Dunlop Direzza ZIII tires

[ForcedFirebird]

Awe man. Literally JUST let my subscription expire a couple months ago. :/

[Vfrinterceptor]

FYI- Grassroots Motorsports has a tire review this month. It’s rather in-depth and makes comparisons between Rival S 1.5,Re-71r, z3, z2 and azenis. Worth while finding a copy at a local bookstore.

Based on the what I read I’ll be sticking with Rivals S 1.5 for Autocross.

[Digitalwave]

Anyone done a back to back with the ZII and the ZIII?

[ForcedFirebird]

Seeing as how the RE-71's are backordered this time of year I'm interested in how the Z3's compare both at the autocross as well as daily driving in the rain. I'm not concerned so much with treadwear as I am driving on the highway through the rain after a long day at work. The new Continental ECS are also on my radar, all sizes 205-50-15. Treadwear isn't an issue; if these tires get me thru to the fall with autox every 2 weeks I'll be happy.

They aren't "terrible", but a if you can spring it, don't dismiss the Toyo RA1 full tread. They are the preferred rain tire for Spec e30 and Miata. In fact, they used to the be both Spec class tires for years, we were just shaving them to slick for the dry. I haven't experienced the r1r yet, but they also look promising. Just hard to justify spending dough on tires that don't fit in any of my motorsport duties, though.

[Das Delfin]

Seeing as how the RE-71's are backordered this time of year I'm interested in how the Z3's compare both at the autocross as well as daily driving in the rain. I'm not concerned so much with treadwear as I am driving on the highway through the rain after a long day at work. The new Continental ECS are also on my radar, all sizes 205-50-15. Treadwear isn't an issue; if these tires get me thru to the fall with autox every 2 weeks I'll be happy.

[Vfrinterceptor]

True that there's no 245/40 15 but based on TireRack the Dunlop ZII* 225/45R16 has a 8.5" thread width which is the same 8.5" thread width as the BFG 225/40R15. If the ZIII follows the same ZII* sizing they should be the same 8.5" wide but with a smaller impact on gearing than the BFG 225/40R15 tire (23.9" vs 22.7"). Maybe not a big deal for everyone but it's about 3 mph difference before hitting the rev limiter in second gear which can be important in AutoX.

I just wish we had some info on how sticky they are compared to RE-71R and the Rival S 1.5...

[mr.]

No 225 45 15.... </3

[FredK]

Yeah, for autocross, in 15", I'd look at the Rival S 1.5 245/40R15, if I wanted to turn in some good times on 200TW tires. BFG usually runs a $70 rebate in the spring, that's probably when to hop on.

[ForcedFirebird]

They will be pretty hard by now. For auto-x, just use some tire softener on them, though.

Ah, I definitely had the regular 615s then. I can't wait to give these a shot! I don't really mind if they wear down quickly, I'm just hoping I can keep them wearing evenly since they're so sticky. I need to get an IE front brake kit some time this year- once I do that I can lose my front spacer and fit a 225/45 so I'll likely switch to R888s instead.

Dope them if they are old.

r888 are pretty sticky, but need a warm up. Y'all parking lot racers need glue when cold. :p

[AWDBOB]

The Azenis 615+ are fairly new. A couple years ago, they were 615 (no plus sign). The plus cam out last year or so and are much softer. They are a cheater endurance tire. They are "rated" at 200, but are much stickier.

I bought a set of the 615 on close out for our car, last 4 of about 7 they had at my supplier. At the same time, we needed a set for the other car we support, so the second set was matching 615+. Could feel the difference just by digging your fingernail into them at ~85°f ambient lol. Same exact size, tread and rating.

Ah, I definitely had the regular 615s then. I can't wait to give these a shot! I don't really mind if they wear down quickly, I'm just hoping I can keep them wearing evenly since they're so sticky. I need to get an IE front brake kit some time this year- once I do that I can lose my front spacer and fit a 225/45 so I'll likely switch to R888s instead.

[ForcedFirebird]

Makes sense- I ran them years back and liked them. They were the best option for fitment and dollars so I went for it. Was going to get the ZIIs but they were so much more $$. We'll see how they do!

The Azenis 615+ are fairly new. A couple years ago, they were 615 (no plus sign). The plus cam out last year or so and are much softer. They are a cheater endurance tire. They are "rated" at 200, but are much stickier.

I bought a set of the 615 on close out for our car, last 4 of about 7 they had at my supplier. At the same time, we needed a set for the other car we support, so the second set was matching 615+. Could feel the difference just by digging your fingernail into them at ~85°f ambient lol. Same exact size, tread and rating.

[AWDBOB]

The azenis are "cheater" tires. They have a "200" rating but are more like 100. They rape the dunlops for grip in the dry once they came out with the "615+". The old 615's were much harder rubber.

Makes sense- I ran them years back and liked them. They were the best option for fitment and dollars so I went for it. Was going to get the ZIIs but they were so much more $$. We'll see how they do!

[varg]

Mine felt kind of hard and edgy at nearly 3 years old... Breakaway was abrupt (always had been but I don't remember it being that bad) and they were really noisy in the 2 days I had them on the car again before the tire swap.

[ForcedFirebird]

They will be pretty hard by now. For auto-x, just use some tire softener on them, though.

[Adrian_Visser]

What would you say the shelf life of ZII Starspecs would be? I have a set that I bought 5 years ago that have been on rims stored covered outside under my deck with barely 7000 miles on them. Used for 2 or 3 auto-x sessions, otherwise daily driven. We'll see how they grip when I get my garage queen on the road again I guess, I fear they won't be nearly as sticky a they once were though.