Sparco Drift ?

Hi Everyone,

 

I've never had studded winter tires before, and truth be told, am just dying to try them out. Don't worry, Ohio laws allow, and my locals are very generous regarding enforcement - not that it'll matter, as I only plan on running the tires two months out of the year (mid-late December through early-mid February, if that). No NVH concerns, as this is my commuter vehicle, and I'm a short-distance commuter: besides, Anna's the type to complain, 4-and-a-half or otherwise, like Dada, she loves her cars.

 

I'm looking for a set of 17 inch rims that will clear '04 STi Brembos. No, I don't have said brakes on the car, but it remains a possibility, and besides, it just makes life easier. I'd like to stick with 17s for pricing: I'm, after all, in NE-Ohio, which has roads that are bomb-cratered for most of the winter (and well into the summer ) - I don't want to have to worry about these rims.

 

The Sparco Drift, in bronze (my other sets are the usual gray/silver), has caught my eye:

 

http://www.tirerack.com/wheels/WheelCloseUpServlet?target=wheelCloseUp&wheelMake=Sparco&wheelModel=Drift&wheelFinish=Bronze+Painted

 

Yes, I know, these are heavy, at 22 lbs., but honestly, that matters little to me. I'm not a track/AutoX driver, so as long as the wheel is decently durable, some weight is not much of an issue.

 

So, here's the question:

 

OK, I've gone through all 80-something pages of the Official Aftermarket Wheels thread, as well as performed various Forum searches for "Sparco" and "Sparco Drift," and have come up empty.

 

Anyone have these on their BL/BP?

 

My choice of the Prodrive PFF7 was easy - there's plenty of guys and gals here who run the rim, and I loved the way it looked in various pix. Same with my current "winter" rims, a set of SportEdition A7s, which were purchased after I saw how nice the ASA JH3s looked, on sister AKLGT's then ABP LGT. That's why I'm asking for some help.

 

As for the tire choice? I'm still mulling that one over. I'd love to purchase from TireRack again, as I've had excellent experiences with them over the last 5 years...but if the tire choice takes me elsewhere, I guess I just have to man-up!

 

Thanks for any help.

IIRC, those wheels haven't been on the market for more than a few months which will make reviews and pics on any car tough to find. If you ask me, anything Tire Rack is willing to sell or put on their website is of great quality. They wouldn't tarnish their reputation by selling cheap and/or inferior items.

^ Thanks for the vote, bruddah.

 

I did not realize that those rims were so "young" - truth be told, I'm just looking for some way to visualize the rims on the LGT. Given my past preferences and how I arrived at them: help with the visual by others here who have had them on their vehicle.

http://i109.photobucket.com/albums/n75/N_sane88/Project%20Layla/IMG_0017SparcoDrift.jpg

 

Hope this helps. I think it looks great, a little reminiscent of the STI BBS but with slightly curvier spokes and without the indents on the spokes.

^ Oh, oh, oh.....I'm sold!!!!

 

Thank you, thank you!!!!

The only experience I've had with Sparco wheels are a set I can't recall the name of. The owner seemed to like them for their strength (washington DC, you know), but I wasn't a fan of the HUGE weight and the looks turned me off.

 

I AM a huge fan of the OEM STi bbs wheels. They look good no matter what color you use, they are light, and they are strong. Kind of pricey, however.

 

As for tires, I ran a set of Blizzak LM-22 RFT's (run-flats) on my first-gen that my Mother-in-law ran on her BMW E46 328i (because they were 205/55/16). She put 3 winters on them, I put one winter on them then sold the car (with different wheels/tires). We mounted the tires on my boss (at the time's) wifes Impreza where they have been, all year round, since. I sold the car in September of 2006. They are STILL on the Impreza (which isn't driven a TON, but it IS driven).

 

If I were going to buy a dedicated winter tire, it would be a Nokian Hakkapettlavbas;fa;lskajwhatever. I think they are the WR2's or something? They are a 50,000 mile warrantied, snow-flake certified "winter" tire. I've never used a studded tire because I like my paint, but I know you can stud some Nokian tires (at least they make a mountain bike tire that is studdable)...

^ Thanks for the vote-of-confidence on the rims.

 

The weight is the bigger turn-off for me, as well as the width of the rims. Ideally, I wanted to step down to 7" width, to pair with 215- or, even better, 205-width tires for both traction as well as rim-protection.

 

Beggars can't be choosers, I suppose, and I'm not quite willing to spend more than about $700 on the rims, for this purpose. Neither the SportEdition A7s I use for winter now nor the Prodrive PFF7s that I use for summer are particularly lightweight, so hopefully, I won't notice too much of a transition, there. Aesthetically, I find the Drifts pleasing enough, but I well understand that's personal.

 

I agree completely on the OEM STi BBSs - to me, the limiting factor there is cost, particularly if shipped from a remote location. If a set were available locally, I'd be more than happy to go that route.

 

In terms of tires:

 

The "performance winters" do tend to wear very well, and here in NE-Ohio, I also know more than one person who uses them literally year-round, and have not complained about excess wear. Considering that some "all-seasons" can barely top 30K miles before needing replacement, it's, I think, easy to see why some people would go this route.

 

The Nokian WR and WR G2s unfortunately will not meet my needs, as they are a "winter capable all-season" - with emphasis on the winter part of that equation: IIRC, they're still the only "all-season" tires to wear the "snowflake-on-the-mountain" symbol, and have proven through many tests to be exceptional, when it comes to light snow and slush. While they would certainly be among my top-contenders, if I were looking for a one-set-does-all kind of deal, this current planned purchase would allow me to run three sets: summer, transition, and deep winter - and it's the last part of this equation that I'm going after (of-course, the WR and WR G2 would have been an awesome transition set, but my Dunlop 3Ds have yet to wear to the point of requiring replacement, so they'll pull that duty).

 

I am debating, however, holding out to at least this winter before seeking the studded set, as I was never completely clear on if the new Hakka 7s were coming to us here in North America. I seem to remember reading that they should be available for this coming season, but there's also been rumors that they won't be available until the '11 winter season.

 

If the Hakka 7s don't come to us this coming season, I think I'd be content with the Pirelli Winter Carvings, studded, which is TireRack's only premium offering in this genre - a tire that ranks mid-grade in the last NAF test.

You can view the wheels on the car using the TR website.

^ I couldn't get it to work - for some reason, I could only pull up the Drifts via the '04 STi fitment - and I could not get the pictures to show the Legacy.

It's weird they didnt list the Drift for the Legacy. It has the same width and offset as the OZ Ultraleggera, among other wheels with the same specs.

^ Maybe I'm doing something stupid, and can't get it to come up? Wouldn't be the first time I've made a dumb mistake like that.....

 

I cleared the cache and browser history, including all cookies (yay, wifey can't see my porn trail any more! ), but still no joy.

 

I'll try from the work computer, tomorrow. I haven't visited the TireRack from that computer in ages....

Not your fault, Tire Rack's fault for not listing it..

^ I thought I was going crazy!

Are you sold on studded tires? I've always found them to be an heavy (weight) traction overkill (and I live in maine)

^ A little - I want to mainly experiment with them a little bit, as I've had no true long-term experience with them.

 

Experience has taught me that while "performance winters" are, rarely, insufficient for our occasional true storms (here in the near-eastern suburbs of Cleveland, we're not truly in the primary snow-belt, although we still can get true Lake-Effect dumping) and that "studless ice and snows" are all but overkill, the few times where there's been more significant icing, even the Xi2s are left a little wanting.

 

To be absolutely honest, though, this little experiment will likely be one of those things where I do once, and then never do again.

I see where your coming from, I just can't handle the noise! I'll be in to hear your thoughts on it but if your winters are anything like ours I can't trade off constant noise for improved traction maybe 5-10% of the time.

 

Good Luck!

^ I think that after the novelty wears off, I'll be complaining about the noise, too.

 

But who knows - my car's definitely not the quietest around, and Anna likes to listen to music (not to mention scream/"sing" at the top of her lungs, to-match; good thing both myself and the wifey have been trained well to ignore such noises ROFL!), so it may not be quite as bad.

 

Whatever happens, whichever way I end up going on this one, you can definitely expect an honest review.

........

 

I am debating, however, holding out to at least this winter before seeking the studded set, as I was never completely clear on if the new Hakka 7s were coming to us here in North America. I seem to remember reading that they should be available for this coming season, but there's also been rumors that they won't be available until the '11 winter season.

 

.........

 

Awesome! Talking winter tires in July.

 

Looks like the Hakka 7s won't be widely available in North America until the 2011/2012 winter season. But the linked article implies you can have them now if your dealer submits a special order.

 

The Hakka 7s are supposed to be quieter than the Hakka 5s.

 

".......the Hakka 7 offers improvements over its predecessor, the Hakka 5, in the following areas: slushplaning, rolling resistance, wet and dry handling and ABS braking on asphalt, acceleration and ABS braking on snow and ice, and noise level. The new tire also boasts 15% less roadwear, he noted......."

 

http://www.tirereview.com/Article/71779/dealers_get_early_look_at_new_hakka_7.aspx

^ You know, I was actually thinking about "paging" you, old friend. I was figuring it was still too early in the process - I wasn't going to come knocking at your door for another couple of weeks.

 

I'll have to see if any locals have a connection in the tire business. I'm not sure that I'll be able to fit the Hakka 7s in the budget - it may involve dipping into my "cash roll" a little. Promise you won't tell the wifey?

 

I wonder if I can jack one of my student's Facebook accounts, and see if that Finnish gal I dated in high-school has connections at Nokian. Someone's gotta know someone, right?

 

So, speaking of the new stuff, any more news/updates on our favorites? Any more news on the WS70?

 

And seeing as the Hakka 7s are looking to be out of reach, "temporally," which of the current offerings would you go with?

 

In going with TireRack, the Pirelli Winter Carving seems to be the obvious choice....

The only new winter tire news I've seen so far is that you should expect significant price increases because of (alleged) raw materials shortages and reduced tire manufacturing capacity.

 

http://www.tirereview.com/Article/75430/low_supply_higher_raw_materials_bring_tire_shortage.aspx

 

 

The WS70 is supposedly available for purchase this month. Have not seen any testing of it. But I am sure Tirerack will test it against their ancient set of 20-year-old studded Winterforce tires, and declare it superior to studded tires.

 

If you are nostalgic, there will be a new Tiger Paw winter tire from Michelin.

 

http://www.tirereview.com/Article/75885/tiger_paw_battles_winter_with_new_line.aspx

The only new winter tire news I've seen so far is that you should expect significant price increases because of (alleged) raw materials shortages and reduced tire manufacturing capacity.

 

http://www.tirereview.com/Article/75430/low_supply_higher_raw_materials_bring_tire_shortage.aspx

 

I guess I'll have to pay, then, no matter what! Oh well....

 

The WS70 is supposedly available for purchase this month. Have not seen any testing of it. But I am sure Tirerack will test it against their ancient set of 20-year-old studded Winterforce tires, and declare it superior to studded tires.

OK, now that's just hitting below-the-belt.

 

What little previews there've been shows that it's obvious they targeted the Xi2 - as logic would insist that they well should - and I would imagine that those less-quantitative preview measures would translate to improved quantitative performance that would put these tires closer in the running to the premium studdeds...nevertheless, I remain weary of burning through that top miracle layer.

 

For playing around with, it just seems that studdeds are the way to go, for me, this time around.

 

Dunno. Hard choice.

 

If you are nostalgic, there will be a new Tiger Paw winter tire from Michelin.

 

http://www.tirereview.com/Article/75885/tiger_paw_battles_winter_with_new_line.aspx

Hey!

 

That, and an Exxon tiger-tail trailing from the filler lid....

 

 

That PR seems to make a big deal about how affordable those tires are. I wonder how they'd compare to the second-tier studdable offerings?

tiresbyweb has the Hakka 7s available, at $223 each in 215/45-17.

 

https://www.tiresbyweb.com/p-8894-nokian-hakkapeliitta-7-tires-studded.aspx

^ Thanks yet again, outahere. I really do owe you a drink or two.

 

Anyone ever use Tires By Web? I'm unfamiliar with them....tire hazard serviced through Sonsio, so I'd imagine that they're OK.

 

Although with published pricing, I should be able to haggle locals.

 

----

 

Edit: I've started moving on this, actually - posted in my local Subaru/tuner Forums seeking 5x100 '04 STi-fitment 17x7 or 17x7.5 rims, and have started asking for local Nokian retailer recommendations as well.

 

Next step is to visit the NASIOC Brembo clearance page, to cross-check what of the Tires By Web's offerings are viable - (editing again) of which, none are listed.

 

On the plus side, I didn't notice that the Tires By Web site offered a vehicle-based rim-fitment search-engine. Some rather strange results it pulled up, though....

OK, another thought....

 

The Pirelli Winter Carvings are nearly $100, a tire, less than the Hakka 5/7.

 

A part of me says to go ahead and spend the money - I've always lusted after "the latest and the best," and this set will last me *years*, so why not, right?

 

Another part of me says that, damn, it's $400!!

 

The Pirellis, as of last year, has still been coming in at the top half of the various tests of premium studded tires....

 

I dunno, what do you think, outahere? Will I always regret not going with the Hakka7s? Or will the Pirellis be so much overkill, already (as it surely will be, assuming we don't get IRT weather all of a sudden ).

Well, in the 2009 NAF test the Nokian scored 8.4 overall, and the Pirelli scored 8.3. From my quick look at the test data summaries, they score like close twins. You may want to look at that data to see if there are any big differences that can help with your choice.

http://www.naf.no/Forbrukertester/Dekk/Dekktester/Vinterdekktest-2009/Tabeller/

 

Here are some usefull translations for deciphering the data tables:

 

Pigg = studded

piggfritt = non-studded

Is = ice

Sno = Snow

Asfalt = Asphalt

pa = on

glatt = smooth

grov = rough

vat = wet

torr = dry

Bremsing = Braking

Akselerasjon = Acceleration

Slapseplaning = Slushplaning (hydroplaning on slush)

 

Kjorefolelse = driving feel (subjective) - Do the tires feel safe (feedback through steering wheel and seat, perceived feeling of traction and control)

 

Kjoreegenskaper = driving properties - Testdrivers are driving a specific route consisting of curves, hills etc. The best (shortest) time gives the best score. Several runs are done both with and without traction control.

 

Retningstabilitet pa iset vei = Directional stability driving on an icy road with deep longitudinal grooves made by a road grader/planer. (subjective)

 

Unnamanover torr asfalt = Emergency maneuver dry asphalt (Avoiding a moose or car in your driving lane) (subjective)

 

Stoy torr asfalt = Noise, driving on dry asphalt (subjective)