Hi dudes,
 
I've been running 215/40R17 and 235/45R17 Bridgestone RE001 on 17x8 and 17x9 wheels on my SW20, these were an upgrade from Federal 595ss, holy ****balls I didn't realise how much difference a good set of tyres makes!!
 
The RE001's have finally worn down and need replacement, if I could find another set of the Jap made 001's I'd be all over it, but its looking impossible.
 
Has anyone got some recommendations for an equal or better replacement tyre? Has anyone tried the RE002?
 
The majority of the time the Sdub is a weekender, so wet weather performance is not a super high requirement, however I would  still like to have some confidence when I do have to drive in the rain.
 
I've found another thread on here that mentions Advan AD08, they are looking pretty promising at the moment.
 
I've got a dedicated set of track wheel and tyres so I'm only concerned with performance on the street with a fair amount of spirited driving on twisty roads.
 
Thanks in advance for any advice and suggestions.
 
-Whitchy-

My suggestion (from reading and looking at reviews) would be:
Street/Track Hybrids:
Direzza Sport Z1 Star     90%
Bridgestone RE-11    90%
Hankook R-S3       
Toyo R1R        84%
Advan Neova AD08    83%
Kumho KU36
Max (best street) performance:
Michelin Pilot PS2    88%
Michelin Pilot PS3    87%
Michelin Pilot Super Sport 92%
Bridgestone RE002     85%
Hankook Ventus S1 Evo2 75%
Pirelli P Zero 76%
Goodyear Eagle F1 Asymmetric 2 92%
Dunlop SP Sport Maxx TT
Ultra High:
Kumho KU19 94%
Toyo Proxes T1 Sport 85%
KU31
Motor Magazine Tyre Test 2012
1 Eagle F1 Asymmetric 2
2 Dunlop SP Sport Maxx TT
3 Toyo Proxes T1 Sport
4 Kumho Ecsta LE Sport
=5 Maxxis Victra MA-21
=5 Hankook Ventus V12 Evo
7 Bridgestone Potenza Adrenalin RE002
8 Duro DP-8100
9 Pirelli P Zero Rosso
Ratings are from tyrereviews.uk. Some might not fit depending on ur sizes. Since you already have track dedicated tyres I would just not research the list and go ahead put RE002s on as they are one of the best tyres for street (for the price)

I use the Michellin Pilot Super Sports, they are an awesome tyre. Michellin claimed it to be the best road tyre in the world and backed it up with track tests against all the competitors. A lot of top eand factory cars run them aswell. I had RE002 before swapping them to the Piolot Super Sports, the Michellin's are quiet noticably better.

Awesome, thanks for that epic reply Tree!
 
Thanks for the suggestion track_mr2, I had a look into the Michellin's but couldn't find them in my sizes.
 
Got a reply from Tyrerack that they are no longer allowed to ship Yokohama's to Australia so I rang my local Bridgestone and ordered some RE002. Everything I've found says they are an improvement on the RE001 which I can't fault so we will see how they perform after the weekend!
 
If anyone is interested I was quoted $225 ea for 215/40R17 and $198 ea for 235/45R17. Amazing prices if they perform as well as the 001!
 
Thanks again for the assistance!
 
Cheers.
 
-Whitchy-

Do you have any scrubbing issues with running a 45 profile rear? O.o seems too tall...

WHITCHY 

Awesome, thanks for that epic reply Tree! 

Thanks for the suggestion track_mr2, I had a look into the Michellin's but couldn't find them in my sizes. 

Got a reply from Tyrerack that they are no longer allowed to ship Yokohama's to Australia so I rang my local Bridgestone and ordered some RE002. Everything I've found says they are an improvement on the RE001 which I can't fault so we will see how they perform after the weekend! 

If anyone is interested I was quoted $225 ea for 215/40R17 and $198 ea for 235/45R17. Amazing prices if they perform as well as the 001! 

Thanks again for the assistance! 

Cheers. 

-Whitchy- 

 
 
dude! where the hell are you shopping to get those prices!
I know the franchisee of a B-Select and he quoted me about 260 per tyre (book price) not even 2 hours ago! 

Yeah slight scrubbing when the suspension is set to soft, I've had my inner lip beaten flat so it only just scrapes the side of the tyre over bumps at speed.
40 profile wasnt an option unfortunately.

Those prices are from Bridgestone Select at Wyoming (central coast) They are having a clearance at the moment apparently.
 
I just found 245/40R17 are available, but at $114 extra per tyre! Probably mean no scrub at all, but I'd rather deal with it for $228!

 

WHITCHY

Yeah slight scrubbing when the suspension is set to soft, I've had my inner lip beaten flat so it only just scrapes the side of the tyre over bumps at speed.
40 profile wasnt an option unfortunately.

What offset are your wheels? mine are +35/9" rears and with 235/40/17 Federal 595 RS-Rs, I have had to roll the inner guard lip AND attack the other 2 lips behind the side strips with a die grinder. It still scrubs a bit but only on large bumps at speed. They do run a bit wider than your average 235 which is probably half the issue.

You'll find the reason for that, Josh, is that the 595 has some pretty sizeable thickness in the sidewalls.  Cheaper tyres have softer, thinner sidewalls that dont stick out as far. 
 
I found this out when I changed from those crap SP9000s to the MA-Z1s.  Hence why I ended up rolling my guards and cutting the seams to suit.
 
Now i'm back on the stock rims with semislicks and it doesn't matter how hard I push, i don't get any rub and the tyres cost less than RE002s to replace :D