I recently snagged a used set of the factory 8.5x18 and 12x18 GT2 wheels. Since there were no "N" spec tires of the correct size to be found anywhere in the country, I ended up picking up a set of the Falken Azenis RT-61s since they are available in the correct 315/30R18 size.


The 12" wide rear wheel presented a problem before I could even get started. The best results on a Hunter GSP9700 Road Force balancer are obtained using a flange plate adapter on the front of the wheel instead of a mounting cone. The only problem was that the bolt holes are so deeply recessed in the wheel, that none of the studs for the flange plate that I already had were long enough to use. After tracking down longer studs through Haweka for the flange plate, it was time to do the mount.


The secret to great tire mounts, and resulting very low Road Force variation measurements are measuring the bare rim runouts for match mounting purposes, and using plenty of tire lubricant on both the tires and the rims.


Here's a shot of the bead seating area of the rim getting a generous dose of mounting paste:





The powered bead press arm (at 10:00 in the picture) on the Hunter tire changer holds the tire bead in position during the mount. Mounting any 30 series profile tire is difficult but it's even more challenging when dealing with an extremely wide tire. The Hunter changer excels on these difficult mounts.





The matching mounting of the tire to the rim using a bare rim runout measurement and other proper mounting procedures yields an extremely low road force variation for the assembly. This 315 tire/wheel has a RF measurement of only 7, which is extremely low:





I'll be interested to try out the Falken tires. They look great and seem to have very positive reviews. And it's nice knowing they've been painstakingly mounted and balanced - something that seldom happens at your local tire shop.

 

Mark the tires relative to each wheel. When using lubricant for mounting the tires will slowly rotate on the rim under hard braking and aceleration. I always dry mount using alcohol spray which evaporates by the time you are ready to seat the bead. I also clean the tire bead with acetone for best adhesion.

 

just mounted my latest RT615k's with rubbing alcohol/windex mix on stock GT2 wheels, slippage is minimal so far tire lube results in significant and never-ending slippage

 

Do you guys all have your own personal tire mounting equipment?

I HATE tire mounting. They cannot help but to mar the wheels in the process and ***** about how hard it is to mount "such low profile tires".

Any advice on other ways I can prevent wheel scarring during the 3rd party mounting process? I already do my own mounting/unmounting of the wheels from the car, thinking about taping the wheel faces up with painters tape around the bead as well. I do not have many options for shops around my area, so kinda stuck with who I have.