I went on a quest recently too for tires.
http://www.clubralliart.com/showthread.php?t=307
My conclusion for now is, I can't justify popping for $300 tires when most of my driving is done for work. I likely won't see a track day on these tires or my next set of tires. For me, tires that still held decent grip, yet lasted longer than the stocks was my current priority. Later in my cars life, I may get better tires. In my thread I just referenced, I linked to a thread on SoCalEvo which has a great write up on many different tires.
I ended up going for Toyo Proxies 4 225/40/18. I feel they grip as well as, if not better than, the stock RA tires did. If you are looking for a good deal on these, hit up Muellerized! They gave me a great deal and great service!