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[Richbot]

Never tried it he last time I had falken tires was when the original Azenis came out and set the world on fire for a couple years

I am really digging how these look. My inner mullet is pleased

[SYT_Shadow]

I really like how they look as well

They are sooo close to clearing the PFC54 front BBK! Ugh. I would so run 17"s if I could

[Richbot]

So, initial 150-mile impressions -

I was running 9.5 ET22 with only a few-month-old (still have about 9/32") 265/35-18 Contis up front (25.3" tall tire, a little teeny stretch on a 9.5). The 285 is a way bigger tire, nearly 1.75" more tire width total up front now, and taller too, and you feel it in the steering. IT's a little number in road feel, a ton more responsive off-center and more overall front grip, it feels like it almost wants more front swaybar (I have DInan on the middle setting right now) but I suspect it might be sidewall flex, I am only running 34psi up front. THere is a lot of rim protection with these tires on these wheels, they are slightly pinched, so a little more pressure would probably make them a little stiffer up front. Still, glad to say I don't notice any vagueness in the steering, just your typical wider-you-go, less-you-feel stuff like I got last time I ran a super wide tire up front and oh my the front grip is nice in a roundabout

Ride is a nice surprise, it is a very noticeable improvement.

Otherwise will have more to say about it after a couple thousand miles.

[ApexWheels]

Originally Posted by Richbot

Will get some better pics once I get the car out somewhere I can get uniform light (EDIT: Potatophone camera shots in overcast light added). Very dirty from a road trip to Road America last weekend, so the wheels are the cleanest part of the car.

285/40-17 Continental ExtremeContact Sport square, 17x10 ET25 anthracite Apex ARC-8's

This combo weighs about the same as PSS 275/35-18 on TR MT1 18x10 ET25 and 2lb less than 275/40-18 on MT1's. Just under 46lb per wheel including TPMS and weights and such. If I had gone with the 275/40-17 there would be more weight lost.

Naturally there is a little fender liner rubbing up front as you'll get with a 26" tall wide tire (I have previously run a 285/35-18 up front and knew what to expect). Rear fits and could fit with a 12mm spacer easily. I'll probably switch to the 275/40-17 when I get done with these. There is a little more than 1/8" of tire clearance to the strut.

BTW, the FAlken RT615K+ is available in 275/40-17, and it's a legit fast street tire, if you want to run these with something that has a little more stick.

Will have some more impressions when I get some miles on the tires. Obviously this is about the biggest tire you can fit up front without going to a shorter tire (26" tall, 11.4" wide), so I'm curious how it matches with itself with a square tire back there. I'm on stock ZCP springs, Dinan front bar, stock non-adjustable shocks and Dinan front camber plates with about -2.5 on each side. Front brake setup is the Stoptech STR40 355x35mm kit

Sweet!! She looks well sorted with the ST Trophy kit hiding behind those spokes

Thank you for following up with photos!

- Ryan

[Richbot]

Update: thought I curbed the crap out of one of the fronts today, big funny looking balloon tire took the whole hit and didn’t touch the rim

Also, now that they’re worn in with about 5,000 miles on them, the steering response and cornering behavior are really nice

[OmairK]

Just got this setup. Should be nice!

[ApexWheels]

Originally Posted by OmairK

Just got this setup. Should be nice!

Enjoy the wheels!

-Tom

[s0ldats]

what are the go to tires for this setup currently? still contact extreme sport? what about more track oriented? all i can find for a street track tire is the rt615k+. not mad at that but curious if there’s more out there. 275/40r17

[SkysTheLimit]

I have a great condition set of Extreme Contact Sports in 275/40/17 that I used on my ARC-8 17x9.5's if anyone is interested and does not want to make the full new investment. The tires are already dismounted from the wheels.

I had these on my E46 with PSS10's and linear springs. They ride so well that the comfort was better than the stock suspension and 18's. Huge amount of grip too with the wide contact area.

[Richbot]

Originally Posted by s0ldats

what are the go to tires for this setup currently? still contact extreme sport? what about more track oriented? all i can find for a street track tire is the rt615k+. not mad at that but curious if there’s more out there. 275/40r17

Pretty sure you're stuck with the Falken or the Toyo r-comps - I ran the FAlkens for a while on the street, and if you're going to put yourself through that, I think you might as well just get the R888R, at least the R888 gives you some better dry grip in trade for pretty horrendous wet grip

The conti is a surprisingly good track tire - it doesn't melt and chunk on track like most higher TW summer performance tires

You might also consider, if your car is light and relatively lower-powered, one of the wide 255/40-17's like the RS4. It's a shorter tire but almost as wide as the conti in 275 - that tire on a 10 is actually not stretched much at all, I've seen it in person on some track S2000's where it seems sorta popular on a 9.5 or 10 with flares

[pbonsalb]

Toyo RA1 if you live in a warm area. Don’t use at or near freezing.

[ApexWheels]

Originally Posted by s0ldats

what are the go to tires for this setup currently? still contact extreme sport? what about more track oriented? all i can find for a street track tire is the rt615k+. not mad at that but curious if there’s more out there. 275/40r17

The Nitto NT01s are also available in this size as well and are a great track option. If you're purchasing a set of wheels we do offer these tires with free mounting and balancing.

Obviously only recommended for track/warm weather!

Thanks!
-Tom

[s0ldats]

thanks all above for the recommendations! the tires are going to be used for daily driving in southern california as well as track days.

Richbot, is your experience with the RT615k+ generally not a pleasant one? I'm open to running the r888, but i can get the falkens for a decent amount cheaper.

with the seemingly limited tire options in 17 i'm leaning toward just getting a set of track spares and running nankang AR1's for budget purposes

[Richbot]

They're going to release the new Falken RT660 pretty soon in the same sizes as the 615 - including that 275/40-17 - might be worth waiting for as I bet it will have caught up to tires like the A052 and RE71R that are phenomenal in the wet so long as there isn't too much standing water - The Falken really doesn't hold on in the wet at all, at least not at the tire temps you see on the street - it's the only tire I've been able to spin at 1500 rpm in 4th gear on wet asphalt

They're not terrible NVH wise thuogh - worse than a Conti ECS or PS4S, but way better than the toyos - in SoCal I think I'd just send it and if you hate them, they'll die a relatively quick death on track

[s0ldats]

Originally Posted by Richbot

They're going to release the new Falken RT660 pretty soon in the same sizes as the 615 - including that 275/40-17 - might be worth waiting for as I bet it will have caught up to tires like the A052 and RE71R that are phenomenal in the wet so long as there isn't too much standing water - The Falken really doesn't hold on in the wet at all, at least not at the tire temps you see on the street - it's the only tire I've been able to spin at 1500 rpm in 4th gear on wet asphalt

They're not terrible NVH wise thuogh - worse than a Conti ECS or PS4S, but way better than the toyos - in SoCal I think I'd just send it and if you hate them, they'll die a relatively quick death on track

nice advice on the RT615... love the look of the 17s! hopefully apex still has inventory once i'm done saving up for wheels lol

[OmairK]

Conti's have been great so far. Much better than the Cup2's on my M359's! Too aggressive!