Nitto 555G2 Long Term Testing

JimC

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Nitto 555G2 Summer UHP review. 500 mile report.

I was lucky enough to be selected to test the new Nitto 555G2 Summer Ultra High Performance tires.

I received the tires and installed them April 29, 2016 and have put just over 500 miles on them now. The size is 255-45x18, just a little different from the stock 235-50x18 and the small difference in size has little effect on the speedometer. The extra width of the tire though looks great from the back of the car!

These are at least as quiet on the road as my Nitto Motivo were. That set has 7/32 or 8/32 of tread so that set may have a little more road noise. The ride is very smooth. First thing I noticed, the car handles like it is on rails. Definitely better handling than before. Dodging potholes, or having to make a quick turn, the car moves right away.

I had a chance to try them in the rain and grip was still very good. Hit the accelerator getting on the highway and firm, crisp, shifts with no noticeable tire spinning.

So far I am very pleased with this set of tires. During the next review period I hope to get a chance to try them out at the drag strip to see how they do on a pass there.

Tires were supplied by Nitto Tire U. S. A. Inc.

#Nitto Tire
#NT555G2
#NT555
#NT555G2SummerUHP
 

Pentalab

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Very nice. I use Motivo's from Oct31 to May1. Then NT-555 from May1 to Oct 31.

Motivo's are 235-50-18...on oem 8" rims. The measuring width of those tires is 7.5"...... so on a 8" rim, they should be aprx 240mm wide. I noticed the Motivo's are slightly wider than the oem Pirelleli .

In spring /summer the NT-555 are 285-40-18 on the rear and 275-40-18 on the front. I'm not super impressed with the NT-555 in the wet. I swap cuz I don't want to use chrome bullitt rims in the wet... plus the motivos are better in the rain.

The plan is once these NT-555's are eventually worn... I will replace em with NT-555 G2 on all 4 x corners..... but with a square setup, 285-40-18 ..... then I can rotate em.

The Motivo's are fairly new, and the plane jane NT-555's were bought and installed back in July, 2011...so they are coming up to 5 years old now....and loads of tread left. But I only use em 6 months of the year at most..and aprx 2500 miles.

I see the G2 version has a total of 5 longitudinal grooves in it...vs the 3 in the plane version. Also noted the G2 has slightly more tread wear rating...like another 10%. In the wet is where the plane 555 falls flat...it was way past due for an update.

With the plane 555... I have to dial up the front /rear air pressure carefully. 30 psi rear..and 34 front (cold, like 5AM cold). Get too much in the rears, and I lose traction with my small blower. The fronts work and handle better with a bit more pressure in em... plus I had to factor in the weight of the blower assy, + another 15 lbs of coolant in the HE /IC / degas /pump loop.
 

The01Cav

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I just ordered NT555 G2 for my mustang. Can't wait to get them and slap them on to my new wheels.
 

JimC

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I've been pleased with them so far. I tried them out last weekend at the drag strip. They were better than the Motivo and Pirelli as far as street tires, but not as good as a set of drag radials. They are probably better suited to a road course type of track rather than a drag strip.
 

JimC

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Update on my Nitto 555G2 tire test. I received the tires and installed them April 29, 2016 and no have just over 5,000 miles on them. I found that in order to get a better MPH on my car I needed to adjust the tire revolution per mile higher than the online sites were saying. Finally found the correct setting so that in 20 miles of driving my odometer is off by 0.2.

Now that summer is here and I am driving with the top down frequently I have noticed that the 555G2 has a little more noise than the Motivo that I was running previously. With the top up, about the same, but top down I can hear them more. Nothing annoying, just was looking for the difference as part of my review.

I had a chance to try them at the drag strip. Not as grippy as my drag radials, a little more than the Motivo or the stock Pirelli Pzero that the car came with. My impression is that they are more of a road course/street tire than a drag strip/street tire. The grip in cornering is still noticeable after 5,000 miles.

https://youtu.be/U1m2R6N3VgY

Tires were supplied by Nitto Tire U. S. A. Inc.

‪#‎Nitto‬ Tire
‪#‎NT555G2‬
‪#‎NT555‬
‪#‎NT555G2SummerUHP‬

And a fresh detail on the car as well





 

Speedboosted

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Any noticeable wear after 5k miles? How many 32nd were they new and what are they at now?
 

JimC

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Not much noticeable wear. I will have to grab the rotation form to see what it measured.
 

cbass

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They're not a road course tire, by any stretch. I've had mine on for like 500 or 600 miles so far, and they are nice... but less grip than the NT05, which is what I would consider a nice enough tire for the guy with a street car that wants to hit a HPDE event once or twice a year.

These tires are great for the guy who understands that his street car is a street car. You will get some performance out of them, but you should also get a few miles on them before they're worn out.
 

JimC

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They're not a road course tire, by any stretch. I've had mine on for like 500 or 600 miles so far, and they are nice... but less grip than the NT05, which is what I would consider a nice enough tire for the guy with a street car that wants to hit a HPDE event once or twice a year.

These tires are great for the guy who understands that his street car is a street car. You will get some performance out of them, but you should also get a few miles on them before they're worn out.

Yes, probably should have said autocross - in any event, not sticky enough at the drag strip!
 

JimC

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Any noticeable wear after 5k miles? How many 32nd were they new and what are they at now?

Just noticed that when they were rotated they didn't list the wear so can't give that to you.

The attachments are what the tread looks like today - about 5,500 miles.
 

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JimC

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And this is from back in April when I installed the tires



 

golkhl

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Put 277/40/18's(replacing 285/40/18 Nitto 555's) on the front of my 08 Bullitt. Love them! Hoping they release a drag radial version to match.
 

Speedboosted

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Just noticed that when they were rotated they didn't list the wear so can't give that to you.

The attachments are what the tread looks like today - about 5,500 miles.

Looking good so far. Grab some measurements if you have the correct gauge, I'd love to know how they do.
 

Norm Peterson

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Update on my Nitto 555G2 tire test. I received the tires and installed them April 29, 2016 and no have just over 5,000 miles on them. I found that in order to get a better MPH on my car I needed to adjust the tire revolution per mile higher than the online sites were saying. Finally found the correct setting so that in 20 miles of driving my odometer is off by 0.2.
Which online sites?

I notice that Nitto's own site does not list tire revolutions per mile (or rpms @ 60 mph).

But I can tell you that due to certain tire tread flexibilities, the number of revs/mile typically runs ~3% higher than the number of revs/mile that you would calculate based on tire diameter to circumference math. Some tires are a little more than 3% "off", others a little less so. Dirty little secret - although the online tire calculators are done up with good intentions and OK-ish presentations, none of them that I offhand know of understands this.


Norm
 

JimC

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Which online sites?

I notice that Nitto's own site does not list tire revolutions per mile (or rpms @ 60 mph).

But I can tell you that due to certain tire tread flexibilities, the number of revs/mile typically runs ~3% higher than the number of revs/mile that you would calculate based on tire diameter to circumference math. Some tires are a little more than 3% "off", others a little less so. Dirty little secret - although the online tire calculators are done up with good intentions and OK-ish presentations, none of them that I offhand know of understands this.


Norm
I tried several sites and all were coming up close to the same rpm. But then watched and found it was off by quite a bit so played with it until I could get it close enough. Checked it on the way home last night and it was 0.1 off on a 30 mile drive. MPH is pretty close though on my navigation compared to the speedometer.
 

Surfergeek

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I tried several sites and all were coming up close to the same rpm. But then watched and found it was off by quite a bit so played with it until I could get it close enough. Checked it on the way home last night and it was 0.1 off on a 30 mile drive. MPH is pretty close though on my navigation compared to the speedometer.

This is something I have noticed with Nitto.

I have NT05 and NT01 wheels and both of those I had to set my tuner up with a higher rev per mile number than the online calculators suggest to get the speedometer on the button.

vs my experience with Hankook (who publishes their Revs Per Mile) I was able to use the value they publish and get it pretty damn close.
 

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