Decision time approaches this week for new street and occasional AX/small track use tires. There is no perfect tire for my 94 Corvette due to where I Iive and the dirt-road commute to the pavement (and size availability), so I have to make the dreaded compromise. Other candidates are Exsta XS and R1R, I have lots of info on these from Tire Rack and real, live users, but the Falkens aren't available from TR, so I don't get the nice consumer reviews, and most of the online reviews are from drifters YO and general street racer types. Any comments on real-world street use and track use of the Azenis (and R1R, for that matter) tires will be appreciated. Please don't suggest Dunlops, Yokos or RE-11s because they don't make a suitable size for a C4 with 17-inch rims. I know I'm not going to get the absolute trick tire, that's OK, I'm not going to National Tours or anything like that, just local events. Thanks.
And yes, I've read all of the GRM tire tests.
I haven't had the K, but I have had multiple sets of the regular RT-615, and they were my favorite street / AX tire until the Hankook R-S3 came out (check out sizing for those). They had great feedback and traction (even in the wet when at full depth) and got up to temp quick. They did tend to overheat a little in the summer. I got good mileage out of them, too. FWIW, the K is the current tire of choice for all 200TW AX classes, especially the Goodguys / Optima / Pro Touring events.
I would check out sizing on the new BFG Rival though. It's supposed to be head-and-shoulders above the current best tires, which are better than the K's. Being an American company with slants towards domestic cars, I'd be surprised if they didn't have tires in your size. The next set I buy will be these.
Ive had rt215's
rt615's
and rt615k's.
strangely, i still miss the 215's. I think its because they were $50 each for a size thats over $100 now in 615k.
anyways... i like em alright on a daily. Not for much more than that. i went to NT01's, and they make the falkens seem greasy.
I have a set of the old 615's on my Miata that are at the end of their life. I've never really cared for them. The grip is good, but not what I was expecting- not a great leap over the many other summer tires that I've used that were supposed to be rung down on the grip ladder. I think it is because they gave me very little feedback. They were very reactionary, and let lose with little to no warning. No noise, no change in feel, just grip, grip,- slide. They caught me off guard on more then one occasion when I wasn't even pushing the car very hard. The redeeming part was that I could drive like a hooligan at low speeds without calling much attention to myself. Silent wheel spin and power slides. Clutch kick u-turns don't even raise an eyebrow. I'm told the K's are better, I hope they are a lot better.
Ecsta XS can give you lots of grip deep in a corner but generally aren't that great otherwise. I think the Rival or RS3 might be a better choice for a mixed-use tire.
We ran them back to back (vs. Star Specs) on our track day RX7 and our Lemons Chevy Malibu (different occassions).
The azenis get greasy quickly. Overall lap time was slower with the Azenis.
What about the new BFG Rivals? Do they make them in your size?
Rob R.
Nope, need a 285/40-17 or 275/40-17 for the rears. Not available in the Dunlops, Hankooks or Rivals.
For thaose sizes you'll have the Nitto NT05, the aforementioned Falken Azenis 615K, Kumho Ecsta XS, and the Pirelli P-Zero Systyem on the sticky/AX-focused 140-200TW side.
At the 300TW more street-geared, but still great tires, there's the Falken FK453, Cooper Zeon RS3-S, BFG GForce Sport Comp 2, BFG T/A KDW NT, Michelin PS2, and the Nitto NT555.
Or if you want to get really nuts, there's the 100TW Nitto NT-01...
How much track grip do you want for how little tread life?
I ran the Azenis 615K on my E36 M3 before recently switching to a set of BFG Comp Sport 2.
The Falkens have pretty impressive dry grip, and offer good feel, but the tradeoff is they are very loud, and suck in the rain. In Florida where torrential downpours are frequent they could be downright dangerous--- especially when dealing with standing water.
The Comp Sport 2 doesn't offer nearly the grip of the 615K, but they are a good compromise for a DD. They are silent compared to the Falkens, and are perhaps the best rain tire I've ever used. AMAZING in the wet stuff. They also offer nice progressive breakaway characteristics. You will give up a lot of grip compared to a more aggressive compound like the Falkens though. You can autocross the BFG's and even track them.....but don't expect to be fast.
We ran 14" 615's and 615K's on our LeMons car. Wear was decent, heard no noise ('course with a gutted interior and etc might be hard to tell) but as noted they did get greasy when hot. Not dangerous greasy, just not as sharp as when cold.
On damp and wet (shiny) pavement I didn't notice any appreciable change in grip but in a torrential downpour oh yes. Of course the track was flooded probably 3" deep. too.
I really like my XSs. They grip better in the wet than the summer toyos did in the dry. To be fair to the toyos, the PO had them siped which I'm sure didn't help them.
