215/45/17 Fusions... Rubbing. :(

[CarlM2]

I bought a set of 225/45/17 because I wanted a little more sidewall. I'd seen someone here put that size on their car without rubbing but mine do when the wheel is turned to the stops in either direction.

Normal turning and driving is fine but U-turns create a rub.

I got a set of 'Fusion' ZRi tires that I was told are made by Bridgestone.

Here's the tires: http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires.jsp?tireMake=Fuzion&tireModel=ZRi

They are nice and quiet and have good grip so far. The slightly higher sidewall and width make the car feel a little more solid and less 'twitchy' at all speeds.

The car still tramlines a little but that's a product of alignment more than tires.

I can't say much about them yet since the mold release hasn't worn off and I've only been using them a few miles so far. But, thought I'd let people know they rub a little.

I'm thinking about getting spacers to give that extra little space.... probably only needs about 5-10mm of clearance more. So, I'll get a very modest spacer. I've seen metal ones somewhere... was it Corksport.. off to shop...

New brakes all around are coming next week. Using ceramic pads on the front and green pads on the rear. fun fun.

[KYMP5]

http://www2.msprotege.com/members/KYMP5/subaru_1_lg.jpg we built the fuzion sti for them. we also sell the hell out of their tire. good reviews from what i hear.

[03MSPRO]

I bought a set of 215/45/17 because I wanted a little more sidewall.
do you mean 225/45/17?

[PhatTrax]

we built the fuzion sti for them. we also sell the hell out of their tire. good reviews from what i hear.
DUDE! I love those rims!!! What rims are they? I'd bet they'd look sweet on my car in Hyper Black. btw they shouldn't rub unless your offset is low.

[uclap5]

actually i have seen p5s with the same problem who run msp rims + tires.

[KYMP5]

the rims are made by Privat, dont know what model they are, konig gave them to us

[CarlM2]

do you mean 225/45/17?
Yes... yes I do... I really thought I wrote 225 originally, though... Sorry for the confusion.

I've sent an email to Dave/Micaspeed about his spacers. I'm hoping that will solve the problem.

-C

[protegeV]

sucks about the paintjob on that STi (shrug) but the chargspeed front lip is (2thumbs)

[KYMP5]

bridgestone made us paint the car that color. it kinda grows on you

[protegeV]

haha, I bet (nervous)

[PhatTrax]

bridgestone made us paint the car that color. it kinda grows on you
what would've been cool is if they had you paint it the bridgestone colors black/red :D

[unwound]

i am leaning toward these tire once my potenzas wear out. i have heard nothing but the best about these tires. excellent aggressive tread patten, excellent wear rating, and above average traction ratings.

KY: what kinda deals do you guys have on them? the 215/45/zr17s of course.

[KYMP5]

75 dollars each plus shipping

[protegeV]

wow(shocked), good deal.

[yashooa]

I looked pretty closely at those tires before I bought my Goodyear F1-GSD3's and was farily impressed for such an inexpensive tire.
Tire Rack actually sold out of the 215/45/17's in a matter of days back when I was looking to buy.

[P5 Rally]

I've had the fuzion's (205/40/17) on my P5 for about 5k and the dry grip is awesome and the wet traction is great....almost no hydoplaning like the stock dunlops. The tires, however, are on the loud side!!!

[CarlM2]

I've had the fuzion's (205/40/17) on my P5 for about 5k and the dry grip is awesome and the wet traction is great....almost no hydoplaning like the stock dunlops. The tires, however, are on the loud side!!!
You probably need an alignment. These tires aren't 'loud' and they're not 'whisper quiet', just normal. For comparison, I'd say the Yokohama AVS-ES100's were a 10% quieter on my Miata.

Also consider that there's not a lot of insulation in the MSP so I'm guessing there's not a lot in the P5 either. It's a Mazda not a Lexus.

I've put about 600 miles on these tires in the past week and love them. On really rough roads there is road noise. On smooth to semi-smooth roads they are quieter than average tires... about the same as when my car was new with the Bridgestone RE-040's.

They grip better than the stock tires and the break-away is slightly more predictable. Tire hop is still present but not as bad. I'm very happy with the level of quietness, grip, and size. The slightly bigger tires make the bumps less jarring. Tramlining is reduced also.

Overall I give these tires a 9 for the MSP in 225/45/17. I've bought some H&R 5mm spacers that will hopefully keep them from rubbing on U-turns. I ordered them from Corksport and they've been a real pleasure to deal with. I never got a reply from Dave/Micaspeed.

New brakes are on the way as well. All new rotors and pads. This will be a fun weekend!

-C

[P5 Rally]

How does road noise require me to get an alignment? That was done when my wheel and tire combo were installed!!

I realize that Mazda is not like a Lexus in regrads to insulation and many other aspects, but in honest truth, these tires were as loud as my winter rubber. The stock dunlops were super quiet in comparison. The only tires I know of that are quiet are Falken tires (512's). Any tire on a smooth or semi smooth road will be quiet. It's when the road isn't sooo smooth that the tires true colours are shown.

After 5000km I'm used to it!!

I agree with you on the grip characteristics, and breakaway is definitely more predictable...the rear end on my P5 seemd to break away on me a few times (pretty weird). Although, I beleive tire hop is a product more so, of front wheel drive cars!!

Tramlining for me will always be an issue because I'm lowered with some negative camber.

My over all mark would be 7.5.....for me the noise level is just to high, but best bang for the buck compared to any other tire!!! ($130 CAD installed)




You probably need an alignment. These tires aren't 'loud' and they're not 'whisper quiet', just normal. For comparison, I'd say the Yokohama AVS-ES100's were a 10% quieter on my Miata.

Also consider that there's not a lot of insulation in the MSP so I'm guessing there's not a lot in the P5 either. It's a Mazda not a Lexus.

I've put about 600 miles on these tires in the past week and love them. On really rough roads there is road noise. On smooth to semi-smooth roads they are quieter than average tires... about the same as when my car was new with the Bridgestone RE-040's.

They grip better than the stock tires and the break-away is slightly more predictable. Tire hop is still present but not as bad. I'm very happy with the level of quietness, grip, and size. The slightly bigger tires make the bumps less jarring. Tramlining is reduced also.

Overall I give these tires a 9 for the MSP in 225/45/17. I've bought some H&R 5mm spacers that will hopefully keep them from rubbing on U-turns. I ordered them from Corksport and they've been a real pleasure to deal with. I never got a reply from Dave/Micaspeed.

New brakes are on the way as well. All new rotors and pads. This will be a fun weekend!

-C

[CarlM2]

How does road noise require me to get an alignment? That was done when my wheel and tire combo were installed!!

Any tire on a smooth or semi smooth road will be quiet. It's when the road isn't sooo smooth that the tires true colours are shown.

After 5000km I'm used to it!!

I agree with you on the grip characteristics, and breakaway is definitely more predictable...the rear end on my P5 seemd to break away on me a few times (pretty weird). Although, I beleive tire hop is a product more so, of front wheel drive cars!!

Tramlining for me will always be an issue because I'm lowered with some negative camber.

My over all mark would be 7.5.....for me the noise level is just to high, but best bang for the buck compared to any other tire!!! ($130 CAD installed)
Noise is so subjective. To me these aren't loud tires, just average like the stock tires were. Just trying to counter your "LOUD" with a "not loud" depending on what people subjectively consider "loud". I should get a db reading sometime. My original tires were noisy on all pavement because of a bad alignment from the beginning. (Hence my suggestion for an alignment.) A bad alignment will make all tires noisy on all road surfaces.

Also, not all tires are quiet on smooth roads regardless of alignment. Ever ridden on Some of the Good Year Eagle varieties? road roar galore ;) I really wanted the GY GSDS3 but it was just too expensive. I paid $540 for the set of tires including tax, disposal, mount and balance.

From what I've gathered, wheel hop is caused by the dynamic of the entire drivetrain integrity (rigidity, flex, etc). RWD cars do it too, and quite badly in some cases. Just depends on the drivetrain/wheel/weight/tire combination's effect on the grip. I'll be getting some better motor mounts that I hope will decrease it but it's a shot in the dark. With RWD you have other suspension parts to replace.... same issue, though.

Glad you like the grip. I think they're very confidence-inspiring... I couldn't be happier with these tires.

-C