Better shave them down or take it easy if you're gonna use them on the track. Track use with full tread tires almost always causes chunking.

 

one day of varied driving today, and all i can say is wooohoo!! at the risk of sounding like a silly ninnymuggins i have to say the difference vs the all season runflats is amazing! smoother and much grippier. same noise. to me, less harsh ride. turn in is way quicker. they are about 3/4 inch wider than the stock runflats. i have an autocross tomorrow so i should have more for review later. meanwhile here's something to show the gap, tread, width...

 

Love to hear how they felt today at your autocross?!

 

the tires were great. it was my first autocross, so i was the rate limiting factor. if i performed as well as the tires i would have done much better! i got loose a couple of times....always came right back...nothing hairy.... usually because of my line. next autocross is 2 weeks away! i learned a lot and had a great time. i also think more air would have helped vs. street driving (i didn't bring air). so i'll post in a couple of weeks with rain and more track info.

 

Picked up a set on Thursday from Tire Rack in 205/50/16 on 16 x 7 Ultraleggeras. Much thanks to Alex and the pit crew.

It was raining the whole trip back to Cincinnati by way of Columbus and I found them to be pretty good at 55-70 mph through standing water. I had 1 DSC engagement driving through a puddle in a depression at the edge of the road at around 60 mph. I would still be very careful driving on these in a decent downpour once the tread starts to fade. Strangely, after 400+ miles driving through puddles, the sidewalls were bone dry when I got home .

The sidewalls are really stiff. They feel a little stiffer than the Falken RT-215 I had used on my R32 (dealing with more weight there though). Great for all out performance driving, but maybe a little stiffer than I want for daily driving. Expansion joints make a distinct "pop" sound and the tires sing pretty noticeably on some graded concrete roads. I haven't noticed any tram lining so far.

The ride is really good, communicative, but not jarring unless you hit something large. Major road surface imperfections (falling edges, truck ruts, small pothole, etc.) seem to take real concentration to avoid pulling towards them, especially mid-turn . I noticed this with the demos I'd driven though, so I think the slight bouncy-ness of the R56 dampers is a contributing factor.

Dry grip is phenomenal for a street-able tire. It takes a whole lot to get them to screech or slide. I have managed to break the rear loose by a degree or two a couple of times on switchbacks and they feel pretty progressive as they give up.

 

these tires look like a great deal, looks like i found my next compound to try!

 

god why can't we get any good tires in 215/40. stupid oz ul's and their 37 offset... i hate not being able to buy 215/45's. sigh... time to go wheel shopping.

edit... the star specs are available in 215/40/17.... effin woot!

 

I had them on the track this weekend. They took a beating in temps getting into the upper 80's and they performed like a champ! Felt very much like a true R-compound, gave good feedback, did not skid in heavy braking (with track-level brake pads), and did not get greasy. Still have a good amount of tread on them and they wore relatively evenly by the end of the weekend. They had a little of the the Toyo RA-1 "sawblade" effect across the tread bands, but not bad at all. I really like these tires!

 

i really like 'em too. good news and bad news. it's rained just about every weekend since my last autocross...so i have no further autocross input. however, i have a petty good feel for what they're like in wet conditions. they're good, not great. definitely better than the all season runflats (duh)....but not up to par with the bridgestone re-01 pole positions (again, duh). on dry, i feel they're pretty even with the re-01's. so, i'd say that if you don't have the dough for the bridgesone's, these are the tires for you!

btw, still quiet with great traction and turn in. i have no regrets

 

Our test should be up within 2 weeks. I have the wet track drive on Friday,
I will post my impressions.

JMO - Star spec's had the best ride quality in our road test.

contenders are:

Dunlop Z1 Star Spec

Bridgestone Re01R

Yokohama Advan AD07

Hankook Ventus R-S2

 

Those might be too big for you - Just a heads up. I am running those on my TD PR1 with the same offset and they rub in the rear.

Good luck, nice tires

 

ooo looks like an interesting comparison, i am looking forward to the results, mind posting here again when it is up?

 

That should be quite a read - I look forward to it.

Thanks,

Charlie

 

Will they ever be available in 205/50-15?

 

Sure will!

Alex

 

Well, Hankook is the only one making that size now.

Bridgestone has 195/50/15

Dunlop has 195/55/15

Yokohama has only 16's (OE Lotus) and larger.

I don't have any info on size linup expansions from anyone of these, Possibly next spring when they usually expand sucessful lines.

Alex

 

I 'spect you know that the Toyo R1R is finally out in that size, right?

It appears some folks pick the R1R or the RE01R depending on course and temperature (e.g. Andy Hollis) so it cannot be that bad...

 

I'm trying the Kooks for the first time @ Mid-Ohio Mon and Tues.....if the Stones are anything like the S03PPs used to be I'd love 'em. Hope they expand their line....

Gary

 

How are everyones Z1's holdin' up?Mine have only been on about 3000 miles and they are going bye bye quick.Man !!The 1st month was like driving an F1 car(for handling)....just wish they'd last longer.

 

I just took mine off to put on the snows about 2 weeks ago. After 2800 miles and 3 auto-x events they still look pretty good. The fronts have some outside wear, which I hope to remedy next year with camber plates. I usually run them at around 38-42 psi for auto-x and 36-38 for the street.

At auto-x with 42-43 psi hot the chalk was worn to about 2 to 3 mm above the sidewall wear arrows and at 38-40 psi hot the chalk was to the wear arrow or a little below. I am running them a little higher on the street in hoping they last longer.

I am new to auto-x so may not always be driving to the limit on turns (or way over the limit) but I am having fun and learning allot with these tires.

 

i was pretty amazed at how well mine have held up. got 8k on them with some good tread left (2 autocross, 3 track days, rotating every 3k). this is a wonderful revelation after going through tires like crazy with my m3...those big rear tires are spensive!

as a side note, i put the oem all season runflats on last week. they are quieter than the z1's, but are sooo mushy handling by comparison. the z1's are now in the basement awaiting their meeting with my christmas gift....oz allegeritas! (i was pretty good this year )