[protovack]

There are many opinions out there but I just wanted to see what you guys personally do.

I run the stock 18" 5 spoke rims intentionally because they are super light compared to any of the 20 inch wheels. I want to stay with the OEM square 245 setup. I'd like a tire that is a nice happy medium between good grip and all season performance, and it needs to do well in the rain. I'm okay with ultra-high performance although I'd prefer it not throw too many rocks.

I actually really like the stock goodyear eagle sports, but I'm looking for a bit more bite, and because I don't put on major miles, I would willingly sacrifice some longevity to get it.

I don't need snow performance, but I do need it to be good in heavy rain.

[Start The Machine]

You're a little limited in tire selection with the 245 40 20 size.

Continental ExtremeContact Sport DW is a great tire. If you're willing to drive your car in freezing temps and light snow get the DWS 06 for our region. A step up from the stock Goodyears IMO.

[Evil-Bee-NH]

It's all personal preference I've been running Firehawk Indy 500s for two years now they do find in cold wet freezing weather but are not great in snow.

[karmatourer]

Originally Posted by Start The Machine

You're a little limited in tire selection with the 245 40 20 size.

Continental ExtremeContact Sport DW is a great tire. If you're willing to drive your car in freezing temps and light snow get the DWS 06 for our region. A step up from the stock Goodyears IMO.

Costco sells at least 7 tires that size. I run the same size.

[zts1986]

I'm glad that this conversation has come up. My stock tiers are 245/50R18s. I'm about to buy some snow tires that are 245/55R18s, which shouldnt be an issue (please correct me if I am wrong). But then comes the fun part...

I'm currently shopping for 19" wheels (gold/bronze, to be specific) for spring 2020. I'm pretty sure that I want to go with 19x8.5s on the front and 19x9.5s on the back, and get some sticky summer performance tires. I think that's key to dropping half a second on the 0-60 times, and having a little more fun in the corners.

Can anybody with experience and who is much smarter than me comment on the above setup? Any tire recommendations? And finally, when moving to different wheel and tire sizes, and to performance tires, any recommendation on suspension changes/upgrades? I currently have the stock 1LT non-RS suspension package.

[zts1986]

Originally Posted by Evil-Bee-NH

It's all personal preference I've been running Firehawk Indy 500s for two years now they do find in cold wet freezing weather but are not great in snow.

I've read mixed reviews on these. Can you go into more detail (cornering, 0-60 runs, etc...)? I'm an avid IndyCar fan and would love to support Firestone for all that they do for the sport (like provide tires for the 500 for 103 freakin years!).

[Evil-Bee-NH]

Originally Posted by zts1986

I've read mixed reviews on these. Can you go into more detail (cornering, 0-60 runs, etc...)? I'm an avid IndyCar fan and would love to support Firestone for all that they do for the sport (like provide tires for the 500 for 103 freakin years!).

I've never had an issue my 0-60 averages 4.8s best was a 4.6s with them on. Granted i am heavily modified but just bolt-ons before tune it did a 4.8s run. They are really grippy to me but when your coming off runflats everything is better. When i had the runflats i could toss the ass end out without any effort I can still do that but it grips the road quicker with the 500s and it doesn't swerve when it gets straight again.

[zts1986]

Originally Posted by Evil-Bee-NH

I've never had an issue my 0-60 averages 4.8s best was a 4.6s with them on. Granted i am heavily modified but just bolt-ons before tune it did a 4.8s run. They are really grippy to me but when your coming off runflats everything is better. When i had the runflats i could toss the ass end out without any effort I can still do that but it grips the road quicker with the 500s and it doesn't swerve when it gets straight again.

Great, thanks for the info. Looks like I can get 245/45R19s for the front and 275/40/19s for the rear for about $750 shipped. I may run with these next spring.

[Evil-Bee-NH]

Originally Posted by zts1986

Great, thanks for the info. Looks like I can get 245/45R19s for the front and 275/40/19s for the rear for about $750 shipped. I may run with these next spring.

They do make an A/S version of the Firehawk i used on my 5th Gen for a few years they were alright in snow not great on ice but nothing is. I'm a huge fan of Firestone tires not everyone is but I've had great luck and good experiences with them. I've run the Firehawks and Winterforce tires and have never had a bad time.

[zts1986]

Originally Posted by Evil-Bee-NH

They do make an A/S version of the Firehawk i used on my 5th Gen for a few years they were alright in snow not great on ice but nothing is. I'm a huge fan of Firestone tires not everyone is but I've had great luck and good experiences with them. I've run the Firehawks and Winterforce tires and have never had a bad time.

No need for all-seasons as I'm looking to pick up a set of barely-used Goodyear Eagle Ultra Grip Gw-3 tires (245/55R18s) to put on my stock wheels for winter driving. I definitely want to go with two tire setups between summer/winter.

Good chance I do the Firestones.

Just need to settle on which 19" wheels to go for. I have to learn about offsets, what wheel width would be optimal, and whatnot.

[protovack]

well this sort of veered off into another discussion but I'll reiterate my original question which is, what do people feel is the best all-around tire for street driving that has excellent rain performance, who are keeping an OEM 18" square 245 setup. Continental extreme contact DW sport was mentioned.
Firehawk indy 500 was also mentioned, although I'm not sure about the rain performance. I'm talking about driving this car daily, to work, etc, in extremely heavy rain for possibly weeks on end. I need to be sure it's going to handle rain well. I live on the olympic peninsula in WA state

[Evil-Bee-NH]

I daily drive in new england and I've had no rain traction issues. Cept this one time when i was being an asshole on the highway but that was mild hydroplaning don't think it would've mattered at the speed i was going what i had on for tires.

[enzia35]

The General AS-05 comes in a 255/45/18 that will fit nicely for an all-season, or the General RS in 255/45/18 for a summer tire.

[StPeteHyper2.0]

I'm a big fan of the Continental Extremecontact Sports. Daily driven in the Florida heat and thunderstorms. They do extremely well for me and treadlife is really good. Nearing 30k on mine and still grip really well.