Mk3 Focus needs tires, which ones?

Hanging on the wear bars, time to get a new set of shoes.

It's got some cheapo Falkens on it which make it hard to autocross (well, really, the driver needs a LOT of improvement, but lets blame the tires...), and they didn't last that long either, I thought they were a 40k mile rated tire.

I want decent grip for auto-x, but decent wear so I'm not (necessarily) replacing them next year. Figure 25-30k miles for wear (which is "ok", it's what I got out of the "40k mile" tire...).

Price range I'd like to be at $120/tire or lower for price.

So, from the following, which are good alternatives?

S drives - I have these on the Miata, and they're pretty good, but they did heat up when my boy and I drove the car in the same run group.

The rest of these, I have no idea on.

BFG Sport Comp 2

Nitto NT555s

Toyo Proxes T1 Sport (guy at discount recommended)

Hankook/Kuhmo make anything? I thought they used to have good stuff?

Continental Extreme Contact DWs, Tire rack has some on sale, some on Focus Fanatics liked them (which may not be saying much, most consider plasti-dipping the wheels a cool mod).

My vote is for the BFG Sport Comp-2. There is a reason they are in the #1 survey slot for UHP summer tires on Tire Rack. I have them on my (still street legal) Escort track car for street use (I use Rivals for big track). They are astonishingly grippy at at wide range of tire temperatures on the street, and hold up extremely well as long as you do not exceed 205*F tread temp for Auto-X and track day use (this temp figure comes directly from a BFG employee who tracks his cars. You REALLY need to invest in a proper probe-type tire pyrometer). I also use them on my Miata, which I rarely run a HPDE with, but they are just excellent when I do, fun-running at 7/10 to 8/10. Also, for street use their wet grip and hydroplaning resistance are amazing, to the point that these tires have more wet grip than even the finest "high performance" all-season tires have in the dry. In the dry, they are so sticky that I have not been able to even approach their traction limits on the street, and I have tried; I would have to corner at WAY above any in-town posted speed limits to even get any noise out of them. The Sport Comp-2 is just that good. From my own experience they are the finest compromise for a dual-purpose street/intermediate skill level auto-x tire. And that's my .02.

I wouldn't go with the Conti DW sidewall is a little soft.

Another option would be the Cooper Zeon RS3-A tires that were OEM on the MK3 Focus for a while. My wife loves them on her Focus. They seem to be wearing well and are still grippy in the corners. A downside is that Tire Rack doesn't sell them (but your local Ford dealer does). You could probably get them cheaper from an independent tire store though.

I've seen other posts about the Sport Comp-2 having good reviews, and I might take the plunge on those.

Several of the online retailers also had Coopers on the site, but since I've seen nothing much on here about them wasn't sure I'd add them to the list.

Costco had some Pilot Super Sports on sale for $122 a tire, any comments on those?

Pilot Super Sport is a very quiet tire relatively grippy tire, but they are not heat tolerant. Autocross just chewed them up on my car. Maybe on the lighter focus they would last longer, but still, FWD with a lot of understeer means that you'll probably chunk the front shoulders.

We ran the Sport Comp-2s on my wife's MINI S when she had it. Fun tires. Gripped well, did well in rain, wore evenly if fairly quickly. I think we got about 30k miles out of them as a daily driver that I ran the crap out of on the street but never autocrossed.

I've got a MK3 Focus with the Cooper's. Have not autocrossed it since I have an FSP FX16 that handles way better. The Cooper's handle surprisingly well. However, you would surely have more fun with the BFG's.

I would not get Toyo T1R's. I like Toyo's, but not that one.

Ok, thanks all. Appreciate it.

I think Sport Comp 2's will be the way to go.

trucke wrote: I've got a MK3 Focus with the Cooper's. Have not autocrossed it since I have an FSP FX16 that handles way better. The Cooper's handle surprisingly well. However, you would surely have more fun with the BFG's. I would not get Toyo T1R's. I like Toyo's, but not that one.

This^^^ The Cooper will not tolerate the auto-x abuse as well as the Comp-2, nor does it have the grip, wet or dry, street or auto-x. BTW, for auto-x the Comp-2 is going to work best at about 42 psi in the front and from 35 to 37 psi rear. Also, you are going to want to get some camber plates installed in the front and set them at 2 to 2.5 degrees as a starting point. Your front grip will be higher and the tires' outer shoulder blocks will last much longer.

In reply to WildScotsRacing:

Interesting on the psi - on both the original 215's I had on it, and the 235s now, that front pressure is pretty consistent with what I've run heretofore. Rears have always seemed to to a little better at about 3-4 psi higher.

Last time I auto-x'd it, I went 5-6 lbs higher in the rear - not ideal contact, but the car rotated nicely around the cones.

As far as camber, nothing available off the shelf for the Mk3 that I'm aware of, and trying to slot the towers would probably best be an underside job the way the car is designed. I'd kill to get 2 to 2.5 under that front, that would really make the car nice to drive around cones.

In reply to OldGray320i:

Regarding rear presures, I may have been making an assumption. Does your Focus have a rear sway bar?

WildScotsRacing wrote: In reply to OldGray320i: Regarding rear presures, I may have been making an assumption. Does your Focus have a rear sway bar?

Steeda's. Between that the springs, and the handling pack struts, pretty fun car.

In reply to OldGray320i:

Ahh, in that case, carry on with your rear pressure range! I'm also habitually thinking from a big track perspective where I want the rear slightly more neutral than auto-x would. I'm a bit surprised that no one has any sort of camber products for the Mk 3 yet.