This is gonna be long, not a simple question. Backstory first. I'm 40, I invested way too many years and dollars into a career that has never taken off as it should, because I basically fear everyone, and I now have a family I postponed for my love of canyon carving in v8 Camaros.
I still have an 86 and a 94, I have enough 16x8s for both, and I still want 315s on all 4 corners of both.
A tire is pinched if you try to put a 315 on a 9" wheel width, and stretched if you try to put a 225 on a 10", as examples. Slightly stretched performs best, slightly pinched is safest. I always liked the square look. A 225 on an 8, a 275 on a 10, etc.
In my 20s, I went around curves with tire squeal as a welcome companion. Not anymore.
I'm driving on an older, worn-out pair of Ohtsu Zexius Xi427 245/50R16s that are hard but grippy enough, square, and weren't bad in the snow, but were 3-season tires.
Looking on SimpleTire.com, at Cordovan Sumic GT-A 245/50R16s, those tempt me.
Sure, the BFGs are best, but since I plan 315s for competition, these will be my driver tires, and the BFG g-Force COMP-2 A/S costs half again as much.
Not wanting short suggestions, hoping for thoughtful discussion instead.

 

Unfortunately 315 width tires are hard to find - at least in 315-35-17. Even harder to find a 275/315 combo with the same tires.

Some tires are worth the extra cost, most are not. Goodyear and Michelin are brands that make you pay way too much for not much additional, BFG, Nitto, and Falken give you a lot for your money.

Ohtsu are a bargain brand - not sure if they are worth the $ and they are not going to perform all that great. Cordovan also. If you want to spend a little more $, go for the BFG g-force summer tires - definite worth the cash outlay.

 

I value being able to replace parts without having to

• special order
• "order in"
• machine to fit
• etc

So I fight the instincts some of us have to go out of my way to over-research every last detail. Let's face it, a 100 point higher wear rating is a meaningful number. But not when you have to pay more, they're not stocked "everywhere", wait to get them and all the details.

Further, when I last had to replace a blown-out Bridgestone in a set of 4 still great condition tires, I would have had to make a lot of calls, drive all over, just to have a matching set of tires that are worth 25% of original price. So I got the Michelin that was available close by. Never regretted it.

With sizes, some are oddballs and some are common. I was surprised one 245/50R16 was all a major tire chain had readily available on a Saturday. I also think 18s are a size to look at availability; tons of new cars have them. But availability for sizes not installed on OEM applications for 10+ years aren't readily available;16x8 is fine but a minor investment in 18s might be worth it on some third gens.

Some Michelins are worth it. I have had them on 15x7, 16x8, and light truck tires. Always gave good life. I have had multiple poor experiences with Goodyear and avoid them.

For a car that honestly sees daily driver more than anything, I buy what's needed and err towards a more aggressive tread, and stiffer sidewall because I still can't drive 55. I don't run all season tires on my daily driver here because I don't need them for rain; the extra sipes wouldn't help me in any way, shape, nor form. If I suddenly changed to driving the vehicle in a legit snowfall area, I would likely buy an extra set of wheels and winter tires.

If you're going to truly track the car, maybe a 315 is your best bet. With suspension, tuning for best performance by changing a rear sway at size, or maybe going from / to staggered tire sizes is neede; you'll figure it out with some aggressive tuning. Your plans differ from mine, as do your needs, so it's good you're evaluating them more than most folks.

 

Run a set of 17x9 wheels with 255 section wide re-71r tires if you want ultimate grip.

Or you can use the traditional 17" size of a 275/40/17. But not many choices there. Go with a falkan azeni rt-615k. Massive grip to be had there. And you can keep a square Stance.

Easily 1g+ lateral grip with the right alignment.

My focus RS is on tiny 235/35/19 wide tires and will pull 1g no problem. Tires do get overworked in front though due to There being too much weight for the width and not enough camber. Plus the balance is still 60% on the nose so that in combo with the AWD hurts the front tires fast.

 

3rd gens are a car that respond very favorably to wider tires, 275 is going to give much better grip than a 255 with the same tire - as long as the wheel is wide enough.

Two other great choices for the 275-40-17 is the BFG G-force summer tires and also the Continental summer tire. The Falken has great grip, but the BFG is right behind it.

You can pull 1g on 245-50-16 tires with the right suspension setup. On a 275-40-17, close to 1.1g. CMC cars pull in the 1.4g range on their spec 275-40-17 toyos with very limited suspension modifications and no downforce.

 

There are dozens of alternative tires in 225-55-16, which is a correct size to fit the OEM wheels. Pretty much every tire is made in that size.

18" is a great size for both performance and availability - 275-35-18 is a replacement for the 245-50-16 and again, every tire is made in that size. Stick the 275 on a 10" wheel and you are right in at the inflection point of performance, selection, pricing, and weight.

You can also stick a 295-35-18 on a 10.5" wheel on all 4 corners, it happens to be about 15mm larger in diameter than stock (less than 3% larger).

 

Wider tire does give you more grip. But the 275/40/17 size is slim pickings as the size is a bit unpopular. You have a ton more tire choices in 255 section width.

I have 275/40/17's on my GTA with Nitto NT05 tires. Plenty of grip when warm. The NT05's are definitely slick as hell cold.

275/40/17 is the popular F-body size due to the availability of 17x9" wheels from the 4th gen's. So it makes an easily affordable upgrade for the 3rd gen.

 

Also check 245/45-16 if you sticking with 16" rims like I have (budget reasons) all sorts of track day tires options pretty much same tread width but about 1" smaller diameter. Than 245/50 I tried the bfg comp 2's this year tore VB the tread splice on 2 sets at Gingerman raceway.

 

Dang, forgot to specify that Paul Huryk isn't welcome, he knows I hate him, and he knows the good reason why. If you guys lack the good sense to get him banned, then I'm done with the wheels and tires subforum. No thanks for ruining yet another thread for me Paul. May you burn in heck forever. Do the world a favor and stop getting online.

 

How exactly do I deserve to be banned?

I'm not that much of a d*ck.

I give honest answers.

I've been on this forum when it was on the college server back in the mid 90's.

I support and make products for the 3rd gens.

Never screwed anybody in the classified ads.

Never bitched when someone said something insensitive and asked for them to be banned.

I'm big enough to apologize if I do something/say something wrong on TGO.

 

"Forgiveness...forgiveness...even if, even if you don't love me anymore.
These times are so uncertain,
There's a yearning undefined,
And people filled with rage.
We all need a little tenderness.
How can love survive, in such a graceless age?
Forgiveness...forgiveness...even if, even if you don't love me anymore."
- Don Henley, The Heart of the Matter

 

Do the 225 55 16s look good on our cars? I know they are the same height as OEM 245 50 16 but just a touch more narrow.. I'm thinking of goin to the 225 55 16s because they are much cheaper and readily available I would love to see the 225s on a set of 16x8 rims first though if any of you have a pic.

 

It's all a matter of personal opinion, but increasing the tire sidewall height and decreasing the width is NOT a good look at all... especially on a performance / sporty looking car. Wimpy looking tires takes away the muscular image our cars are meant to portray.

I can't even begin to tell you how happy I was when replica GTA wheels were made available in a larger 17 x 9 size, which then enabled me to use 275-40-17 tires. I really would have preferred these wheels in 18 x 9.5 so I could choose a tire with slightly less sidewall, but these definitely are a HUGE visual improvement over the stock tire size.

 

While the tires are a bit narrower, they are the exact same sidewall height (and overall diameter), so visual will be only slightly different, but not by giving it a side glance - only end on.

We all want the 245-50-16 to live on, but manufacturers all have moved away from that size and are not likely to return anytime soon - if at all. Life moves on...