Tire experience

[Bluemont]

So if you saw the start of my build thread, I have ordered the wheels (and a bunch of the other parts) ahead of the car getting here. At first I wasn't going to do that but after talking to the manufacturers, they all have pretty big lead times. A strange consequence of the pandemic.

Anyway, I'm now going to turn my attention to the tires. I'll be using the car primarily for track days with some driving on the street. A long time ago I had a set of Kuhmo V710s that were pretty good. I only used them on the track. This time, I spent a good bit on these wheels and I'm thinking that I might be able to get away with a single set for both street and track. In the sizes that I want (275/35/18 front and 335/30/18 rear), it looks like there are three primary choices.

BFG g-Force Rival S 1.5
Toyo Proxes R888R
Nitto NT01

I'm leaning towards the BFGs. Mainly because I have a set of the BFG g-Force Comp 2 A/S on another car and I like them. The BFGs are more expensive than the Toyo and Nittos (which I recently learned are sister companies). Does anyone have any experience good or bad that I should take into account for any of these (or recommend another that I should look into)?

[Jeff Kleiner]

The Rivals will be more cool and wet weather friendly and will last longer but ultimately grip less than either the Toyos or Nittos. I've run both NT-01 and R888R on my roadster and they perform very similarly although the Toyos seem to warm up just a bit quicker. I got almost 5,000 miles out of the NT-01s and it appears that the R888R will be pretty much the same for longevity.

Jeff

[frankeeski]

How long do you intend for your build to take? Having tires sit around for years is a waste of money. If you're going to be done in a few months that's one thing but it seems builds usually last a bit longer and I just don't like tires sitting around. I long ago invested in a set of shop wheels and tires (17"ers from a 90's Mustang) so the tires can be ordered when we're ready for them. That aside, I have no experience with the Toyo selection you have above. And a choice between the BFG's and the Nitto's would have me choose the NT-01 tires.

[Bluemont]

How long do you intend for your build to take? Having tires sit around for years is a waste of money. If you're going to be done in a few months that's one thing but it seems builds usually last a bit longer and I just don't like tires sitting around. I long ago invested in a set of shop wheels and tires (17"ers from a 90's Mustang) so the tires can be ordered when we're ready for them. That aside, I have no experience with the Toyo selection you have above. And a choice between the BFG's and the Nitto's would have me choose the NT-01 tires.

Yes, that's a good point. Any project like this always takes longer and costs more than I plan for. I also just ran into a buddy today and found out that he has a spare set of 19" S550 Mustang take-off wheels and tires. He said I could use those while I'm building the car. Don't know if the S550 wheels clear the suspension, but I guess I'll find out.

[mike223]

It's very handy to find a set of scrubs (somebody's cast-offs) in your intended size(s) for confirming bodywork fitment etc.

I completely agree you shouldn't buy new tires and let them age out during the build.

You also probably want to avoid bodywork / paint with your "for show" rims / tires.

[Olli]

For my "build time" I used a set of donut space savers.

Olli