When to get new tires?

[ZionsWrath]

Hi, I have 3 HPDE days now on my stock tires. I took them off at maybe 5000 miles of easy street use so they are low miles in that regard.

See the pics below for reference.

I am going to a VIR event in a few weeks and was considering getting new tires but not sure. Also wondering should I get a stock size new tire or get a 225/45 on a 17x8?

Recommendation on tire itself? RS3? AD08R? My instructor at last event said he uses AD08R as rain tire (uses a slick in dry) and he recommended that for me if I bought new tires.

Brakes I am using Carbotech XP10 and RBF600 fluid on stock rotors, no issues/fade so far.

Any insight appreciated

Rear



Front

[7thgear]

those tires have ample life left in em

[Vracer111]

Replace when your tires look like this (if driven in the dry):



I'd stay with stock sized sticky tires, no need to go wider; you will have tons of stick and the responsiveness will be as good as you can get with 215/45-17 on an 8" wheel width. Hankook RS-3 or Kumho Ecsta XS would be a good first set.

I will say I'm loving my new Ecsta LE Sports in the rain (205/45-17 on 17x7.5 wheels) - finally downpoured here today so I could test them out! Never had a car feel so superior to all the other cars on the road in the rain, the FRS chassis and Ecsta LE tire combination is something else! Way more superior feeling in the wet than my brothers AWD Subaru Impreza RS on Hankook RS-2's...and the GRIP! These tires just hook up in the wet as aggressively as they do in the dry...they actually feel a little more at home in the wet than the dry!

[BRZZZZZZZZZZ]

I wouldn't replace those yet either, plenty of life left in them.

[Tt3Sheppard]

Look good to me run those things to the ground.

[wparsons]

Originally Posted by Arigh

I don't know how ZII's are for the track, but I'm in love with them for autocross. Significantly more grip and they're still driveable in rain/on the street.

ZII's are good on the track too!

[gabe0807]

I would run those at least down to the wear bars. You have a ton of life left.

As for what to try next, after the repeated recommendations on this board, I purchased a set of AD08Rs in 225/45/17 and they are exceptional. They give plenty of feedback and breakaway is easy to manage. I would say its a really easy tire to feel out the grip envelope. As another huge benefit, they handle heat way better than the stocks. On the Primacys, I was lucky to get two fast laps out of them before I had to take it a bit easier. On the AD08Rs, I will usually run into traffic before I have to let up because of the tires.

[n8dog11914]

I'll throw my hat in the ring for the Bridgestone RE11As. I daily, track, and autocross on them! They are great in the rain or dry. The dry performance is a step above the Michelin PSS but maybe a half step down from the Z2s or RS3s. They also ride very well compared to other extreme performance summer tires. Check them out!

[mav1178]

Tire Rack is your friend:

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tirete...jsp?techid=157

-alex

[tahdizzle]

If the rumors are true and the new Star Specs are available in November, thats when I'll be buying tires.

Just continue to wear down the rock hard primacies and be competitive next season :P

[DarkSunrise]

It looks like there is a ton of tread left on those tires, maybe 6-8/32". No need to replace.

I'd just run those until you wear them out, then upgrade. Doing track days on stock Primacys is a good way to learn.

[AFRichZC6]

Wear them out, cash in on the Michelin mileage warranty, and get some Pilot Super Sports. They're one category lower than the RS-3, ZII, R1R, Rivals, and AD08R, but if you can get a deal on Michelin PSS - why not?

[renfield90]

Originally Posted by DarkSunrise

Doing track days on stock Primacys is a good way to learn.

I don't think anyone else has made this point. If you don't care and just want to have fun, get some grippy tires. If you really want to learn how to drive right, stay on the Primacy as long as you can stand it.

Grippy tires will mask the mistakes you made, and what feels fast when you're still learning could actually be really slow. Crappy tires will force you to learn the fundamentals.

[7thgear]

Originally Posted by renfield90

I don't think anyone else has made this point. If you don't care and just want to have fun, get some grippy tires. If you really want to learn how to drive right, stay on the Primacy as long as you can stand it.

Grippy tires will mask the mistakes you made, and what feels fast when you're still learning could actually be really slow. Crappy tires will force you to learn the fundamentals.

Well, Zion's been around the forums long enough for us not to cliché him with that sort of rhetoric