Tire time suggestions please 304whp car

[CaptainCheesy]

HOW does a 25" tall tire (225/45-17) not rub and scrape EVERYWHERE on these cars, even at factory ride height?!?

Umm.. PFM..?

 

[jeff]

As was I when the showed up at my house after ordering them from Fitment Industries.

Plenty of wheel protection, though. Not as grippy as the Firehawks I had but still plenty of grip. The extra rubber makes the long drives much better.

Thanks for this....would you mind sharing the tire size and rim size please? Can't tell from the pics. If those are 215s on 17x8 rims they might be in my garage next week.

 

[CSM]

@jeff I'm a little worried that you're setting yourself up for disappointment by prioritizing section width over how grippy the tire compound is. You would absolutely roast those Nittos

 

[jeff]

@jeff I'm a little worried that you're setting yourself up for disappointment by prioritizing section width over how grippy the tire compound is. You would absolutely roast those Nittos

Thanks I appreciate that...I’m looking for a good balance but you’re right I think I’m gonna go with another set of Federals, I’ve thought this over for a few weeks and that’s where I keep landing.

 

[Crystals]

Thanks for this....would you mind sharing the tire size and rim size please? Can't tell from the pics. If those are 215s on 17x8 rims they might be in my garage next week.

215/40s on 17x7.5 wheels. These are Fifteen52 Podiums.

 

[M-Sport fan]

Thanks I appreciate that...I’m looking for a good balance but you’re right I think I’m gonna go with another set of Federals, I’ve thought this over for a few weeks and that’s where I keep landing.

The RS-Pros are not the widest in tread width out there, but they probably do make up for it in outright grip.
Also, they supposedly are not as deafening/screaming as the RS-RRs I have on the 1.2s.

 

[jeff]

The RS-Pros are not the widest in tread width out there, but they probably do make up for it in outright grip.
Also, they supposedly are not as deafening/screaming as the RS-RRs I have on the 1.2s.

I'm still reading up on the RS-pros....they are actually about the same section width as my RS-Rs but the tread width is substantially better.

 

[jeff]

They're great and grip really well, but they need heat. I can't recommend them for street, although my buddy that bought them from me raved about them. He's an AutoX and mountain run guy with a MRX. He doesnt have anywhere near the torque we have. They'll spin when cold.

Rereading this thread as I continue to stew on this...come to think of it my RS-Rs spin when cold so the RS-PROs may not be any different in that way. When you say they need heat do you mean ten minute warm up drive on an ordinary day or are you talking extreme speeds/track type heat after hard driving on the track?

 

[jeff]

In my opinion, the RSR is better suited for street [compared to RS-PRO] because it doesn't need a lot heat to grip....

Asking for more info here....could you speak more to this? Reason being I've been reading other comparisons of the two tires and a Civic Type R driver with 215/40/17 said the opposite as you here (pasted from review website):

Driving a Honda Civic Type R (215/40 R17 W) on mostly country roads for 3,000 spirited miles
I decided to try them after 595 RS-R's. RS-PRO doesnt crack. Treadwear is 200 but they are warm faster than RS'Rs so it feels very adhesive immediatelly, grip is very very good. There is softer sidewall than the steel one or what is it on other semislicks so when you do quick turns you can feel that its not so sharp as real semislick, there is little movement of car caused by sidewall but it is very comfortable. Grip loosing is very expectable and almost impossible on dry road in a traffic. Noise is higher but still good, but its not highway tire. This is first season on them and front one's are quite gone on the sides but it is also about dampers setting and it did 2 whole day trackdays and lot of agressive hooning, rear one's are very OK so I will switch them next year. I don't go crazy in the wet but what I tried was good and safe also in big puddles. I do recommend them for those who likes comfortable semislick, not so sharp because of softer sidewalls but still awesome grip dry and wet. I think for MX-5, GT86/BRZ, hot hatches it will be perfect replace of UHP.

 

[Woods247]

Asking for more info here....could you speak more to this? Reason being I've been reading other comparisons of the two tires and a Civic Type R driver with 215/40/17 said the opposite as you here (pasted from review website):

Driving a Honda Civic Type R (215/40 R17 W) on mostly country roads for 3,000 spirited miles
I decided to try them after 595 RS-R's. RS-PRO doesnt crack. Treadwear is 200 but they are warm faster than RS'Rs so it feels very adhesive immediatelly, grip is very very good. There is softer sidewall than the steel one or what is it on other semislicks so when you do quick turns you can feel that its not so sharp as real semislick, there is little movement of car caused by sidewall but it is very comfortable. Grip loosing is very expectable and almost impossible on dry road in a traffic. Noise is higher but still good, but its not highway tire. This is first season on them and front one's are quite gone on the sides but it is also about dampers setting and it did 2 whole day trackdays and lot of agressive hooning, rear one's are very OK so I will switch them next year. I don't go crazy in the wet but what I tried was good and safe also in big puddles. I do recommend them for those who likes comfortable semislick, not so sharp because of softer sidewalls but still awesome grip dry and wet. I think for MX-5, GT86/BRZ, hot hatches it will be perfect replace of UHP.

In my experience the RS Pro takes longer to warm up than the RSR. I purchased them heat cycled as well. My car is lighter than that one though. Give ‘em a shot. You can always sell them if they don’t work out. Give Philstire a call. He’s full of good info regarding these tires.

 

[DoomsdayMelody]

I have these on my FRS OEM wheels. They are nowhere near the grip of the ZIII and RT660s (which I also have experience with). I dont think they will be a good option for Jeff

All season tires always make me chuckle, comparatively worse than either summers or winters in the appropriate temp range, but people act like they don’t have a choice. Makes you wonder what they wear on their feet year round? Is just a single set of shoes or do you have shoes and boots made for particular purposes?


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[M-Sport fan]

^^AS stated before, I AM grateful to have them as a THIRD wheel/tire option, along with the pure summers (200 tread wears which are NOT nearly as 'tolerant' of even cool dry weather as the 300 and above tread wear 'pure' summer donuts) summers and dedicated real winter setup.

Yes, not everyone can do this for whatever reasons, but also not everyone can run a summer only wheel/tire setup, on the street, YEAR 'ROUND either.

 

[HAHAFiST]

As was I when the showed up at my house after ordering them from Fitment Industries.

View attachment 34325
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Plenty of wheel protection, though. Not as grippy as the Firehawks I had but still plenty of grip. The extra rubber makes the long drives much better.

I can't help but notice the sidewall says #fck2020. what are the odds... or is it photoshopped? haha

 

[alex7]

I recently started driving my Fiesta again, and I paired 215/40/17 RS Pro's with 17x7.5 Podiums. Visually, they look great, they even make me think I can continue to hold off on coilovers/ride height changes. (Stock suspension) They are not as loud as say .. R888's, but they are similar. That recognizable hum is present when coasting/off throttle. But coming from 2 sets of Potenzas, 1 random set of Zestinos, and 1 set of Michelin AS3, I notice these (as they should) grip a whole lot better than any of those tires and I am quite happy. BUT, I only have a Dizzy stage 2 tune, so as you can imagine thats not even 200hp. Car does grip for my use which so far is spirited freeway merging, and with the tune it has altered power delivery so that sharp kick is gone. Flooring it so far does not create wheel slip. More to come with more miles. I would recommend it for the price. All 4 mounted and balanced and installed are under $570 which to me, is not bad at all.

(I just re-read you were looking for recommendations with specifically with your power level in mind - apologies)

 

[HAHAFiST]

I'm still reading up on the RS-pros....they are actually about the same section width as my RS-Rs but the tread width is substantially better.

Hey Jeff,

Have you landed on a choice yet? I just went down the wormhole of summer tires. I have hankook RS4 from a used wheelset I bought... grip like crazy but not idea for dynamic climates where I live... take a while to heat up. I'm eyeballing those Conti EC Sports though...

 

[Crystals]

I can't help but notice the sidewall says #fck2020. what are the odds... or is it photoshopped? haha

I didn't notice that! It's definitely not photoshopped.

 

[jeff]

Hey Jeff,

Have you landed on a choice yet? I just went down the wormhole of summer tires. I have hankook RS4 from a used wheelset I bought... grip like crazy but not idea for dynamic climates where I live... take a while to heat up. I'm eyeballing those Conti EC Sports though...

Not yet. I'm heavily leaning on the RS-PROs because I've had a great experience with the Federal RS-Rs and the "PRO" is supposed to be an improvement. I was all set to buy a set because though my current tires still have ~5000 miles on them I have one with a nail in it. I patched it hoping the patch wouldn't hold so I'd have an excuse to buy new tires early....and the patch is holding.

 

[EnthusiaST]

Or one could go a bit crazy, if they have the storage space, and have THREE sets (I actually have more than that!); a pure summer set with 200 tread wears, a pure winter 15" wheel set, and an 'intermediate' set (for cold DRY conditions, so the winters don't get burnt up, and for late fall/early spring) with UHP all seasons on them.

I might do this now! I’ve been trying to justify a set of 17’s for awhile now. We’ll see how the RT660’s handle the s280 first.


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[4DGC]

All season tires always make me chuckle, comparatively worse than either summers or winters in the appropriate temp range, but people act like they don’t have a choice. Makes you wonder what they wear on their feet year round? Is just a single set of shoes or do you have shoes and boots made for particular purposes?


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Well some of us live in a climate where the temperature is between 20 - 50f for 9 months of the year with rain at least half of those days but rarely any snow. (Seattle area) Will a Summer work well? Only for a couple months. Will a winter work? Only if you want shit handling for 9+ months. Not why I bought a fist. All Season UHP is pretty much what we're stuck with.

 

[Hijinx]

TIRE - PRICE - WEIGHT - SECTION WIDTH - TREAD WIDTH
Federal 595RSR - $103 - 22lb - 8.7" - 7.5"
Federal Evoluzion ST1 - $78 - 20lb - 8.46"- 7.5"
Federal RS Pro - $113 - 21.8lb - 8.6" - 8.0"
Nitto Neo Geo - $105 - 20.9lb - 8.86" - ??
Falken Azenis RT660 - $150 - 22lb - 8.7" - 7.9"
Dunlop Direzza ZIII - $164 - 20lb - 8.1" - 7.8"
Falken RTK 615+ - $115 - 20lb - 8.7" - 7.2"
Kumho Ecsta PS31 - $88 - 19lb - 8.6" - 7.2"

Added Federal Evoluzion ST1 to my data after reading about the on a build thread... @Hijinx ... anyone have thoughts on these?

In short, they have more grip than on would expect but they lack sidewall stiffness. That lack of sidewall stiffness is pronounced enough that it does affect turn-in. It's like having 15s or riding on a taller tire. I like them, but I would prefer a stiffer sidewall. If you're on a tight budget, or plan on blowing through tires, these are definitely worth picking up.