Okay... SO I have researhed and researched on here and had decided to get S02's to replace the 2 rear tires on my03 S. My fronts are okay, so I won't be replacing those. I have read about the S03, but I wasn't sure if it would be okay to mix 2 front s02's with 2 rear s03s. I have also looked into the goodyear eagle f1s, but that would mean replacing all 4 tires, instead of just 2. I would like to have better security in the rain bc this car is my daily driver and I drive it quite a bit, but I don't want to lose the way it handles.


Will I honestly notice that much of a difference if I get the s03's for the rear (as far as grippiness goes)?


And, how much better is treadwear with the s03's?
Thanks and any help is appreciated.

-Trish

 

Your best bet is to go with another set of S02 rears, most likely by the time they're worn out the fronts will be too. For dry weather performance the S02 is almost impossible to beat, Honda worked with Bridgestone to dial in the performance they needed, fairly narrow fronts with lots of space between the tread blocks, and an over-wide 225 rear (really a 245) with almost no rain grooves for maximum rear traction. Throw on a set of conventional tires like the S03 in the same sizes and you will bias the car toward oversteer, the fronts will be wider and the rears will be narrower. Mix and match tires and who knows what you'll end up with. The stock S02's are phenominal tires in the dry.

The S02's are supposed to be stickier than the S03's, treadwear rating of 140 vs. 200+. For what it's worth, some say the published tire wear ratings are not very accurate.

There's no such thing as a long lasting rear tire on an S2000...the limited slip diff and a healthy amount of rear toe ensure that. Figure on around 12,000 miles on a pair of rears and have fun doing it.

 

okay... I have read lots about the eagle f1 gsd3 being really good tires, although they do lack some of the grip that the s02s offer.... but I am thinking about the f1's due to the way they handle in the rain.....
SO.... I have changed my mind and now I am really wanting the goodyears, due to their ratings above everything else.

What sizes would I order in these, seeing that they don't offer a 245-45-16?

 

Seems like the best bet on the F1s would be 205/55-16 front, 225/50-16 rear, same as stock. The rears won't have quite the tread width of the Bridgestones, but the section width, diameter, and geometry should be fine.

 

but I thought the stock 225/50-16 for the rear was actually a "fake" or wrong size bc the stock s02's run different... or something. There is a faq in this section about if you are ordering non oem tires, then the rear size is actually a 245/45-16, not a 225/50-16.

 

Kind of. I think it's actually a little more complicated than that.

Tires have two different widths of interest - a section width, which is the width of the tire at the widest point of the sidewall bulge, and a tread width, which is the width of the part that actually contacts the ground.

The width that is part of the tire descriptor - the "225" part of 225/50-16 - is the section width. This is the width that is important for figuring out whether the tire will fit a particular wheel. For the OEM rear 16 inch wheel, either 225 or 245 will fit. The OEM rear tires are a 225 section width.

The tread width, however, is of more importance in determining how the tire will perform, since it determines the shape of the contact patch. As I understand it, the OEM rear tire has an unusually large tread width for its 225 section width. Other manufacturers typically have a significantly smaller tread width for tires of that section width. So when trying to match the performance of the OEM tires, the recommendation is to use a slightly wider tire - a 245 - to get a tread width that better matches the OEM tires.

When the tire you want isn't available in the 245/45 size, though, I think the best alternative is to go with the original 225/50. It will still fit fine, it will just have a slightly less wide contact patch. I have snow tires fitted to a set of '03 wheels on my S2000, and I'm running the 225/50-16 size in the rear, because my particular snow tire isn't available in the 245/45 size (actually the Tire Rack lists no snow tires at all available in that size). They have been working fine.

 

thanks so much for your help... I was 95% sure on ordering the 245/50, but I just wanted some reassurance.

-Trisha

 

Those F1 tires are an inch bigger in diameter than the stock S02's. On my car I could feel a big decrease in acceleration when I went to a 25 inch rear tire.

 

so then what is your suggestion? What front and rear sizes should I go with, having the stock 16'' wheels?

 

Unless you're desperate for rain grip I would say to get a pair of new S02 rears.