Are any tires better than stock tires?
 

I've been thinking about tires lately and I was wondering what the performance difference in grip and steering feel was with just a regular old summer tire vs the purposely slippery Prius tires we have. With the power the car has, I almost feel like a PSS or Ventus V12 is too much tire, and perhaps too much money. So, I'm curious if anyone out there has replaced the stockers with a normal, inexpensive summer tire and seen a big improvement. Let's talk cheap upgrades.

Not sure anybody has tried different tires much less wrote anything about them.
You may want to look through the tire section and see if anybody has a thought on tires.
http://www.ft86club.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=24

sumitomo htr a/s p02

I use Sumitomo HTR Z III they are 325 for a set of 4. It offers great grip but you can still break traction with stock power. I have about 40k miles on them and still plenty of tread left. There are lots of reviews on tirerack for the tire also. http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires....Z3XL&tab=Sizes

they are a great cheaper alternative to the michelin tires...still let's the car be playful and slide around a little yet still has great grip through the corners..better than the primacy i would say

I believe steering feel is going to be mostly affected by the tire width, so as long as you don't go wider than 235 (maybe 245 with some tires) steering feel should be generally the same regardless of tire.

Grip on the other hand ranges vastly. I was concerned about maybe having too much grip with the MPSS but since I pulled the trigger, I have never felt like I've had too much grip. Sure, it now takes some effort to get the back end out when it's dry, but if you know how to upset grip by flicking the steering wheel at the right times, it's still possible. In the wet I feel like I now have control over when the back end steps out, whereas before sometimes the stockers would take themselves for a walk when I wasn't necessarily ready for it.

So if you are like me and enjoy grip driving as well as drifting occasionally, I would recommend the PSS.

Keep in mind formula drift drivers are setup with rear grip bias - the grip makes drifting more controllable.

LOL!!

If you're wanting more grip then yea a budget summer tire like the Ventus V12 will be a massive improvement. I switched to them after the stock Primacy's were done. Grip was honestly the right balance for the power I was making at the time (NA bolt ons, E85). Wet performance was ok at best once they started to wear down. But otherwise they are pretty decent for the price on a NA twin (stock or modded).

I then switched to the Hankook S1 Noble (All-Season) to see how they performed compared to a summer tire because I wanted better wet performance for cheap. Grip was good depending on the conditions. At times they were just as good as the V12 but the limits felt a step lower. But I figured there would be a trade off somewher. Wet was the biggest difference, very stable every type of wet conditions possible I came across.

PSS on the other hand is a different story if you have the budget. Grip and wet is very very good. You can't go wrong with them. I wouldn't say either is too much for the money.

:popcorn:

Conti DW is a good option and cheap right now too. Not the best turn in but a great compromise tire for sure.

Hankook V12 Evo has great turn in but isnt a clean when giving away (though not bad either). Depends what you like more.

There are a ton of options. Those are just what I have tried on the FRS

I guess we are going to go through it all again. Oh well have fun guys.

Whats your alignment specs? I had them on my STi and they got camber wear pretty bad

Yes all of them, i mean comeon........a PRIUS?....really

I have Z rated Pilots on mine and Z rated pilots will go back on it, from here on out, regardless of price. I don't buy tires by price i buy them by performance. I used to spend a grand on a set of tires for my mustang.