i just turboed my integra and its making 320 wheel and i was wondering what tires would be good so i wont spin all day. i was looking at the falken azeniz rt-615 r do u perfer those or something else? i have 17's

 

For 17" wheels, you should get 205/40-17 size tires. I recommend the Goodyear F1 GS-D3 for great performance without having to replace them too often, or the Falken Azenis RT-615 if you want the most grip and don't care how often you have to buy more. Both come in the 205/40-17 size. Feel free to read the rest of this post if you're interested in a more detailed explanation.

Let's start by taking a step back for an overview. Think of tires across a spectrum from the stickiest, fastest-wearing tires to the less sticky, longer-lasting tires, and you come out with a list that looks like this, starting with the stickiest and working down from there:

1. Drag Radials: BFGoodrich g-Force T/A Drag Radial (won't last very long)

2. Other R Compound Tires: Hoosier R3S04 and A3S05, Toyo RA-1, etc (typical treadlife 2-4K miles)

3. Specialty Super-Sticky Street Tires: Falken Azenis RT-615 (typical treadlife 10K miles)

4. Best Top-of-the-Line Street Tires: Goodyear F1 GS-D3, Bridgestone S-03, Dunlop SP Sport Maxx, etc (typical treadlife 15-25K miles)

5. "Value" Top-of-the-Line Street Tires: Toyo T-1R, Kumho Ecsta MX (typical treadlife 15-25K miles)

6. Budget Performance, "Bang for the Buck" Tires: Yokohama AVS ES100, Kumho Ecsta SPT, Dunlop Direzza DZ101, etc (typical treadlife 25-40K miles)

7. All-season tires: Kumho Ecsta ASX, Pirelli PZero Nero M+S, etc (typical treadlife 25-50K miles)

For many folks who have cars close to stock and who don't go to the track, the "budget performance tires" (number 6 on the list) is perfectly fine. But if you go to the track, and/or if you have a high-horsepower application, then you really want to move up this list for better performance. For your high-horsepower Integra, I would recommend something in categories 3-5. If you don't mind replacing tires fairly frequently, then look at category 3. (How frequently? Those using the older Falken Azenis RT-215 on an ITR typically got around 10K miles to a set.) But you really ought to get something at least as good as category 5, and preferably category 3 or 4. Remember, tires are even more important than power mods, because they affect not only your acceleration, but also your braking and cornering/handling. Tires are not the place to try to save money if performance is your top priority.

Here are tires you might consider, in that 205/40-17 size, and are IMHO the best tires you'll find in each category:

3. Specialty Super-Sticky Street Tires:
Falken Azenis RT-615 $97 from Vulcan

4. Best Top-of-the-Line Street Tires:
Goodyear F1 GS-D3 $143 from the Tire Rack

5. "Value" Top-of-the-Line Street Tires:
Kumho Ecsta MX $101 from the Tire Rack

It's worth noting that the Goodyear F1 GS-D3 won the comparison test of eleven top-of-the-line tires in the current (December) issue of Car and Driver. (The Falken wasn't included and the Kumho came in last.) It's also worth noting that the Goodyear has the highest user survey ratings on Tire Rack's website of all 24 tires in their top performance category for street tires.

If it were my car, I would either go for the Goodyears for great performance without having to replace them too often, or the Azenis if I wanted the most grip and didn't care how often I had to buy more, or the Kumho MX only if you really are hard up for cash. With a high horsepower application like yours, you should really step up and spend a bit more money for better performance. Even the Kumho MX would be worth spending more for, rather than getting the less expensive "budget performance tires" like the ES100 or the SPT. Again, not necessarily for everyone out there (heck, I use the ES100 on my bone-stock GS-R), but for your particular needs.



Modified by nsxtasy at 10:50 AM 2/10/2006