosiers is what i ran for a while. worked great but then i didn't have much engine then. i planned on bumping up to a 245 but since your gonna be on street tires the 235/40's seem like the way to go. but that would just be me. btw, star spec's are wicked but i think the hankooks are better. my .02 cents I'm a native of South Carolina. I am a dying breed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
I Donated bucko3the7man Posted July 2, 2012 Author I Donated Share Posted July 2, 2012 Yeah, since I'm in STX, R-comps are out. Gotta be at least a 140 treadwear, so i'm compromising on the direzzas. These will be my summer tires as well, not just dedicated AutoX tires. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whitetiger Posted July 2, 2012 Share Posted July 2, 2012 on a 8" wide wheel you can run a 245 wide tire. yokohama ad08 will be the best tire if cost is not an issue. 245/40/17 on a 17x8 +48 and you are set. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
I Donated bucko3the7man Posted July 2, 2012 Author I Donated Share Posted July 2, 2012 Cost is an issue, i'm currently looking at 7" and 7.5" wheels. If I go 7", it will be the EDR9 and the 225/45. If I go for the 7.5", I'm inbetween the 235/40 and the 235/45. I'm somewhat set on the Direzzas, the AD08's are more expensive and wear a bit faster. If the time comes in the future and I have gobs more money to throw at this, the AD08 will be much more feasible. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whitetiger Posted July 2, 2012 Share Posted July 2, 2012 FWIW a set of 245/40/17 toyo r1r is only 156 a tire, pair that with a cheap rota 17x8 wheel. that combo cant be beat for autox. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
I Donated bucko3the7man Posted July 3, 2012 Author I Donated Share Posted July 3, 2012 Hmm, that's a good point. I'm going to look into those r1rs and also the hankook rs-3. I'll probably be going with either a 7.5" wheel and 235/40 or an 8" wheel and 245/40. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whitetiger Posted July 3, 2012 Share Posted July 3, 2012 make it a point to do 8" or more. it makes a difference later. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joelwatts Posted July 3, 2012 Share Posted July 3, 2012 No less than an 8" wheel. You can find rotas for sale all the time on nasioc for dirt cheap. I got a set of 17x8 torques for $300. Awesome wheels for the price. I'm a native of South Carolina. I am a dying breed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StoplightAssassin Posted July 5, 2012 Share Posted July 5, 2012 You need 245s in STX. Ideally, we need a lot more tire than that to be competitive. I'm on my 2nd set of SSs. Keep them cool and they will hold up well. Use lots of cold water on them between runs. Overheat them once and you'll be slow for the rest of the day. Doesn't hurt to water down the IC either. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
I Donated bucko3the7man Posted July 5, 2012 Author I Donated Share Posted July 5, 2012 StoplightAssasin: Do you run an 8" or a 7.5" wheel? Do you have dedicated autoX tires/wheels or are they your summer wheels too? I don't have the funds to get a dedicated autoX setup, so these are my summer wheels/tires as well. I'll definitely get one of those spray bottles to spray down my tires/intercooler after the runs. Do you know what the optimum temperature of the Star Specs are? I can get a temp sensor for pretty cheap on harbor freight. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StoplightAssassin Posted July 5, 2012 Share Posted July 5, 2012 I run 18x8 +48 SSR Comps w 245/40/18 SSs. The 18x8s ended up working well for me because I usually see the top of 2nd at our site. 17x8s would be a better choice for most people though. Originally my plan was to have dedicated the SSRs for autox, but after a long day I really didn't feel like switching them out. I put about 10000 miles and 25 - 30 events on them. Most events were 8 runs. I don't use a tire pyrometer. I go by the seat of my pants. Here's some more insight on that: http://farnorthracing.com/autocross_secrets13.html I've found they love weather between 60 and 80 degrees F. Anything more than that, and you have to be really cautious about overheating on longer courses. Anything less and obviously overall grip will be down, but it's not terribly bad. I did a winter event on them a few years ago in the high 30s and paxed 3rd against guys that regularly whooped my ass. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robinlsb Posted July 5, 2012 Share Posted July 5, 2012 Add a front LSD!!!!!!! "Belief does not make truth. Evidence makes truth. And belief does not make evidence." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
I Donated bucko3the7man Posted July 5, 2012 Author I Donated Share Posted July 5, 2012 I'm probably going to go with the 7.5" rim and 235/40 for now, if the time comes when I have lots more money to throw at a dedicated set of Autox tires/wheels i'll go for an 8" rim. That article was very informative StoplightAssasin, I'm definitely going to buy a spray bottle and hose my tires down after the hot runs. I'm also going to wait a few hundred miles after I get them to break them in and heat cycle them properly. I don't want chunks falling off prematurely. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StoplightAssassin Posted July 5, 2012 Share Posted July 5, 2012 Add a front LSD!!!!!!! No FLSD allowed in ST I'm also going to wait a few hundred miles after I get them to break them in and heat cycle them properly. I don't want chunks falling off prematurely. My new set I drove about 15 miles on the street before I took them to an event. I was about two seconds slower than my usual competition, but I kept the tires cool and they are fine. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joelwatts Posted July 5, 2012 Share Posted July 5, 2012 oh dey don'ts got to know. http://www.inpapasbasement.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/Billy_Madison_Nudie_Magazine_Day.jpg I'm a native of South Carolina. I am a dying breed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StoplightAssassin Posted July 5, 2012 Share Posted July 5, 2012 In my region we all drive each other's cars at events. I'm sure the instructors with STis would be wondering why my car rockets out of corners like one. lol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
I Donated bucko3the7man Posted July 5, 2012 Author I Donated Share Posted July 5, 2012 My new set I drove about 15 miles on the street before I took them to an event. I was about two seconds slower than my usual competition, but I kept the tires cool and they are fine. Good to know. I'll have to pick up one of those sprayers from sears hardware or something. I used my friend's at the last event and it was very good. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iggybdawg Posted July 5, 2012 Share Posted July 5, 2012 I'm shooting for STX next year and will be going for 17x8 with 245/40/17, gathering all the parts coming from stock is a bitch, for example, I ordered a rear perrin swaybar finding a site that claimed to still have them, but an impreza fitted bar arrived (they let me exchange it for a whiteline legacy bar). I live in Seattle, so over 80 degrees in our region is odd. Right now I have old 225 Bridgestone RE-01Rs This year, I've been driving the equipment bus and bumming rides. I've driven an STU evo, an STS miata, csp CRX, stock 135i, FR-S, CRZ. Eventually, I'd like to get a front LSD and try ESP, but then I'd be breaking the bank again with even wider wheels and wider race tires. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StoplightAssassin Posted July 5, 2012 Share Posted July 5, 2012 You don't need an LSD to be competitive in ESP. Fitting a set of super wide stickies would be more beneficial. Most competitive ESP WRXs are running 275s+, not that anything awd is ultimately competitive these days with the new Mustangs Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iggybdawg Posted July 5, 2012 Share Posted July 5, 2012 do they get new fenders to fit 275? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
I Donated bucko3the7man Posted July 5, 2012 Author I Donated Share Posted July 5, 2012 There are a lot of competitive cars in both classes in my region. I'm not going to be competitive in most classes for a while, I need quite a few mods to get to the point I can start clawing at the RX-8 and 330i in STX, and even more to get at this Scirocco in EP. The unfortunate thing is I can't stay in DS either, because there's a G35 that just dominates everyone! I suppose I could try for the Road Tire AWD class, but I can't stay in there once I get my tune, and I really shouldn't be in there anyway, just found out the previous owner of my car put in a Lightweight crank pulley and already put an OEM STi catless uppipe (probably without tuning). And once I get my wheels, they will be wider than stock so that puts me out as well. Oh well, I'm going to have fun regardless, and STX gives me way more suspension allowed mods which our cars need. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joelwatts Posted July 5, 2012 Share Posted July 5, 2012 stx really is a neat class. there are a wide variety of cars that show what works and what doesn't. (though i feel it is mostly driver's and not vehicles). me however am in the sm class because of my engine swap. i plan next year to be in the prepared class and just hang out there for the rest of eternity. I'm a native of South Carolina. I am a dying breed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StoplightAssassin Posted July 5, 2012 Share Posted July 5, 2012 do they get new fenders to fit 275? nope. just rolled, pulled, and let the rest hang out. they run really stiff suspensions or else rub city. http://carshowcoverage.com/photos/events/2011/ocawdmeet/saturday/images/IMG_1589.jpg Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StoplightAssassin Posted July 5, 2012 Share Posted July 5, 2012 There are a lot of competitive cars in both classes in my region. I'm not going to be competitive in most classes for a while, I need quite a few mods to get to the point I can start clawing at the RX-8 and 330i in STX, and even more to get at this Scirocco in EP. The unfortunate thing is I can't stay in DS either, because there's a G35 that just dominates everyone! I suppose I could try for the Road Tire AWD class, but I can't stay in there once I get my tune, and I really shouldn't be in there anyway, just found out the previous owner of my car put in a Lightweight crank pulley and already put an OEM STi catless uppipe (probably without tuning). And once I get my wheels, they will be wider than stock so that puts me out as well. Oh well, I'm going to have fun regardless, and STX gives me way more suspension allowed mods which our cars need. Driver skill above all else will win, within reason of course. Don't worry about raw times (other than in class). Pax finishing is how you can gauge your progress over time. Concentrate on improving yourself as a driver so you can fully utilize your car's abilities. If you don't have a video camera, I'd recommend getting one. I always watch my videos to see where I was fast and where I sucked. I let other instructors drive my car and sit shotgun and vice versa. It's a very worthwhile experience and no shame whatsoever getting help. We share notes and are happy to do it for others, whether novice or veteran. I'm registered for my first EVO School later this month. Whitetiger took one awhile back. I couldn't be more excited. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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