Need More Traction
 

My setup is an ‘03 FM2 turbo on a TSE engine @16psi. Making about 275 whp. I’m currently running Yokohama S Drives 205x55x15’s on 15x8 SUL’s for my street tires. I don’t have enough traction with this setiup. 6speed tranny and 3:90 diff and it’s all wheel spin in 1st and much of 2nd gear. I’m looking to go to 15x9’s and a wider tire. I’m okay with 200 treadwear if that is the only option, but I’d prefer something a little more street friendly. I AutoX on 225x45x15 on 15x9 wheels. I’d prefer something a little wider and taller on the street to fill up the wheel openings. To sum up, I’d like to have a good looking tire setup with more traction than my current setup. Any ideas?

Paul

Anything in 225/45/15 is going to be an "EHP" or Extreme High Performance" tire in the 200 or lower treadwear rating, This means summer tire, loud, hard riding, fast wearing, darty but crazy grip. For most Miata owners, the tradeoffs are worth it. In 205/50, there are several good 240-340tw tires that ride better, run quieter, last longer while still providing good grip. With the power you have on an NB, you should also be considering 245/40's. They'll fit under rolled fenders on 15x10's with a bit more camber. Or unrolled on 15x9's. 15x9.5 clearance depends on tire brand and camber.

I don't think any tire mfr is going to bother with a higher tw 225/45/15 or 245/40. That said, I personally think the Hankook RS4 is the most civil of the 200's. I suspect the RS4 is being replaced by a new model. RS4 stocking levels are very low these days, they can be hard to locate.

My dream daily tire for a car like yours would be a 245/40/15 Conti ECS (340tw). But that tire will never happen. I run 245/40/17 Conti ECS on 9's on my 30AE with Xida ACE as the daily. Lovely tire.

Suspension and diff matter here too. 03 probably is either open diff or maybe the OEM Tochigi-Fuji diff. Bleh. Get a Torsen rebuilt by Walter Motorsports or an OS Giken. Adjustable damping monotube shocks for the boingy part.

Yep, even at 200-220 WHP with a 4.10 Torsen I've found that anything in 205 >200tw isn't quite enough. I've tried the Conti ECS, Dunlop Direzza DZ102/3, and S-drive/Fleva and couldn't really feel a measurable difference in all of them. I'm on a 15x8+28 (on an NA) and would love a 225/45 that I could get more than a couple thousand street miles out of that was decent in the rain. I've been considering going to a 225 Federal RS-RR but being in the south east I have to drive in the rain/wet conditions fairly often and I will probably be looking at replacing them every 6-10k miles. I drive way too much for that to be a viable option even with sub 100$ Federals. If a manufacturer would make a 225/45/15 in a 300ish TW tire I think there would be a good bit of interest in it. I've just accepted that unless it's 70+ degrees and 100% dry I need that right foot traction control in first and second.

I run the 225/45 RS4 on 15x8 Dial-In's with good traction on my LS1 NB. I do, however, live in a very warm climate. When our winter hit and we saw low 60's, I started having my first issues holding traction in 1st and 2nd.
https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.mia...970e6e9d43.jpg

Gotta think the rs4 stock issues is due to LDRL. Imagine 100+ teams ordering 1-2 sets ~10 times a year. And I k ow priority is given to their race series

that being said, I’m another vote for rs4s, if your weather is reliability over 40-50. In Oregon we can get away with re-71rs due to our rain and low temps. They’ll survive a year or more

@viperormiata What kind of alignment are you running and how many miles are you getting out of the rs4s? I could probably get away with running them for 10 months out of the year. Mid December to early Feburary gets a touch hairy in the middle of AL for 200tw stickies. I've also been eyeing the Falken RT-660s and might have to try some this summer. My wife is using 300tw 225/45/17 Falken FK510 on the FRS and they have been great over our mild winter much less tw than that and we have to start thinking about running something different for a couple of months where we see 20s in the morning.

Thanks to everyone who has responded so far. As far as suspension goers, I’m on Miester R Coilovers aligned to Flyin’ Miata specs. My diff is a 3:90 Torsen. I live in Northeast Florida so extreme cold is not an issue. I drive the car about 7500 miles a year and don’t mind buying tires as needed.

Paul

RE-71Rs sound like a great option for you

I run 225 rs4 on 15x9 s1 wheels. These are great tires, and long lasting for a 200tw tire.

at 250hp on chilly Jax mornings, it will spin 1st and top of 2nd.
on hot summer days they will actually grip 1st and 2nd most times.

When I up the boost to 300hp, 1st becomes useless, and will spin 2nd, but not too bad.

Once these wear out, ill try the 245 rs4.

I run a 245 Rival S on a 15x9 on the rear. Mines not a Miata, it's a light weight Lotus with a turbo 3.5 V6. Rear car weight is similar though. It may not be the ideal tire width to wheel width but it sticks. They are quit on the street, autocross with it too. The AR1 is less expensive and may stick as good. I have never had a high torque car do good with non R comps on the street.

I'm in complete agreement here.
A decent (long wearing) tire for the street in a wide 15!
Pipe dreams however...

It's the second sentence that really opened some doors for me however.
The 225/40/17 and the 245/40/17 sizes have a SHITLOAD of options and this is the way I will be going for "Street Tire"
My question for Emilio is "What wheel are you using?"
It looks like ND stuff might be usable with spacers...
How did you do that?
Does going up to 17s degrade performance of the assembly?
Comfort?

Enquiring minds want to know...

Kind of drifting his thread by discussing the ND. But yes I'm using our 17x9 6ul + 45 on my 30AE (ND). I think I get a tiny bit of contact on the outside shoulder of the right rear at full bump. Can't hear or feel it but there's a bit of a shiny spot on the corner of the tread.

/drift

Oops, sorry. I saw AE and thought you were running 17s on a 99 AE (NB1).
My mistake! There are two AE cars, a 20 and a 30.
What I was wondering is can this wheel/tire assembly be used on a NB1, NB2 with an appropriate spacer?
If I don't have this backwards a 17/9 45 and a 10mm spacer would put wheel in the same spot as a 15x9 35 no spacer.
You sell 10mm spacers!
Am I thinking properly or do I have it backwards and the ND wheels will NOT fit on a NB?
I was not trying to thread drift here.
Just trying to come up with a longer wearing tire 225/245 wide for the NB2 I have.

Never mind, figured it out.
Tire diameter is 2" bigger and, non-workable.
Sorry for the thread drift...

Honestly, I couldn't tell you. I picked up the car about a year ago and haven't had it aligned yet. Drive's great so I don't want to touch the rear too much. The front has too much camber.