First off i drive a 96 Accord coupe. I'm looking for better handling. I currently have Apexi WS coilover, front and rear strut bars and Suspension Techniques sways. The car drives very well thru turns, however, i lose traction very quickly on harder turns. I would like to upgrade to 17" with wider tires however, money is also a issue. Right now i'm stuck on stock 15" rims with 195/60/15 crappy tires.

I would like to upgrade my tires to some fairly decent tires. My choices are Yoko AVS ES100 or Falken ZIEX ZE-512. I know my choices are fairly limited expecially with 195/60/15 tires.

The Falken right now is the cheapest option although i'm fairly hesitant b/c i had the ZE-502 and it was probably one of the worst tires i've had.

So my question is, should i wait and upgrade to 17" or should i stick with 15" rims and tires? Anybody have any recommendations?

 

get some 15x7 rims, run khumo ecsta 712s or falken azenis. the 712s come in a bunch of different sizes, but the azenis only comes in a 205-50 for the 15s. still pleanty of grip!

 

unless your going to do autocrossing i wouldn't waste my money on aftermarket 15s. you can squeeze 205 55 15s on the stock rims and get some good tires like bridgestone S0-3s or Toyo T1-S or get some cheaper, but sticky tires like dunlop FM901s or AVS ES100s.

if your going to buy rims i would step up to 17s, get some light weight Rota wheels.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by CD8 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">get some 15x7 rims, run khumo ecsta 712s or falken azenis. the 712s come in a bunch of different sizes, but the azenis only comes in a 205-50 for the 15s. still pleanty of grip! </TD></TR></TABLE>

well said, i would pick between 16 and 15's. 16's got more tire size to pick from.
17 looks perfect in accord but they are little bit heavy, unless you getting lightweight(expensive) rims like volks

 

btw kumho 712s i would not buy if you are looking for grip

 

I actually intend to autocross with the new tires. I haven't done it before b/c of my current tires now. I would just constantly slip if i went.

Can i get away with 205 tires on stock rims? So for i'm thinking about getting the Yoko AVS100.

 

Whoa, didn't know S03 came in 205/55/15... I would totally get those over the Yokos.

And i just checked the price, it's only 110 per tire!!

But still can i get away with 205's on a stock tire?

 

yes 205 55 15 S0-3s will fit on 15s.

although a wider rim of at least 6.5inches would be much for autocrossing.

 

Yeah unfortunatly i cannot afford new rims. I think i'll just get the S03 or the yoko avs.

 

for autocrossing the dunlop fm901s would be a better choice over the avs es100s, since they have much more grip. the sidewalls of both are on the softside.

 

How about the Falken GRB's? I heard they are pretty sticky as well.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by KGAccord &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">for autocrossing the dunlop fm901s would be a better choice over the avs es100s, since they have much more grip. the sidewalls of both are on the softside.</TD></TR></TABLE>

hmm... i'll think about those too, they are about the same price as the ES100

 

unless you want the "look" of "17's" I would save your money and spend it on a nice set of tires.

 

if u're going to autocross:
a. keep stock 15" get 205/50/15 falken azenis (best street autox tire out!!!)
b. konig 15" lightweight rims with 205/50/15 falken azenis

i autox with 17" rims with kumho 711's (didnt intend to autox until i got addicted) now im looking for 15" or 14" with falken azenis. trust me u want azenis for autox!!!

btw. falken azenis cost ~$70

 

ive heard that falkens are often real bad in the rain, but ive never used them myself. anyone know if this is true?

 

I recommend 215/45 for tires. The ES100s in 17" are only $97 each from TireRack.

 

712s are good street tires, but that's about it. The unfortunate flaw with them is that they wear pretty fast, but on the upside, they grip rather well in wet and dry conditions.

As for upgrade, the 17 or 16" rim will offer far better handling than your 15" rim.....for sure. Decreased sidewall flex as well as getting a wider rim will help a GREAT deal in your handling. As for comfort, a minor decrease in that.

- Nathan

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by 92Lx &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">712s are good street tires, but that's about it. The unfortunate flaw with them is that they wear pretty fast, but on the upside, they grip rather well in wet and dry conditions.

- Nathan</TD></TR></TABLE>

i think you got that backwards, they should wear well unless your autocrossing them since they can't take the heat, atleast the v rated compound tires which are in the 205 55 15s. they have good wet traction, but don't have lots of dry grip.

 

ive owned both the 215-40-17s as well as 205-55-15 712s.... IMO they have pleanty dry grip for "spirited" street driving. not good for autocross though.
they have great wet grip for the street too.

as far as wear, they last long time, even with negative camber!

 

get 22's

 

So the Falkens are only 70 buck's also? I have search thru other forums and gotten nothing but good news about these tires. My only concern is that i need these tire to get me around. I drive almost everyday and it rains everyonce in a while. I can't have it where i can't drive my car out in the rain.

 

they offer pleanty of wet/dry traction for the street.

 

The Falken Azenis, as far as I've been told, are "dry only" kinda tire. The more all around tire from Falken would either be the grb-451 or the Ziex 512. As far as them sucking in the rain? I "had the pleasure" of going 80+ w/ my Ziex 502s. Only did it a few times though, didn't want to get a ticket....

Anyway, for the original topic....
Grass Roots Motorsports "14-17 Tire/Rim combo shootout"