225/45/17 Michelin Primacy tires
 

Anybody tried these? More grip from the increased contact patch due to the additional width, maintain the fuel efficiency, and some of the fun tail sliding factor?

What kind of tires come on the series blue? Those are 17x7.5 wheels right?

The USDM Sti wheels on the series blue are 17x7 like the regular wheels. The JDM Sti 17's are 17x7.5. You can still run a 225 tire though, and many do. The sidewall will likely flex a little more making it a little less responsive. Most people won't buy primacies though once they see that Pilot Sport A/S 3's and Pilot Super Sports are both cheaper, and a far better tires.

Hear, hear! Listen to TheVoiceOfReason :D

I'm listening! I'm listening!!!

The pilot super sports have been the plan from before I bought the car. I was just considering an option that would give a bit more grip but not require a monumental effort to break traction or 'over tire' the car with stock power levels as I have no plans on modifying the power train.

Thanks for the info. I tried to :search: but I couldn't find the exact specs. What I found was on a forester forum.

http://www.subaruforester.org/vbulle...-black-256970/

Let me know if that link works. I'm still figuring out how to post links and photos on here.

It's really not hard to break pilot super sports free with stock everything else.

If I could recall, the primacys actually cost more than the PSS (go figure)

183 on Tire track - Primacy


139 on Tirerack - PSS
http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires....SSXL&tab=Sizes

Why spend the extra money and just get PSS :lol:

Yeah. I saw that a while back. I think it worked out to ~$740 for replacement stockers vs ~$570 for a set of mpss. It had me scratching my head to a bit but then i realized that the tech and purpose of each tire is different which is why the cost difference is so great.

Personally, I love bridgestones. But on this car they would weigh too much. If/when I change anything on the car, it's going to be for performance reasons and thus everything must be lighter if possible.

That's because of expected life. The Primacy is a 45,000 mile tire. The PSS is a 30,000 mile tire. The low rolling resistance of the Primacy means you're not leaving as much of it behind. Since the Primacy is expected to last 1.5 times as long, it costs more.

You'll notice that it doesn't cost 1.5 times as much as the PSS. The PSS is actually more expensive per mile than the Primacy. If you were shopping based on price rather than performance, the Primacy would be a better deal.

True, but this assumes the Primacy tires will make it to 45,000 miles as the warranty states. It would be interesting to note how many BRZ/FRS owners are actually getting 45K miles out of the Primacy tires. 30K on the PSS I believe is possible though, but of course mileage depends on multiple factors such as use, ambient temperature, surface conditions, proper inflation, etc.

Pilot sport A/S 3's are also are a 45k mile tire and are cheaper ($151). They have less grip than the PSS of course unless its really cold being an all season, but still have better specs in every other category than the Primacy exept maybe rolling resistance. I would still go PSS over them in a warm climate though, but my point is I think the Primacy tires get a premium because they are used as an OEM tire. 225/45/17 is listed for Audi and Mercedes on Tire Rack. Then there are our cars, the Prius, and likely more.

So you want to have a wider width for grip, but at the same time, your sidewall will be slightly higher, which may present an adverse effect on the responsiveness/sharpness of the steering as well as acceleration. You also increase the likelihood of the tires rubbing/striking against the edge of wheel fender if the car bottoms out (especially when turning). Another unwanted side effect is that it will make your speedometer readings even more inaccurate.

Not saying you can’t do it or if any of the above negative aspects have any real impact, but you may want to do a bit more research to see if there are other wheel/suspension mods you need to do to accommodate the wider tire.

Thanks for the reply. I know that once you go to greater than an 8inch rim width you have to be very careful about the offset you choose. But for a 7.5 inch width there should be enough clearance with no rubbing as long as you don't go for an extreme drop. At least that is what I've read on here. Please correct me if I'm wrong.

I have 30K on mine right now, and they still have plenty of tread left. Under normal driving conditions, I see no reason why these tires wouldn't get at least 45,000 miles.

Has anyone actually reported premature wear in normal use?