Suggestions on tires.

[4drmadness]

hey guys, i am gona start looking for some tires soon. i have no clue about what brand to get, so here is where nico comes in. Im looking for lighter tires, basically high performace tires. how are the 04 350z trach wheels? I want to get something that is way better than the stocks. im thinking of just going with 18's, so what would you recommend. oh, cheaper the better. oh n less wheel gap.

pic of my current tires

[IMG][/IMG]

[smockers83]

Are you looking for tires or wheels?

The Z track wheels are 18" and quite light. Most light wheels are not going to be cheap.

[4drmadness]

im actually looking for tires only right now, and later on i will pick up some rims. thanks

[awdjdmtalon]

Tirerack.com, Discounttire.com

That is the best advice I can give you. They will list the weight of the tire as well as the diameter.

W/O a tire size to go off of, it will be hard to give advice.

And read the reviews of the tires as well.

[Sentientbydesign]

As you know, you can't put 18" tires on 17" rims. Also, I don't suggest you go with large diameter tires than stock as they will slow you down and make your tires look like doughnuts.

As such, you WILL NOT reduce wheel gap with any tire or wheel for that matter. Only suspension will do that and you are already low.

You might want to tell us what you have on the car right now (brand, model) so we can give you some good comparisons. I like the RE040s off of the Zs. They didn't last long, but they were SUPER sticky on my I30. Can't really compare that to a RWD engine that puts out 100+ more ft lbs of tq and 100+ whp either lol.

[joe603]

I love my Toyo Proxies!! 18k on them with about 50% tread left....my OEM tires were bald at 13k.

Oh, and the new tires out-perform the OEM tires. Traction is much better!

[4drmadness]

hmm can tony hook me up.lol

[4drmadness]

so if i wanna keep my black rims, then i need to go with the 17's

[etschell]

nitto nt555s

[Sentientbydesign]

Traction is much better!

When you say traction, do you mean wet traction or overall "stickiness"? I'd like to try something other than the bridgestones next time. The Ventus were nice, but definitely lost traction earlier than these beat up POS RE050A that I bought from a used tire place lol.

hmm can tony hook me up.lol

Probably not. Last time I checked, they didn't have anything.

[joe603]

Nate, the Toyo's were better in every condition compared to the bridgestones...

Jacko will confirm

[Sentientbydesign]

Sweet! I'll probably burn through the Bridgestones that I have now and put on the Falkens that are sitting on the side yard. Nittos will follow.

[tollboothwilley]

if you go with bridgestones, you have to use the re050A POLE POSITIONS

do not mistake these for the stock re050A's

completely different. These are what I'm running on my 19's.

I took them off for winter though. They are summer only. Too much snow here.

I'd go with those or with the Toyo Proxes TR1. If you are willing to sacrifice a little performance for longer tread life I'd get the Toyo Proxes 4's.

[tollboothwilley]

also, the Nitto INVOs are really nice. The tread just looks weird.

[toddnos]

so if i wanna keep my black rims, then i need to go with the 17's

your oem(stock) black rims are 17 inch rims, so it makes sense that your tire choice must also be 17 inch if you are planning to keep your black oem rims. I also like the toyo proxies that came on my 17 inch oem rims.

To run 18 inch tires, you need 18 inch rims. i would suggest a set of coupe rims. I have a set of 2004 coupe rims that are 18 inch chrome, and they are a perfect fit. especially with your very very slight drop. (although nate probably thinks your slammed...lol).

[tollboothwilley]

haha

"slammed" for sure

I dont want to go much lower than the drop i've got on my car right now because the sedan has a longer wheel base. I seem to scrape on some speed bumps and some entrances in/out of parking lots already. I don't want it to be much worse.

[kmckis1029]

+1 the Nitto INVOs will be my next tires... once the OEM tires wear out

i like the look and i have heard many people comment on how quiet they are on the highway... good rain traction also... we have a lot of rain in GA usually...

[4drmadness]

hahah slammmed. lol, but i wont go lower cause im scraping a bit coming in and out of driveways as well. how much did u pick up the coupe rims for? i might just do the same thing as you then.

[Jacko3]

4drmadness:

I use Toyo Proxes T1R on my G. And, I will never look back ever again. Excellent tires!!!! Dry or wet conditions, it makes no difference. Go back and search for the many write-ups under different conditions which I have used the Toyo Proxes T1Rs.

On straight line driving, it feels like any other tire, and in fact, the Bridgestone RE0050A tires maybe just as good on straightlines. The difference comes when you are in a curve or in the rain. The TOYO's in curves, make the Bridgestones look like a toy.

Ever since I bought the Toyo's I have been angrily asking myself why Nissan even considered the RE0050A to begin with.

My only technical explanation for the choice of the Bridgestone RE0050 is that it is more predictable, in a linear sense, than the Toyos. I certainly think a neophyte will have a hard time being comfortable with the Toyos at first, when compared to the Bridegstones. Bridgestones are good for starters. Toyos are for experienced hands who want a non-linear approach to driving, where the tire is literally thinking on the fly as you whizz by that curve at good speeds, while other cars stare in amazement and wonder how that just happened. No car, V-8 or not, has smoked me on my secret track till date. This si the only terrain that I am king.

If you are in touch with your car, and how it behaves, please, buy the Toyo Proxes T1Rs---it will keep you safe on curves and in the rain, even at over 17,000 miles of use. I flog my car all the time and my rear tires, as at last weekend were at 6/32 at 17,000 miles of use. The fron ones are good to go for another 6 months or more.

In a curves at high speeds, you will feel the Toyos sliding, but you must not flinch as its sliding behavior is an attempt by the tire to find the right grip and angle to continue to power you ahead. This is what the Bridgestones never did for me on my secret track---it was too linear in its appraoch to grip. On a race track, with windy roads, you don't want a tire with linear characteristics---they can be dangerous, especially if you don't have many starightways to open up the car. You want a tire with a non-linear character. This is where drag racing differs form track racing. In drag racing you want a tire with linear characteristics. In track racing you want a tire with non-linear charcteristics. I can't explain it, until you have driven both tires under the same conditions.

[4drmadness]

hey jacko thanks for the review. that is basically what i need in a tire. after installing the sway bars and getting lowered, ive been driving much faster on curves, but i still feel that my tires could give up. so ill be looking into the toyp proxes. question : where should i buy it from? how much to buy it for? where to get it? are these 18's?

[tollboothwilley]

jacko, i know you said you'll never look back but you should try the re050A pole positions. A TOTALLY different tire from the re050a. the pole positions have excellent rain traction and are almost impossible to break loose...

[CYO44Baseball32]

Get Vredsteins, great tire for real cheap. I got 275/30/19 on my rears and the grip is unreal in dry and wet. Plus they got a sick tread pattern I paid $169 a tire for these. One for you should be about $125 a tire. My buddy has them on his turbo G and he used to spin through 3rd now he just chirps 1st and 2nd.

Here you go, order from here

http://www.performanceplustire...nchor

[joe603]

This is where I bought my Toyos:

http://www.tiredeals4less.com/index.cfm

[RED_DET]

Do you want High perf summer tires or High perf all season tires?

High Perf Summer tires using oem tire sizes of 215/55/17:

Yokohama S drives

High Perf All season tires using oem tire sizes of 215/55/17:

Yokohama Avid V4S

Kumho Escta ASX's which I run on my aftermarket wheels because I got a good deal. Happy with them so far but for the tire sizes I need 245/40 and 275/35 I can't complain because I only paid 300 dollars.

Now if you want more tire choices, a different size tire will help, especially with the 17's.

235/50/17 tire recommendations:

High perf summer:Michelin Pilot sport PS2 (aren't cheap poor tread wear)

Yokohama ADVAN sport (same as the Pilot Sports)

Yokohama S Drives (cheaper and better tread wear)

High perf all season:

Bridgestone Potenza RE960AS Pole Position (hands down as reviews go the best all season tire out there)

Yokohama ADVAN S.4. (almost identical views as the Potenza, just a bit cheaper, flip a coin and choose here)

My recommendation, choose one of the last two, yes they are all season tires, but there performance is rated higher than any of the high perf summer tires listed. Just go to tire rack and check out the specs. My next set of tires for the wifes car will be either one of those two.

[Sentientbydesign]

(although nate probably thinks your slammed...lol).

This is what I dream about (sometimes).

[tollboothwilley]

you're in SoCal though... I dont think you'll need an all-season tire

I would wait til you get new rims and then it just depends on how much you are willing to spend for the tires.

[toddnos]

hahah slammmed. lol, but i wont go lower cause im scraping a bit coming in and out of driveways as well. how much did u pick up the coupe rims for? i might just do the same thing as you then.

i paid 250 for them from a good friend with tires., he had them sitting in his garage and he sold his coupe so he didnt need them. look on craigs list or something.

[RED_DET]

but why buy the summer tire when the all season tire out performs it in every category and cost less...

[4drmadness]

hey thanks for the break down man. im gona decide between Yokohama ADVAN S.4. and the toyo proxes. whichever i find cheaper. lol

[SVTCOBRA]

I have Yoko Avids on the wifes G sedan and my daughter's 00 Max and love them.Also, have the Yoko S-Drive on the G coupe and they have been performing very well. I don't push mine as hard as others - I lean into the curves a bit and enjoy some WOT launches!!!