Suspension, power, brakes: There was one more piece of the puzzle for our Mk7 Volkswagen Golf GTI, and it was wheels and tires. We’d shredded the stock tires after all those laps, so it was time to upgrade.
Easy choice, right? Cram the widest Super 200tw tire possible onto the car!
Not so …
When you said "bigger" I assumed wider, not diameter of the wheels.
This is one of the things I'm really opinionated on:
If it's just a daily / HPDE car; why on earth would you increase your running costs with super sticky tires.
For better or worse I put this down to ego (not a dig mine is plenty large). If you are not timing yourself why one earth would you make the car less nice to drive on a daily basis.
Also note I find less grippy tires more fun.
In reply to Tom1200 :
Some of my friends track their daily drivers.... they all carry a second set of wheels with stickier tires in the trunks of their Civics Si and GTIs. They also pad slap them in the paddock before tech (but only in front!). Is this not normal?
Wider definitely isn't necessarily better. I run RE71RS in 235/40/18 which according to Bridgestones data have the same thread width as the 245 but are 1lb lighter. Seen my fastest times to date on those.
My personal fave is the BF Goodrich G-Force Sport Comp S2. It has a unidirectional tread that helps avoid hydroplaning. I have an NB Miata and hydroplaning is my primary fear. They're no longer available for my car, but unidirectional tread is what I always require. If you can find a size that works for you, get'em!
I do more spirited street driving then track driving these day. Use to use summer set and a winter set but a while ago switch to one set. I have had two set of DSWs in the past but found they were great in the snow and rain but the side walls where weak and gave a very unresponsive steering feel. So this time went with BFGoodRich G-FORCE COMP-2 A/S PLUS, so far much better performance tire then the DWSs. Winter and rain to be determined.
17" wheels fit on this car, correct? Why didn't you downsize from 18" diam to 17"?
Some--the front brakes interfere with a bunch of 17" wheel options, and 17" tires are harder to find, too, so I decided to stick with 18s.
Would be very interesting to see a back to back comparison of a relatively more budget oriented sport compact in the ~$15k range (like a used mk7 gti) with minor upgrades, springs, brake pads, sway bar, alignment, sporty tire, etc. Against a completely stock one of the current fastest options from the factory gr corolla, fl5 type r, mk8 golf R, in the 40-50k price range. Could maybe even find something in the middle of that range to hit the ~25-35k range.
Thinking daily drivable relatively practical with 4+ doors ie. not a miata.
You'll find that right here:
https://grassrootsmotorsports.com/articles/firm-lap-times/
Scroll down a bit and you'll see how this places against the other hot hatches.
I track my daily driver on Conti ECS and it's pretty great. I just drive to track with my lunch and cooler. No tools, jacks, etc. I change brakes sometime during the week before and back to stock a few days after, whenever is convenient. Good choice Tom.
jerel77494 said:My personal fave is the BF Goodrich G-Force Sport Comp S2. It has a unidirectional tread that helps avoid hydroplaning. I have an NB Miata and hydroplaning is my primary fear. They're no longer available for my car, but unidirectional tread is what I always require. If you can find a size that works for you, get'em!
And these run super wide. My 205/50/15's had more like a 220 width.
Tom Suddard said:Some--the front brakes interfere with a bunch of 17" wheel options, and 17" tires are harder to find, too, so I decided to stick with 18s.
It seems 15's are the new 13's and 18's are the new 17's.
I just drove home from Daytona in the heavy rain from this monster cold front. These Continental ECS 02 are the best rain tires I've had. I figured they would be your choice.
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