Summer driving
 

I thought it time we move on from this awful winter as we have all now shared our various perspectives on how our cars are handling this tough winter.

What are people doing about the stock Primacy HP tires?

I just bought a set of OZ Alleggerita HLT in Graphite Silver 17 x 7.5 weighing around 15 lbs each (6.8 kg).

I am fitting a set of Michelin Pilot Sport A/S 3 tires in 225/45 x 17 91V size weighing 24 lbs each (11 kg).

Stock tires weigh only 20 lbs (9 kg) but stock rims are sturdy at 21.4 lbs each (9.7 kg).

I went with 17 x 7.5 rather than 17 x 8 to preserve the comfort level in the ride. With a lighter unsprung weight and a slightly more bulged sidewall I expect the ride to improve a tiny bit without sacrificing any grip.

I went with all season tires because I live and drive at 1,000 metres elevation. What would be normal summer temperatures elsewhere are uncommon here outside the period from mid June to late August. Ultra High Performance Summer tires just don't get hot enough often enough to put out their best grip. Plus, it can get cold and even icy just about anytime and is a virtual certainty sometimes as late as May and as early as September, varies annually.

On balance, after reading all the new reviews, articles and tests on this new Michelin all season I'm convinced to give them a try. Just not until June....

I gave my set of stock Primacy tires to Wheels Direct to be disposed of lol! They are just as bad as those MXV4 tires that came with Hondas back in the 90s. When I ran them during break-in, speeding into the 401 ramp would cause a slight 4 wheel drift sensation. Wet traction was just non-existent.

I bought a set of Michelin Pilot Sport A/S 3 in 215/45/R17 87V to replace them. I have a set of Enkei STI wheels in 17" X 7.5 dark grey coming (basically trying to get my BRZ to look like a poor man's Supra 2.5 Twin Turbo R lol) and would be swapping these AS3 tires onto them for non-winter use. I can't wait to try them in warm weather. Wet traction is awesome and they are much more comfortable and sure footed. The stock tires felt like driving Fred Flinstone's car.

The stock rims are so ugly I'm going to use them in winter.

This is STI's recommendation for their 18" X 7.5 setup:

Michelin Pilot Super Sport 225/40ZR18(92Y) XL @ 35psi / 240kPa front and rear.

Gonna plastidip the stockers black.
Looking to buy 17 inch Rota Torques, and fit Continental DW Contact tires to them (225 width).

I am wondering if offset 30 will cause problems though (because that seems to be all I can find online for these wheels other than the stock 48 offset)

I bought some 17x8 Rotiform NUEs /fail

I'm doing naff all. I love the low grip the primacys (primacies?) give and don't plan to change a thing.

PS do you worry that heavier tires on light rims will increase the rotational inertia of the wheels, even if total mass remains the same or less?

Yes, and almost all that extra tire weight is in the tread. Some will be in the bead wedge but most will be in the tread.

But, to get a stiffer tire you have to get a stronger tire, which means a heavier tire. No way around it.

I have a set of xxr 527 in 17x8.25 waiting to go on. I plan on throwing on a set of Falken Ziex 912 in 225/45 and hoping that they are as bad (good) as the stock primacy hp.

Looking to preserve the fun slippery stock characteristics. Ill be sideways and smiling as I pass all the losers putting on PSS and Advans.

QFT.
Keeping the stock wheels too, because I'm in the "love them" camp.

As you upgrade to a stiffer and quicker responsive chassis and suspension setup you have no choice but to upgrade the tires otherwise you would reach your traction limit a lot faster in a turn and possibly lose it. I honestly don't miss the Primacy tires, even going straight at a slow speed I can tell a difference in steering feel with the better tires.

I think putting Primacy tires on it stock was really Toyota's way of sticking a middle finger to the industry in that they can develop a chassis setup with parameters so strict, it can pull handling performance figures similar to a competitors' products without being bounded by specially developed tires and high tech. Saying you can go sideways easier is just a marketing by-product imo.

If that is actually true, then I like Toyota's gt86 design dept a little bit more after learning it.

I think this is exactly true.

By all reports fitting better tires improves this car significantly.

Heck, even high performance winters are an improvement!

You won't be passing anyone wrapped around a pole (sideways).

Back on topic, I'll be putting 235/40/18 and 255/35/18 PSS on 18x8.5 and 18x9.5 TC105ns (roughly 16lbs each) this summer for street. For track, I'm on Toyo R888s 225/45/17 square.

You're right, with all that power how will I possibly drive it on crappy tires...

+1

225/45/17 PSS, lowered

Sorry my setup is for FI. I'll be putting down 300whp. My comment was in response to your reckless attitude towards driving.

I have a question about the Enkei STI wheels... are they not 5x114?


PSS are my choice if I upgrade. I'll be using my Primacy HP until they wear out, and then I'll probably be getting PSS and then either lightweight O.Z. like OP or Enkei RPF1.

I want to build an OEM+ car hence going with Subaru and STI for everything. The STI 17" & 18" x 7.5 rims made by Enkei using spin casted aluminum tech are available for the BRZ (the part number starts with 484) hence 5 x 100 +48.

Toyota is coming out with 18" x 7.5 forged BBS rims for the 86 but I doubt I can afford that (especially if they are Neez cold forged).

Enkei RPF1 is too purist for me I'm more of a ricer. :D

I got rid of the stock Primacy's after a couple months. I drove from July to November on them, then put my snow tires on the stock wheels. Summer wheels are 17x8 RPF1's with 225/45/17 Dunlop ZII's. WAY stickier than stock, and better steering feel. The wheel/tire combo is lighter than stock by a couple pounds. The only downside is the road noise, but it's well worth it IMO.

My biggest issue is how pricey tires/wheels are, and for what they are going to do, is just not worth it to me. I am using my car as a daily driver, in all seasons, and am perfectly happy with how the stock wheels look and perform. Will new summer tires give you better grip? Absolutely. Do I want better grip? Absolutely NOT! Why would you? Unless you are taking it to the track, drive it like they(Subaru/Toyota) intended it to be! Will different rims give it a more distinct look? Yes, but at what cost? Unless I can get some super cheap, it's just not worth the $$. everyone's vehicle has already lost significant value since leaving the dealership, and spending big money on wheels is just for your own taste on how you want your car to look (which is fine...and I get it, I just won't spend hard earned dollars on it).
I got winter tires for winter safety reasons....not for looks or for performance....well I guess in a way performance, but not in the same way a set of grippy summer tires would be.

I upgraded to wider wheels and tires with better grip soon after I bought my BRZ. A couple of days before I eventually traded it in, I went back to stock suspension/wheels. After one aggressive turn, I realized I should've never changed anything in the first place lol. Way more fun in OEM form, considering the car was daily driven and my intake/exhaust mods probably only added .0002 whp ;-)

These last two posts remind everyone to be sure you want to change this car before you spring for better tires.

Subaru/Toyota designed this car with the Primacy HP tire in mind (which is quite a good tire for its more usual application, for example as a high performance upgrade to the European spec Prius).

Subaru/Toyota also designed this car to be easy to modify in the most popular ways: wheels and tires, coilovers and roll bars and simple body kits.

I'm hoping they also release a supercharger kit soon.

There is no doubt this car is fun to drive right out of the box without any modifications. The more miles accumulate the better it gets.

Be sure you really want to change the car before you spend the money, it's pretty good as it comes.

If you care at all about auto x times or lap times on a track, tires are the first thing you need. On a typical track going to better tires can shave off 4 seconds easily.

I find my current summers are much better in all regards than the Primacy's as well. Better grip, better feel, much cheaper per tire, etc.

New summer tires don't always give you better grip. It depends on the grip you are looking for based on the condition of the pavement you are driving in, too subjective.

Like when it was time for replacement, I went from OEM Dunlop SP Sport 01 A/S to Yokohama S-Drive summer tires on the GTI (225/40/R18 keeping load rating the same to avoid being skittish from stiffer sidewalls) and it was actually a downgrade predominantly in wet cornering traction. In the dry the S-Drives needed to be warmed up to be effective. But did I save money? Yes I did (I got the S-Drives at less than half the price of the Dunlops).

Not going to add power through FI, so keeping close to stock widths.

I'm looking for different wheels at 17x7.5 or 8, going to keep stock Primacys until they die.

The only thing that I don't like for DD duties is the wet performance.

I ditched the Primacy's after 13kms lol, just far enough to drive to the wheel shop. I do hate the stock wheels though.

I picked up some Work Kiwami's in 18x8.5 and 18x9.5 wrapped in 225F/245R Pilot Super Sports and I couldn't be happier. Car is tons grippier (I auto-x) and you can still step the tail out if you want on stock power.

My stock wheels ended up being my winter wheels with some hankooks on them. The primacy's are in my garage waiting to get put back on when i return my lease.

http://i54.photobucket.com/albums/g8...ps0cade9b7.jpg