Scooter’s New Shoes: Part 2

When we left our hero yesterday… (yeah, yeah – I know – I watched WAY too much 1970’s Batman growing up). Anyways… in part 1 of “Scooter’s New Shoes” we discussed the reason for the new shoes in the first place. While I hope you actually click the link to read part 1 if you missed it, in a nutshell, my daily drivers that I also used on the track were shot to “you know where” and I decided to mount some Toyo RA1’s (an R-comp tire) on my Enkei rims for track use only. So after searching dozens of wheel and tire sites and using Photoshop to see what each design might look like on Scooter, I finally decided on ASA’s 17 inch AR2 wheels and the Kumho Ecsta SPT’s in a 215/40/17 configuration (I really did like the wide-stanced 215/40/17 size of my Hankooks, so I figured why not get that size on the Kumho’s).

ASA AR2 MINI Cooper Wheels

Scooter's New Shoes: ASA AR2 MINI Cooper Wheels Scooter's New Shoes: ASA AR2 MINI Cooper Wheels Scooter's New Shoes: ASA AR2 MINI Cooper Wheels


So why this combination? For starters, I really love the way the AR2’s look on Scooter. They completely transform the car’s look. Sure they are slightly heavier than my Enkei’s at 20.5 pounds each, but they will not be seeing the track and they are still about 5 pounds lighter than my S-lites. In the end, the Kumho Ecsta SPT’s were an easy decision considering Minspeed (a Tire Rack Distributor) was having a closeout special of $91 per tire! With the great reviews and positive comments from many SPT owners, I felt pretty confident that the Kumho’s would still provide me excellent traction, yet still improve my ride by being much quieter and smoother than my Hankooks.

I have to say that after driving on them for a week, I am VERY impressed. The tires stick VERY well and are almost silent compared to the loud roar of the Hankooks. Don’t get me wrong – the Hankooks are a great tire! For those who want to have ONE tire for the street and the track, I still HIGHLY recommend them. It’s just that now that I have a dedicated track set of tires, why not go for something a bit more quiet for my daily driver?

So far the Kumho’s have performed brilliantly in the dry and wet. With the heavy rain we have had in South Florida lately, I have gotten to test their hydroplane resistance and they passed with flying colors. Taking spirited turns in the rain seem to be no sweat for these bad boys. Dry traction is even better. I also love the look of the tread pattern. For the money, you really can’t beat the performance. The question now is… “how long will they last?”. I have read that some have gotten 30K+ miles out of theirs while others have gotten 18K miles out of their sets. Time will tell what I am able to squeeze out of them.

I have to say a special thanks to MotoringFun.com member MNEEME for his superior Photoshop skills. After his rendition of what the ASA AR2’s would look like on Scooter, it was a no-brainer on which wheels I was going with.

Another huge thanks to Pete over at Minspeed who assisted me throughout my purchase and consistently provides superior customer service. If you have not had a chance to check him out, head over to the Minspeed website and say hi – you will be glad you did!

[ Scooter’s New Shoes: Part 1 ]

5 thoughts on “Scooter’s New Shoes: Part 2”

  1. Looks great Pedro! I love the way it looks. It bring Scooter all together. And thanks for the mention man! Its greatly appreciated.

  2. Thanks guys! beaner – not sure about catching you (you are wicked fast man!).

    G – almost looking as good as your ride!

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