[M3to335]

For the last 7 track events Ive been running 235/265 Falken Azenis Rt615s. Honestly, those have been better than I could have imagined, but Im ready to move up to R-comps. It would be cool to go straight to slicks, but I dont think I'm ready for that

I guess it looks like the next step would be the Nitto Nt01's. From experience, can anyone confirm if the Nt01s are "that" much sticker than the Azenis? Of course, tecnically they should be, but it cant hurt to ask.

Second, what size setup do you think would work well with my stock 18s? The 235/265 Azenis with my spacers fit PERFECT with my rolled fenders. There's almost no gap as it stands. Nitto's website shows these available sizes.

225/40/18
235/40/18
245/40/18
275/40/18
275/35/18

I just dont know if they run that much wider than what I have now. If they do , I suppose I could shave down the spacers a bit.

Thanks for your help

[M3to335]

NE one?

[nicknaz]

OP others here have posted using 245/40/18 r compounds, so that seems to be a safe place size to start with. There are many threads on here discussing r compounds so a quick search will probably hook you up with good info

I have no experience that particular tire, sorry

[M3to335]

245s all around are narrower then what I have now on the back for track days. I'll look into it a little more.

[sambonator]

I think most people recommend a non-staggered setup for the track for neutral handling... if you want to heed that advice and go with NT01's, then 245/40/18's are probably the only bet... the 275 probably won't fit your front fender well, at least not without a lot of negative camber.

Otherwise, I'd go 245/40/18 front, 275/35/18 rear.

[M3to335]

Im running the stock 18s with the current setup and am trying to avoid buying yet another set of wheels (the garage looks like a Tirerack store). Regardless, I do understand why folks go with the same width/offset all around.

Yeah 275s wont fit well up front, so I'd have to pass on that. So its between 245s around or a staggered fit like I have now. I was hoping someone out there tried staggered and could comment on if it pushed or not.

[jgalaxy]

I don't know about you, but I found the car on staggered wheel setup to resist any medium to moderate turn in and left me sliding around the track. I switched to 245/40/17s all around and found my car to be a different animal when cornering. Understeer is almost gone. I know what you mean about the Tirerack look in your garage, but going to a square setup will pay back dividends. My 2 cents.

[leftcoastman]

I run square setup and I can't imagine doing anything else. EVERYONE who rides in my car is amazed at the balance. Maybe they just expect the porker 335i to understeer like a pig, lol.

I run -3.5 camber up front and so I can't imagine how you could possibly get anything but understeer city with a staggered setup and normal camber.

The ability to rotate is quite nice. I can get up to 9 days on a set of R-comps with religious rotation and flipping on the rim at ~4-5 days.

[M3to335]

Thanks for the feedback guys.
jgalaxy and leftcoastman, what tires do you run?

[leftcoastman]

NT01

[S4to335]

I am on 235/40/18 Pilot Sport Cups on all four corners..18X8.5 wheels. With the Dinan tune..I need wider tires. I am current investigating alternatives...dont have the money to do any of them yet. I also have a set of 245/35/18 knockoffs that I wanna try..but they are mainly autocross or time trial tires..so they wont last a weekend.

[nicknaz]

Originally Posted by jgalaxy

I don't know about you, but I found the car on staggered wheel setup to resist any medium to moderate turn in and left me sliding around the track. I switched to 245/40/17s all around and found my car

Seems like the biggest benefit is going from the stock 225 front tire to 245 front tire.

[jbass524]

255 or 265 square. Don't pussy foot around if you end up buying new wheels. 265s may not fit in the front with certain suspension.

[M3to335]

Im pretty much sold on the NT0-1's since I know I cant afford the R888s. Unfortunately, the only size I have to go with is 245 square . Is a 245 square setup with NT0-1's going to be stickier then my current 235/265 Azenis? Right now Im pretty amazed at how well these tires are doing. The only reason I ask is because I have a brand new set ot Azenis in the attic that I'd wind up selling to buy the NT0-1's. If its not worth it, no way will I go through all the effort of selling and shipping them.

[325racer]

Originally Posted by M3to335

Im pretty much sold on the NT0-1's since I know I cant afford the R888s. Unfortunately, the only size I have to go with is 245 square . Is a 245 square setup with NT0-1's going to be stickier then my current 235/265 Azenis? Right now Im pretty amazed at how well these tires are doing. The only reason I ask is because I have a brand new set ot Azenis in the attic that I'd wind up selling to buy the NT0-1's. If its not worth it, no way will I go through all the effort of selling and shipping them.

If you don't know the answer to that question yet, then you should use up the new set of Azenis you already have, then buy a new set of NT-01s.

But to answer your question. Yes the NT-01 will be WAY stickier, however going to a Square setup will change the overall Balance of the car will be entirely different. With a square setup compared to what your currently running, you will most likely find yourself pointed the wrong way on a section of track that you shouldn't be!!!!!!!!!!!

[M3to335]

Yeah I undersatnd the ballance issue completely. Dont scare me with this "pointing the wrong direction" stuff!

I guess I'll throw the Azenis up for sale.

Thanks

[jbass524]

Originally Posted by 325racer

If you don't know the answer to that question yet, then you should use up the new set of Azenis you already have, then buy a new set of NT-01s.

But to answer your question. Yes the NT-01 will be WAY stickier, however going to a Square setup will change the overall Balance of the car will be entirely different. With a square setup compared to what your currently running, you will most likely find yourself pointed the wrong way on a section of track that you shouldn't be!!!!!!!!!!!

I'm speaking from limited experience but it's exactly what M3to335 is pondering: I went from stock wheels to 255s Falken 615s all around. It was far better but the inherent understeer will not be totally alleviated. Don't worry about the balance it will only get closer to neutral.

The car with the 255 Azenis all around benefits greatly from turning the Traction control completely off. Don't let that scare you. Just start slower than normal and slowly build speed. You'll have a whole new appreciation for your car. With that said, the 335 with only DTC on and the 255s is great too.

Whatever you're comfortable with.

I'm emphatically suggesting getting new 17" wheels, selling your new Falkens and replacing them with 255 x 17s. Seventeens because they're lighter and a good amount less $ than 18s. You won't regret it.

When you've exhausted the Falkens then you can move in to the NT01s (R compounds) or you may wanna try the Dunlop Direzzas (street tires). The Dunlops are everything the Falkens are and more.

[jgalaxy]

Originally Posted by M3to335

Thanks for the feedback guys.
jgalaxy and leftcoastman, what tires do you run?

I'm using Dunlop Direzza Z1 SS. Way stickier than I thought they would be. I'm pretty happy with them.

Originally Posted by Nick Nazareno

Seems like the biggest benefit is going from the stock 225 front tire to 245 front tire.

I would have like to have gone with 255's but my rims aren't wide enough. 225 to 245 will make a huge difference. Go to 255 if you can with the right rims. I think most of the folks here will agree that the 17s are the way to go for light and cost effectiveness. Cheers.

[scollins]

Can you get the same benefit from a square tire setup if the wheels themselves aren't square? For example, 18x8.5 ET 32 up front and 18x9.5 ET 35 in the rear? Obviously not the ideal setup, just trying to work with what I've got...

[S4to335]

Originally Posted by scollins

Can you get the same benefit from a square tire setup if the wheels themselves aren't square? For example, 18x8.5 ET 32 up front and 18x9.5 ET 35 in the rear? Obviously not the ideal setup, just trying to work with what I've got...

That is about what I was shooting for..but tirerack stopped selling the matching 18X9.5 SSR CS...ugh.