Good tires for autocross and daily driving?

"Wrong Wheel Drive (41%)" (rduncan5678) 07/22/2015 at 14:08 • Filed to: None

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I am not planning on changing out my tires or doing any other mods to my car yet, but seeing as I am definitely going to do more autocrossing, I am at least considering better tires. Currently I am running pretty worn down all season tires so they are obviously not helping me much. I have snow tires for the winter so I am ideally looking for a good set of summers. My goal is to find something with decent wet/dry performance as well as decent longevity. If I am looking to do a fair amount of autocross, should I really be looking to have another set of wheels with dedicated tires? Or would something that works well for both be just fine. I plan to stay within ES class for as long as possible to improve my own skills.

CalzoneGolem > Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) 07/22/2015 at 14:17

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A complete set of wheels would probably be cheaper in the long run if you want to get some sticky tires.

SidewaysOnDirt still misses Bowie > Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) 07/22/2015 at 14:17

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Just keep using what you have until you wear them out or start posting consistent times. Seat time will make a bigger difference for the first year or so than tires or anything. As far as best for the tradeoff, there kind of isn’t one. The stickier the tire, the faster it will wear and the worse it will perform in the winter. Really, the best thing to do if you want some good tires and only have one car is to get a second set of wheels. Then you can put some Direzzas or something on it when needed and they’ll last a couple of seasons instead of being worn out in a few months. The best “normal” street tire I’ve used are Goodyear Eagle F1 Asymetrical, but the gap between that and a 200 TW tire is pretty huge.

The Real Dacia Sandero > Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) 07/22/2015 at 14:18

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Bridgestone RE-11A or Dunlop Direzza ZII Star Specs. The Star Specs are THE Miata performance tire, but, the RE-11A is a good choice too. The Star Specs will have more grip, but the RE-11A is a bit quieter and should last a bit longer from what I hear. Not sure on what you can run in your autocross class, but a 15x7 or 15x8 with a 205/50/15 is pretty much the standard for a stock powered Miata.

ADabOfOppo; Gone Plaid (Instructables Can Be Confusable) > Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) 07/22/2015 at 14:21

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Having a dedicated set of Auto-X wheels/tires is going to be best. Auto-X eats tires like kids eat Halloween candy.

If you are going to stick with only two sets of wheels, then I really like my Kumho Ecsta SPTs . I have run a few Auto-X events with them and they do well enough for a normal tire. They have been wearing very well also, this is my 4th year of summer duty with them and they could possibly go at least another year in terms of tread-ware, but are showing signs of age so I will have to replace them this fall.

Jayhawk Jake > Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) 07/22/2015 at 14:28

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Just get a second set of wheels with your tires. Depending on the car wheels really aren’t expensive.

I think my wheels were like $80/wheel. It's not chump change, sure, but having really good autocross tires is worth it

tromoly > Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) 07/22/2015 at 14:29

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Falken Azenis RT615K, from what I’ve been hearing are pretty decent, don’t have any personal experience with them so YMMV.

Justin Hughes > Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) 07/22/2015 at 14:33

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Unless you want to build a small Harbor Freight trailer for towing your race wheels and tools to the track behind your Miata (been there, done that), you’re probably best off getting some good summer performance tires that you can use for street and autocross. I know that goes against what others are saying, but since you’re just starting out, you’re not going to squeak out the extra fraction of a second a BFG Rival would give you just yet.

I’ve been running Michelin Pilot Super Sports on my BRZ. They’re definitely a real street tire, rather than a street legal autocross tire. They will be slower than the other suggestions. I haven’t gotten to any autocrosses yet this year, but I have several hours of track lapping across four events on them. The tires I had in the front are getting a little low on the sidewall (I rotated them to the back), but even they still have good tread on them. I even ran them at exactly the same pressure Subaru recommends for my car on the street, 35psi, since that resulted in the best wear on the track as well.

Autocross will be harder on tires than track use, since all you’re doing is turning, and turning harder than on the track, though at lower speeds. But I think they’d hold up just fine, especially on a light car like a Miata. When it’s time to replace mine I’ll have to reconsider my options, since I hadn’t planned on doing any track events when I chose them.

Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) > SidewaysOnDirt still misses Bowie 07/22/2015 at 14:42

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Yeah, I planned to stick with the current tires for this season and then after the winter, look for some better tires when I take the snows off again. Probably would like to just use the stock wheels but they are somewhat beat-up anyways. My snows are on smaller, narrower steelies so those will stay that way.

Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) > Justin Hughes 07/22/2015 at 14:45

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Do they make super sports in R16?

SidewaysOnDirt still misses Bowie > Jayhawk Jake 07/22/2015 at 14:46

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As a followup, I forgot that he has a Miata, which means 4X100. A second set of wheels should be buyable on CL for pennies.

Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) > ADabOfOppo; Gone Plaid (Instructables Can Be Confusable) 07/22/2015 at 14:47

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I just don’t know where I would put a third set of wheels lol. I have a pretty big walk in closet in my apartment but its already got my snow set in there. Keeping 8 tires in there would get a little crazy!

deekster_caddy > Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) 07/22/2015 at 14:48

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Michelin Pilot Super Sport. I have them on my DD and SO much fun. SO MUCH. Worth. Every. Penny.

(absolutely awful in the snow. If you live near snow, get snow tires for the winter months)

Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) > Jayhawk Jake 07/22/2015 at 14:50

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Cost is less of an issue than storage space is. I am definitely trying to go that route though. I would just keep a decent set of All seasons on for street driving and some of the best summer tires I could afford for dedicated auto-x duty.

Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) > Justin Hughes 07/22/2015 at 14:52

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This is also why I need to live in a house in the future. I don’t have anywhere to put a trailer (banned in my apartment complex) so that would not work too well. I could probably just change them at home though and drive the small amount of miles to wherever the auto-x is. I cant imagine something under 200 miles on the highway would really put much additional wear on them anyways.

Justin Hughes > Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) 07/22/2015 at 14:52

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*checks*

Heh. No. So forget what I just said. But something like them in a 16 should work.

jjhats > SidewaysOnDirt still misses Bowie 07/22/2015 at 14:53

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as mentioned two sets of wheels with tires is the best scenario for an autox car. I say find some summers on craigslist preferably with wheels. Miata wheels and tires are very cheap so anything that’s a summer performance should do wonders over no seasons. I bought my car used but the dealer put on shitty all season tires from capitol brand. they perform meh in snow and meh in dry so I kept telling myself why buy new tires when these work but ultimately I was unhappy and bought some pilot super sports off cl. haven’t autoxed them but anything is an improvement over the capitols. also its not a guarantee that stickier tires wear faster you need to research tires and see what works. the pilots have a 30k warranty and are considered to be very sticky. the eagle f1 are toast after 15k so it pays to research but I highly advise finding lightly used on crasigslist prolly toyos or hankooks

Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) > The Real Dacia Sandero 07/22/2015 at 14:55

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Around how many miles street driving would the star specs last? Or would I want them to be dedicated to auto-x only? If I did that, how many days of auto-x should they last through?

Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) > CalzoneGolem 07/22/2015 at 14:57

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This makes the most sense to me. The cost of extra wheels plus the dedicated tires would probably be cheaper than repeatedly buying compromise tires. Now I just have to figure out how to store them..

Nonster > Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) 07/22/2015 at 14:57

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First question...Do you live where it gets cold?

If so, get a separate set of wheels with summer tires for Summer/AutoX then switch out for your winter/all seasons when it gets chilly and the race season is over or if you’re going on a long roadtrip.

I DD and autocross my MR2 on Dunlop Direzzas (I park her when the white fluffy stuff starts falling from the sky). With a stickier summer tire and regular track/autox use you’re going to go through tires faster, but I’ve been running the same set for a 2 years now and they’re still ok. Light, less powerful cars like miatas or my MR2 are pretty nice to their tires.

Check the rules and see what tires are legal, but I’ve been very happy with the Direzzas but my next tires will be some Hancook RS3’s or full race slicks.

SidewaysOnDirt still misses Bowie > Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) 07/22/2015 at 15:00

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I drove my Direzza ZII*s for about 12k miles on the street. They were extremely bald at the end of that and downright dangerous in the rain.

SnapUndersteer, Italian Spiderman > Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) 07/22/2015 at 15:00

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Michelin Pilot Super Sport... nothing is better at both at the same time while keeping solid longevity

I just did a National Autocross on them on a Mustang, and everybody in my class was surprised how close I got to the ultra competitive crop of Bridgestone RE71Rs

CalzoneGolem > Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) 07/22/2015 at 15:01

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Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) > Nonster 07/22/2015 at 15:02

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I have dedicated snow tires on steelies already for the winter. I am looking to avoid having three sets of wheels if possible lol. Yeah if I can get 3 years out of a set doing both autocrossing and daily driving, then I would be pretty content. I plan to move out to Cali in like 2 years anyways so I cant bring a ton of wheels with me lol.

Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) > Justin Hughes 07/22/2015 at 15:03

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Yeah, I will gladly go smaller to R15, but Im not putting anything bigger on a Miata. The 16s already look huge haha.

Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) > deekster_caddy 07/22/2015 at 15:06

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Yup my General Altimax Arctic tires are great for the cold stuff, my Miata becomes a snowmobile. I would love to get the super sports but I don’t think they make them small enough for a Miata.

Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) > SnapUndersteer, Italian Spiderman 07/22/2015 at 15:15

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Yeah I would have to go 205/45 R17 as the smallest size super sports come in. And at $175 a tire that is getting pricey for a Miata. Not sure if 17s will even fit actually.

Justin Hughes > Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) 07/22/2015 at 15:15

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15 is a good Miata size, though it’s difficult to find many modern performance tires in anything smaller than 17 these days - never mind the 14s of my old NAs.

Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) > CalzoneGolem 07/22/2015 at 15:16

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The only way I could keep one of those would be to rent out storage someplace. I imagine regular storage units would fit one of those and aren’t too expensive.

Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) > SidewaysOnDirt still misses Bowie 07/22/2015 at 15:19

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First place I have looked is CL, but haven’t found decent ones yet. May check some forum classifieds as well since those are more reliable.

SnapUndersteer, Italian Spiderman > Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) 07/22/2015 at 15:21

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go for 225/45/15 on a 15x9 wheel.... BF Goodrich Rival. that tire wears like iron

Nonster > Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) 07/22/2015 at 15:25

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shoot, if you already have a set of winter tires, the just get some summer tires for summer dd and autoX. done and done

Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) > SnapUndersteer, Italian Spiderman 07/22/2015 at 15:32

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I don’t know if 15x9 would fit the car though. BF Goodrich Rival did look like a good option on tirerack though.

Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) > Justin Hughes 07/22/2015 at 15:34

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Yeah, newer cars always seem to have big tires. I am fine with sticking with 16 since it is the stock size but that seems to give me even less options haha. I think I should propose this question to Miata.net (or just search old threads).

MarquetteLa > Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) 07/22/2015 at 15:37

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I have Bridgestone Potenza RE760 tires on my Miata for daily driving. Before I picked up a second set of wheels for autox, I raced on the RE760s as well as dailied them. It’s a great tire that has lots of grip. I think I’m on my third set of them now. I have about 20k miles (all street miles, but I drive it pretty hard) on my current set and I’ll be changing them come spring.

Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) > jjhats 07/22/2015 at 15:39

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Something that can reliably last 30k would be perfect for me. That would probably be around 3 years which is good for me. Maybe I really should consider throwing 17s on my Miata. But that might make the car slower than it already is.

jjhats > Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) 07/22/2015 at 15:49

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they don’t make super sports in 16 and I don’t think 17 either. I only bought them because they were used and cheap otherwise they are more expensive than almost every other tire you can buy. just search craigslist or buy 100 bucks dunlops.

Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) > MarquetteLa 07/22/2015 at 15:56

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What size are you running and on what wheels? That sounds somewhat ideal to me.

SnapUndersteer, Italian Spiderman > Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) 07/22/2015 at 16:14

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they will fit the car easily... do it

MarquetteLa > Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) 07/22/2015 at 16:14

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205/45R-16 on my stock 16x6.5” wheels.

Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) > MarquetteLa 07/22/2015 at 16:23

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Oh nice, that would be an exact fit for me then too haha. I might want to plastidip my wheels or something first though since they aren’t in the greatest looking condition.

MarquetteLa > Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) 07/22/2015 at 16:37

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Plastidip the wheels after the tires are installed. Otherwise the installation will likely damage the plastidip.

Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) > MarquetteLa 07/22/2015 at 16:55

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Good point. I may try to have them properly repaired but that might be expensive..

The Real Dacia Sandero > Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) 07/22/2015 at 17:45

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I hear around 15k miles is what a lot of Miata drivers get out of them. The thing with extreme summer tires is that the compound only really lasts about 2 years before it goes hard. I’m not sure what kinda mileage you do, but for me with a winter setup that would be about 1.5 years out of the tires. I’m about to get BFG Sport Comp-2 tires for my new NB. I’d like to go with Star Specs, but cost is an issue right now. For me, I might get an autocross day or two in for the duration of these tires, and I could hang with people on summer tires on most of the drives I did with my previous Miata that was on all seasons. So the extra grip of the Star Specs is not necessary for me right now. Also, Star Specs and the like should really never be driven in temps in the low 40s and below. Where I am in VA, there are plenty of days that get that cold at night/evening, but without snow or ice on the roads. I want to be able to take advantage of using my summer set on non snow days.

CalzoneGolem > Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) 07/23/2015 at 07:54

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You could also use the storage unit as a sort of proto garage for wrenching in.

Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) > CalzoneGolem 07/23/2015 at 08:02

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I bet my Miata could fit in a storage unit pretty easily. Wonder if anyone has tried that? But realistically the cheapest I have found is like $45 a month, which is not something I am looking to spend just to store tires. At that point something like the Bridgestone Potenza RE760 would probably work really well for me instead.

CalzoneGolem > Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) 07/23/2015 at 08:03

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I’ve seen cars stored in storage units before. One I drive past advertises for storing motorcycles.