oharal

Hi everyone I've had my 02 Z06 for a couple months now and I need to get rid of the worn 8 year old Firestone Firehawk tires. I am looking at getting 275/35/R18 and 295/35/R18 once I buy some 18" wheels and had intended to get BFG Rivals but the tire rack guy told me Rivals are out of production for the year as of two weeks ago. Story of my life. So I'm looking at alternatives. I plan to do at least 5 more autox events this year and hopefully two track days so I want something that is least likely to overheat and get slick on the track. At autox I'm not super worried because I'm consistently less than .2s from winning my class even on my old tires so any improvement will get me into first. It seems like NT05 and PSS are my only real options in these sizes at this point but I'm not sure which would be best. I assume the Nitto would be better for all out grip and track level performance but I would lose a lot of longevity vs the PSS (my Z is my only car and therefore does literally everything). I only have a 20 mile highway round trip to work daily so my mileage isn't insane. So what should I do? I guess I worry that the PSS is likely to go greasy on me on track. I have also read the Nitto gets pretty greasy compared to other 200tw tires out there but I would assume it does better than the PSS in that regard but I could be totally wrong. Hopefully some of you guys have experience with both of these tires or know someone else who had one and you had the other. Thanks in advance for the thoughts!

Luke

miracle_whip4130

From what I've heard, since you're changing wheel sizes to something PSS compatible, the PSS is the best dual-purpose tire out there. They're a bit expensive but they last quite a long time and provide loads of grip. However, I have no experience with either tire. I also have an 02 Z06 on 10 year old Firehawk Wide Ovals, but I have stock wheels so I will have to go with the NT05.

JLZ06TR

If your willing to go down to a 285 width, you should look into the hankook rs3

flash911

I've run the NT05 and the PSS. For me, the PSS kicks the NT05 out of the conversation. The NT05 is a nice street and canyon carver but lacks at the egde of traction and got overpowered easily.

The PSS needs a little heat on the AutoX to come on, but stayed pretty consistent. On the big track, as long as tire pressures are kept in check they are fun as well. I started with 30 - 32 psi cold and found temps < 5 degrees across the contact patch.

Just my .02

Nowanker

Haven't autoX'd on either one, but have the PSS on my M3 and the NT05s on my C5. Both are pretty sticky, but the Nittos hydroplane if they even glimpse rain. If it's a rain or shine DD, skip the NT05s.
My $.02...

oharal

Thanks for the input guys! Hope to get a little bigger sample size to make my decision.

Ludeaem

I have 275/295 NT05's now and I swear they wear faster than any tire I know. Granted they start at 7/32nd's which doesn't help. Its just hard to justify another 4-500 for PSS but think I'll be doing a square 18" 285/35 setup next round.

oharal

I got a price for 1300 mounted/balanced/shipped for PSS 275/295 isn't that pretty close to what NT-05s would run me?

miracle_whip4130

Close. I think my local shop quoted me $1k for a set of NT-05s +$100 for balancing and installation

Impulsive goat

295-35-18 pss are on national back order. I had to bump down to 285 yesterday when I ordered mine

Xian

Are you looking for the Rival or the Rival-S? The first shipment of the 275 Rival-S just got to TR (and was promptly sold out and shipped to buyers) at the end of last week/beginning of this week. Phil's Tire is also running a "free shipping" special on the Rival-S FWIW. Depending on the wheel width, maybe you can run the 315 square since those are a little easier to get right now. Alternately, you can wait on the regular Rival which, as I understand it, should begin production again later this year... right now they're trying to get the Rival-S to the market in anticipation of Solo Nats in Sept.

If you're looking at other options, maybe the 275 Bridgestone RE71R, the 285 Hankook RS3, or 275 Dunlop Z2*spec. All of these are solid options and better than the NT05 or PSS for autoX.

argonaut

I've used many different tires on track - including the NT05 (but never PSS). In my book the NT05 is: OK. For the price its a decent performer. Yes they do drop off and get greasy at about 15 min mark when pushed hard and they are not very good in wet conditions (although thats part of the fun...no?). I'm usually on R-comps or slicks on track but like to have street tires for occasional use when its wet or when I have to drive the car to an event. So for my next set of street tires I don't think I will be getting another set of NT05s. Maybe I'll try the PSS.

TKOGTO

I've had the NT-05s and have the PSS on now. While both were/are used mostly for road course work, for a dual purpose tire, it's a no-brainer for me, get the PSS. Comparatively, the NT-05s were very loud, good on the rack, tiresome on the street. The PSS seem to handle a little higher pressures a bit better but not materially so. I got good wear from the NT-05, about 16 or 17 track days and I thought I probably could have stretched them a day or 2 day more. They were worn down pretty good but maintained their grip. The PSS on now are @ 13 days and are hanging tough. Guessing it will take 20 - 22 days to get similar wear. When the grip goes away is anyone's guess.

Ludeaem

I paid $720 for the NT05's shipped to my door. That was including the $100 Discount Tire rebate. I then got them mounted for cheap since I have a friend that works at a dealer. So out the door I was $745 which i thought was pretty good. Still think next time i'll splurge on the PSS's

Soloontario

I have driven both NT05s and PSS but on different cars.

Would absolutely recommend the Michelins over the Nittos.

My biggest complaint about Hankooks and Rivals is that they lose grip easily as you drive them hard. Good for a lap or two but no consistency afterwards. The Nittos are better but the Michelins are way better. In an autocross the Michelins don't seem to perform as well as RS3s or Rivals but easily match the NT05.

Also in the wet there is absolutely no contest.

Bill Dearborn

I used the NT05s for track and autocross duty on my C6Z for a year. They are better at autocrossing than they are for track duty. Track performance is lower than the Goodyear EMT which came stock on the cars and is actually a pretty good track tire. They stink like horse dung (so don't keep them in the garage attached to the house or the better half will lower the boom), squeal like stuck pigs under hard cornering and get pretty greasy after 15 minutes of running them hard. The one area they excelled in was tread life. I got 26 track days and 15 autocross events out of them before they heat cycled out and lost all their grip even though there was some tread depth left.

Bill

dp201

I had the NT05s as a track tire for a couple of seasons and recently switched to the PSS. No autocross, just road courses. There's a noticeable different in favor of the PSS in my opinion. As Bill mentioned, the NT05s can get very greasy when hot and really squeal. Not very good on a wet surface either. I was impressed at how good they were last fall running on a cool surface though. My new set of PSS are well worth the price difference. I got caught in a monsoon during a recent trip to upstate NY and I was impressed with how they performed in the rain. Would have had my hands full with the NT05s.

oharal

Wow I really appreciate the wide range of detailed explanations! I think I'm leaning toward the PSS based on many of your replies. They are also backordered for the shortest time so that might work in my favor anyway. Thanks a bundle!

FASTFATBOY

If you guys see the NT05 getting greasy lower the start pressures. They like low pressures to start.

I would start my Camaro with 30F/26R, tires never dropped off in grip during the session.