Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 or Toyo Proxes R888 R for BMW M3 E92 track days

This post is interesting for you only, if you are in the same situation as me:

• Owning BMW M3 E92 ZCP

• Having BMW Style 359 Competition Package Wheel Set (Front 19x9" ET31 BMW Part # 36-11-2-284-055, Back 19x10" ET25 BMW Pat # 36-11-2-284-060)

• Doing track days

I bought additional set of Style 359 wheels (Front 9”/19”, Rear 10”/19”) for track use only. Prior to track day I take off my street set and replacing to track set. BMW tire recommendations for street are:

M3 E92 equipped with ZCP Style 359 wheels

• Front: 245/35R19 Michelin Pilot Supersport

• Rear: 265/35R19 Michelin Pilot Supersport

Notice that these are quite narrow sizes to these wheels.

M3 E92 GTS equipped with ZCP Style 359 wheels

• Front: 255/35R19

• Rear: 285/30R19

Notice, that rear setup uses 30 profile tires instead of 35 ones. And both F and R tires are wider.

Big question — what tires to use on track?

As these wheels are 19” and staged, there are not much a choice. Some recommend to go to square setup Front & Rear: 18x10.5" ET22 or ET27 with 295/30-18 tires.. There is much more choice in 18” sector, brands like Nankang, etc. I chose to keep staged 19” wheels, what limited my options. What I have found:

Michelin Pilot Cup 2

Front: 255/35R19 (96Y) XL TL Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 (€ 240.84)

Rear: 275/35R19

Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 setup

• Front 255/35R19 (96Y) XL TL Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 €240.84

• Rear 275/35R19 (100Y) XL TL Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 €312.58

Total for 4 tires € 1,100

Toyo Proxes R888 R setup

• Front 265/30R19 89Y (GG-Medium) TL Toyo Proxes R888R €240.46

• Rear 295/30R19 100Y XL (GG-Medium) TL Toyo Proxes R888R €260.40

Total for 4 tires € 1,000

As you see, I went for pretty agressive width and profile with Toyo — simply because this was the only choice. Good news is that they fit perfectly to 9” front and 10” rear wheels. In Michelin Cup 2 setup, I chose 255mm front and 275mm rear tire, cause factory 245 and 265 are seriously narrow for these wheels. Interesting, that BMW even recommended these sizes.

Which setup to choose — price difference is only 10%, eg 100 €uros? I picked Toyo setup because:

• Lasts much longer, has more contact area and less stress

• Is cheaper to buy, much cheaper to run

• Looks better

Negatives:

Toyo Proxes R88R is street legal, but a bad choice for everyday driving, they are too noisy and wet traction is sub-optimal.

Photo by Kaur Ilves