I'm having problems with sloppy sidewalls. Currently, I'm drifting with 235/45 & 245/45 Direzza DZ101's on 17x8.5" wheels. I'm trying to cure the problem, so I was thinking about upgrading to 9.5" wide wheels, 18" wheels, or trying better tires. New wheels will cost me a lot of money so I really don't want to do that. Also, the same size tires in 18" will cost me around $30 more per tire. That will easily add up to hundreds of dollars in no time. This is a hobby, so I'm trying to be frugal. I'd like to try better tires in the exact same size like the new Dunlop Direzza Z1 Sport, however they're also about $30 more per tire.

I'm just wondering. What size tires are you drifting with? Has anyone else been through this? Maybe someone could recommend a different tire. Thanks

 

try PM;ing topics II (chris forsberg) he'll give you some great tips.

as for tires im running federal 595's and have had no problems...yet.

 

What size wheels and tires are you using?

 

stock wheels. and 245/45/18r 215/35/18f

 

i personally run 245 front and 265-275 rear.

tire wise i dont use federals since they chunk really fast, especially 3rd gear courses.

my favorite tire is the bridgestone s-03, too bad they are discontinued.

good life tire is falken st-115 or fk452. 615s are good, but get a lil greasy after a couple laps. dunlops (dz101 or sp9000) are decent, continentals make lots of smoke, i wanna try the new re-01r's in the next couple events.

 

ST115s here. Love the tread life!

 

loose sidewalls? i never even felt that from the stock tires, not that i'd even know what that felt like.

I've used falkens, sumitomos and khumo's

The best tires for the money i've used are the khumo escta spt in 245/45 17(F) and 255/45 17(R) on the stock 17's They run just under $100 each from tire rack and one pair usually lasts me through 2 events, but i'm not a big smoky drift kinda guy.

 

what tire pressure are you running on?

 

Currently, 35 PS. I've tried 40 and 45 PSI, but there was considerably less grip. By the way Chris, I was blown away to see Drift Alliance casually hanging out at club loose a couple months ago. I'm sure that if I had asked any one of you to ride along for some pointers, you would have grabbed a helmet and hopped in.

Everyone, I appreciate the responses, but I'm not really interested in what brand tires your using. It's nice to know, but I'd really like to know what size or width wheels your using in relationship to your tire size. Plus, it would be great to know what your true opinion is of your own setups.

Roxtarinc, which stock wheels do you have, because there are about 3-4 different stock 18" widths.

 

There were no Z's at the last club loose event i went to

we should get a z crew down there once they kick into gear again.


as for widths im exactly sure.

 

I've been to almost every event since July. Also, Rich (Z33_SPL) usually is there with a chrome silver 350Z. Unfortunately, the last event for the year was just held a couple weeks ago. I hope to see you next season!

 

actually i think i did see you.
were u in the daytona blue z?

 

I think if you were to just have a little bit smaller sidewall it could help as well. If you went with perhaps 245/40 rear tire, I would think it would be a little stiffer.

I also had ST115's on my car, and they were great. Gonna pick up another set in the spring. I didnt get to use them at a legal event, but they lasted through almost 30k miles of abuse I gave them. I did have many parking lot exhibitions as well. (I worked near a Benny's, and nobody seemed to mind me practice drifting in their lot. I know its frowned upon, but it wasnt in my town)

 

Tony, like I said at Club Loose, I think you should step up to 18s. It's worth it. I'll let you run my Works for a couple of runs next time. The car will feel much more predictable and will transition better. Or you can try 17s in Falken FK452s. I was running them when I had my stock 17s. There sidewalls were pretty stiff. But I think 17" FK452s are the same amount as 18" Direzzas.

 

I was thinking about trying FK-452's or ZE-912's. However, I'm a little unsure if their performance would be better than the DZ101's, because the FK-452 is marketed as a V.I.P. tire and the ZE-912 is an all-season. I really want to try the new Direzza Z1 Sport. Unfortunately, I'm starting to think you may be right about wheel size. Since I should be getting a pretty good tax return this year and I have business trip I'm going on after the holidays, I'll have some extra money, so I might just break down and buy another set of 18's.