Hey everyone, As you can see, I have the American Eagle 18" 5-spoke high polished rims but the rubber I got with them is way too small. I think I need about 245/45/18...I'd like to hear everybody's experiences with the different tire brands. (I have Ventus right now and have had them for the past year...I do not recommend this tire to anyone. There is no lip on the sidewall to protect the outer edge of the rim and the tread wears too fast...) Thanks everyone!

How about Toyo's? I've got a friend with Toyos on his Integra and he really likes those.

Also stay away from Kumho's. Another member of our chapter has those. It's not that they are a bad tire, but he says that they feel pretty heavy and he's going to try something different next time.

When I get new tires it will be from one source

http://www.nittotire.com/

I got a set of these for my Dakota R/T and it dropped my 60' time a lot. I do not remember the exact times but if I find my time slips I will post them. They where also great in the rain. And did not break the bank. But remember they are directional tires.

Check out a company called Falken. I have a friend with them on his Saab, he only paid about $80/each. My brother also has them on his 5.0, it takes some work to throw the rear end out, even with 300hp.

Maybe its his rims that are heavy. If he went to a bigger size anything he puts on is going to feel heavier.

I have kumho KH-11s in 235/50/17 (same outside diameter as the stocker 16's) on Mille Miglia Avia 17" wheels, they are only about 7 lbs heavier (rim and tire) each than the stock 16" rims with my all season tires.

I use them in summer only and they have been GREAT for wet and dry traction.

I only have about 7,000 miles on them so far but for the price they are great They are quiet and handle well.

My .02 after taxes.

I have Falken on my 95 Aurora and they handle great, rain or dry, quiet & without breaking the bank, (about $90), I had them for about a year an a half now, the wear is good also.

You will find as many opinions as there are members. STick to Big brand names, (michelin, toyo, bridgestone, etc.) and you wont go wrong.

My vote is for Michelin

I almost bought some Falken 502/512 (I think), went with the Goodyear Eagle GThr instead. I had a flat and had to cancel the order with the Falkens so I could get something they had in stock.

I agree with the earlier posts. The best brands out there are GoodYear, Bridgestone, Michelin, Yokohama, etc. I may be argued on this, but I'd even stay away from the Toyo's, Falkens, Hanckooks, and Kumho's. They're attractive because they can look cool, and have a good price. They are really still considered an entry-level tire, regardless of what their speed rating or warranty might be. I would recommend the new Good Year Eagle GT-HR. They're a directional tire, H rated, and are good for about 50k miles. They're also really quiet. The Yokohama AVID Touring is also a great tire, but more of a regular all-season, but is super quiet and priced well for a Yoko.

Something like a Good Year or any other large brand like Yokohama, etc. can also be warrantied anywhere you may happen to be, nationwide. The bigger companies like these are always also at the top of the ratings, and have more up to date quality control and technology. Check out the Tire Rack.com to see what consumers have rated the best.

I'd love to find some Goodyear tires with raised yellow lettering for my Pace car.

I've got Bridgestone Potenza's...RE950's...and like'em

adam 98 gtp

The yellow-lettered ones are the Eagle #1's, which is basically an Eagle GTII with yellow lettering. It's a good tire.

Thanks everyone...I'll have to look at some prices...

Hey, GdGTP. I just looked again at your first post. P245/45-18 is probably only available in certain models of the brands we listed earlier. Since that is what is considered to be a "performance size", it's probably only available in the real high end models. For that size, I'd really look at Yokohama or Goodyear. There may be a Goodyear Eagle F1 made in that size; which would be a great choice. One of the best ultra-performance tires to come out in years. Expensive, though, but worth it.

I know you are wondering about the largest 18 inch size. I've seen on other boards that some guys are using 255/45-18, and from the pics, they look awesome. I run BFG Touring T/A VR4's. I think they are the best tire I've ever used bar none. Unfortunately the biggest ones are 225/60-16 and I think BFG stopped making them but you can still find them if you look. Got mine at Sam's Club for $85 each.
Jack

245/45-18 are the closest to the stock tires (percentage-wise) so, I might go with them, I don't know...SOMETHING bigger...

Make sure you check to see which 18" meets up as close to possible with the overall diameter of the stock tires. You don't want to alter things like tire height and width too much, even though it may look good. You can mess up alignment angles, wheel bearing stress, and throw off your speedometer, not to mention upset the overall handling and drivability of the car.

I wouldn't worry about that stuff too much. The only things I'd be concerned about is loosing mileage and going slower with the bigger, heavier meats. If I could buy an 18 inch tire/wheel combo that's the same weight or lighter, I'd have bought them already. Every pound you remove from the unsprung weight is the equivalent of removing 10 pounds of sprung weight. That means every ten pounds would reduce your qtr mile by 1 tenth sec.
Jack
BTW, The reverse also applies. For every ten pounds you ad to the unsprung weight, you would ad a tenth to your time. Something to think about before buying those wheels.

I haven't done a lot of reading on this, but I was under the impression that in order to improve you 1/4 mile time by a tenth (using the removal of weight method), you had to remove approximately 100 lbs. I'm thinking that it would be way to easy to drop your times by only removing 10 lbs at a time. That would mean I could drop my time by about a half a second (a life time in the 1/4 mile) by only removing my spare tire and tool box.

Comments?

Marc

I also heard somewhere that it was 100lbs. Might have been on ZZP or Intense's websites.

100 Pounds sounds about right.

What does everyone like when it comes to very good traction street racing tires?

Yeah..concerning the tire issue, Ive found that my customers are well pleased with most of the Touring T/A's..Im a tire tech at Sams Club here in Macon, so Im familiar with all of the product lines we carry in the store. I run the BFG G-Force T/A 225-55-R16s on my GTP and have been very pleased with those as well. Jvojr, if youre looking for something comparable to the Touring T/A in the future, consider the new Traction T/A we just started carrying in the stores..Its available in H or V speed ratings and carries a 60k wty...Cant beat that anywhere you go!! If you have any questions just let me know..

I personally was looking at the Traction T/A. Hey I have to see if they come with the raised white letters. Gotta have the lettering.

Are the traction t/a's good for street racing traction wise?

Well..most of our customers buy them just for street use..but either way..if you get the H-Rated or V-Rated tire, youre getting a good deal. Specs on them are Treadwear: 400 Traction: AA Temp: A..This tire is the best in both the traction and temp. categories and to answer your question terapinn..I would recommend these to you..theyll give you that aggressive street racing traction youre looking for, good wet-weather traction, as well as excellent all-season driving performance. As of right now HercMan, theyre not offered in raised letter; only raised black letter..

gotta have the lettering!!??.. what the hell for!!
no body gonna be able to see the lettering when your up in the air with big ol black nose proppelin spinnin hammerin down
lookin like you drive with hair on fire type a gtp v-hickle.... man i wanna see if that sum a bitch fits in my garageeee

p.s. hercman... i bet the hud works real, real good on that GTP

You guys like the big black nose do ya? I'll have to get a pic of the new paint job we have. Oh and by the way the HUD in the GTP is far superior to the one we have in the Plane. LOL we dont have a hud in our planes. And yep I saw they dont offer the Traction TAs in raised white letters Time to break out the old white paint now theres a cosmetic mod In my search for tires I found that Dayton makes a performance tire called Daytona now that would fit with my Pace car only thing is I will never buy another set of tires from Dayton. 2 years ago I bought four new All Terrain Daytons for my truck and 15k later the side walls are all cracked to hell I have to buy new tires before I get a blow out. The tire shop said it was because I used tire shine on em. Bullshit I've never had problems with the stuff for the last 15 years.

LOL!!! WHATEVER!!!..I use tire gel on my tires every week..apply it at least twice a week!! It never cracked up my sidewalls..thats the funniest thing Ive ever heard about tires Herc and Ive been doing this for about 5 years now..wonder what those guys were smokin'?..hope it quits raining so I can down

So you want raised white letters on your GTP, Herc? You sure thats gonna look right??

With the Daytona Pace car Edition I think the raised white lettering would look good.

I saw a white GTP with the Goodyear NASCAR tires, raised white lettering. It looked real good with those tires.

yep, and thats all tose nascar goodyears are good for, is lookin good , at least thats what the goodyear dealer told me. he said i would be better buying any other goodyear tire,even the RSA` s that originally came with my GTP. and them bitch`s didnt last more the 40k, alright 40089 miles but whos counting!!!!
when your upside down .

No. It's ten pounds of unsprung weight or 100 pounds of sprung weight. Unsprung=tires, rotors, calipers. Sprung=seats, spare tire, etc..
Jack
BTW was my post that vague?

Herc , if your lookin for decent white letter tires try dunlop qualifier gt's reasonable price and a nice footprint .

thanks

I went back and reread your post. I guess I got into the "sprung" weight thought process and wasn't thinking "unsprung". You did mention that you were talking "unsprung" though. Sorry.

I haven't read much regarding how tire/rim and rotational mass based on over-all size (regardless of weight), effects performance. I realize that mass and demension have an effect... I just don't know to what degree. It's a little more complicated than "sprung" weight issue.

Marc

Warning: Possible stupid question ahead...

How is removing 10lbs of brake calipers (unsprung) different from removing 10lbs of interior items (sprung)???

Maybe not calipers. But rotors, tires, axles, and driveshaft are all rotational mass. The lighter they are, the quicker the engine can spin them up to speed. The heavier they are, the harder the engine has to work.
Jack

A bit of physics is involved. It's not just 10 pounds here or there. When you start rotating an object the faster you spin it the greater the "G" loading is so theoreticly that 10 pounds will feel like 100 pounds to the motor.

I`m with JackO I think that the sprung, unsprung theory is caca, the biggest diference is made by the weight of rotational elements, if you dont believe me the do the following, grab the front wheel of a racing bike (thin tire) by its axle (meaning take it off the bike, ask someone to spin it for you, then try to move it sideways, you will feel a force, that will try to stop you from moving either direction, now try to do the same with a heavier wheel , say a mountain bike, you will definatelly feel a lot more resistance to move in either direction & it will take a slightly greater force to get that wheel moving... I learned that in aviation school, don`t remember the name of that force now,,,(it`s being 7 years since I when to school) it`s either centrifugal or centripital.

I get it now. I wasn't thinking about the rotational forces, I was only thinking strictly on weight.

I don't like physics. I changed my major from Computer Engineering to CIS so I didn't have to take physics.

Actual unsprung weight will affect corner carving.

Just purchased some BFG ZR4 Comp T/A's. They seem to get excellent traction and hardly give while cornering. Not sure if they come in 18's or not, but they only cost around $120. the only downfall so far is the noise. They are a lot louder than the Pirelli's i had before.

Pontiacmatt98 how much do the traction T/A's run each for 16"

What size are you looking for terapinn? Ill check on the 225-60-16s V-Rated today at work and get back at ya tonight or tomorrow, but just let me know what size you want..theyd have to be special ordered anyway, unless your Sams Club carries them in the store..

Terapinn..the price for the 225-60-16 V Rated Traction T/A's are 90.23 for one and with the road hazard package..itll run you $424.98..

cool thanks matt

sure thing..now get those new tires so you can down and screech tires..

Pontiacmatt98...Do you think you could check on some 245-45-18 T/A's???

Ill check and see what we've got..any particular type of BFGoodrich tire you looking for?? I think we may have the G-Force T/A's in that size but Im not sure..Im off of work this weekend, but I can check for you on Monday though..

What did BFG replace the Touring T/A VR4's with? I know they replaced them with something cause they don't make them anymore. Sam's club still has some left. If you're going with 225/60-16's, those are the only one's I'd use. They are the best tires I've ever owned bar none. I've tried them all and nothing compares sun, rain, or snow. The bad news is that's the biggest they come in. At $84 a piece at Sam's, it's the best money you'll ever spend. I swear it. If you need tires, buy these before they're all gone. Just make sure they are the VR4's.
Jack

Definately JackO..youre right about that. The Touring T/A V-Rated tires are still available via special order from your local Sams Club, but in limited supply though..BFGoodrich is in the process of phasing out those in favor of the Traction T/A. Now, what the Traction T/A's offer is a 60k warranty on the H and V-Rated tires and an 80k wty. on the T-Rated ones..this applies to ALL tire sizes. Plus, they come with a directional tread pattern and an AA traction rating and A Temp rating..along with a 400 treadwear rating. Guys, if I wouldnt have put my G-Force T/A's on my GTP, I wouldve definately gone with this tire..no other tire out there can match a warranty and performance rating that this tire exemplifies..YOU CANT BEAT IT!! Okay..enough about that; hopefully I wont get in trouble for advertising..

GdGTP..I found some tires for you..the Michelin Pilot Sport tires will run you $254 and I believe the Dunlop SP Sport tires are around that particular price range..We dont seem to carry anything by BFGoodrich in that size..I was hoping to at least get my hands on some G-Forces if nothing else, but thats about the best I can do..You can go to samsclub.com and type in your zip, then click the store nearest you and follow the instructions from there..they have a few other ones on there that I didnt list..

You might want to opt for a slightly different size if you can..depends on what the tires are going on..you may be able to find more variety then..

I know I"m late on this topic but if you don't care about how much mileage you get out of a set or their price I'd go with Yokohama AVS Sports. Not sure if they even make them anymore but I loved them until they wore out... about 2 summer only seasons

Well it depends. What kind of Tire shine are you using? When I was a kid, my dad always used Armor All, and all of our tires were always cracking. Its because it has Petroleum Distillates in it. I only use Meguiars Endurance Tire Gel (no petro distillates), and never have any problems. The only spray kind I've seen that doesn't contain petroleum distillates is No-Touch.

Hey GDGTP..go to your local Sams Club..itll save you a LOT of time and hassle..I know we have the Michelin Pilot Sports in that size youre looking for, but they run around 260 a piece. If I were you, Id stay away from the Goodyear F1's or anything with a Firestone/Bridgestone name. Now, Im not knocking on anyone whose driving on them, but I mount tires and work around them everyday; EVERY one of my customers tell me that they are VERY displeased with the "stone" tires..as the name implies..So if youre not happy with the price of the Pilots, go to SamsClub.com and check out what they have there. If you still dont see anything to your liking, just go in to your local Sams and tell them to look in their Special Order book..if you have to, you can go down a size..like to a 235/45/18 instead of the 245..thats up to you. Personally, I would recommend every one on this forum to shop at their local Sams Club for tires..there are VERY few other places where you can get top quality tires for the price..Check it out!!....

Yeah..I agree with Bryan on this..I use the Eagle One tire gel just b/c Im too cheap to buy the Meguiars gel..but yeah the petroleum distillates will actually either soften the rubber to where it will eventually weaken the stability of the sidewalls..or in your case, itll dry them out to where they crack..but stick with your non- petroleum based stuff and youll be okay..

I saw this show that had a high end detailer on it. He was saying how he used motor oil on the tires to make them shine. He said that after a few applications all you had to do was wipe them down with a towel to make them shine.