Star Specs vs Ventus?
 

So I'm in the market for new tyres. I've worn down the Primacy HPs to where they are ready to give up the ghost (hey, I'm cheap).

I use the car as a DD (daily being a couple of times a week, actually) and autocross monthly. Once in a blue moon (call it twice a year) I'll do HPDE.

I've narrowed my choices down to either the Hankook Ventus RS3 (v2) or the Dunlop Direzza ZII Star Spec. It seems, according to the reviewers on tirerack, that the Direzza ZII Star Specs might have a slight edge, but it is not clear. I'd rather hear from folks who may have tested them on our cars, rather than on some other car.

Any suggestions?

Obliged,

--kravi

Tread life is much less on the star specs then the ventus in what I have seen.

I dont like Hankooks due to the extra noise, for DD, I've experienced on multiple cars and the unforgiving stiff sidewall that has no modulation. IMO Please note that this is my experience with the brand and multiple models, but it must be noted that I have not had RS3's, only tested with them.

My vote would be for the star specs as they track well and overall have a better character.

If those were the only two you could pick from.

Do you have another recommendation? The sky is the limit. Those two were the two I thought would suit me best, but I'm not certain of anything. Just keep in mind that I have 17 x 7 wheels (c street), so not all extreme performance tyres will fit BRZs.

RS3 for budget.
Star Specs are slightly better, but only slightly I hear, especially depending on experience.
Now everyone has switched to Bridgestone RE71Rs. These apparently are the best for the price currently.

Both tires are pretty much equal. Just depends which one is on sale.

As for daily driving them, I wouldn't. They'll wear out faster. But try it out on your commute. I did it they lasted about 6 months on 60 mile commute with auto x a month. Then again having the grip makes you drive out more and fool around on the twisty back roads.

I had looked at the RE71Rs, but they seem to have half of the life of any other extreme performance tire out there. I'm looking for something "good enough", not the best, at least if the best only lasts half as long as the runner up. In a weird way, I love that there is no simple answer to any of this :)

Cheers,

--kravi

I had z2, re71r, and rs3 before. For the price, it's hard to beat RS3 but I'm currently on RE71r and definitely feel it's worth the extra $.

I've had ZIISS for the past year+ on OE wheels in OE size (215/45/17) and I'm really happy with them, no experience on the RS3's.

ZIISS held up great on HPDE (4x 100-minute days, even double driver duty at T-hill 5-mile) and autox (~9x events average 5-6x runs per day) and DD (15k miles) and they still have tread but I believe the grip is gone. I'm like you OP, I'll keep running them as DD tires, because I'm cheap, until the tread is gone, I thought they would look like slicks by now but they do pass inspection with usable tread (although they're down to the bars). I'm not the fastest or hardest driver out there, especially during DD but they put up some 1:53-1:56 times around Laguna Seca my second and third days there.

I'm going to try RS3's on my OE wheels next as occasional track/DD tires (245 RE71R's for autox now on second set of wheels) just so I know both, get more experience on different rubber. I think Lots of guys like the Hankooks because they might have better grassroots and contingency support than Dunlop. But what do I know.

I really don't think you could go wrong with either, and when I was shopping the price difference was <$1 per tire in the same size, picked Dunlops on recommendation from local shop over RS3 and MPSS (in hindsight real happy I didn't pick MPSS), maybe someone local can say "Oh the XXX's handle our autox/track better because of the surface/temperatures/phase of the moon".

Edit: My research totally agrees, the fastest street tires right now are BFGRS and RE71R's but they're too soft for DD so you step down to ZIISS or RS3V2, if you're adventurous you could try something under 200TW but you may get the stink eye while autox-ing on AD08's or R1R's (which apparently come in a 200TW now so technically legal but no idea if they're good, some talk about them awhile back but if someone took notice they're keeping it secret)

So I checked out the R1R's on tirerack, and they, at least, are still 140TW... Too bad, that could be fun. :)

As you said, the price difference between the ZIISS and the RS3V2 is negligible. I think I'll try the ZIISS first, and see how they treat me as I save up for some new (lighter) wheels. I, like you, am currently on OEM wheels.

Thanks!

Check again, looks like not in the 215/45/17 but 225's are showing 200TW for me.

If they were still around, I would highly recommend the Bridgstone RE11As. I have probably got around 2 track days, 2-3 autocrosses, some mountain driving, and approximately 8000 miles out of them with around 4-5/32nds left.

With that said, you seem like the vehicle will primarily be used for daily driving like myself. In which case, you are limiting yourself with only having one set of extreme performance summer tires with UTQG wear <=200. Personally, I have a daily set of wheels with the Primacy HPs and a second set with the RE11s. This way you keep the miles low for the 200 treadwear tires.

R1R is absolute crap for the $.

The RE11A are great for daily driving. I never autox mine on the last car, but did a couple of track days. They held up reasonably well on the track relative to the performance they offered. Particularly if you can find them at a decent price.