fastforward

I bought another set of used stock SVT Focus Wheels to mount tires for autocross use. But...I also need to replace my "street" tires.
Of course price is an issue. And I need help deciding what to do.
I've been looking into Kumho tires lately. My size is 215-45-17. I would like to stay in G-stock for now as well. So that affects my choice.
I am considering the ECSTA 711 for the street wheels and the ECSTA V700 tires for the competition wheels. I've found 711's for $67 bucks each! The V700's are $120 bucks each.
Anyone have experience with Khumos? Opinions? Ideas? I need to make a purchase within the next couple of weeks.
Thanks in advance.
-Ben

2TurboImports

i used a few sets of ecsta supras 712's. they're...well....different. For the price, you can't beat em. They worked fine for me, but don't expect them to last too long. I had 3 auto-x's, with practice days, a trip to N.C., 2 runs up the dragon and back down, and then the following weekend returning back from N.C. the tread separated from the sidewall. All in all, they're cool for auto-x, especially if you're still in g-stock.

however, i did get a set of dayton zr-16's...which were pricey, but when they warmed up they were grippy as fricking hell. Drive while the road is colder, or wet and you get nothing, but for dry they're just badass. However they were around $550 for a set of z-rated 16's.

Loren

V700's are great autox tires. Not THE best, but excellent for the price, and wear better than anything that grips better. The only other competition tire option you might look into is the Toyo RA-1. It will likely be a bit more expensive, and maybe not grip quite as much, but for a competition tire, the general concensus is that they "wear like iron". Good for the budget autoxer.

For streets, I thought the 712's sucked. I haven't tried 711's, but they're dirt cheap and I've heard they aren't bad for the price. If you're just buying them for street only, they should work fine for you.

Muddy

The 711s felt pretty good on Jesse's mr2. We ran them when we were too lazy to change tires at local events. I felt like they handled well for a cheap street tire. You will probably be happy with them as a street tire. The 711 also felt like a step up from the 712, but I haven't driven on 712s in about 4 years. I drive very aggressively on the street, so I prefer the MX.

w0rd

For street tires, I switched from Bridgestone Potenza RE730's to Kumho 711's. I would not go with the Kumho's again. They are floaty, don't balance well, and don't have a lip protector for your wheels.

The only thing I do like is that the ride is a lot smoother due to the soft sidewalls. But, I miss having a performance oriented tire for daily driving.

Maybe look into Yoko es100's?

I think for tires, you get what you pay for.
And in 17", I wouldn't pay less than $100 per tire.

Leonard

I'd run through a set of Falken Azenis or a set of Kumho Exsta MX's before you go to the R compounds. Get back into the groove so you don't develop all the bad habbits I did when I went to R compounds sooner than I needed them.

King_Of_Spades

We run the V700's on the SCCA cars and wouldnt go any other way. Great wear and they heat up nicely. Usually get 2 or 3 races out of them before there toasted, all depends on your driving, how hard you are on tires!

Muddy

if you get the v700s, make sure you get them shaved. Otherwise, they won't wear properly.

fastforward

Bad Habits? What do you mean Leonard?

Thanks for all the input guys..... The 711's would be used solely on the street, but I do drive sort of "spirited." I'd like to get around 30K miles out of them though, at least.
The 700's would be track only. Is it really necessary to shave them? What would that cost me and where do you get it done?
I'm still looking into other brands as well...I was really happy with the Contisports that are on my car...I only got about 25K worth of good use out of them and taht includes spirited driving and about half a dozen autocross events. I rotate my tires about every 7-8K miles. They still provide great lateral traction, even though I'm at the wear indicator.

Would I expect about the same performance from the 711's? Are they an actual performance street tire or a poseur tire?

The otehr issue I have is finding competition tires that are my size. Or should I just go with a real soft street tire for my "comp" wheels?

So many questions....thanks for your advice!!

Loren

There are exceptions to the rule, but most beginning autocrossers progress much more slowly as drivers if they make the move to super-grippy tires too soon.

The limits of street tires are fairly easy to reach, and most street tires give plenty of feedback (squeal) before they let go. They also tend to let go more gradually than a good autocross tire will. All of this makes it easier for you to learn to drive AT the limit. It teaches you to be smooth and consistent.

If you're in the beginning phase of learning to autocross and immediately move to R tires, you never learn to be smooth, you're just instantly able to drive considerably faster than you could on your street tires. The R tires will mask your mistakes (allowing the bad habits that Leonard mentioned to go unnoticed by you)... up to a point. Not knowing how to be smooth and consistent, you'll either stay well below the limits of the tires (and still be "fast", but nowhere near as fast as you could be) or you'll drive agressively and do okay most of the time, but spike past the limits of the tires frequently.

I'm an advocate of learning on street tires. I've been trying to learn for 8 years...