Time = rims...lol

 

I saw bead blasted RPF01 17x8 for $500 but its also 4-5 hours away from me and bead blasted. I'm gonna go check out some OZ Ultralegerra later mounted on 245/45 Potenza Re-01Rs. He sent me more pictures but here it is on Craigslist.

http://cnj.craigslist.org/pts/2971095739.html

 

not bad, and it's already got tires.

 

Yea I was thinking I can just beat these tires first and then order some Hankooks later on. Hopefully, the rims and tires are in as good condition as the pictures he sent me.

 

they will still be good tires to learn on
looks like a pretty good deal

 

Actually if you are talking about who i think you are, black r3? He runs on the star specs. Surprise surprise! yes hes that fast on a 200 tread wear star spec.

 

yea Chris(Ariel8) uses StarSpecs if thats who your thinking of
he'd be fast on anything though...he pushes the car to 100% every run lol

 

Those look great.

Just make sure they fit over the front brake, should be no problem.

Nice find.

 

I didn't get a chance to fit them on yet but I've seen 8s here with similar setups I believe. I got them earlier today for $450. It was a pretty good deal, the rims aren't perfect but for the price it is more than perfect. Few scratches here and there but no curb rash. The tires are pretty good as well, it came off a speed 3. I guess after much debate the star specs or RS3s will have to wait.

 

<<< Michelin Pilot Super Sports... nom

 

I'm not the most knowledgeable person when it comes to tires or to the 8, but I have autocrossed on both tires. I hope that qualifies me to post this here.

I'm currently enjoying 255/45/17 Star Specs on 17x9 TR Motorsports C3s (not great rims, but dirt cheap) for my pretending to be STX RX-8, but when it gets hot here in Utah, the RS3s are pretty hard to beat, especially when you include multiple driver cars. To be honest, I did prefer the feel of the Hankooks. They feel sticky while the Dunlops feel solid. When I first put them on, they were easy to race without missing out on the grip that unprogressive tires generally lose. They get to a decent angle of slip without too much fuss and will pretty much stay there. You can make up for the loss of sidewall with increased pressures without sacrificing too much grip. The standard for the local STX E36 is 44ish PSI of pressure on the RS3s, though on some venues the driver increases that number. If you're road racing, these tires are probably better as they deal well with the accumulated heat. It's one of the reasons they're popular with the drifters. Another is that they stick about the same from start until just before cords. Autocross wise, if you're a multiple driver car, or don't want to worry about your tires over the course of an event these work great, especially in a best lap format.

The Dunlops may not feel as good, but if you treat them right, they can also be very quick. They seem to settle into a slightly less aggressive pattern, so they need to be pushed just a bit harder than you think, but they also give less warning in feel than the Hankooks. (Audibly, they talk more and earlier.) If you've gotten a feel for race tires, it's no big deal to find that balance, but some people get stuck feeling slow or get out of wack trying to feel not slow. Star Specs are happy cold, so they're great for first and second runs or when your tires have time to cool down. Otherwise invest in a sprayer at a local gardening/hardware store and spray them if they're more than warm to the touch. The Dunlops are more steady than the Hankooks, so if you're the type of person who likes a consistent feeling car, these are awesome. While it's not by a greatly significant amount, the Star Specs wear slower than the Hankooks. You may not be able to tell at a single event, but after about 10 events it's pretty obvious. Also, these handle rain fairly well, especially in contrast to the RS3s. The real interesting thing is that they post lateral G numbers almost identical to the RS3s, even in light cars. If I remember right, Hollis recorded 0.956 Gs on both tires, though in a smaller size on his civic (forgive me, my memory is more sketch than photographic).

As for the Toyos and Kumhos, I haven't heard much good about them in STX. I haven't driven them, but the Kumhos supposedly get greasy and slick as they run, and are very surface dependent (sealed smooth surfaces being worse). So, they need to be sprayed down to avoid this, but like heat... Kumhos are only run by Mustangs in my region somewhy, so maybe the weight has something to do with it. The R1Rs are great in small sizes, under 195 I think, but have a secondary compound in anything larger that apparently is pretty bad. If you shave them way down, supposedly they can be fast for a while, but have little life left in them at that depth. People with small light cars with small tire width will rave about them, but I've never seen someone in STX or STU who liked them. Again, this info in this paragraph is what I've heard from fellow ST class people and is not first hand experience.

 

any idea how long the dunlop star specs last in terms of milage? Most likely 1 or 2 autox per year and daily with 20miles a day september-may. I need something that can handle water.

should i go for 245's or 255's on the oem wheel? Im 2 inches dropped on sprint springs if that plays a role in it.

How are the RT615k's? Or are those not in the same league as RS3's and Direzzas?

Im also live in Jersey Larissa8, i plan on heading out later this month or next at meadowlands, first autox

 

Nice hope I see you around. However, I haven't done an SCCA event yet. Honestly, i have no idea how to register for them so I pretty much only do the events held by Motorsportsne which are all done at the Meadowlands.

http://motorsportsne.com/

I'm registered for June 17th as of now, I'm contemplating on doing the event this Friday as I prefer the AM events.

As for the tires, the Star Specs might serve you better than the RS3s since you drive your 8 significantly more than I do and I don't know anything about the Falkens.

 

thanks for the link!

I really like this "you will be given an opportunity to actually drive the course at a very slow speed (15mph) for another opportunity to become familiar with the layout."

I will most definitely fail this "Adequate Muffler: Your car must be quieter than 95db measured 50 feet from the course at a place where you are under full throttle. Due to the possibility of losing sites for noise problems, this rule is strictly enforced. (If your car is quiet enough to avoid attracting Police attention, it will most likely pass the noise requirement). This rule may be waived at events in Giant’s Stadium in East Rutherford."

Hopefully i can get waived, or i get my replacement catback before i go.

 

depends on your driving
245s...always start with a narrower tire
forget the 615s...they are too greasy when they get warmed up...even for autoX
treadwear is worse too

 

@Larissa8,

Those look great. And for $112 a piece! I will have you look for my next set.

 

Great pickup Larissa, something used is a great option when your on a budget. Those OZ's will fit on the 8. Nice and light and will serve you perfectly. Most people would be happy with that setup.

It seems that the Star Spec RS3 option is a toss up at this point according to what people have writen so far on their experiences, It seems you can't go wrong with either, which leads down to price if that is what's important.

 

@EricB

I wouldn't worry about the exhaust being too loud, what's your setup?

@04Green

Thank You sir and I guess I get lucky with Craigslist haha

@BrilliantblackRX8

Thank you, and I agree the most important factor between the RS3 and Dunlops will be the price. For 17s the RS3 is the easy choice being a 100+ cheaper and for 18s I would take the Dunlops as at that size they're only $28 more. These prices are solely based on Tirerack.

 

tirerack is about the only place you'll find the Dunlops
check the RE-11s

 

Well... I never know what to call it.. but ill do my best and hopefully someone can chime in. (im about to make a thread to find out what to call it)

I have the cat bolted to a pipe that ends at about the diff cover, then thats where the muffler connects and goes out the rear bumper. Ive had some issues with rattling in the can of the muffler so i took it off. Im currently running my exhaust ending at that "intermediate" pipe by the diff cover.

It sounds..... pretty good. Since i have the cat in, it doesnt sound metallicy but it has the same loudness as... between a 1 and 0 resonator midpipe.

The downside is that its loud as hell and vibrates the whole cabin like no other. I have 3 or 4 points of vibration in the cabin between 1500-4000rpm.

ANYWAY... it WAS a raceroots single exit exhaust, and i think I remember Brice saying that its louder than 95db, but not sure how far away. Im waiting on his new shipment of exhausts for my replacement muffler.