When I was racing Miatas, I had 32 wheels and tires. And probably another 8 tires unmounted. That was a lot of fucking tires.
Now that I’ve embarked on a new journey with a Veloster, it got me to thinking, how many wheels and tires do I need? One of the things that prompted this question was a steak knife.
The tires had 16k miles on them, and if you look closely at the pic, you can see some cracking in the first groove on the right. So it was time to replace these anyway.
As it happened, the first tire I needed turned out to be a spare. The tire inflator and bottle of sealant that comes with the Veloster didn’t do shit for the knife wound, and I wasn’t going to be stranded on the road with three passengers again.
There’s a cavity in the trunk designed for a space-saver spare, but because of the big brakes on the VN, a normal spare won’t do. I’ve heard that a 18”compact spare from a Hyundai Genesis will work, but I didn’t find any locally or on Row 52. So I ordered one from Modern Spare, which is an alloy spare tire that has a nice modern look.
With that necessity out of the way, I can get to the burning question of how many more tires I need.
If I had unlimited space and funds, I’d probably have six sets of tires. 1) slicks, 2) rains, 3) super 200, 4) enduro 200, 5) One-lap tire 6) snows. But I don’t have that kind of space or money, and so three sets of tires will have to do.
Enduro 200
This is my favorite class of tire, with good performance and great longevity. Enduro 200s aren’t super finicky about camber or pressure, and any street car can use these with great effect.
I’ve raced or tracked on 615K, 651, Z2, NT05, Sur4G, R1R, RT660, A052, VR1, and more. For a long time the Falken 615/615K/615K+ was my favorite tire, but the faster and longer lasting Hankook RS4 is the best of the enduro 200s. It’s not a Super 200, nor is it great in the rain, but it has great feedback and lasts forever. In fact, they usually age out before I wear them out.
And yet I bought Kumho V730s instead. Part of this was because the RS4s were $100 more per tire, but the other part is that I trust Andy Hollis. In the world of motorsports tire testing, he is The Man. Andy says the V730 has a good blend of durability and grip, and is slightly faster than RS4s, which is exactly what I’m looking for.
I don’t know why they are so cheap in 235/40-18, compared to other sizes, but Amazon was recently selling them for $127 with free shipping. They are back up to full price now, but still cheaper than RT615K+.
One Lap tire
By this I don’t mean a one-lap wonder tire, like a RE71 RS or A052, but a One Lap of America tire. If you aren’t familiar with this race, it’s 4K miles of street driving with drag racing, skid pad, autocross, and track driving mixed in. Competitors are allowed one spare tire, but otherwise must use the same set of tires the entire time. Over 80% of the field uses the Michelin PilotSport 4S.
The PS4S is the top of the heap in the UHP category, which includes other great 300-340 TW summer tires like the Continental ExtremeContact Sport. Another tire in this category is the Veloster’s OEM tire, the Pirelli PZ4.
Compared to the PS4S, the PZ4 is a little quieter and has less rolling resistance, but is a touch slower on a race track. Some online reviews say the PZ4 is a better rain tire, but it’s hard to believe based on the PS4S being typically the best in that category.
Anyway, I’d driven the PZ4s at Pineview and did a 1:18 in a stock Veloster, and so I can verify it’s a decent tire with easy handling traits. It’s a couple seconds behind a 200 TW, but if it’s as good on a wet track that people say they are, I’ll be happy. I coach at Watkins Glen regularly and it always seems to rain at least part of the day there. Every. Fucking. Time.
Between the PS4S, ECS and PZ4, it was a difficult decision. But again my wallet made the choice, because I found the Pirellis for $150, half the price of the Michelins.
All-season
All-season tires suck at everything. Some people call them no-seasons. Apt.
But I need a set of cheap tires to put on my OEM wheels, so I don’t wear out my summer tires on the road. And while I don’t intend to drive the Veloster in the snow, I need a tire that works OK when it’s cold out.
When it comes to all-seasons, I go for the cheapest ones. I don’t drive fast on the street, and crap tires are more fun to hoon around Pineview on. I found 235/35-19 Crosswind tires for $65. I’ve never heard of Crosswind, but they have a lot of great online reviews and I got all four tires for the price of one premium 200 TW.
I don’t know if the 235 Crosswind is narrow for its size or if the 235 PZ4 runs wider than normal, but you can see there’s a big difference in the width of the tire.
Wheels
The OEM wheels are 19×8 +55 and weigh 29 lbs. They look OK to my eye, but I don’t love them for the weight, or for the price of 19” tires. I have no use for them, other than shitty all-season tires.
The Veloster can’t fit wide aftermarket wheels, so most people choose a 18×8.5 wheel with a +45 offset. I believe a 18×9 +42 would fit with mild camber and fender rolling, but there are very few lightweight wheels in this size (Enkei PF01, Konig Rennform, Braid FF). I’m not a cone dodger, but I believe the D-Street folks are using 18×8 +50, which also seems like a good size for a dedicated snow tire.
Side note: The Veloster’s closest competition is the Civic Type R, which rides on 265 tires on 9.5” wheels. Most comparison tests have these two cars lapping very closely, but if you could put the Civic’s wheels and tires on the Veloster, I’m pretty sure the VN would be on top every time.
For my track tires, I bought 18×8.5 +43 Konig Countergrams from Fitment Industries. I always wanted these 9-spoke wheels on my Miata, and I like them a lot on my VN. At 18.7 lbs each, they remove 40 lbs of rotating mass.
My One Lap PZ4 tires are on 18×8.5 +45 Motegi MR140 wheels I got from Phil’s Tire. They weigh under 19 lbs, and were a bargain at $165 shipped.
This is now the second time I’ve mentioned One Lap of America. A seed has been planted.
Occam's Racer 