I really need help figuring out and finding tires for my fourth gen for auto X.

I race in the FS class with this car It is a completely stock car stock chassis It's just a base trim 2002 Z28 with 16x8-in wheels.

I've been running the Cooper RS 3G1 245/50r16 for a while now and I really like it but I'm growing as a driver and I'm ready for a better tire and I don't think a high performance summer Only slightly better than the Cooper will cut it I need a dedicated 200 treadwear tire to fit on my stock 16x8 wheels

There are no 200 treadwear tires available that I've been able to find anywhere in 245/50r16 but I see a lot of awesome 200tw tires in 225/50r16 what should I do? Also I don't mind a smaller overall diameter so long as I'm getting a good contact patch right so what other tires would work?

And no I cannot change the wheels, This is a strict factory stock class and I'm dead set on competing with a base trim stock car not one that came with wider wheels, I'd have to go find a Camaro SS or a firebird WS6 if I wanted to run this class with a 4th gen fbody and a wider wheel anyways

Any positive input would be greatly appreciated thank you all for reading

 

SCCA FS? If so you can change the wheels, you would be crazy not to.

 

​​​​​​Yes I compete in SCCA solo FS class Please correct me if I'm wrong but I thought I read in the rule book for the street classes that you can only change the wheel dimensions 1" either direction but not both width or diameter together. I was also told that if I did use the 17x9 Camaro SS wheels I would have to change the whole rest of the car accessories over to SS spec as well including the aesthetic pieces.

I'm consistent and fairly competitive in my community and I wish to do more with less.

I really don't want to change the wheels but I need an affordable solution. If I were to change the wheels and my interpretation of the rules are indeed correct I would maybe do a staggered setup 17x8 in the front and 16x9 in the rear if I could find the right tires but they must be 200 tread wear

 

You could talk to the current people in your class and in your region and see how much they care. Maybe they are all about the fun and bumping to 17x9s or even 18x9s wont matter to them. Or they do care. Try to make your case these cars are losing options in certain tire sizes.
I'm not a fan of recommending CAM because it's an all out HP war and a stock car is going to be at a disadvantage, if you want to place well. ESP is your next step in classing and was the go-to place for most pony cars for a long time. Again its trade offs of how bad you want to win/place vs have fun. If you're new to AX, worry less about doing well vs learning to drive well with whatever you have.

 

Even if you changed to a 17x8 your tire selection would improve greatly. There's nothing available in a 16 anymore but the 17" selection is solid. An RE71r or Rival in the same tread width as you're running now would be transformative. I've never found being competitive in a stock class nearly as much fun as running a faster raw time.

 

If you are running one of the cars in your signature you aren't in stock class already regardless of the tires and wheels.

 

I found a tire that fits my stock 16x8 wheels and my needs,

The Yokohama Advan A052 is Said to be One of the best 200tw Auto X tires available and they sell it in a 245/45/R16, I don't know how I missed this before looking around for tires. They're actually quite a few choices in this size, I believe a lot of older Porsches run this size tire?

The only problem is they are incredibly expensive a set of four cost more than the car I'm racing with lol, would anyone care to sponsor me? 😬 I've been practicing on 500-600tw All season non-directional street tires for many years FS class and I'm only 4-5 seconds off the podium every event racing mostly BMW M3 and Cadillac ATS

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My signature is really really old sorry, I'm a computer idiot and I can't seem to update it from my phone

The car I'm racing is a completely stock 2002 A4 2.73 Z28 with 224, xxx miles on it

 

Not really sure if these are still available, BF Goodrich still lists the Comp 2's in three sizes for 16 inch wheels.

Have Comp 2 255/50R16's on my 91 RS, they are pretty good for what they are. They aren't quite as good as the Toyo Proxy +4.

 

Cost is always an issue with competitive tires. I need Hoosiers to have a chance in ESP but the $3k for tires (CDN) is a tough pill to swallow on a car I paid $4K for!

 

There's plenty of 17x9 wheels for 4th gens. Then you can run a 275/40/17 and make up that 4 second gap. A052, Falken 660's, etc. Run those 16x8 wheels when you daily it, and swap to the good ones when racing. You'd easily get 2 full seasons out of them and You'd be competitive. If you want to win you need to be on the best stuff, because the top 3 guys in each class will be on the best stuff. Better tires will make you a better driver as well. You'll find the weak points of your car easier. Running some crappy all season tire is like walking on egg shells. You'll have 10 times more fun when you show up to a local race and know you have a car that can win. When you lose a race it's on you and not the car.