I am finally going to go with a set of summer tires over ultra high performance all seasons and was wondering about the FK452 vs the RT615. I know they are completely different types of tires but I am wondering if the RT615's are too much tire for a street car. I will be doing a few autocrosses a year but streat use mostly. Would the FK452 be a better choice for my use.

Or are there some better tires (same price or cheaper) for my use. I currently am using the Falken 912's and they are okay but for a crappy all season I might as well get a mild winter tire and summer tires.

 

i use the RT615 at the track, they are good on the street but they take some time to warm up

 

RT 615s are great, just be prepared to replace them often, that is the price you pay for soft sticky tires.

Bill

 

The 615s have a wear rating of 200 and the 452s are 300. If mainly street driving I would suggest something with a higher wear rating than 200 if you do not want to replace tires every 10,000 miles. Maybe even a different brand tire that is in-between the two. There are quite a few good tires available with a 280 rating. For example, I have Toyo T1Rs that perform well but have a 280 rating (but you can not exactly compare ratings between brands). I should get about 18,000 miles from the set.

 

You cant compare wear ratings between manufacturers only within, so you comparison between the Fk and RT is valid but not the Falken to Toyo.

I would also look at the Hankook RS-2, one of my local MINI enthusiasts autocrosses on them and likes them a bit more than the Falkens, they also are a better wet weather tire based on the research I have done.

I would seriously consider the Dunlop Star Spec, a local GP owner, who also happens to be a major track junkie, really likes them as a street tire. The Tire Rack also tested them agaist the Hankooks I just mentioned and they performed much better. Good price too.


Maybe it is just me, but I have been researching summer tires lately and I have slowly changed what i was looking for. At first I was looking for a tire that offered excellent dry weather handling for minimum dime, that was basically the Falken. I then realized, that I do drive my car in adverse conditions quite a bit, which lead me to the RS-2's due to their somewhat better wet handling. Just a week ago I realized that most of the tires I have been looking at offer far more grip than I can safely take advantage of on the street. That isnt to say that having excess grip in reserve is bad, it isnt, it just means that in my book I wont be compromising quite as much on wet handling and may even take ride comfort into acount simply because I cant go fast enough safely on the street to really take advantage of a hardcore summer tires full potential. That brought me over to the Dunlop Star Spec, which looks very promising but I am still doing research into.

I am in a situation similar to you actually, I AutoX but having a tire that is still capable for all the varied conditions you see on day to day driving is important. I have actually been using me Nokians as an AutoX tire (always gets a few laughs) and even these seem to be fairly capable in the right hands, not top of the class but I am not way behind the competition either.

 

I am running 615s on my BMW 2002 DD and they are great, but they do wear quickly. I will be lucky to get 20K out of them. Cannot compare to the FKs as I have never tried them.

I did, however, just purchase some ZE-912s for the MINI that I have yet to install. They will replace the worn Goodyear GSD F1s which are awesome but wear quickly like the 615s.

Good Luck,
Mike

 

I have the 912s... they are a huge compromise in all aspects IMHO. Winter driving basically non existent with them other than being okay when the temp drops. Summer driving adequate for spirited street driving but not much more.

 

Nitto Innvos would fit the bill perfect, but unfortunatley not many MINI friendly sizes.