REVIEW: Federal 595 RS-PRO 215/40/17 tires

[jeff]

Jeff, my apologizes for not expressing myself right. In your previous post you said for the optimal grip that i should reduce pressure to 5 lbs. Lbs is a mass unit. Are you referring to lb/in^2 which is equal to psi? In simple terms should i lower pressure to 5 psi (lb/in^2) to achieve best traction? I hope that make sense now.

No problem, when I say "pounds" or "lbs" I actually mean psi so you can convert from there, here is a great conversion chart that might assist you:

https://www.sensorsone.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/09/Tyre-Pressure-Conversion-Table.pdf

 

[LiLfieSTa]

ive had these since May, not sure how many miles ive put on already but i am so in love with these rubbers

FUN/10

 

[jeff]

ive had these since May, not sure how many miles ive put on already but i am so in love with these rubbers

FUN/10

Yeah they're swell tires especially for the price. They perform really well and I gotta say they look mean, every time I approach my car I'm like "Dang that thing looks like it wants to hunt you down". Like a life sized micro machine. All squatted down on big fat tires with tread that looks like flames. Much more interesting looking that your average summer tire, with performance to match.

 

[LiLfieSTa]

glad to know im not the only not just glancing at the car, but tires too. its beautiful.
it also screams when its hunting time

 

[jeff]

You guys are killing me I had to go out and snap some pictures just now...I got the attitude and the power to back it up!!!

 

[green_henry]

Looks like I have some RS-PROs in my future. I ordered some Nankang NS-2Rs from Phil's, which were supposedly in stock -- well, 2 of them were in stock, lol, so going to give the Federals a try (205/45/16). Thanks for the informative reviews.

 

[Dpro]

Looks like I have some RS-PROs in my future. I ordered some Nankang NS-2Rs from Phil's, which were supposedly in stock -- well, 2 of them were in stock, lol, so going to give the Federals a try (205/45/16). Thanks for the informative reviews.

Ran that exact size of RS Pro ‘snot a bad tire on the low rumble side. Get a little greasy as they get on in life slide around a bit which translates to you give some grip for some fun. My RT660’s absolutely stop on them grip wise and are quieter but hey RS Pro’s are cheap in comparison.

 

[M-Sport fan]

Looks like I have some RS-PROs in my future. I ordered some Nankang NS-2Rs from Phil's, which were supposedly in stock -- well, 2 of them were in stock, lol, so going to give the Federals a try (205/45/16). Thanks for the informative reviews.

I have to persuade Nankang (through Phil's Tire) to release the 215/40-17 size in BOTH their NS-2R, and CR-S models, as those are the tires (over their AR-1s) I want to use on whatever 17x8 (Braid Fullrace As, KE Motorsport, 'new' TD Pro Race LWs) wheels I end up with.

They would be the absolute widest tread width tires in that size, outside of outright road race, 00 tread wear, slicks.

 

[green_henry]

Ran that exact size of RS Pro ‘snot a bad tire on the low rumble side. Get a little greasy as they get on in life slide around a bit which translates to you give some grip for some fun. My RT660’s absolutely stop on them grip wise and are quieter but hey RS Pro’s are cheap in comparison.

It will be interesting to see how they compare to the Hankook RS4s that I ran the last two HPDE seasons.

 

[Raziel510]

I've been running 215 40 17 RSRR. Yes they are loud but they grip well and have lasted longer than I expected. I'm at about 10k miles and I'm sure I'll get another 10k~20k out of them. I daily drive my car and enjoy a few drag strip nights since I've had them. Yes I know they're not drag tires but compared to my falken all seasons they grip. I'll have to try them out at local autox. I'm running a X57RS turbo with 30% Jag injectors at about 300 HP and TQ. I have all the supporting mods for overall performance.

 

[Woods247]

RS Pros have a soft sidewall, struggle with heat and have numb feedback. I found they are good for 1-1.5 hot laps and they’re off, regardless of pressure. If I remember correctly, I had to run high 30s to keep them from rolling over but that could be from me overdriving them. The 225 Conti Extreme Contact Force runs narrow and will probably fit. It’s a grippy consistent long lasting endurance tire if that’s what you’re looking for. Pretty sure Phil sells them too. RT660 and RT615k+ are also better options. That said, I still use Federal RSR and RS Pro on the street and during wet track days. The RSR handles rain a bit better in my experience. The RS Pro is A LOT quieter than the RSRR but does have an audible buzz. The RS Pro doesn’t offer much of an advantage (vs the RSR) on the street and it is louder at highway speeds. It’s a better dual purpose tire than the RSR though.