Best tire for stock 17" wheels

[Felix C]

In Florida and so snow usage tires are not an issue.

What is the best brand and model? Also what size to use especially to avoid the front strut rub issue?

Need new tires. Hope to order this/next week.

Usually, purchase from Tire Rack.

[terryk]

I plan on looking at 235s rather than 245s when I wear these out. I think that will give the room needed. Mine don't rub now but the clearance is zilch with the 245's. I can see where any camber error would take out the sidewall of the tire.

TK

[Felix C]

what brand? Dunlops, Goodyear, Kumhos,etc..

[bobp16]

I plan on looking at 235s rather than 245s when I wear these out. I think that will give the room needed. Mine don't rub now but the clearance is zilch with the 245's. I can see where any camber error would take out the sidewall of the tire.

TK

Terry,

I live in Rochester, NY and drive my GTO in all weather conditions so I need a tire that can handle some snow.

I looking to purchase Michelin Pilot Exalto A/S tires since they appear to be able to handle the winter conditions. However, the largest size they come in is P235. So I plan to buy four of them and put the P235's on my car.

Based on your answer, it sounds like they will fit OK. Will the different tire size affect my speedometer or odometer?

Thanks,

Bob

[dollmer]

i'm south of chicago but i said hell with the weather when i got my new tires and went with the Nitto nt555s. I was contemplating for a while, some said the general uhps are good others say don't go cheap and get something more expensive. The nittos cost $105 apiece on discounttiredirect.com and I love them so far...minus snow handling (but thats what i get for getting summer tires during the winter). Theres my .02

[J.E.T.]

Forget Tire Rack..........total POS dealer, believe me.

JET

[RealDeal]

Nothing beats a BFG KDW for the money, or especially the KD for dry grip. Despite the crappy all-season KDWS, BFG actually makes great tires. I ran BFG KDW on my '02 SS, and wouldn't even think about running anything else. When I need new tires, I'll be getting four KDW's.

[blkgto]

He's right. KDW's are what's going on my goat once I put the stock rims back on.

[pharmdgto]

Traction T/A's are a decent tire that got me through the winter. They grip very well and are relatively cheap.

[Felix C]

Forget Tire Rack..........total POS dealer, believe me.

JET

Been buying from Tire Rack since the 1990s. Never had an issue. Nittos, Kumhos, GSCs,etc

Rear tire just went last night. Need to purchase new tires today/now.

[BlueVaGTO]

Been buying from Tire Rack since the 1990s. Never had an issue. Nittos, Kumhos, GSCs,etc

Rear tire just went last night. Need to purchase new tires today/now.

Hey, I've been doing some research.

People at TireRack LOVE the

General Exclaim UHP
BFG g-force KDW
BFG g-force Sport

I'm using this as a starting point....

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/surveyresults/survey display.jsp?type=UHP

Wayne

[GT086]

I just bought General UHP's from Tire Rack for $80 a piece, I was going to get BFG G-Force Sports but they are on back order everywhere and I needed tires immediately, I will give my review once I put some miles on them.

[malcum]

Eagle F1 GS-D3's. Great mild weather tire. If it means anything, Car and Driver tested all popular performance tires and these came out #1. about 200.00 ea.

[lanceygto]

Your question is a very relative question. It is relative to your climate, driving habits and available budget to mention a few.

Given that you drive in FLorida then you can look into ultra high performance summer tires. There you will find a wide range of prices. Usually we consider tires like Michellin, Pirelli, Bridgestone, BF Goodrich and Goodyear as beacons in the tire industry. Indeed, they offer fine choices for tires. Problem is they are expensive.

Remember I mentioned summer high performance tires? Ok, you have a powerful sports car, thus you want grip and handling. You cannot achieve these goals with an all season hard tire with a 400 treadwear. You see, all the high performance summer tires with a decent grip and top handling will have a treadwear below 300 except Nitto. Closest runner up will be 280. Now, this combination of treadwear and price is a factor to be considered if your budget so requires. If you are a rich feller with loads of money to throw around let's talk no more and take your pick among the most expensive tires. Nevertheless, if that is not your case then let's come down to earth and assess your real needs.

Long story short it is Nitto 555R Extreme Radials for the street with a 300 treadwear with both top temperature, load and speed ratings which will give you the most for your money ratio. Second to that it is Toyo (T1R) and a real close contender Kumho (SPT). All other top manufacturers will offer you a top excellent product at a double the price and about half the treadwear. You will not see any difference between a Toyo T1R and an Eagle F1, no difference between a Michellin and a Nitto to justify the steeper higher price.

If you are going to the drag strip it would be wiser to save on your street tires and invest in a good set of drag radials. Alltogether it will cost you less money than 4 new F1's not taking into consideration the initial invertment in an extra set of wheels for the rear drag radials. It is insane to buy a set of Eagle F1's and take your car to the drag strip with them. They will not outperform a decent set of drag radials and you will be burning your dollars real fast to no avail.

Good luck.

[J.E.T.]

Been buying from Tire Rack since the 1990s. Never had an issue. Nittos, Kumhos, GSCs,etc

Rear tire just went last night. Need to purchase new tires today/now.



Neither did I until they sold me back to back out-of-round sets of tires, then gave me a hard time with the re-mounting and shipping fees back to them. I'll NEVER use them again. Bought a set of Michelin PS2's yesterday and the car rides like a different vehicle. Total cost installed, balanced and road warranty included was $1,032. You can't beat that deal.......even with Tire Rack prices and all the hassle of finding your own mounting and balancing place. I totally believe they're selling "seconds". The Dunlop Sport Maxx's they sold me looked like an egg rolling on the hub.

JET

UPDATE:

Had the Michelins checked today by my usual tire balance shop and they found three of the four to be out of round. I dunno.........tires have not been good to me this month for some reason. Anyone else have tire balance issues? LMK.........

JET

[IBM/M6]

In Florida and so snow usage tires are not an issue.

What is the best brand and model? Also what size to use especially to avoid the front strut rub issue?

Need new tires. Hope to order this/next week.

Usually, purchase from Tire Rack.

felix

with me being from south florida I can tell you rain is another issue to think about . Even if you dont drive the car but in good weather you know how florida rain is . I went with the Bridgestone pole position S-03's for that very same reason . I got about 18k out of them . I think You saw them on the car at lujan from the dyno day. I have them on a 18" wheel so I run 245/40/18 but they can be had to fit your stock wheel . Try looking up http://www.roadwaywholesaletire.com they have some great prices and are right off 95 and atlantic in broward .

[RealDeal]

Eagle F1 GS-D3's. Great mild weather tire. If it means anything, Car and Driver tested all popular performance tires and these came out #1. about 200.00 ea.

I've seen the test - they didn't test any BFG, and the test was using a BMW 3-series with no power (if we're thinking the same test). Of the tires they tested, I don't recall any of them being that great.

I had the Eagle F1's on my '02 SS, and thought they were "alright." Then someone told me to try the KDW. It was like night and day. It's a better performer in the rain, and TONS more grip in the dry. The F1's just seemed like they were cold all the time - no traction.

[City Goat]

I just bought General UHP's from Tire Rack for $80 a piece, I was going to get BFG G-Force Sports but they are on back order everywhere and I needed tires immediately, I will give my review once I put some miles on them.
General Tire UHP's = teh win :judge:

[elmn8r]

All-weather Toyo's from edgeracing (http://www.edgeracing.com) if you know what's good for you and your car!

[bellwilliam]

here is a Car and Driver's test from few months ago:
http://www.caranddriver.com/article....ticle_id=10 252

Featured in This Comparo
BFGoodrich g-Force T/A KD
Bridgestone Potenza RE050A
Continental ContiSportContact 2
Dunlop SP Sport Maxx
Goodyear Eagle F1
Hankook Ventus R-S2 Z212
Kumho Ecsta MX
Michelin Pilot Sport PS2
Pirelli P Zero Rosso Asimmetrico
Toyo Proxes T1R
Yokohama Advan Neova AD07

Advan best in dry.
F1 best overall.

[RealDeal]

Hmm, those Eagle F1 GS D3's (?) are very different that the ones I had on my SS - might be worth a try.

[Felix C]

I do not drive the car much. Nice weather weekend use only. Going Nitto Drag Radial as two of the stock BFGs still have fair amount of tread on them. I logged only a bit over 1,000 miles over the previous six months so the lesser tread life is not an issue.

[JRM346]

I have the Goodyear F1 GS-D3s on stock 17" wheels, 245s, and am really impressed with them. Better than the stock tires in the rain, and stick better in the dry. Plus the tread and the sidewalls look really trick. 280 tread wear rating. Y speed rating. Highly recommended.

[nascar2448]

Hey, I've been doing some research.

People at TireRack LOVE the

General Exclaim UHP
BFG g-force KDW
BFG g-force Sport

I'm using this as a starting point....

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/surveyresults/survey display.jsp?type=UHP

Wayne

I had BFG g-force Sports on my last car and they were freaking great!! Great dry tire for FL and handled awesome in the rain! Cheap too!!

[J.E.T.]

I also ran the new Goodyear G3D3's until about 8K miles when I had them rotated. Couldn't keep 'em balanced after that........ditched 'em pronto.

JET

[04IBM GTO]

I run Continental extreme contacts in stock size. Great in Rain and Snow, they are hard to launch on cold roads, and flat spot over night. But considering how I drive they wear Very well, and are all season.

[motoboy]

http://www.ls1gto.com/forums/showthread.php?t=6663 6

mb.

[IBM/M6]

I do not drive the car much. Nice weather weekend use only. Going Nitto Drag Radial as two of the stock BFGs still have fair amount of tread on them. I logged only a bit over 1,000 miles over the previous six months so the lesser tread life is not an issue.
you forgot that part , the not driving it part . the nitto's on the back with bfg's up front work well