I recently bought Nitto Extreme Performance NT555 255/40-17. From AmericanMuscle.com, they have the 245/45-17s listed at $122 a piece.
I went from the 245/45-17 stock tires to the Nitto 255/40-17s, and man, the difference was unbelievable. I have an auto, and when I launched, the old ones would start spinning over at around 1800 rpm. These ones don't start spinning until almost 2200 rpm. And then, they hook. Period. I have better traction with these tires in the rain than I did with my old ones in dry conditions. Now, whether this extra traction was due to the new, better tire or the extra cm. of tire,

. How they will hold up with your cars power, I also can't say. But for my mostly stock 98GT, I love them.
As far as treadwear, I can't say just yet. I have about 10,000 miles on them, and they still look great. But I have not been doing burnouts or anything like that, so I'm not sure how they will hold up in those conditions.
One thing about the 255/40-17s though. The front tires do stick out just a slight amount more than the stockers did, and I expected that. It's not even enough to notice, but they do tend to throw mud/water on the side of the car. Not too bad, but they do do it. But you said you're going 245/45-17s, so you shouldn't have to worry bout this.
Good luck.