hi guys:
i figured i'd give you an update on my GT500 road race build.
way back when this project started- i worked with Sam Strano at stranoparts.com to come up with the proper offsets to allow me to run 18x11 tires all around. We went with forgeline CF5s in silver- which should look great on the alloy car that has a bunch of sponsorship graphics in white, pink, and teal.
i was originally looking for tires that would allow me to drive on the road a little bit if i had to- but would really be solely for track days and autocross. i looked at everything from Nitto NT01s, to Toyo R888s, to Hoosier slicks, and even considered some weird stuff like Falken Azenis RT615s.
the issue was quickly becoming one of price. i really didn't want to spend $1600 on tires that wouldn't last- and/or were a compromise on the track. then i got a very stupid dumb idea....
our cars are really heavy- and what works for a lightweight race car probably won't work for my GT500 which honestly has only gotten heavier as I add things like a roll cage, bigger heat exchanger, the TVS supercharger, the ST coil-over kit, the Watts link that i'd still debating installing etc. So I got to thinking- why not look at getting some real race car tires- especially something for endurance racing so i'd get some good life out of them- that'd heat up reasonably quickly- and would certainly outperform any DOT tire. So I went into the wormhole that is the internet and bought these:
Hoosier Racing Tires
they've got super stiff sidewalls because they were designed for high speed banked tracks- which means they're well suited to our heavy cars. they also have a tread that should last a lot longer than something like a Hoosier A7 or R7. Now- they're not something you ever want to get stuck anywhere near a drop of rain with- and I'm sure there are "dangers" with driving them on the street- but damn they look cool- they should be great for HPDE and track days- and they were cheaper than ANYTHING you could put on our cars even all season chinese garbage....
Thoughts? I've still got my NT05R/Pilot Sport AVS on my stock wheels for the street and strip...
i figured i'd give you an update on my GT500 road race build.
way back when this project started- i worked with Sam Strano at stranoparts.com to come up with the proper offsets to allow me to run 18x11 tires all around. We went with forgeline CF5s in silver- which should look great on the alloy car that has a bunch of sponsorship graphics in white, pink, and teal.
i was originally looking for tires that would allow me to drive on the road a little bit if i had to- but would really be solely for track days and autocross. i looked at everything from Nitto NT01s, to Toyo R888s, to Hoosier slicks, and even considered some weird stuff like Falken Azenis RT615s.
the issue was quickly becoming one of price. i really didn't want to spend $1600 on tires that wouldn't last- and/or were a compromise on the track. then i got a very stupid dumb idea....
our cars are really heavy- and what works for a lightweight race car probably won't work for my GT500 which honestly has only gotten heavier as I add things like a roll cage, bigger heat exchanger, the TVS supercharger, the ST coil-over kit, the Watts link that i'd still debating installing etc. So I got to thinking- why not look at getting some real race car tires- especially something for endurance racing so i'd get some good life out of them- that'd heat up reasonably quickly- and would certainly outperform any DOT tire. So I went into the wormhole that is the internet and bought these:
Hoosier Racing Tires
they've got super stiff sidewalls because they were designed for high speed banked tracks- which means they're well suited to our heavy cars. they also have a tread that should last a lot longer than something like a Hoosier A7 or R7. Now- they're not something you ever want to get stuck anywhere near a drop of rain with- and I'm sure there are "dangers" with driving them on the street- but damn they look cool- they should be great for HPDE and track days- and they were cheaper than ANYTHING you could put on our cars even all season chinese garbage....
Thoughts? I've still got my NT05R/Pilot Sport AVS on my stock wheels for the street and strip...
