ChiefP

I have been reading every thread/review on tires and options for Z51 wheels for months and have come down to 2 choices (I think) for new shoes.

Looking at sizes: 255/35/19 & 295/30/20. I had considered a 305 rear but understand the PSC2s run wide...better safe than sorry.

I've read a LOT of great things on the 71r tire...except here, where most threads are really dated. The PSC2 reviews really well...at a significant price

My car is a garage queen with 580 rwhp. It will not see rain and I live in Vegas where the roads are slick as snot. I'm looking for the best traction I can get while not sacrificing handling. I know there are better tire options if I change wheels, but that's not an option for now.

Love to hear opinions/experience with these. Thanks.

Jay_Davis

In my case I'm looking at a lot of track use, but I was looking at the same choice you were. With the new Michelin P4S getting such great reviews, I decided to try those instead since they are significantly less expensive.

ChiefP

Thanks, I hadn't considered those.

BrunoTheMellow

The MPS4S is basically a marginally better MPSS, should not be even close to grip provided by RE71R or PSC2. If you don't plan on tracking the car extensively, the extra cost of the PSC2 is not worth it. Actually I don't think its worth it ever, such a stupidly expensive tire, might as well buy smaller diameter/wider track wheels and track tires for the same price.

The RE71R is the same price as the MPSS but should be quite a bit better on grip. Granted they will last MUCH less time. But if you have a garage queen, then that's okay.

I put Hankook RS3's on my car (570 rwhp, 530 rwtq). On the track they run slightly worse than the MPSS runflats surprisingly. I actually ran consistently 1 second slower on the track with same size tires and took longer to warm up (lasted just as long). Went with 285/35 out back after falsely being told they would fit fine. Keep in mind I had the raise the front of the car about 3/4" and rear about 1.5" just to clear the bigger tires from rubbing constantly at the track. Probably part of if not entirely why I lost 1 second. Definitely feels softer on turn in.

On the street the rears definitely grip better than the MPSS. Most likely due to being meatier (35 vs 30) and softer (not runflat).

I don't know what tire I will go with next but I am getting tired of the 4x4 look. Likely will do the same sizes as you and likely RE-71Rs or maybe the new MPS4S. There should be plenty of comparisons by the time I have to swap tires again (1 year or so). I must have totally missed the available sizes for the RE-71Rs as I totally bypassed them (dumbass).

I wish I could buy 19x10 or 19x10.5 z51 replicas and stick out back so that I would have cheaper and better tire selection. I love the way the z51 wheels look and will not change them.

ChiefP

Great feedback. I wonder if the 71r is overlooked partly because it wasn't available in the 295/30/20 until recently. I haven't found a single guy running that tire (the ones I found were running them on 18s).

BrunoTheMellow

oh that's likely why I didn't get them then.

pkincy

In my experience nothing helps in LV. I don't know what they put in their asphalt slurry but 300 rwhp is enough to roast the tires through several gears. It must have something to do with making the asphalt work at 110 deg F. But I never found the same problem in Phoenix/Scottsdale where the asphalt has normal traction.

X25

RE71R is normally not my favorite, since they overheat after a few laps at the track, but if you don't care about track performance, then I think it's your best choice among the options you listed. They provide very high grip without any warm-up, making it perfect for street use.

Conversely, MPSC2 tires would be the worst choice in my opinion. These tires take a very long time to warm up. As such, you'd have relatively poor traction during most of your street driving, not to mention the high price; why bother? : )

MPSS tires (or the newer one) are also very good option for street, since they provide pretty good traction without needing much warm-up, and they also last long. I'd not recommend MPSS at the track since they also overheat much like the RE71Rs; even more so.

BaylorCorvette

I run RE71R's as my autocross tire and for road course I've used NT01's and about to move to slicks.

Speaking in terms of autocross, last season I competed on the OEM MPSS and this year I'm using the RE71R's, the RE71R's have far superior grip. I've done several track events on the MPSS and they grip well but fall off fast once they start to overheat which also happens fast if you're pushing it. I have very limited time on the RE71R's for the road course but they seemed to grip better but I could tell they were getting greasy.

I think the MPSS are better in the rain, FWIW.

08G8V8

I'm just a rookie at this, having done Spring Mountain and 5 HPDE events, all on MPSS tires.

Just got a set of CCW TS12 wheels, so I can have a set of tires dedicated for the street and a set for the track. Wanted to do another set of high performance street tires until I get more experienced at the track, then move up to the NT01.

Any recommendations?

BaylorCorvette

Honestly I'm not a huge fan of the NT01 tires on the C7. I ran them on my ZL1 and they worked well but for some reason the back end just didn't feel right now NT01s. I actually ran better times on my OEM MPSS! I'd suggest you give the RE71R's a shot.

ChiefP

I'm installing the RE-71r this weekend. I'll look to post a review for others since I'm not a track guy (other than occassional 1/4) and there's almost nothing out there from guys using these for street use. The comments I received here were pretty encouraging.

mjcourt

The Re71s are a great overall tire. I'm on my 3rd set because I track and autocross regularly. They are a bit more noisy on the street and may wear a little faster, but have more grip at street temperatures than you'll get with either MPSS or MSC2s. There are guys (Porsche rennlists forum) who have compared track times on the 2 tires and run faster laps on the Re71s than they do on the MSC2s. People who run MPS2s as their street tire are wasting their money. The MSC2s are designed to grip when hot which doesn't happen until you get them on the track.

BrunoTheMellow

Hey Chief, any luck with these? A review maybe? Although now that I think about it, if you don't do any track or autocross work... which is what the RE-71R is made for, it's kind of odd to go that route.

Citation

Just got a round of RE-71R for my Z51. 245/35-19 front and 295/30-20 rear. Just finished two days at Summit Point. The tires did very well, big improvement versus the MPSS and Bridgestone S-04 I had run on the track before. I've driven other cars with Cup2, and would say the RE71R are comparable at a much lower price.

I've read some coments about the 71R not holding up to heat. The answer is "compared to what?" Compared to a Hoosier pure track tire, maybe the 71R is not quite there. Compared to any other street tire, I was quite happy. I can tell you they handled way more punishment than the MPSS would have taken. The 71R turn-in is noticeably better, which of course translates into a harder ride. The 71R is not a tire I would buy for regular street use.