When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.
I use them on road courses for racing and they are good for 8 to 9 heat cycles before they completely fall off. A heat cycle on the track gets the tire very hot and raises the pressure about 8 psi. You are not anywhere close to this kind of heat cycling on the street so heat cycling doesn't apply to street use and the R888s should feel good until the tread is going away - on the street. Don't get on the gas until you have them warmed up for a few minutes even on the street as they do need some heat in them.
I got quotes on all of this recently for my Vette but I have oversized tires as I have a Mini-tub.
R888s installed are about $1630 from the local speedshop (good install with no rim scratches)
MPSSs installed are about $2000. (from Costco)
Sport Cups are about $2600. (from Costco)
The MPSSs are the superior street tire for sure. But if the OP has a 550+ rwhp car the MPSSs aren't going to cut it. My MPSSs broke loose at 70mph entering the freeway in 3rd gear and I only have 450 rwhp.
As said before, street and R-compounds are apples and oranges. None of those tires are known for long tread life, but R888's are going to wear a lot faster on the street. I had a pair on my car with ~400 whp, and they needed replacement before 10K miles. With aggressive driving on a 550+ whp car, you'd probably be lucky to see 5-6K miles. Of course if it's just a weekend car, mileage may not be a huge factor.
Aren't the super sports more expensive than the R888's?
Yes, with the difference dictated in part by sizing. In the last year or so I bought both. The MPSS' cost me $1,872 incl mounting + balancing. The R888s were $1,693 all in. As mentioned, they are 2 very different tires with different intended uses. I drive to/from the track with the R888s and I would not put up with them for street driving as they are wicked loud, are god-awful in the rain and wear like crazy. Sure the grip is fantastic but the MPSS' will provide all the grip a street car will ever need and are quite, smooth and great in the rain. I switch back and forth between the 2, track to street. The NVH between the 2 is enormous. I guess you can get used to R888s on the street after a while but with how good the MPSS' are on the street, there is no need to.
Yes, with the difference dictated in part by sizing. In the last year or so I bought both. The MPSS' cost me $1,872 incl mounting + balancing. The R888s were $1,693 all in. As mentioned, they are 2 very different tires with different intended uses. I drive to/from the track with the R888s and I would not put up with them for street driving as they are wicked loud, are god-awful in the rain and wear like crazy. Sure the grip is fantastic but the MPSS' will provide all the grip a street car will ever need and are quite, smooth and great in the rain. I switch back and forth between the 2, track to street. The NVH between the 2 is enormous. I guess you can get used to R888s on the street after a while but with how good the MPSS' are on the street, there is no need to.
Good luck either way.
I've had my car for 7+ years and only put on 15k miles. So I really don't care much about wear issues....just want a great handling tire that will do well holding 585rwhp. The noise would be my biggest concern
I've had my car for 7+ years and only put on 15k miles. So I really don't care much about wear issues....just want a great handling tire that will do well holding 585rwhp. The noise would be my biggest concern
I feel like your best choices here are a drag radial or pss if you still want handling and sacrifice some forward grip.
Not just high G cornering....I like a nimble,responsive,tight handling car. ie:coilovers,Johnny oconell swaybars,corner balanced ect...
It'll still feel fine and nimble. Maybe you could borrow some drs from someone local for a few miles? I think you've got it in your head that the car is going to be floaty and sway around on DRs when that isn't the case.
Hope you make a decision you're happy with in the end.
With proper air pressure I don't know that you would notice a difference running a DR on the street. Add to the fact you can't push these cars to their limit (handling) on the street, a DR should work for what you want. I'm running 345/30/19 MPSS's in the back on over 600whp and they do pretty well as long as it's not to cold out.
It'll still feel fine and nimble. Maybe you could borrow some drs from someone local for a few miles? I think you've got it in your head that the car is going to be floaty and sway around on DRs when that isn't the case.
Hope you make a decision you're happy with in the end.
Agree. Pressure makes a big difference in how the DRs feel. I had 555r's on my Z28 for street use. If I kept them at 24lb - 26lbs I got solid straightline grip and respectable handling. If I kept them at 27lbs - 29lbs, straightline grip was still better than the high performance summer tires I had used previously and handling was uncompromised.
For his intended use, R888s should be fine. I know porsche guys that use them on the street and are happy with how they perform.
Only way to find out is to try them. I got about 2k street miles and 8 track days out of a set. The noise was acceptable for me since i don't drive it much on the street. Grip starts to fall off, but they were still much stickier than any street tire. It shouldn't be noticeable on the street. After the r888s, i went back to a nitto nt01. Much stickier, holds up to more heat cycles, and quieter. Only downside is they are made to run bald, so they have no tread at 60% tread or so.
I just put some 275/ 35 x 18 & 345/ 30 x 19 R888s on yesterday and a good alignment with -2 camber up front and -1 camber in the rear, which was the most we could get out of my car an '08 Z51.
I should get them to the roadrace track sometime next week. They are really gummy to the touch!
I just put some 275/ 35 x 18 & 345/ 30 x 19 R888s on yesterday and a good alignment with -2 camber up front and -1 camber in the rear, which was the most we could get out of my car an '08 Z51.
I should get them to the roadrace track sometime next week. They are really gummy to the touch!
I did the same 275/18 345/19 setup with Kumko XS tires a couple of years ago. I found a fair amount more understeer with this vs. the stock 275/325. I think the stock sizes set the car up to understeer a bit to begin with so adding to the rear while keeping the front unchanged seemed to make it more pronounced - something to keep in mind on corner exit.
I've wondered about the effects of all these swapped tire sizes as my car came with the wider wheels and this same size tire.
And I agree that just randomly having larger tires might not be a good thing. My car was under steering a bit on a curvy road just last Saturday but it was easily correctable on the throttle.
I guess if it under steers I'll try stiffening up the rear sway bar to see if that compensates.
I've had my car for 7+ years and only put on 15k miles. So I really don't care much about wear issues....just want a great handling tire that will do well holding 585rwhp. The noise would be my biggest concern
The R888s held 2nd gear and 1st was much more manageable for me at those power levels. Forget about that for regular street tires. Couldn't tell you if they are noisy or not since my BOV and exhaust cover any tire noise.
I just put some 275/ 35 x 18 & 345/ 30 x 19 R888s on yesterday and a good alignment with -2 camber up front and -1 camber in the rear, which was the most we could get out of my car an '08 Z51.
I should get them to the roadrace track sometime next week. They are really gummy to the touch!
Which wheels are you running to get a 345 on a stock coupe? Factory width?
10-15-2015, 02:56 PM
