Tony @ Mamo Motorsports

Haven't been over 160.....felt good there.

Also you don't air these down like bias ply tires....that's why they run harder at big speeds staying more round.

If your streeting them and roll racing 25 - 30 PSI warm is about right

Maybe some of the other guys reading can share their experiences also

Cant_die_LOL

Ok thanks. I'm like the thread starter, I'll be needing a good roll race tire thats stable up top that can hook from 40-50mph roll.....1,000+ RWHP set up.

It blows me away how some of these 2,000 HP ++ Vipers hook from 40-50mph. Like this 2,600 RWHP Viper does.....its amazing. I think he has Toyos.....

Tony @ Mamo Motorsports

FWIW, that guy is running the Toyo R888R tires......the real trick however is his set-up.....its not making that full power in the lower gears.....with every taller gear the turbo is feeding more boost and the ECM feeding more ignition timing also.

Its either speed or gear based but that car is dishing out the power at varied levels and may even have a pretty sophisticated traction control device installed also. Its a mega dollar build so dont lose sleep.

Its just an extremely well sorted out car but don't think for a minute he is applying 2000+ HP in 2nd gear.....not a chance.


For crazy speeds and huge power I would probably recommend that tire.....at that point the tire noise is something your not likely too concerned with anyway and approaching 200 MPH I would rather be on the Toyos than any other tire I have mentioned in this thread.

I don't think anything else would hook as good and be as safe and stable at speeds approaching 200 MPH.

Its a premium tire and Im not surprised to see it on that over the top Viper build.....noise and price not withstanding, those tires offer alot of grip and do alot of things very well. It might be the tire to look at for your set-up

-Tony

speedfreak440

iTrader: (9)

The R888's work very well cold and would be a great tire for your usage and for the specific scenario laid out here, they do get greasy after 3-4 hard laps (around a track) if you are not tracking it on a road course you will not heat them to that point, that is also probably one of the reasons they do well cold remember compounds work on a sliding scale they all have their working range, I haven't used the newer R888R's I assume they would be similar but you know what assuming does..... That Viper is RIDICULOUS but as Tony said thats a $100K car with a $300K-$500K build package on it boost by gear, TC and don't forget that massive wing on a Viper ACR isn't there for it's looks.

Floorman279

iTrader: (11)

it gets confusing because the r888s are unavailable in a 17, so assume anytime anyone in this thread recommends the r888 they actually are recommending the r888r.......i will get the toyos, but at the pace things go for me we will need to wait 6 months to find out how good they are lol.....

worst case the noise is too loud but they wont last long anyway

440_Stroker

It's funny because this discussion happens regularly in the Viper forum. There are very few tire options for Gen V Vipers. Most have other cars and many run NT01's and wish upon a star that Nitto would make that in Viper sizes.

Now if Tony would only do some Viper head and intake I'd be set!

Kingc8r

iTrader: (21)

I run the NT05R on my car on the street. Now I don't push my car super hard in the corners but I did do spirited driving on twisty roads in my car and they never felt unsafe. I drove around with 30-32lbs of air in them and I would dead hook when temps were above 55 degrees with 560hp 494trq. I'd say either go with the NT05R or the NT05s. I never got above 160 on the street but have been 145-150ish and they felt very stable

Floorman279

iTrader: (11)

more research shows me that nitto and toyo are basically same company, also the nt01 and r888r are same compound according to internet wisdom. saw one thread where a guy with a bmw had multiple nto1s fall apart, he also didnt like r888r so whatever.

seems like from everything im seeing, the nt01 will last noticeably longer in a track setting. many other platforms say they chose nittos becuase they were decently cheaper than the r888rs. however, in my size, the toyo is 14 cheaper a tire. with that said, im goona order the r888rs, think i said that already but if i can deal with the noise and get 8000 miles out of them, ill buy another set after

440_Stroker

No wrong answer. I have seen some similar info but the Nittos don't heat cycle out like the R888R.

I think you're going to like the R888R.

rentedmule

Oops - I meant the NT05, not the NT05r. The regular NT05 is their 200TW auto-X tire

Cant_die_LOL

Great, thanks for the reply. You're the first to recommend a tire that will be stable at 160-170mph, which would be the end of a roll race and then slow on down.

I hear ya on the 2,000+ HP in 2nd gear WOT hits.....no way. But damn, that Viper does well with hooking. If I can hook 1,100 - 1,200 RWHP frpm a 40-50mph roll that would be nice.

Again, its all in the tuners tricks........

Cant_die_LOL

Are you serious....$300,000+++ into that Viper???? Thats crazy....

Always wondered what the Vipers cost to mod that way, as well as the 2,000+ WHP GTR's........

For the people with unlimited bank accounts the game never ends......2,000 WHP GTRs will get utterly destroyed by that Viper. Whats gonna come along next to beat that Viper.....somethimg will one day.

Floorman279

iTrader: (11)

wow these r888rs are great. to the best of my knowledge i have 99% traction starting at 4000 in second and slamming it. my 460rwhp would chirp on chilly roads the the nitto 555 extreme tires. i dont even notice the road noise with the dumped exhaust. one question tho, is the vibration starting around 100 mph tire related possibly? does softer rubber tend to due this or is it pinion maybe? its not a horribe vibration but i feel it

Tony @ Mamo Motorsports

If the vibration is new to your tire install its pretty obvious the tires are the cause and I would rebalance them

What is a Nitto 555 Extreme tire?? And how old was the rubber your comparing? (Even sticky tires lose their grip that are a few years old)

The 555 comes three ways.....a street version that's nothing special as far as traction goes. The first generation 555R which is OK.....stickier than their street tire but not great......and the newest version, the 555RII which I doubt your referring to that tire. Not familiar with Nitto referring to either of these as an "extreme" and wanting to clarify what your comparing and how old the tires were.

-Tony

Floorman279

iTrader: (11)

Its been 1.5 years since driving it so it could have bugs, had a vibration before......the 555 extreme is the older version of the street tire 555g2 so nothing special, it was spinning somewhat in 4th on this setup

Midnight02

iTrader: (8)

Glad to see you decided to go with the Toyo R888's -- they are a very versatile tire in a space where we're ultimately force to choose on a trade off between competing needs (tire longevity vs. traction; straight line traction versus sidewall stability in the turns and hard braking; street versus track; wet versus dry traction; etc.). There is no perfect solution. I've tried pretty much all of the stuff mentioned in this thread and then some. A few comments worth sharing:

-- I primarily run the Nitto 555RII's. They have a fresh design on the tire Tony posted above, however they've been around for a long time (one of the few 305/35/18 options that mate nicely with C5 Z06 rears). Same R-compound as the Nitto 555R drag radials, however the 555RII's are designed for road courses and auto-x. Stiffer sidewalls and are very stable in the turns. The straight line traction on the street is as good as many of the drag radials I've run at the same PSI. Worth mentioning, but they do not seem to perform as well as some others on a drag strip/track surface. I spend little time at the drag strip these days, so I lean this way in favor of good street traction and really good road course/track performance (short of going with full slicks).

-- The Nitto 555R drag radials are also a versatile tire. They offer much better straight line traction than most street radials, however they lag behind most other DOT street drag radials. The Toyo R888's, MT ET Streets, Nitto NT05R's are better options if straight line traction is the primary focus. That said, they're cost effective and they're better than running standard 9/32" depth street radials. For what it's worth, they were OK on the road course as well until you progress as a driver. I used them for my first few track days and didn't have any concerning issues with the sidewalls being too soft, but the reality is that when you're just getting started in road racing most aren't driving the car close to the limit. As I started to bank more seat time on the road course, I did pivot in favor of a stiffer sidewall tire.

-- They're all going to suck in the rain and most of them will suck with straight line traction and stopping when they're cold. After seeing my life flash before my eyes with a hydroplaning incident in which I was being very careful on the highway, I keep the speeds down any time the roads are wet. That literally involves not taking the shorter/faster highway routes in favor of lower speed local roads. As noted above, in driving rain, it's hard to get above 45 and maintain any stability as the tires simply can't channel that volume of water with the reduced tread depths.

Tony @ Mamo Motorsports

Great post.....have you backed to back the NT05R and the NT555RII on the same car?

To me it just looks like the NT05R has more rubber on the ground and a softer sidewall construction (based on your comments comparing the two) making it a better tire for straight line action on the street and the track. That said for my Corvette I would also like a tire that can handle lateral G forces well so maybe the RII is a tire I should take a closer look at for that application. Might work well enough in a straight line and still corner well also

-Tony

Midnight02

iTrader: (8)

Thanks Tony. No sir -- my direct comparison with the NT05R was compared to the 555R (drag radials) and I found the NT05R to be better for straight line traction. I don't know the specifics on composition of the compounds in the NT05R vs. the 555R and 555RII's, however I believe (from my personal experience) there's a slight difference. Anecdotal evidence of this on my side comes in the form of what happens to the rubber when it gets hot (burnouts, a 25 minute track session on a hot day, etc.). The 555R and 555RII get very gummy and sticky in those high heat scenarios. I can come off of a sunny afternoon session at Road Atlanta and my hand (or anything else -- rocks, dirt, etc) will stick to the tires. The NT05R's did not seem to get quite as "gummy".

My car is primarily a road course car, so I leaned to the firmer sidewall tires over the drag radials. There's clearly a trade off based on that preference, however I am of the opinion that a good quality road course tire (555RII, Toyo R888's, Toyo RA1s, etc.) seems to do better as a straight line street tire than a dedicated drag radial (555R's, NT05R, ET Streets, etc.) does as a road course tire.

I failed to mention them above, however the Nitto NT01's are also good/versatile tires that I've had good mixed use experience with, however I have less seat time with these as I've only run one set of them over the years.

Midnight02

iTrader: (8)

One more update worth sharing -- the new Nitto 555RII is being marketed as their new drag radial that is designed to be a step up from the 555R we have known for years. While I thought the original 555RII's (what were their R-compound DOT radials with a stiffer sidewall for the road course) just got a fresh design and slightly different tread pattern, it seems they have completely changed the tire.

I'm going to reach out to Nitto to get more of the specific details on the change, however with this in mind, I wouldn't view the NEW Nitto 555RII's as an optimal road course tire. I'm due for another set and am almost certainly going Toyo R888's this time.

QwkTrip

iTrader: (23)

Similar car to OP, same tire size (275/40-17), with similar expectations. Not a drag car, just trying to hold some decent power in a fun street car.

I've been using drag radials on the street for 5 years and I'm here to tell you they CANNOT and WILL NOT meet your expectations. Drag radials are horrible street tires by any measure, and it makes the car very 1-dimensional (some would say boring). Traction is addictive when the tires are new/fresh, but that performance starts to decline after about 400-500 miles and I spend half the summer with less traction than a good 200 tread wear tire.

The whole drag radial thing hasn't worked out very good for me. This year I took a chance and experimented with some Falken RT660 autocross tires. DAAAAAAAMN!!!!! THOSE ARE GOOD TIRES. Car can do crazy monkey things. And they hook reasonably well in acceleration, actually sticking 2nd gear, which a partly worn drag radial won't do on my car.

My own experience with my car....

* Nitto NT05R. I have a lot of hate for this tire. The deep kind of hate that doesn't go away. 30% TPS max in 1st gear, and still spinning at 80+ mph. Worthless tire.

* MT ET Street S/S. This is a real drag radial. It'll hook all your power at the top of 1st gear when tires are new/fresh. That's what an R2 compound does. The other thing an R2 compound does is degrade really really fast on the street. The tire stops performing at peak level around 400 - 500 miles and it's a quick downhill from there. Tire ***** up super easy if you spin on dry pavement (which is what manual transmissions do).

* M&H Racemaster. Their recipe is a harder rubber and software sidewall than the MT tire. Doesn't hook like a MT tire on the street but lasts (a lot) longer. Never held my power in 1st gear. Barely held in 2nd gear when new/fresh and is a spin fest after ~1000 miles, but still have lots of tread depth remaining (whereas MT tire would be totally bald).

* Falken RT660. World-class 200 tread wear autocross tire. Not wonderful from a dig but hooks as good as an M&H drag radial on a roll. Crazy good tire that keeps the car 3-dimensional fun.