Well, it's new car time again, and the one I am about to purchase needs tires. (Mazdaspeed Protege if it matters). I love to autox and willl probablly be doing so once a month, but the rest of the time, the tires will be daily driven.
I am in college, so i don't have the largest budget in the world either.....would like to spend under $100 bucks per tire if that's possible.
I am looking for a tire that will last a good while for daily driving, but will also be reasonably grippy for autox.
(So, no Azenis rt-615s....i had the 215's on my GSR and absolutely loved them, but they just wore out too fast and i didn't feel comfortable in the rain).
Similarly, the Toyo Proxes T1-R also have a low tread-rating (i believe 260 compared to the azenis 200).
Someone recommended the Azenis st115's.....any thoughts on these, or any other suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

cn: want best performing all around tire that will last and be safe in the rain.

 

Your best bet is to get another set of wheels for daily driving, and a set of dedicated autox tires. You could run the car in STX with falkens, or run D-Stock and get some r-tires.

 

yeah, what you're asking for is a bit of an impossibility.

good grip + long life generally don't go together. and also, don't put too much stock into treadwear ratings, esp across brands--i.e. my 160 TW RE92's lasted 42,000 miles while my 200 tw azenis lasted 17,000. it's long and complicated but, yeah.

.RJ's suggestion ends up being the most economical, believe it or not. a spare set of wheels may hurt at first, but having a set of nice sticky tires last a whole a/x season or more is a good thing. that way, you could run some rock hard A/S tire on your DD wheels...

otherwise, i might look into something like the Z212--only because it's cheaper than most of the popular street tires used in A/X. they'll still only last you ~15,000 miles, and they're not bad in the rain...

 

Well, basically i want to get as grippy as i can and still have the tire last for 20k miles. (i autox about once a month....most of the rest will be highway driving).

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by chris1866 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">cn: want best performing all around tire that will last and be safe in the rain.</TD></TR></TABLE>

Ever consider the BFG KDW-2?



I'm also about to buy tires for my new daily driver and I'm looking at the KDW-2. The reviews & test results on the Tirerack look pretty good and they're just under $100 per tire for a 205-50/15. It pretty much rains up here non-stop from now through June, so I'm looking for a "performance/rain tire".

 

Where do you live? If up north, don't forget that it's October, so factor that in. Most good tires for street/auto-x use are "summer only" tires. Not only do they suck grip-wise in cold weather, but the exposure to cold can reduce the grip you'll get when it gets warm again...

edit: in south carolina you might be okay...

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by johng &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Ever consider the BFG KDW-2?



I'm also about to buy tires for my new daily driver and I'm looking at the KDW-2. The reviews & test results on the Tirerack look pretty good and they're just under $100 per tire for a 205-50/15. It pretty much rains up here non-stop from now through June, so I'm looking for a "performance/rain tire".</TD></TR></TABLE>

These are very good tires indeed. I drove these for the Targa Newfoundland, drove them to Nova Scotia and back and still use them for wet autocross and a bit of daily driving. Great in the rain and plenty of dry grip. The sidewalls are fairly stiff too, although not as stiff as Azenis or Hoosiers but they get the job done.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by johng &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">

Ever consider the BFG KDW-2?



I'm also about to buy tires for my new daily driver and I'm looking at the KDW-2. The reviews & test results on the Tirerack look pretty good and they're just under $100 per tire for a 205-50/15. It pretty much rains up here non-stop from now through June, so I'm looking for a "performance/rain tire".
</TD></TR></TABLE>

My friends WRX worked perfectly with these tires but the outer edges seemed to be chucking after about 6 auto X runs.. The car had a good alignment from West End(best shop in CA). The tires however worked well at big bear.

 

Kumho MX?

 

dunlop direzza's seem cool.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by steverife &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Kumho MX?</TD></TR></TABLE>

I'm more comfortable with the Azenis in the rain than the MX. FWIW.

 

Been there.

Auto-X the Supra with BFG T/A KD's.

You won't get 20k miles out of street tires if you AutoX with them.

At least if your surface is anything like the cheese grater pavement we race on. lol

 

I like the Bridgestone Potenza S02 Pole Positions,

I like to think that there is just a little bit of Formula 1 technology in them.

 

What about michellin pilot sports?

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by maxQ &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">

I'm more comfortable with the Azenis in the rain than the MX. FWIW.

</TD></TR></TABLE>

Which Azenis? The 215's or the 615's? I was very pleased with the 215's at autocross, on the street and on track. I've heard mixed reviews from friends for the 615's but good reviews for the MX's.

I actually just ordered a set of MX's for the street and recently corded my R's so I'll be using the MX's next month at Limerock. I'll post up a review since they will be the first street tire other than the 215's that I'll have tracked.

 

I like the idea of the Kumho MX's. I know they have been widely used.....about how long do they last (assuming 1 autox/month).

 

My impressions from half a season of Auto-x in the SCR region (since I assume that's where you'll mostly be running) - the lots around here are pretty abrasive. I only ran my ES100's in 3 or 4 autocrosses and they're already looking pretty sad.

 

I'm a real fan of the Toyo Proxes T1-R (the T1-S should be even cheaper if you can still find a set) as a value market ultra-high performance tire. The new Kumho ECSTA SPT should be priced lower than the ECSTA MX and is a pretty decent tire, too. Neither is a competetive Auto-X tire, but you'd be very happy with them as street tires and still be able to have have fun dodging cones a few times a year.

I buy the Toyos for my daily driver...

 

The problem with the T1-S and T1-R, is the treadwear. It's not much better than the Azenis from what i understand.....ie if the Azenis last 10k miles, i can't see those Toyos lasting more than 15k.....now the Proxes 4 may be a different story, but i don't know how good of an autox tire they are.

 

I got 25k+ out of my last set of T1-Ss. No auto crossing, but there were a few track days. They are a good wearing tire from my experience. I think they are a great value. That's why I use them. Not the best at anything, but a good overall tire at a very good price...

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by maxQ &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">I'm more comfortable with the Azenis in the rain than the MX. FWIW. </TD></TR></TABLE>

The first time I have ever read that. I'm shocked. Were both tires at equal tread depth?

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Booker &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">

The first time I have ever read that. I'm shocked. Were both tires at equal tread depth?
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I think he is talking about the new RT615 VS the MX.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by thawley &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">I got 25k+ out of my last set of T1-Ss. No auto crossing, but there were a few track days. They are a good wearing tire from my experience. I think they are a great value. That's why I use them. Not the best at anything, but a good overall tire at a very good price...</TD></TR></TABLE>

W W.
this sounds like something i maybe should be considering.......anyone else have this experience?

 

I have the Toyo T1-Rs on my Type R (as my daily driving tires) - I've had them for about 4 months now (they came out in Canada earlier than in the States)




They have a really comfortable ride and are reasonable quiet.

They are fantastic in the wet.

Treadwear is good - I even did a HPDE with them on for a while - and they performed remarkably well for a street tire.

The tread life will likely depend on how aggressively you drive. (duh)

I see no reason why they wouldn't last 20K or more.

 

Aren't the 615's suppose to be better in the rain then the 215's? Maybe something to consider if you deal with there treadlife.