opinions on tires & sizing

[scstang]

Hey guys
I am a new SHO owner and i must say i am really enjoying this car.
My question i have a 95 and i was wandering want your opinions
were on these tire sizes.
215/60/16 or 225/55/16 in the falken brand

Thanks Don

 

[Slo-Sho]

First off it's going to give you a little bit bigger footprint. Generally touring tires are 60 series and up while performance tires are 55 and lower.

 

[sdpatt]

First off, I want to state that tires are the single most important aspect of the handling and braking performance of your car. I suggest that you visit the TireRack.com site and do a little research to find out what type and size of tire best fits your driving needs, wheels and budget. You can search by size or go to the survey and test results to get the information necessary to choose the correct tire.

I have successfully used Tire Rack's resources to select excellent tires for my wife's car's needs and those of my own. She may not head for the road race track, but I want to ensure that she has the best handling and braking capabilities that tires can provide to protect her and my daughters.

From my signature you may see that my car is wearing Bridgestone RE730 shoes. When first purchased, those tires provided a cost-efficient solution to an ultra-high performance dry and wet tire for aggressive road and some track use. As time and tire technology has advanced, these tires have been surpassed by more recent offerings from not only Bridgestone, but other tire manufacturers.

Watching for Tire Rack's specials, I was able to purchase a set of the current Tire Rack maximum performance rating champ, the Goodyear F1 GS-D3, for less than a set of the RE730 successor, the RE750. The RE750 rates quite highly (3rd) in the ultra high performance summer tire category, but the F1 GS-D3 rates tops in the max performance summer tire sector.

Those awesome looking tires are parked in my attic, waiting for their day to hit the road. I look forward to that time, but I will continue to roll on the capable RE730s until the last bit of wear has been extracted from their treads.

You may need the capabilities of a snow rated, all season tire, but unless you live in the great white north and see snow for a good portion of the winter season, you can use the superior dry and wet traction limits of the ultra high or max performance summer tires. Tire Rack's tests have shown that the dry and wet traction limits of the "summer" tires exceed the compromised capabilities of the all season tires in all but snow covered road conditions.

Visit the Tire Rack site and see for yourself what tires you can get your car for Christmas.

 

[scstang]

Thanks for the reply i check out that site it was pretty informative.
I think i going to have to be a little more specific though. if i moved up in
size 225/55/16 are there any issues with rubbing or anything negative you can think of and also what do you think of these at discount tire.
FALKEN ziex ze 512 $66 traction A temp A tread wear 420

Thanks Don

 

[Yamaha V6]

a 420 Treadwear tire is NOT a performance tire, so your grip is going to be crappy. If you drive in a spirited manner, don't waste youre money, because you're going to regret it. Harder tires are usually louder too.

a 280-300 treadwear performance tire is still a compromise, but a liveable one. Any performance tire you get 20k miles out of with spirited driving on a regular basis is a gift.

Use a 3-season wet-weather tire for a good compromise in most-weather traction, and a dedicated snow tire for the SHO during the winter if you see snow. An All-Season tire is NOT a performance tire, sorry - that is a contradiction that's yet to be disproven.

Falkens are good tires (I ran Azenis Sports this summer), and certainly very affordable. Yokohama ES100, Pirelli P7000 Super Sports aren't bad (more costly), I like Toyo Proxes T1-S for 3-season use personally. Also have liked BFG G-Force KDW as well.

Blizzaks or comparable for snow.

As for the footprint, 225/55-16 is what I run in 16", 235/45-17 for 7" wide 17's. If you stay with 16" wheels & go aftermarket, a 16x7 wheel is nicely stable, but will help retain ride comfort somewhat, especially if you go aftermarket suspension (like Tokicos & Eibachs).

 

[scstang]

that' s cool i did not know that about tread wear. i would really like a more quiet ride.
DId you notice any changes in MPG going to 225/55/16 if not what changes did you notice?

Thanks alot
Don

 

[sdpatt]

I have been rolling on the 225/55-16 size since my first replacement set of tires back in my car's early days. They fit the 6" wide OEM slicers with a bit of sidewall bow, but otherwise without problems. This rim width is on the narrow size for even the original 215/60-16 stock.

The tightest fit on the SHO with the wider 225/55-16 size is the forward plastic fairing in the left rear wheel well. You can trim this with a knife, grinder, Dremel tool or file is needed, but since it is plastic, it woun't damage the tire. There should be no interference problems with the front wheels.

The noise characteristics of a tire are most dependent upon the tread design. Some are more quiet than others. Alignment, specifically misalignment, and the resulting uneven, feathered or cupped wear can also lead to premature and exaggerated noise from any tire.

The rolling diameter of the 225/55-16 size resulted in a more accurate speedometer indication on my car than the OEM size which apparently caused a lower than actual speed reading. I have checked this with mile markers and GPS devices so I am not making an unverifiable statement.

The rolling resistance and resulting mileage increase or decrease is very dependent upon the tire constructione. You could likely incease your fuel economy by using a low rolling resistance, 80 series, high pressure tire, but your driving joy will be significantly diminished.

I will add at this point that the use of a wider wheel with the 225/55-16 size tire will provide greater support of the tire sidewall and the resultant increase in lateral transition response and quickness. The 1.5" width increase with the wheels I am using made a noticeable improvement in the handling sharpness even with the same tires.

I decided to stick with the 16" wheel diameter since the ride of my Tokico/Eibach/TPR/Aluminum subframe bushing equipped SHO was firm enough without upgrading to 17" rims. Plus, the choice of tires that fit a 17" rim in the sizes that fit within a Gen I's fenders and maintain the rolling diameter are very limited compared to the 225/55-16 size (225/50-17).

You will also have to play with the inflation pressure when using a nonstandard tire size to ensure the best ride and handling characteristics and most even tread wear. The wider footprint of the 225/55-16 tire will require a reduction in the air pressure of at least a few pounds to maintain even wear across the tread. This will again depend upon the tire chosen and its specific construction and wear characteristics.

 

[scstang]

Thanks alot that is the info i was looking for i love these forums.
now i just need to figure out which tire to go with.

 

[SHOZ123]

Personally I like the 225/50/16 size. Bumps up your final drive ratio a bit.