Nt555g2 or make the switch...

leviathon

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So for the past 3 years I ran nt555 in s 275/40r18. They did really well but they are destroyed now. I know since then they came out with the g2....And also added 50 bucks to each tire since I laid 136$ 3 years ago...

My question is since I'm going that high in money should I give the g2 a try or go with bf goodrich super comp a/s? I really like the tread pattern as well a the compound...not to mention the 45k Mile warranty haha.

About the car because I know people will ask,

It's mostly a spirited DD. Kids are, 18x9 wheels, saleen coilovers, whole rear end suspension done, minus upper arm. Like I said I ran a 275/40 but always wondered about a 275/35.

Any thoughts? I would greatly appreciate it

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Norm Peterson

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275/35-18 is going to be about an inch or so shorter than 275/40-18 and nearly 1.5" shorter than the S197's OE tires.

If that's an appearance deal-breaker for you, don't the NT555G2's also come in 275/40-18?

For a spirited driver, I'd give the nod to the 555G2 over all but maybe the top end of all-season tire choices (Michelin's Pilot Sport A/S3+ being better than Conti's DWS which gives away steering response and cornering stability).

Especially since you seem to have managed year-round use with the "plain" NT555's (that are truly ancient tires and weren't at the top of the UHP or Max performance summer tire list even when they first came out).


Norm
 

leviathon

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Yes they do. 275/40 has been my go to size all along I just notice that continental series as well as others run the 35 I didn't know if there was a solid reason or not. All in all I was satisfied in the 555 but I know there was more, since somehow I got my car to manage some serious turns with coil preload and messing with tire pressure. At the current moment 200$ is the most I can go per tire so michelins are out. I like the continental...but I agree they weren't stable. I had heard about the super comp previously but never saw any review on it

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Pentalab

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A 275-35-18 is only 25.57" diameter. (275-40-18 is 26.66" ) Flip side is... a 275-40-18 on a 9" wide rim is not optimum either.

I used to run a 255-45-18 on a 9" rim (front) and that was good. Then tried a 275-40-18 on the same 9" front rims..... bad news, I don't like it. Too sluggish for my tastes. Then got new 10" wide rims for the front.... and now the 275-40-18's on the new 10" wide front rims works real good.

I use a 285-40-18 on the rear 10" rims. All 4 are NT-555. Once they are fried, will swap all 4 to 285-40-18 (so I can rotate).... and buy NT-555 G2. Shop around and find the best deal on some new G2's.
 
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leviathon

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I've heard that but in my experience idk why maybe it's my suspension setup...275 works extremely well for me. Maybe it's a v6 vs a v8 idk

A 275-35-18 is only 25.57" diameter. (275-40-18 is 26.66" ) Flip side is... a 275-40-18 on a 9" wide rim is not optimum either.

I used to run a 255-45-18 on a 9" rim (front) and that was good. Then tried a 275-40-18 on the same 9" front rims..... bad news, I don't like it. Too sluggish for my tastes. Then got new 10" wide rims for the front.... and now the 275-40-18's on the new 10" wide front rims works real good.

I use a 285-40-18 on the rear 10" rims. All 4 are NT-555. Once they are fried, will swap all 4 to 285-40-18 (so I can rotate).... and buy NT-555 G2. Shop around and find the best deal on some new G2's.
 

Norm Peterson

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I have no idea what the reasoning was behind the Continental Series specifying that particular tire size. But I can tell you that dropping down that much shorter would be like keeping your 275/40-18's and changing your axle gears from 3.55 to 3.73, or from 3.73 to 3.90, or from 3.90 to 4.10.

I'm running short tires - 265/40's on 18x9.5 GT500 wheels for the street and 285/35's on 18x11's for the track (plus the street time back and forth from the track, as shown in my sig pic). Most people on car forums seem to gag at the idea of intentionally opening up any more "wheel gap", but if you're completely secure in your choices and that their appearance preferences don't do anything for the way your car drives have at it (and in line with what pentalab has already suggested, I think you'd pull off the idea of 275/35's better with 10" wide wheels).


Norm
 
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Pentalab

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A 275 on a 9" rim is only 270 mm wide. A 275 on a 10" rim is 280 mm wide.

Going from 255-45-18 to a 275-40-18 was a failure ( both on the same 9" rim). The turn in is sluggish, like their is a delay in there. With the 255-45-18 on there, you can throw it all over the road. At that point is was a choice of putting the 255's back on....or replacing the 9" rims with the wider 10" rims.
 

Norm Peterson

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In leviathon's defense, I don't think it's possible to imagine the difference in response going from a min-width wheel fitment to a mildly stretched fitment without trying it. Stretched being defined as wider than "measuring width" here . . . absolutely NOT the crazy Euro-stretched examples that can be found with little trouble.

Moving up from a "measuring width" fitment to something a little wider behaves the same way. There is nothing special about the measuring width other than that's the wheel width that has been industry-defined as the standard width for measuring a tire's typical installed dimensions . . . approximately. It may indicate a good compromise point between response and ride quality for most OE fitments, but I'm guessing a little.

You just have to experience it. Even then, there will be people who won't notice much . . . or notice any difference at all.


Norm
 
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leviathon

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In reading the insight you guys have I think I figured my thinking. I always assumed that a 275 width was the "optimum" width BUT they were always on a 9.5 or 10 inch. I failed to take into account the width that I have. Judy because the tire width works that doesn't mean it works for me...I honestly never considered a 255. What threw me off was my tire looked flush and not bowing out so I never gave it any thought. By stretching the tire a bit makes sense to me now....not to mention cheaper for tires


In leviathon's defense, I don't think it's possible to imagine the difference in response going from a min-width wheel fitment to a mildly stretched fitment without trying it. Stretched being defined as wider than "measuring width" here . . . absolutely NOT the crazy Euro-stretched examples that can be found with little trouble.

Moving up from a "measuring width" fitment to something a little wider behaves the same way. There is nothing special about the measuring width other than that's the wheel width that has been industry-defined as the standard width for measuring a tire's typical installed dimensions . . . approximately. It may indicate a good compromise point between response and ride quality for most OE fitments, but I'm guessing a little.

You just have to experience it. Even then, there will be people who won't notice much . . . or notice any difference at all.


Norm
 

Norm Peterson

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275 is kind of a "go to" width for most cornering oriented performance street driving purposes (my emphasis on 'street' is intentional), being neither "too extreme" nor too demanding of a specific wheel offset with little tolerance.

But will point a finger or two at the wheel sellers who rarely advertise wheels any wider than 9" for the front of these cars.

Establishing 9" as a de facto upper limit makes little sense to me, given that Ford blessed the 2008-era GT500 with 18x9.5's. Then again, Ford was tying that wheel width to 255's with no customer option for wider (until tire replacement time), where the aftermarket wheel industry has no control over what customers might try to fit from the get-go.


Norm
 

frank s

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[...]
Establishing 9" as a de facto upper limit makes little sense to me, given that Ford blessed the 2008-era GT500 with 18x9.5's. Then again, Ford was tying that wheel width to 255's with no customer option for wider (until tire replacement time), where the aftermarket wheel industry has no control over what customers might try to fit from the get-go.

Norm

The '07 etc. Shelby GT500s came with 255s front and 285s rear. I got a set of take-offs from Shelby, and very quicly replaced the fronts with 285s. Y'all have probably seen them in action on my white GT/CS at Chuckwalla:

5105543319_7aa44aae9e_b.jpg


https://www.flickr.com/photos/fyougitive/albums/72157625089604277
 

leviathon

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That's what I always saw people use was the gt500. Just never occurred to me that the .5 width made the 275 a better choice
QUOTE=frank s;2344980]The '07 etc. Shelby GT500s came with 255s front and 285s rear. I got a set of take-offs from Shelby, and very quicly replaced the fronts with 285s. Y'all have probably seen them in action on my white GT/CS at Chuckwalla:

5105543319_7aa44aae9e_b.jpg


https://www.flickr.com/photos/fyougitive/albums/72157625089604277[/QUOTE]
 

2Fass240us

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My personal preference is to keep close to stock diameter to keep the wheel wells full and things comfortable on the street. I have (and probably will continue to) run smaller diameter tires for motorsports simply because there are more options in an 18" wheel over 275.

Stick with the 275s if you want to keep 9" wheels. Move to a 285 if/when you upgrade to 9.5" or 10" wheels. I say 285 because there aren't a lot of options in 295s that aren't significantly smaller than stock.
 

06 T-RED S/C GT

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My personal preference is to keep close to stock diameter to keep the wheel wells full and things comfortable on the street. I have (and probably will continue to) run smaller diameter tires for motorsports simply because there are more options in an 18" wheel over 275.

Stick with the 275s if you want to keep 9" wheels. Move to a 285 if/when you upgrade to 9.5" or 10" wheels. I say 285 because there aren't a lot of options in 295s that aren't significantly smaller than stock.

I'll assume this is strictly your opinion and not the actual manufacturers recommendation..

According to most manufacturer's charts, they recommend running a 275" tire on a 9.5"-10.5" wheel.. As their charts don't list anything smaller than 9.5" diameter..

That being said, I think you would be better off just sticking with the manufacturer's recommendation requirements by not running 275's on a 9" wheel..
 

Norm Peterson

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I just looked at several different brands of tires in 275/35 (Tire Rack's site), and they all listed the "rim width range" as being from 9" to 11".

That makes 9" rims "OK", as far as the mfrs are concerned, but only just barely. My own translation is "since that's a minimum fitment I wouldn't run 275's on 9's either".

I'm sure that 2Fass was suggesting that a move up to 285's be considered when the wheel width goes to 9.5" or 10", because then you'd be within the 285's range of acceptable widths. And FWIW, I don't think I'd consider 285's until 10" (never mind that the OE rear 285/40 fitment on some years of GT500 was to 9.5" wides).


Norm
 

Jason09GT

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I have 4 days in now on my 555 g2's. I absolutely love them, car feels very planted spirited daily driving wise. I did 255/35/20 fronts, and 305/30/20 rears, didn't realize how much spinning I was doing before, they hook extremely well, 95° out, 2500rpm clutch dump will damn near kill the car. After that it's just a baby chirp in 2nd and 3rd. Before the tail end would skate around on 1-2, chirp 2-3 and 3-4 on my 3.31 geared car. They are quieter than the old goodyears that they replaced, and the car does not wander, or follow every little imperfection in the road.
 

2Fass240us

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I'm sure that 2Fass was suggesting that a move up to 285's be considered when the wheel width goes to 9.5" or 10", because then you'd be within the 285's range of acceptable widths.
Correct. I like to have enough sidewall to be able to lay the wheel down without hitting the rim. My Conti DW 295s were "square" on my 18x10 CF5. I only run the 285 now because I want to get closer to the 27.2" OE diameter.

I agree that you probably don't want to run >275 on the 9" wheel. The G2 is offered in a 275/40-18, the same size you've been running for years.
 

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