For many years I have run BFG KDW-2 NT in 255-40/17 fronts and 295-35/18 on the rears...Now I am finding that BFG has abanodon support for these sizes, and my last set is getting thin. In looking around I see the Nitto NT05 that ARE available in my prefered sizes, and seem to offer some performance advantages as well...I welcome your comments in these tires, or any others that should be considering if they are currently available in these sizes.
THANKS

 

Love the silver C5 of course, I am a bit biased!

Here is a link to a thread I started on my experience with the NT-05's in the rain...

https://www.corvetteforum.com/forums...-the-rain.html

...they are fantastic summer street performance tires.

Probably not the best choice if you are looking for all-season capability and/or high miles.

All depends on what you are looking for.

Good luck with your search!

 

Hey! Thanks for the that thread link!!...Pretty much sums it up...I think I'm going to go for a set in the next few months. We do get a pretty fair amount of rain here in NW Oregon, but much of the winter wet season we use my husband Jeep...I'm not looking for downpour drainage. just drivable in moderate rain while not pushing it fast. Looks like these will do well for my dry adhesion desire and OK in the normal wetter times..THANKS!!

 

I too have had good luck with them, surprisingly in the rain as well. Except when below 40 and wet.
Have a set of NT-o5r for gear bashing. They hook well, but the ones I have are a bit too big for daily use

 

We rarely drop much below 40 around here, high 30s at night is common in the 2 really cold months...if we do gt chilly, its Jeep time anyway! ESPECIALLY if it actually goes below freezing and we get a dusting of snow. I have on very rare ocassion had the Vette caught out on fresh snow of less than an inch...it was like grease and oil!! Even if I had Blizzack or similar tires for the crud season, I would be concerned with the torque and lack of all wheel drive...and the other drivers that slide around all the time!

 

I have a set on my '87 autocross car and they do work very well as a summer tire. I do use them for track days at PIR. Takes a couple laps to build some heat in them and after that they are sticky and predictable. With a treadwear rating of 200, don't expect a whole lot of mileage out of them. But for the price, they are a decent deal.

I would say they are not a good rain tire for high performance driving, but for city streets and freeway driving (and on I-5 thru Portland that can be the same speed...) they will work. Just make sure you don't go thru deep puddles of standing water at 60+.

There are a number of good tires available in C5 Z06 sizes so unless you have a budget concern, look at the Michelin Pilot Sport PS2 or the Goodyear Eagle F1 Supercar. Check the Tire Rack website for your model (use the Z06 model too) to see what they have. Unfortunately you will find that most all high performance tires will not really be suitable for low temps (some brands will say not for use below 40 degrees) or in heavy rain or in snow.

 

I owned a set of Michelins once....and that will remain a 'once'.....in spite of high ovrall ratings, I had a different experience. They were slippery in all conditions, not better in the rain than 'summer tires; and once they got half way through the tread, wore out really fast..REALLY fast..like going from half tread to exposed core materials in 50 miles.... You know my stomping grounds well...we are both in the Portland area! In the dry seasons I tend to be a strong corner carver and do fair amount of heavy acceleration.. In the wet..I just trundle around and don't push it...

 

NT05s are great tires. Some of the best for all out performance. I'm about to replace my worn out set with another set of these. With the rainy season coming, be careful though. I do drive with them in the rain, but very careful with the throttle

 

I think I can declare this thread about done...I have a few more months on the old KDW2s..and then it will be Nitto time for me. With so much good feedback here, in the performance area that I do care about, they sound like they will be just the thing for fun... I did check out the BFG site and found their "replacement" for the KDW-2 in my sizes, the RIVAL, and it seems that besides the much higher price, they are having short-life delamination issues...

So..the new BFGs..They carry the same tread wear rating as the Nitto NT05, are more expensive, and have known delam issues...Gonna go NITTO!

THANKS for the feedback,fellow members!
I Love this forum.....it would be difficult to own a Vette without it
Jennifer

 

I typed this response in another thread thinking it was this one. I'll just copy/paste it here.

The NT05s I have on my mustang (275-40-17 on 17x9s) did just fine in some VERY heavy rain. There wasn't a ton of standing water, but the rain I got caught in several times was borderline torrential. I had to slow down, but more for visibility than anything else (and I wasn't the only one, everyone was). I'd have no issue driving around in rain with NT05s on any vehicle.

That being said, if it's wet, you can absolutely forget about having grip for something like an autocross. In Atlanta last year, it rained for about 5 minutes, and my autocross run was totally shot. The car had zero grip when you were actually trying to drive it hard. The back tires spun like crazy and the front just plowed through every turn. Once it dried out, they were fine.

Be careful if you autocross heavily. You'll need to REALLY air them down to keep the tire wear under control. My car is supposed to have 35 psi in each tire on the street. I dropped it to about 28psi hot (tires fully warmed up). Any higher than that and you could really see the wear showing up on the center ribs.

In short, in the dry, they're predictable and VERY competent tires for the price point (I got mine for $540 shipped off DTD's ebay store). There are nicer tires than the NT05, but they ALL cost more. It's a fantastic bang-for-buck tire. In the wet, they're safe for street speeds and cruising around, but you can forget about trying to drive the car hard.

I'll buy a new set next year if they continue making them, but I have a feeling they're going to discontinue them. They've been backordered for months on Tirerack and Discount Tire. Summit racing has them, but they cost an arm and a leg. I really don't have many other choices for tire for my car (PS2, Cooper RS3-S, RT615Ks) and the price points are borderline stupid for some. (PS2s are $1200)

 

Deja vu?

 

You know summit price matches. Just show them what you found it for on discount or wherever. I do this by phone for literally 90% of all parts I buy. Summit is a great company.