AnotherWs6

iTrader: (17)

How many miles can you realistically expect to get out of a set of DRs? And do DR even help traction wise over a typical sticky performance tire if you dont warm them up with a burnout first? Its getting close to tire replacement time and I'm wondering if I should throw a set on the back. I bought my car mid/late last summer (2002 WS6, 32K miles, BONE STOCK!!!!!!!) and put about 500 miles on it before garaging it for winter, so I'm thinking maybe 2,000 miles max this year. I dont expect it to ever see track, but with 4.10's going in I imagine I will have some traction issues when I romp on it.

Ellsworth

if you're worried about life span and you want drag radials Nittos are your friend.

HCI2000SS

iTrader: (2)

No street tire will ever stick as good as a drag radial in a straight line, and as far as mileage is concerned it depends on the drag radial that you go with. It sounds like a Nitto 555R or a Toyo Proxes TQ would suite your needs

thunderstruck507

iTrader: (18)

If you are going to be driving 2000 miles or less a year, the tires will dry out before they wear out. (like any other tire would)

Yes, a drag radial will outperform a street tire even without a burnout. The exception being on damp or wet pavement. They also harden quite a bit in cold and will get slippery.

Any drag radial will do what you want, but keep in mind the Nittos run narrow as hell so they will look more "stretched" than a normal tire or other brand tire.

sprayedenali

iTrader: (11)

toyo r888 ot proxes tq

roninsonic

iTrader: (3)

I got about 5000 miles out of my Nitto's... But I'm predisposed to random, smoky burnouts.

AnotherWs6

iTrader: (17)

Thanks thunderstruck507, anyone else wanna chime in about the traction of a DR with no burnout vs a good, normal performance tire? Also, it does sound like I can get a few years out of a set so thats good news. I was kind of under the impression that they would be toast after a couple of thousand miles

HCI2000SS

iTrader: (2)

I got about 15k out of my 555R's and close to the same on my TQ's

thunderstruck507

iTrader: (18)

I got about 15000 miles out of my Nitto 555Rs and that included quite a few trips to the track. They hooked decent on the street cold and good warmed up and were more firm on the sidewalls. Had good luck at the track but they had to get HOOOT to do it.

I got about 12000 miles and track trips out of my first set of MT ET street radials, but they were lightly used when I got them. The years they were in storage might have made them a little harder and last longer than really fresh ones.

My current MT ET radials I put on last Feb and drove on them pretty much all summer and have been to the track a lot. One of them might have another 2 track trips or a couple thousand miles and the other one has half tread. One is softer than the other so I think one was really fresh off the production line and the other was from a warehouse. They probably have 7k miles on them along with at least 6 track trips with at least 6 runs per trip.

My car will hook hard on a 5mph roll out on the street with the ET streets cold. Warm they can handle about half throttle or so right out of the hole.

On a street tire (granted 15" street tires are all 420 treadwear all seasons) it will burn through first at anything over half throttle. At WOT it will burn first, and roll smoke in second as long as you want to stay buried in the throttle. Fun but useless. No amount of pedaling will hook first on them.

I also use my drag radials at autocross. They prevent massive oversteer for me.

AnotherWs6

iTrader: (17)

Good info. So that really does answer the overall question I guess I had - are DR's a reasonable and worthwhile next step up from typical performance tires on my infrequently driven car? Good stuff. So am i gonna blow my rear with 4.10s and DRs? Other than exhaust and gears i want to keep the car stock.....

thunderstruck507

iTrader: (18)

That's a crap shoot. I've seen fbodies go low 11s on a 10 bolt with gears and I've seen them blow on stock cars on street tires on a sticky track.

HCI2000SS

iTrader: (2)

Yeah the stock rear is truly a crap shoot. I'm running Nitto dr's with a HCI combo and 4.10 gears through a M6 on the stock 10 bolt...and will soon be hitting it with a 100 shot to boot lol

AnotherWs6

iTrader: (17)

hmmmm, I kind of already know that, it being a crap shoot and all. Well one way to find out is to just do it and see. The gears are necessary (god these motors dont like to make power at lower rpms) in my opinion, I guess I can just wait and see how it is with gears and stockish tires. My old 5.0 never hooked worth a damn, always sideways in 1st and 2nd, made for a fun car that would scare the S out of people, but its been ten years and I think my driving style has changed a bit.

HCI2000SS

iTrader: (2)

You don't think these motors make good power down low? That's funny because coming from the Mustang world myself I though the LS1 felt like a damn torque monster compared to ANY Mustang that i've ever drove lol. It seems like it's almost a necessity to upgrade the gears on a Mustang, but not so with the LS based cars.

AnotherWs6

iTrader: (17)

uh-oh, this thread is about to take a turn. Well in my opinion no, i dont feel they are very torquey down low. I had a 91 5 liter with headers, full exhaust, intake, MAF, pulleys....all the typical bolt on stuff. Also went from the stock 2.73's to 3.55s. That thing pulled from way down low in a way these things just dont. Now i dont have any real experience any of the modular motors they started putting in mustangs afterwards, but I would bet your typical 4.6 liter 2 valve is probably has even less low end than our ls1's. Another quick little tidbit - I test drove an 01 or 02 transam (dont remember exactly when it was) the day after christmas when they were brand new. Was just out driving cuz i was bored. I always loved the look of the these cars, which is why ten years later i sought out and bought a pristine one. Anyway, I pulled into my local dealer as I often did just to poke around the lot, see if they had any nice ones and then dream. I did not have money for a 30 something thousand dollar car. Well a salesman comes out and starts trying to work me. I told him i was just looking over and over. he saw me, saw my mustang (which was really nice looking, lowered saleen wing, rims, sharp and clean, not a beater by any means) and wouldnt let go. He kept telling me that if i drove the transam i was going to be amazed and fall in love yada yada yada. So finally i said fine, but told him that I was not going to be easy on it and that if he wanted me to drive it so badly then i was going to really see what it had. he had no problem with it. So finally we get in the car and I pull out of the parking lot sideways. The road the dealer was on had some good decent length straights and because of the time there was no one on the road. Again, day after xmas. I ran through gears a few times. The salesman, to his credit, was fine with this and was pretty cool. But when we got back and he asked me I thought i told him ---- it just doesnt feel that fast, that my car felt quicker. He was shocked. I said sorry and left. Now to be honest, that TA was probably a little bit quicker than my 5 liter was on a drag strip and I would have had a good chance of hving my *** handed to me on a dragstrip, but the simple fact of the matter is that my car FELT quicker because it prety much always just pulled hard. I mean it dropped off pwerwise after 5 grand, but in first and second you were spinning tires with the car going partially sideways down the road while still pushing you into the seat a good amount. And in normal everyday driving it always had torque on instant tap. My ws6 just doesnt feel that way. I am betting that my set of 4.10s is going to change this. anyway, thats my 72 cents.

SSCamaro99_3

iTrader: (1)

I have had NT-555R's and NT-05's. The 555R's were better for straightline traction even when old. The NT-05's walk all over the NT-555R's by any other measure. Really depends what you want out of your car.

SSCamaro99_3

iTrader: (1)

Couple of important highlights. The butt dyno is irrelevant. Unless it actually mad more power, then it is nothing but perception. The fact that it would nosedive at 5000rpms is significant as the LS series has an extremely broad power band. I am going to assume stock sized tires on your Mustang. A 225/50/15 versus a 245/50/16 (possibly 275/40/17) may change the traction dynamic. I had a 1987 5.0. The long runner intake made it feel great just off idle, after that, eh. Guys get all wound up about low end torque in LT1's. Never lost ground to them in the low rpms, after that it was over. It is not that LS series do not have low end torque, the nature of the curve just doesn't give you the feeling of a perceptable hard peak.

AnotherWs6

iTrader: (17)

It is not that LS series do not have low end torque, the nature of the curve just doesn't give you the feeling of a perceptable hard peak.

I think I agree with this. The power isnt great down low, however it just seems to never stop building on the ls1. And yeah, the 5.0 had a real hard, sharp and quick hit when you mashed it and our ls1's generally lack this. Again, i know that I wouldnt really have had a chance against even a stock TA or SS, but my 5.0 felt quicker is all. I just need a set of gears to liven my pretty black bird up. two different animals these cars and the old 5.0's. I have a soft spot and real love for the 5 liters though to this day. this may not be the place to express that

Guitar

iTrader: (9)

I have a 5.0 Mustang and it is a damn TURD. It is mostly stock except for flowmasters and a CAI but damn is this thing slow. My SS felt better down low which was stock besides a catback, and my TA with bolt ons CERTAINLY was stronger.

AnotherWs6

iTrader: (17)

i drove a co workers 89 5.0 last year (nice car, he bought it new and its still immaculate) and yea, it wasnt very fast. But its stock with stock gears. Throw another 30 horsepower worth of bolts ons and set of gears in them and theyre decent. Burnout machines anyway. gears gears gears. i dont care which car were talking about, if they've got a gear chosen for EPA MPG tetsing and ratings as opposed for being optimized for the performance of the given car its not going to feel right. that was the case with the 5.0's. I threw every reasonable priced bolt on i could find at it and put gears in it. then it felt quick. well i think its also the same for the ls1's gear wise. they are higher revving motors. and if guys are picking up 3/10's with gear changes then its got to make a pretty decent difference seat of the pants wise. its also been ten friggin years since i had that 5.0. who knows what i would think if i drove it again today..... as "quick" as it was i know i always wished it were faster. but i dont know if that EVER stops.