OEM Tires change
 

I'm just worrying ahead of time but my current OEM tires are:

225/50WR18 (front) and 245/45WR18 (rear) Yokohama® ADVAN Sport® high-performance tires

When it comes time to replace tires, should I buy the exact tire specs or what should I buy? These OEM tires are around $300ish each. They're pretty expensive so I wanted to find something a bit cheaper without affecting the car's performance.

Also, does the speed rating have a huge role when replacing tires?

Anyone? Help please?

If you don't want to affect the car's performance, don't change tires, use OEM.

If changing performance is ok, decide if you want to improve or save money. Also, how you use the car could indicate if you will have a noticeable performance difference.

Speed ratings matter based on how you drive the car - how fast, and how hard.

A lotof people suggest the Hankook V12 for a good street tire with better rain performance, less tire noise, and a cheaper price, but soft sidewalls that make steering and at the limit handling a bit compromised, and track use questionable.

I know tires are pricey (1200$ for a set of OEM tires for the Ray's) but its one of the best things you can do to get your car to do what you want.

suspension, engine, and other mods don't mean much of anything if you can't translate it to the ground.

ive seen much less expensive tires like Yok S-Drives for my 19's if i decide to do dressup wheels.

check out Tire Rack - Your performance experts for tires and wheels for tire deals. Alex helps me out all the time over there. :p

I am buying a set of OEM tires from Tbone in this forum for $400 shipped. You can find good deals here ;)

get a set of hankook ventus v12. If you're just concerned with having a solid tire with good performance for daily driving and want something that will last, they are a good choice. Yes you can get a better performance, but they seem to be right on the line between good performance and good wear.

Speed Rating is just that. Rated for how fast you can drive on the tire.
Treadwear will tell you how long the tire will last due to it having a softer or harder compound.

Bottom line is how do YOU drive the car. You do want to stay with a fairly reputable name and there are plenty out there. Dunlop, Nitto, Toyo, Hankook, Khumo, Michellin, etc and they are all good depending on what you can afford and again, how YOU drive the car.

If you are looking for a decent priced tire but done want to give up any performance like the Yoke's that came stock, go with Hankook, Nitto, Or Toyo. They are all solid tires and should cost less than the OEM ones you have now.