Duh nevermind, they don't go bigger than 18s.
Maybe look at the GT Radial Champiro UHP1 if you're wanting to pinch pennies and still get a decent tire. Been seeing some good reviews out of them. Probably not as fast as the RS3, but way cheaper. I found 255/35-19 for $456 shipped. Bet 225s or 235s would be cheaper.
I don't understand your comment about not caring if the tires you're running fit within the rules
just like we didn't run RA 1's in ST we now don't run Federal's in ST … just like we don't use sphericals in ST … etc … etc …
SRSBZNS or not … it doesn't take much to play by the rules … regardless of whether I'm near the top, or coming in DFL
if you're really set on running 140 TW tires, then move on to SP class … no one will care what tire you're on then
and some of the locals/regionals can, and are just as competitively serious as nationals
RS3v2 are a good choice. I wouldn't get the "cheater EPS" tires (RE71R or Rival S) unless you're seriously competing and not driving with those tires on the street, as they'll wear down fast.
Hell, I ran Cooper Cobras for 3 years, working on the car and the driver. Then, when I was within 1.5 seconds of my class leader, I got some R-comps. Surprise!
they are a revelation aren't they … the things one can do with a car shod with R-comps is just amazing
What are good tires if you are relatively new to autocross and also want decent performance in the rain as a DD. Looks like I have a possible move soon to Seattle.
The Dunlop Direzza ZII Star Spec is maybe only a smidge off the top tires and is still pretty good in the rain at good tread depths. I think its rain performance starts to fall off as it gets worn down while it still has some life in it in the dry.
A lot of people recommend the Continental DW as a good rain tire and it is, but in my opinion it's not good enough in the dry and any camber challenged car will chunk the hell out of them on a hot day.
My Kumho XSs seem to be holding up okay in the rain, at about 3/32. I've never autocrossed on them, but like I said earlier, if you're a beginner, you should probably just get a good street tire, then try to learn to drive on it. There is way more work to do on the driver at this point in your career.
In reply to Rufledt:
"in typical noob fashion I plowed a few cones "
You might have entered the turn coasting, which causes understeer due to insufficient loading of the front tires. Brake later and harder, then taper off of the brakes slowly as you bend into the turn. Pretend as if theres a string tied between your rising hand and your foot. That way you get weight on the nose and blend it smoothly from braking to cornering without losing traction.
Kind of leaning toward the BFG Comp 2 tires as they have good reviews on this site and others for being good in the rain and ok for autocross. Plus they are cheap. The Eagle GT's currently on the Miata aren't cutting it after I spun the car in a traffic circle when it was raining. At least the wife was in the car and she immediately demanded that they be replaced. If I had known that's all it took to get new tires...
In reply to Groats: I would go with those tires. I may need to go to them if my Civic needs tires.
again I'll remind/point out … it really depends on what you want/expect from the tire
if DD and wet road safety, then one thing … if a-x performance then another ….
if not serious about a-x performance (the "I just want to have fun, I don't care if I'm fast or not")
then Comp 2 will probably be fine … but for med to high level a-x satisfaction then there are pretty well mapped routes … starting at the bottom with the Falken's and getting to the top with the Rival S and the Bridgestone (both of which seen to do quite well on wet tracks … this is not to say that they would be good at high speed on the highway in standing water) … but then not much is … if speed is high enough or water is deep enough then hydroplaning will happen, regardless of the tire
example: F1 on super wets will still hydroplane
And also remember that if you autocross a lot then you may actually get better wear out of a lower treadwear tire because they can handle the heat and abuse better. My Dunlop Direzza ZII's look great after ~70-80 runs while my Michelin PSS were all chunked to hell.
Yes, autocross chews up your average tire, even max performance tires. Extreme performance tires do a lot better in terms of wear from autocross. The Goodyear Eagle F1 Asymmetric IIs that came on my Focus ST looked way worse after two events than my Hankook RS3s do after ten or so.
that was sorta my point … if a-x is just for fun … and not pushed all that hard … doesn't much matter … but if at all serious about the a-x then get tires FOR a-x … an extra set of rims, swap at home, do the event, swap back …..
just like winter driving … the correct tires for the job
First off, I had a set of BFG G-Force KDW2s, and they were phenomenal in the rain. Like, throwing water over the car next to me, still dead stable phenomenal. I autocrossed on them some, and they were okay.
A word of advice for autocrossing on your street tires: run the fronts at extremely high pressure. I run a Fox Chassis Ford (Fairmont), so it's camber/body roll challenged, so I ran 45 or so PSI. It kept the tires from rolling over so bad, and protected the edge of the tread. Maybe it wasn't the fastest setup, but it definitely kept tire wear at a more reasonable level.
I think the Comp-2's punch above their weight. I was more than competitive, even winning most of the time, my local STC class last year on them. Most everyone else that showed up was on the 200tw stuff and swapped rolling stock. I was about 2 seconds off a nationally competitive gods chariot STS CRX with a VERY unprepared car. The comp-2's are dirt cheap and have a $70 rebate through the 14th, so jump on it fast! Very good in the wet, too. I'm getting my second set installed today. They do like higher pressures, but don't like to be pinched on the wheel, so stay as conservative as possible on tire width for best response and grip. They're VERY comparable in grip to the Dunlop Z1 star specs I previously had. I did 205/50/16 Z1SS, then 225/50/16 Comp-2's( gave up too much sidewall response for no added grip, IMO), and now I'm going back to a 205/50/16 Comp-2 for a more responsive tire on a 16x7. I almost went with a 205/55/16 Conti DW(which has a $70 rebate going on through the end of July) but at this price point and availability, the Comp-2 was a better option. I DD my car, as well, and they're very comfortable and WAY quieter than the 200tw group. Plenty grippy of a tire for n00bs and take autox abuse very well if you don't over tire the wheel.
In reply to beans:
That sounds great to me. Going to order them today. Which would be better between the two: 195/55/15 or 195/50/15 for a 15x6.5 wheel? Preliminary research lead me to believe that 195/55/15 is the better choice, because they are slightly taller. But that's kind of a guess. I was kicking around the idea of star specs, but these would be about half the price with rebate and maybe saving shipping. I'd like to learn how to drive better than be faster, although being slower will probably make me cranky!
The taller tire will give you longer gearing and more tire squirm...6.5" is right between stretch and squeeze for a 195-wide tire, so the height of the tire will have almost no effect on the size or shape of the contact patch.
I'd do the 195/50/15's on a Miata.
Update for me, I went to an autox school yesterday and an event today and got pretty much the last bit of life out of my old tires. A lot of the fast cars had RS3's and every one of them said they loved the tire, great bang for the buck so those are going on this week.
Does anybody know a good alignment set up for an rx8? I hardly drive the thing so I dont mind a little more tire wear. I also noticed the outer half of pretty much all 4 tires was more worn even before the first event, so maybe a little more camber?
The glen region people were all amazing and the school was super helpful, I think I ended up well into the top half of the pax results and I won my class because of that school. still not sure how Pax works exactly, but they said it was good so I didn't argue 
Nearly spun on the way home, though. It started pouring and things got really hairy on my worn out tires! Luckily I anticipated the problems and was driving very slowly, but it was still scary! Weird thing is the day was so nice and sunny I got burned despite constant sun screen application... I did get to see some carts spin around in the rain, though, so that was fun!
In reply to Rufledt: You're supposed to put summer rubber on your wheels before the are completely bald.
In reply to Mr_Clutch42:
To be fair, they weren't completely bald 2 days ago!
That autox school was great, literally dozens of runs, spent most of the day in the car. great seat time per dollar ratio, but I don't think the tires appreciated it!
PAX is the autocross version of a bowlers/golfers handicap …
it's based on a fully prepped (to the class) vehicle driven by a top tier driver, on a national tour type of course … really doesn't have much legitimacy when applied to small lots, with regional level drivers and under prepped vehicles
it's mostly for bragging rights where a driver of a HS car can claim to have out run a AM car … even if the HS car was 10 sec slower on the course
Try this alignment for your RX8:
http://www.rx8club.com/rx-8-racing-25/autocross-alignment-specs-88794/#post1347847
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