Back2BA6

ordering tires for my new rotiforms. dunno if i should go 245 or 255...thoughts???

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Assuming your Rotiforms are 8.5" you can go either way. With 245 you'll retain the stock handling and ride. With 255's the ride will be a tad softer and the handling will be a tad less sharp. Knowing that Audi has always put 255/35/19 on it's 8.5" sport package wheels I wouldn't be scared to go 255/35. Summer tires like Michelin PSS have a square tread profile and will appear beefier than an all season in the same width. If your wheels are wider than 8.5" then 255 is the way to go up to 9.5"

When I am ready to replace my oem's with summer tires I'll go with 245/35 as even with an APR tune I'm not at a loss for traction. I'll probably replace with Michelin PSS as they have have a soft grippy rubber tread compound and stiff sidewalls so ride will be comfy and handling will be sharp.

Also Michelin has just replaced the Pilot Super Sport (gold standard in summer sport tires) with the Pilot Sport 4S. Just thought I'd mention it. I'm a Michelin fan.

Nuttz4Sports

I just want to make sure I understand - the OP didn't state if the rims were 18x8.5 or 19x8.5....but I would like to know if your response about the way the car will handle with 245 vs 255 is specific to 18", 19" or either size rims. Would also wonder if the type of suspension would affect your response.


For example, 19" rims with 245/35 tires on a sports suspension are supposed to ride stiffer than 18" rims with 245/40 on stock suspension......so would going to a 19" rim with 255/35 on a sports suspension provide a ride closer to the 18 245/40 on the stock suspension or just a totally different handling all together.

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Looking at his signature I just assumed 19"s because he went for the sport package in the first place. He also has a dedicated set of 17" winter wheels. Moving to 18"s for the summer would be counter productive performance wise. Plus everything in his mod signature is performance based.

Moving up or down in aspect ratio (series) will have the same effect regardless of diameter.

Yes a 255/35/19 would be closer in ride comfort to a 245/40/18 than a 245/35/19. But there are variables. A 255/35/19 max performance summer tire will have less ride comfort than a 255/35/19 high performance all season tire. Max performance summer tires have a stiffer sidewall than high performance all season tires. A softer sidewall is better in the snow as are narrower tires. All seasons have a narrower tread than a summer tire if the same width.

All my comments are based on max performance summer tires because I'm biased towards performance and I got the impression (his signature) that the OP is too.

Nuttz4Sports

Thanks for the clarification. I am one of the few that have ordered the sports package, but did not chose the 19" wheels (trust me, regretting it). So I find myself now looking for 19" rims and debating between 244 & 255 size tires. I personally prefer the High Performance All Season. We live in San Antonio, so we don't really have much of a winter, but we get quite a bit of rain. I also don't want to sacrifice all of the comfort and since I have the sports suspension, I was thinking that going to a 255 would balance out any loss of comfort with the switch to the sports suspension....however, I also don't want to sacrafice handling or performance of the car.......decisions, decisions.....always has to be a balancing act

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I put Michelin Pilot Super Sport summer tires on my last two cars. A Mazdaspeed3 (FWD) and a Lexus IS350 (RWD). I also have a lot of rain here in South Florida. The Michelins were twice as confidence inspiring in the rain as either of the oem tires the other two cars came with. Michelin PSS excel in the rain as well as grip in the dry. Both were 35 series tires and had a very comfortable ride due to the soft grippy tread compound. Downside is that they are 15-20k mile tires (in my experience). You gotta pay to play.

Nuttz4Sports

I typically put the best All Season tires on my car because I value the safety of my family above all. My Accord has the Michellin Premier A/S and they have been great. The Pilot Sport A/S 3 Plus are supposed to be among their best in the 245/255 size and are Ultra High Performance

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Sounds good. Go with what ya know and what you feel comfortable with. You really can't go wrong with any product that Michelin puts out. Top tier among all the tire brands.

mdwcreative

I could probably find this after racking my brain over Google for a bit, but what's the average tread wear life of our 19" sport stock tires (Hankook I think?)

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Looking at the tread depth on mine after 3k miles I'm thinking they are 15k (maybe a little more) tires like most other performance summer tires if you drive on the aggressive side. Pretty sure mine will be at the wear bars at 15k.