I need to replace my street tires and was wondering if anyone's running the 205 section width Rivals on the stock wheels?

If so, could you post a photo because I realize they aren't the narrowest of the 205 sized tires out there. This would be for autocrossing next year in D-Street class. I'm really torn between these and the ZII's but I still have a feeling the Rivals are quicker and the fact they operate in a wider slip angle range is good too.

thanks,
Matt

 

I've got 205/50 ZIIs mounted on 15x6 Millenias. Good grip!
It looks like the 205 Rivals are sold out for a while.

 

It doesn't feel any worse than when using the stock 195/55?

 

You want the 195 Toyo.

Edit: the r1r

 

What do you mean by worse?

That's a great tire for the rear, but several have told me the R is too heavy to use it on the front for autox. I haven't tried mine up front. I'm just sharing what I've been told.
And unless Toyo changes the treadwear, it won't be legal past 2014.

 

Steering response, sidewall flex.

 

^A good 205 is still gonna work better then a bad 195 on a 6'' wheel. Unless you do back to back test of the same tires on different wheels you don't have a real comparison.

OP: You can run a 205 on a 6 but it's not ideal. From what I've seen the rivals don't run THAT much wider then the Z2's. On a 6'' 205's might be a little less responsive then an equal 195 but not enough to cause concern unless you are trying to be seriously competitive which it doesn't sound like. The 195/205 Z2 or 205 Rival will suit you fine.

Edit: Here's a pic of 205 Z2 and 205 Rival mounted on a 15x8



And here's the 195 toyo and the 225 Rival mounted on a 15x7.5. Not what you're asking for, but the only 2 pics I could find.

 

The Dunlop ZII in a 195/55/15 will give you the best "feeling". And truth be told, I'd almost bet grip would be about equal between the 195/55 and the 205/50 because of the narrow 6" wheel.

The Toyo has the softest sidewall, so no way I'd run those on a 6" wheel. And as you mentioned, the R is probably too heavy for them as well.

The 6" wheel really puts the ITR at a disadvantage as street tires have such soft sidewalls compared to R-comps.

Personally, I'd buy the 195/55/15 Dunlop. If you have the $$$, buy both that an the 205/50/15 Rival and do some testing.

 

Thanks Todd and that's pretty much the same thing I realized about the Toyos from talking to guys that run the ST Civics nationally. I agree that the Dunlops are probably just as quick in the narrower (but probably ideal @ 195) section width.

So, the deal was too good not to roll the dice. $400 for a new set from a buddy that didn't end up needing them for his team's LeMons Integra (Simon Says). Next Sunday will be the first time back in a front wheel drive car on street tires since '07. Should be interesting and with the ST pax discount on a 60 second course I can give up 1.5+ seconds to the normal DS pax running on 205 V710s. We'll see how it goes...

 

Not as bad as I'd imagined they'd be on the stock wheels. Without causing to much havoc, they actually feel pretty amazing on the street with only about 30 psi cold. I'm really looking forward to next Sunday's autocross to put some wear and heat into them.

 

Slaloms and quick offsets will be the real tell-tale with those tires. Let us know how it goes though.

I remember the old Azenis RT215's with possibly the stiffest sidewall of a street tire on the OEM 6" wheels and it felt good...up until a slalom.

Then again, on stock springs it may not be as noticeable.

 

Unless you do back to back test of the same tires on different wheels you don't have a real comparison.

 

People have done this. It is a proven fact that some of the 195 and 205 sized tires lose time when going from a 7.5" wheel to a 7" wheel and even more when on a 6.5" wheel.

The curve was so great that 6" wheels aren't even normally tested with a 195/205 sized tire. Although with the change to stock class rules, some folks are bound to test wider street tires on skinny OEM wheels.

 

The first tire setup on my completely stock car was 225 RS3s and 195 R1Rs. This was the advice of a nationally competitive STS CRX driver. The car felt great at the expense of tire life. Three AXs and one track day and they were down to the belts. And that's with them being flipped once. I'll be running 205 ZIIs this Sunday.

 

On OEM 15x6" wheels? They should have known better. That's a tire combo for an ST car that can fit wider wheels and fix other suspension issues.

And I'm almost betting that in a pure autox situation with the R on OEM everything (except shocks), the 195/55/15 will turn almost identical times to a 205/50/15 tire, assuming the tire is the same (like a ZII).

The key will be what brand tire combo works best with a skinny 6" wheel.

 

Yes 15x6 Millenias. I'll see how the 205 square setup works. I know the 225/205 setup was faster (for me) at the track.

 

Ultimate grip of the 225 on a 6" wheel will usually be better, but it'll also be much sloppier. In autox, this matters on most courses with a competent driver. On the track, not so much as what the car is doing is different.

 

How did it go?

 

Gimme the sloppy 225 RS3 please. I really missed the grip Sunday. Maybe with a stiffer bar it would work.