Tire/Wheel Help 2011GT500

[MattR]

I need to make a decision on Wheels and tires for my 2011 GT500. Mine has the standard 19" wheels on it.

My plan is to buy an aftermarket wheel for lighter weight and custom offsets (True Forged). Right now 19" tires are limited, 18" seem to have more choices, I think 20" will hurt the traction I need to gain.

So that being said if I go with 19" what options do I have for tires that will hook hard on the street and one or two drag strip trips? The plan is for a 11" wide wheel (rear). If I go 19" will the 345/30/19 fit the car? I dont want to cut the car in any way.


If I go with the 18" I think the 315/40/18 NTO5R rear with a matching NTO5 front will work nice. But will the NTO5R handle well? Is it stable? Would I loose a lot of traction by putting the NTO5 on the Rear and front?

What other options are out that will hook (A LOT) better than the standard GoodYears?

Thanks, just trying to make the best choice.

 

[Matt@DTD]

Thank you for the post MattR. You bring up some excellent questions.

18" is really the way to go if you want the tires to hook up.

The NT05R and NT05 combination you listed is a nice set-up and will do very well on the street and strip. The NT05R was designed for off-the-line traction but utilizes a unique sidewall construction which actually helps optimize stability at higher speeds which is unique for a drag radial.

Based on what you are looking to do, I would go this route.

 

[MattR]

Thank you for the post MattR. You bring up some excellent questions.

18" is really the way to go if you want the tires to hook up.

The NT05R and NT05 combination you listed is a nice set-up and will do very well on the street and strip. The NT05R was designed for off-the-line traction but utilizes a unique sidewall construction which actually helps optimize stability at higher speeds which is unique for a drag radial.

Based on what you are looking to do, I would go this route.

Thanks Matt,

How much will cornering be affected if we compared two tires the same size one being the NTO5R and the other being the NTO5? Can I still take it in a turn and slide it sideways under power with a DR? :burnout:

 

[Matt@DTD]

The NT05 is designed for hard cornering and the NT05R is designed primarily for off the line traction. Will the NT05 handle better in a hard power slide when compared to the NT05R, yes. However, the NT05 will not hook up as well off the line when compared to the NT05R. There will always be a trade-off.

The NT05R uses a semi-reinforced radial construction so in comparision to other drag radial models, the NT05R will hadle a power slide better.