Ok i just purchased a set of Proxes 4 in 205/50/15 for my ls meshes. cost me $530 out the door with an alignment and everything. the reason i sorta settled on these tires is because they were the only 205/50’s in the building with out having to wait 1-5 days depending what i chose.
i have a 30 day test drive at any point i can walk in and say i want to switch to different tires, or even buy one of their wheel/tire combos and only have to pay the difference so i could get some 16’s with tires for like $300 more or something.
basically i’m not sure i’m 100% happy with these tires, they are kinda noisy to be honest, but just looking for some input, i had posed the same question on my build thread but not alot of responses so puting it in the correct forum.
what would you guys do
and these tires were about $110 a piece so i have lots of room on tires haha even if i go with something really agressive it won’t be much more since i’ve already spent 500+ haha
Well you put noise as your top priority concern, in which case something from michelin? Thing is, quiet tires are generally the expensive tires with so-so performance abilities.
I’m not saying I want a whisper quiet tire just that these are kinda noisy in a way I haven’t heard before I want a good solid wet dry performance tire not all season or drag but just something decent idk I guess I don’t see these as very sporty
I would suggest checking out TireRack, there are tons of tires on there and most have a significant amount of reviews as well as independent testing in regard to noise, treadlife, dry handling, wet handling… It’s a great resource.
But in general it sounds to me like you need to do some soul searching and find out what exactly you want out of your tires. You mentioned noise being a factor, then mentioned having an aggressive tire would be OK, then mentioned you needed good wet traction… Those 3 things are not mutually exclusive but there will be trade offs between those factors. Think about what’s really important. How much rain driving do you do? How much spirited driving do you do? Any track time? How much commuting do you do? What is your top priority, and what are you willing to compromise? What MUST you have, what MUST you NOT have? …etc…
well its my daily, so if its raining out i’m driving in it most likely, i’m not an idiot and its not like i’m out there in the rain like a race car driver so its not so much i need a wet/dry just want something that isn’t gonna hydroplane when i turn on the garden hose lol. noise isn’t a huge factor but these tires i have seem to make a constant “whirring” similar sound to say a jeep or truck with big knobby tires just not as loud.
as far as spirited driving i do it often lol good stress relief, again not stupid so i’m not out there in the middle of the day running over school kids but i’m always up for a 3am backroads run
as far as tracking i don’t do auto-x and on occasion i may bring it for a 1/4 mile run or two but nothing major till i really start the motor build if thats where i end up with this car.
maybe i’m just being anal or odd about it, idk i’m particular lol. but its been awhile since i had decent wheels and tires lol so everythings changed
Sounds like your priorities are definitely on performance. There will be plenty of performance oriented tires which are perfectly safe in the rain. You just need to check the ratings of the tire. There may be 4-5 different tires which are equally capable when the tarmac is dry but one that stands out in the rain. If you think you’ll be spending time driving in the rain, then you just choose that tire. Like I said, check out tire rack, it’s a wonderful resource. If you have a very specific need, such as performance handling, then personally I would suggest just doing searching on forums. You can peruse the racing forums and see what people seem to like. That works for one sided needs since those people are only worried about one thing. But if you’re trying to balance multiple needs, then tirerack is the way to go.
A year or so ago I bought a set of Dunlop Star Spec tires, they were getting very good reviews and at the time were looked at as the new up and coming budget performance street tire which was VERY capable on the track. I hadn’t even considered wet handling with them since the car won’t see rain. But I just looked on tire track (http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires.jsp?tireMake=Dunlop&tireModel=Direzza+Sport+Z1+Star+Spec&partnum=955VR5Z1SS) and the reviews are actually quite good. After looking at those specs I think it would actually be a great tire for you. Very performance oriented, looks like it performs well in wet conditions (you may want to confirm that w/ other sources), and is cheaper than the tires you already bought. The downside would be that they probably aren’t the most quiet tires out there or the longest lasting - although the stats for those two categories are still very good. Unfortunately Tirerack doesn’t sell Toyo so you can’t make a direct comparison, but it looks like the Toyo’s get pretty good reviews as well. But just by looking at the tread patterns is OBVIOUS which tire will be the performance tire and which will be an all-season.
hrm that site is very useful i think i’ve learned more in 10 minutes than i have in 10 years lol, i’ve always been kind of ignorant when it comes to tires :wtf: i know… anyway i’m liking the dunlop direzza’s you pointed me too, the only concern i have is the reviews one kid had them on both his E46’s one with track suspension the other with street suspension he said the street suspension wasn’t stiff enough to keep the car tracking straigh through bumps and cracks in the road.
the other tire i was looking at was the Bridgestone Re-11
both had pretty good reviews, and seem to be good wet/dry im going to call them monday and see about ordering some new tires
the decider would be whether my suspension is going to be enough if in fact thats why the guy was having problems keeping the car straight. whats your setup colin just so i have a reference,
the plan for mine is
koni/gc
extended top hats
sway bars front/rear
skunk2 front camber
new lcas in the back
new bushings all around
I didn’t read the review, but it sounds a bit shady. I don’t see his problem being with the tires, sounds more like his suspension wasn’t working properly and would act that way regardless of the tire…
My setup:
Koni RACE
GC 700/600
Vision UCA’s
ST front bar, Progress rear bar
FullRace traction bar
ES bushings all around + Mugen RTA’s
I still need to get it aligned so I haven’t really had a chance to test it out much, and I may get some softer springs to start out with and then gradually setup up to stiffer rates and possibly swap to a rear bias setup to see how I like it.
well the koni/gc set up i’m getting is 375/550 so i’ll let you know, also wheres a good place to get them revalved to race spec, or is it something i could do just curious
i think i’m gonna get the RE-11’s tho cause i’ve heard alot and actually the tires i took off these ls wheels were re-11 but they were blown due to really bad camber/toe wear. gonna get them prob next week once my suspension and everything is in so i can just get an alignment while they mounting tires
Matt, I got them when Nino parted Duy’s car. I haven’t checked in a year or so, but previously the only place I knew that carried them was JHP and they were not as cheap as they were 5yrs ago.
lownslow, you can’t go wrong w/ those Bridgestones, they’re great tires from what I hear. I personally really like Bridgestones, I’ve always had good experiences w/ their tires. You can send the shocks to Koni of North America or Pro Parts in Canoga Park Ca if you want them rebuilt or revalved. 550lb is the top end of what the OTS yellows can handle, but I don’t think I’d hesitate to run them if that’s the spring rate you’re looking for. What led you to decide on those spring rates? You don’t see a street setup like that very often, it’s quite rear bias, something I’d expect to see on an autox car maybe.
To be honest that’s what the kid bought I’m buying them off of someone here on the forums I would of gone with slightly higher than off the shelf but we’ll see how these feel maybe I’ll like them if not I may order new rear springs and sell these
If you’re stuck w/ those spring rates I would start off using 550/375 instead so you have a front bias setup. It will be more oriented towards understeer that way. Which is safer if you’re not familiar w/ the new setup or fwd cars which are setup to oversteer. Especially if this is a daily driver and one you’ll be driving in wet conditions I would recommend a setup that is as neutral as possible but leans towards understeer and can have oversteer induced if you know what you’re doing. Last thing you need is to be on a freeway over pass in the rain following another car who suddenly slows down mid turn, you let off the throttle or worse yet tap the brakes and induce a spin…
Ah shit haha so I can just switch the springs around? I never thought of it that way stiffer in back will keep the weight towards the front right sounds like I’ll prob be ordering new springs lol how do you think the rides gonna be with that stiff in the front and weak in the back
You should be able to swap them, typically our cars use the same length, or very close, springs. If they’re the same then you can definitely swap 'em.
Static weight transfer isn’t a factor of spring rate, your cornerweight numbers are dependent more on ride height at each corner.
If you swap the springs it’s not that it’s going to be stiff in the front and soft in the rear. But if you keep it the way you have it, it will be stiff in the rear. Our cars come stock with stiffer front springs than rear springs - which makes sense since the front of the car is heavier than the rear. I imagine the ride quality will be much better w/ the stiffer springs in the front and possibly odd feeling w/ the stiffer springs in the rear. I’ve never run a rear bias setup and definitely not one that large so I can’t comment on specifics.
ok well if worst comes to worse i’ll sell the rears and buy new ones i’m getting them for 450 shipped so thats ok with me just no top hats is all so wondering if i can use the ones off my dc2 stock suspension or if i need to or should order gc extended ones. any suggestions there?
and you have a wealth of information i’m relatively new to the g2 world and while its similar to a civic the parts resources are completely different. thanks for all the help !!!
well i guess i can always test on the rear struts i haven’t put the rears in the car yet i’d assume if the rears work then the fronts should too… its just whether i want to spend $250 on the gc ones or not lol
just no top hats is all so wondering if i can use the ones off my dc2 stock suspension or if i need to or should order gc extended ones. any suggestions there?