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azxhead

True Classic
A few years back I started selling all of my better x1/9 parts because of a financial crisis of sorts. Fortunately, things are much better now and I am beginning to start re-acquiring some of the parts I gave up. I will post a list in the FSW section later...

For now I am contemplating both short and long term wheel/tire solutions. For now, which is a good 185/60 13 tire that is available and reliable for street driving? For long term, I am considering using a 15'' 4-100 wheels with spacers, centric rings, studs and wobble nuts, or possibly using custom adapters made to the exact size to compensate for offset and is machined to perfectly fit both hub and wheel center bore on the other. For tires, I am considering the Toyo Proxes T1-R size 195/45 15. Anyone using this tire now? If so what are your thoughts on it.

I've done the adapter method before on another x and I liked it, but I am open minded and flexible enough to see things from another perspective.

Any input coming from actual experiences would be most appreciated.

Thanks
Tommy
 
I am running those tires on my X

For tires, I am considering the Toyo Proxes T1-R size 195/45 15. Anyone using this tire now? If so what are your thoughts on it.

I'm very happy with them and they fit well. Great grip, wear is not a big problem - probably due to the low weight of the car.

Don't go up to 205 in the front, they will rub. But they fit fine in the back.

Pete
 
Thanks for the quick replies...

Since posting, I came across tires-easy. They are offering the Federal SS595 which looks more like a UHP tire with an aggressive looking tread. Anyone running this tire? Anyone in the south where it's dry and temps reach 110+ in the summer?
 
185/60-13 tires

Get the Achilles - I have both and the Achilles are cheaper and I think, better than the Federals. My Federals were out of round when I got them.

Ed
 
Some of those Federals have been out of round

I am pretty sure we have had reports of some of the Federals being hopelessly out of round. Hopefully someone will weigh in with personal experience.

As far as 15" wheels go, Allisons ( you may need to scroll down to find the wheels) and Vicks both sell 4x98 15" wheels for the X now. Check them out to see if they have a style you like b4 you go fabbing up spacers. Of course, if nothing in 4x98 floats your boat.... go for it. :hammer:
 
Hey Tommy... Welcome back, glad things have...

picked up for you!

If you are just getting back into the "groove"... go with the Achilles and you'll be up on all fours for chump change. They make 175/60s as well but a little different style if you don't mind. What I like about the 175's is they don't rub up front at all. I run 205/60's in the rear from a different maker.

As for Federals... Many have stated they had difficulty with getting them balanced and still most couldn't get them to stop shimmy-ing due to out of roundness... even using the sophisticated ROAD-FORCE Balancers.

Surprisingly... the Chinese Achilles have had not one such report that I know of. I took Jeff's experience and gave it a shot... and was immediately HAPPY. The 205's in the back are called PRO-METER and are from Indonesia... which I got outta PA or OH on Ebay.

Just an FYI... my Michelin's were made in Turkey and NOW, most Michelin's are made in the US! Because of import fees and the reverse thereof... you'll also find Goodyear's made in China!
 
The FEDERAL tires are a coin toss at best... Luckily I have a buddy here with a tire machine.. I ordered 8 and got 4 that worked and balanced.. Sent the rest back for full credit. Tire Easy will refund so that's good..

Also, on Federal tires I have to run them at MAX inflation... I do not believe the side wall construction is very robust so low inflation will cause a sense of "Wobbly" drive.. Felt like the car floated on the highway... Buy some federals and you will see what I mean..

Not a lot of choices for the 185's... In fact the only choice when I needed a set were the Federals.. At 30 bucks per tires I guess it's hard to complain.. Some of my other car tires cost 500 each so it's all relative... It seems these tires are like disposable razors... At this price you can't hardly buy a used tire anymore...
 
I am running the Allison 15 inch by 6 inch. They fit perfect and work with the Toyo T1R195/40-15. I am almost through the first set of tires on My X1/9. They have about 17,000 miles on them with 2 track days and 4 or 5 autoX. Great grip in dry and good in wet.
 
Thanks for the tip

I like the "autostrade" wheel from Vick. That wheel with Yokohama 195/45s would be pretty sweet. Expensive, yes, but sweet. That will be a good long term option. For the short term I rolled the dice on the federals. This may very well be the catalyst that forces my hand in making the long term move sooner rather than later.
 
Ya know... it runs about $15 - $20 bucks a tire for...

us guys that don't have friends such as yours... and that equates to about 50% to 66% of the total cost... plus us guys in CA have almost 10% in taxes and $3.00 a tire in disposal fees!

Dealers here in CA could almost give away the tires and still make a killing. Kinda like owning a printer... with a set of ink cartridges costing as much as the machine.
 
Harborfreight tire tools

Tony,

I went to your favorite tool store last year and bout the manual tire changer and the portable balancer. Two local shops quoted me $100+ to install 4 tires, so I figured these tools were a good investment since my goal was to try out various tires for autocross.

I must say I learned a lot.... of new curse words. :) Maybe I shouldn't have picked a set of stiff side walled Hoosier R6 tires as my first experience with mounting. It took me a few hours to get the first tire mounted, the 2nd wasn't much faster, but the 3rd and 4th were fairly quick by comparison.

The mounting tool is pure brute force and leverage, so it will work once you figure out a few basics. The portable balancer is a different story. It pretends to be a precision tool (not high precision), but the typical HF quality issues come into play. The first tool had off kilter threading on the balancer post, so there was no way to level the damn thing. Took that one back and got a 2nd with threads that were mostly correct. I was able to play with it and get it set up pretty well. I spent a lot of time balancing one tire/wheel and it seemed to change readings quite often. I finally went with the weight location indicated most often and did the same for the remaining 3. Surprisingly the tires feel just fine with no shaking or vibration. (I did sneak out on the local highway for a little high speed test.)

So, in my usual long winded way, I am trying to say that if you need to change tires often, it can be done at home. (With a lot of effort on your first attempt)
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