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Cars that make your jaw drop.

Rob, It a smidge more sidewall an option without rubbing or other problems? Looks good man, enjoy it.

Tires are interesting on this one, or the Z06 and Grand Sport, since they all have the same sizes. I could get a slightly taller tire, but not by more than .5-.75” because anything taller will rub on the front.

I’m more interested in the rear as choices in a 335/25-20 are super limited. Then when you want to keep it a run flat, then you have no choice other than the OE tire. I’d love to switch to the R888R which is the king of street racing tires at the moment. But to switch to them, the biggest 20” they make is 325/30-20 which is almost a full inch taller than the stock. But narrower is definitely not the way I want to go. They make a 345/30-19 which is much closer in height to the stock, but now I gotta get a new wheel set to fit that tire.

TL;DR-kinda stuck with stock sizes unless I want to spend a shitload of money to replace wheels too.
 
Rob, looks great! I agree with Mike and a beefier tire if possible would be nice. Also question, what color is that? I'm seeing Blue or some sort of black with a pearl like Honda has with Nighthawk Black Pearl? Or am I just looking at a filter? lol
 
Rob, looks great! I agree with Mike and a beefier tire if possible would be nice. Also question, what color is that? I'm seeing Blue or some sort of black with a pearl like Honda has with Nighthawk Black Pearl? Or am I just looking at a filter? lol

I washed those through some filters on the iPhone mainly because it was kind of an overcast day so colors weren’t really popping.

It’s called Dark Shadow Grey Metallic. New color that came in about 1/3 the way into 2019 production. Here it is in the foreground with the old Watkins Glen Grey behind it. A little blue/green mixed into the standard grey it seems.

090718_1b.jpg


Not a special color or anything. You can get it on just about every GM vehicle right now.
 
I dunno, tires look pretty normal to me. I think people aren't used to seeing actual high performance tires every day.

I’m actually fine with sidewalls and fender gaps on this one. I would just like to get something that isn’t suuuch a summer tire on. The Michelin SuperSports break loose even in 3rd when you don’t have a lot of heat in them. Those Toyo triple 8 Rs are the one to get for typical street use, but not fitting without a lot of hassle.
 
I’m actually fine with sidewalls and fender gaps on this one. I would just like to get something that isn’t suuuch a summer tire on. The Michelin SuperSports break loose even in 3rd when you don’t have a lot of heat in them. Those Toyo triple 8 Rs are the one to get for typical street use, but not fitting without a lot of hassle.

I'd wager PSS are grippier when cold than triple 8s. The 8s will take heat better and be grippier and last longer on track. But I don't think they're a great street tire.
 
I'd wager PSS are grippier when cold than triple 8s. The 8s will take heat better and be grippier and last longer on track. But I don't think they're a great street tire.

I’ve read exactly the opposite about those tires from all the corvetteforum guys who switched. I’ve got exactly zero experience with the Toyo. But I do know the Michelin takes heat very well. Below 60-70F, the grip is worse than A/S tires. When they’re warmed up though, They’re everything that Pilot Sports are known for. I can only imagine the effect with the Cup 2 that comes with the track package option is this sensation amped up even more.

The 888R is a R comp tire, just like the Cup 2, so logic would suggest they’d be god tier traction when in their heat range and sketchy AF when cold. But every ZR1 owner who switched to the Toyos has said they hook up much better on the street and are kinda shit on the track. Perhaps it has something to do with the Michelin being a runflat (which the suspension on Corvettes was engineered for) and the Toyo having a fairly soft sidewall?
 
Granted it was not a Vette, but when I had my Mustang I put super sticky Toyo's on, and they were too sticky. Had no fun at all. Plus they cost a small fortune.
 
Gotta imagine those maybe 15k miles for a set of tires?

My mom's 2000 s2000 got maybe 15k out of tires.
 
Granted it was not a Vette, but when I had my Mustang I put super sticky Toyo's on, and they were too sticky. Had no fun at all. Plus they cost a small fortune.

Too sticky? What were you trying to do? Drifting or other hooligan type stuff? All I know is my tires now, unless I’ve been driving on the freeway for at least 15 minutes to get some heat in them, if I were to stab it while doing 70, the TC is stepping in to settle things down.


Gotta imagine those maybe 15k miles for a set of tires?

My mom's 2000 s2000 got maybe 15k out of tires.

Tires are one of the many aspects of a car that the old expression “your mileage may vary” was invented. I’ve got ~3600 on the car now. Based on the wear so far, I think I’ll be lucky to get 12k out of the rears (see above) but I might go to20-25k on the fronts.

S2000s are lightweight, but they came with a very soft OE tire. Assuming your mom stays with OE, then yeah 15k is about right.
 
Too sticky? What were you trying to do? Drifting or other hooligan type stuff? All I know is my tires now, unless I’ve been driving on the freeway for at least 15 minutes to get some heat in them, if I were to stab it while doing 70, the TC is stepping in to settle things down.

Its always fun when it's wet, things can get a little squirrely even without trying. These Toyo's were sticky even in the wet.
 
Its always fun when it's wet, things can get a little squirrely even without trying. These Toyo's were sticky even in the wet.

Sounds like what I’m looking for then. Even with warmed up race tires on a clean dry surface, I could break loose the tires in the first couple gears if I really wanted to. I mean shit, it’s almost 800hp after all. But pulling hard in 3rd...you have traction, then suddenly you don’t, and the back end wants to quickly start stepping out when you’re not expecting it? That puckers up the butt real fast.

Well, I guess this is exactly why they went to mid engine. These things just can’t get the power down.

But I wanna find a way to make those Toyos work. Kinda silly that the 0-60 and 1/4 miles times between a Z06 and a ZR1 are pretty identical. ZR1 makes more power, but it can’t put it down.
 
I’ve read exactly the opposite about those tires from all the corvetteforum guys who switched. I’ve got exactly zero experience with the Toyo. But I do know the Michelin takes heat very well. Below 60-70F, the grip is worse than A/S tires. When they’re warmed up though, They’re everything that Pilot Sports are known for. I can only imagine the effect with the Cup 2 that comes with the track package option is this sensation amped up even more.

The 888R is a R comp tire, just like the Cup 2, so logic would suggest they’d be god tier traction when in their heat range and sketchy AF when cold. But every ZR1 owner who switched to the Toyos has said they hook up much better on the street and are kinda shit on the track. Perhaps it has something to do with the Michelin being a runflat (which the suspension on Corvettes was engineered for) and the Toyo having a fairly soft sidewall?

Interesting. I've never run PSS, but it's definitely a street tire and known to be much better in the cold than Cup2s as you say. I have lots of experience with 888s (both R and non-R). They definitely need heat to work. They suck on a light car on the street, because you can't get heat in them to even give half-decent grip. On a heavy car that is probably less of a concern. They definitely have a soft sidewall compare to many other R comps and the new breed of "200TW" superstreet tires. They feel different and take a slightly different driving style. I have been running 888Rs recently but I don't really drive on the street anymore - only to/from the track. They are unsafe in heavy rain/standing water- the R is worse because of its new tread pattern.
 
I believe I had the Proxes T1R but keep in mind, I was only working with 300 HP.

Oh. I’m talking about the Proxes R888R. Which are considered track only tires. Surprised the T1R gave you that much grip. Were you coming from all seasons?
 
Interesting. I've never run PSS, but it's definitely a street tire and known to be much better in the cold than Cup2s as you say. I have lots of experience with 888s (both R and non-R). They definitely need heat to work. They suck on a light car on the street, because you can't get heat in them to even give half-decent grip. On a heavy car that is probably less of a concern. They definitely have a soft sidewall compare to many other R comps and the new breed of "200TW" superstreet tires. They feel different and take a slightly different driving style. I have been running 888Rs recently but I don't really drive on the street anymore - only to/from the track. They are unsafe in heavy rain/standing water- the R is worse because of its new tread pattern.

I’m almost certain that on a road course, the stock Michelin (either PSS or SC2) would be better than the Toyo. Like I said, these things were designed with run flats in mind all along. So while those soft sidewalls on the Toyos would be great for straightline stuff (which is what I want), they’ll be not as predictable when side loads come into the equation due to contact patch deformation when the sidewall folds in. ZR1 with the Michelin SC2 can generate around 1.3g at turn in. The 3600lb curb weight combined with the absurd amount of downforce the aero can generate asks an awful lot from tire sidewalls.
 
I’m almost certain that on a road course, the stock Michelin (either PSS or SC2) would be better than the Toyo. Like I said, these things were designed with run flats in mind all along. So while those soft sidewalls on the Toyos would be great for straightline stuff (which is what I want), they’ll be not as predictable when side loads come into the equation due to contact patch deformation when the sidewall folds in. ZR1 with the Michelin SC2 can generate around 1.3g at turn in. The 3600lb curb weight combined with the absurd amount of downforce the aero can generate asks an awful lot from tire sidewalls.

No way that PSS are better on track than 888s. Cup2s yes, are probably a little better, but not by a huge margin. The sidewall softness on the 888 doesn't make them any less predictable- it just means that you have to drive them with a lot more slip angle. In some ways you could say a softer sidewall is MORE predictable; the transition to sliding is more progressive and easier to control, less abrupt/twitchy. Some people don't like that "mushy" feel and prefer a harder sidewall tire and less slip angle. But the 888s do give good grip on track when utilized properly. If you are looking for a tire with great longitudinal grip, see if they make the RE71 in your size; they have amazing traction.
 
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