Best tires / tire width for v8 cars

[jalopi]

Hi guys,

I realize that some may say this belongs in the wheel & tire section, but imo this thread is OK here since we make way more torque from low rpms than most other setups (read: non-v8 cars).

I ask because the 205s on my car are a joke... even in good weather conditions in the dry they break loose too easy. I know that no matter what I'm going to have to expect some wheel spin if I get on it too hard, but I'd like to make it a little better.

So what do you all use? I'm not opposed to getting flares to fit wider tires if necessary. Also, I'd like to stick to 16s minimum as I'd like to be able to fit a BBK in the future.

[Chris916]

I'm in the process of doing my swap, so I cant confirm if they will be good enough, but I've got 225's BFG KDW's on 16x9's that I think should do the trick. If you want to go to 17's, you could fit 225 in the front and 245's in the rear. That would probably be the best setup. I've also seen people fit 235's in the front, so if you want to stick to a square set up, that's also an option.

My car now:


Just a note, I run 255 r-compounds on my race car with an s52 and I could spin all through first gear, so it'll be impossible to get rid of wheel spin no matter what you do, with that v8 torque!

[JGood]

I run 215/40/17 on 17x8 et20 up front and 235/40/17 on 17x9 et25 w/ 8mm spacers in the rear. Spacers aren't needed for fitment, just gets the wheel a bit more flush. I'm thinking without spacers, I could easily fit 245's. This is with a flush roll in the rear, but no pulling at all.

I'm using Sumitumo HTRZ-II's. I don't have any major traction issues, especially when it's warm and dry. Obviously depending on the road surface, I'll occasionally get some wheel spin, especially if I stab the throttle, but it's never enough to inhibit forward acceleration significantly. I was able to pull a 1.92 60' at the drag strip with these tires.

Rain is 100% hit or miss, totally depends on the road surface. Sometimes I can punch it in first and not break loose, other times it will spin so much it feels like I'm in neutral.

Here's a vid of me just stabbing the gas in 1st gear. I'm getting some wheelspin, but watch the speedo, it doesn't drop as I lift off and shift to second.

Just a note, I run 255 r-compounds on my race car with an s52 and I could spin all through first gear, so it'll be impossible to get rid of wheel spin no matter what you do, with that v8 torque!

Not really a fair comparison, r-comps have unique characteristics when it comes to traction. Obviously outside of their temp range, they don't do so well. And the sidewalls inhibit any flexing to improve the contact patch. I had 205 r-comps on my 145whp m20 e30, and could literally spin the tires on demand in 1st, 2nd, or 3rd, up to about 50mph, until they were up to temp. Even one or two off-pace laps would get the temps down enough to see wheel spin again in slow 2nd gear corners.

[Chris916]

^Yea that's true. I'd say 225 is probably the smallest you'd want to go. But honestly, just get a good street tire like Dunlop star specs or hankook rs3's and you'll be fine

[Killacortes]

That sound is sooo sick!

[JGood]

^Yea that's true. I'd say 225 is probably the smallest you'd want to go. But honestly, just get a good street tire like Dunlop star specs or hankook rs3's and you'll be fine

Exactly, the model tire you get will likely have a bigger difference then the 20mm or so of contact patch difference. Tirerack.com customer reviews, surveys, and test results are usually very helpful and spot on.

Might want to consider a camber kit for the rear as well. If you're running 3-4 degrees of negative camber, and only 50mm of tire is actually touching the ground, it won't matter if you're using a 195 or a 345.

[jalopi]

I'm on H&R race, so it's not too low.... I think the rear camber is somewhere around 2* or so? Something like that. But yeah, planning on doing those posi-lock adjusters when I do my rear bushings.