Which brand of street tires are you running on

[msorenso]

Have a set of those BFGs on my 96 Camaro SS, hooked up well

[Vetman]

Michelin looking for best handling and especially smoothest ride. Tire engineer tells me Michelin have most vertical flex in sidewall. And almost no following ruts or grooved pavement.

[8cam]

Originally Posted by KILLSHOTS

How wide are they, though? The problem with Sumis and Nittos is that, although they are technically 315s, they APPEAR very narrow on the car. That's why I want F1 GS-D3s or PS2s. If the MT was really fat, I'd consider it.

I don't understand this comment. The tires are either 315s or they aren't. The pic below shows the Nittos on the stock wheels and you can see they fit the rim exactly like they should, without the sidewall camber you'd see when mounting a 335 for example. Maybe you're talking about a more square shoulder?

In any case, the Nittos seem like a decent tire but definitely aren't my favorite by any means. They are a little noisy and I suspect don't have the same levels of grip as other choices. I'll know more after I can autocross them.

[WB9MCW]

When I put a tape measure to my Dunlops the rear is around 12" wide on the rear and 11" wide on the front tire.

On my 84 Vette they were 10" wide on both front and rear.

I wonder if anyone has actually measured more than 12" wide on the rear footprint on their ZR-1 tires?

[KILLSHOTS]

Originally Posted by 4cam

I don't understand this comment. The tires are either 315s or they aren't. The pic below shows the Nittos on the stock wheels and you can see they fit the rim exactly like they should, without the sidewall camber you'd see when mounting a 335 for example. Maybe you're talking about a more square shoulder?

In any case, the Nittos seem like a decent tire but definitely aren't my favorite by any means. They are a little noisy and I suspect don't have the same levels of grip as other choices. I'll know more after I can autocross them.

Agreed, Sumis and Nittos are, in fact, 315 millimeters wide. But put a Z riding on them next to a Z on Goodyears, and the Goodyears look wider. You are correct, it has to do with the shape of the sidewalls, NOT the manufacturer's quoted section width. I have also heard from an extremely reliable source that a Michelin 335 and a Goodyear 315 look nearly identical side by side, which would suggest that the shape of the Michelin's sidewall also makes them appear to run narrow. Illusion or not, it is what it is.

[USAZR1]

Fwiw,my 335 Nitto NT-05's measure a tad over 13" wide.

[WB9MCW]

Originally Posted by USAZR1

Fwiw,my 335 Nitto NT-05's measure a tad over 13" wide.

What is the tread on the ground "footprint" width?

[USAZR1]

Originally Posted by WB9MCW

What is the tread on the ground "footprint" width?

I'm at work now but I'll try to get that measurement,tomorrow.

[8cam]

My Nitto 315s are approximately 12.5" sidewall to sidewall, which is also a decent approximation of the dynamic loaded contact patch - the shoulders are rounded for a reason. For these tires the static unloaded contact patch is right at 11" but that really means nothing other than a "look" and for a road/performance tire, they look right. A drag tire will be more square shouldered and will look like more on the ground (but it really isn't). No matter what kind of performance you're looking for, static contact patch doesn't really mean anything.

Hell, 315s are ENORMOUS compared to just about anything out there already! Certainly the widest tire I've ever had on any car, and that's more than 40 different cars. These tires are freakin big.

[Hog]

Originally Posted by 4cam

My Nitto 315s are approximately 12.5" sidewall to sidewall, which is also a decent approximation of the dynamic loaded contact patch - the shoulders are rounded for a reason. For these tires the static unloaded contact patch is right at 11" but that really means nothing other than a "look" and for a road/performance tire, they look right. A drag tire will be more square shouldered and will look like more on the ground (but it really isn't). No matter what kind of performance you're looking for, static contact patch doesn't really mean anything.

Hell, 315s are ENORMOUS compared to just about anything out there already! Certainly the widest tire I've ever had on any car, and that's more than 40 different cars. These tires are freakin big.

I think what some of the guys are referring to is the fact that not all 315/35/17 tires have the same actual measurements.
The static treadwidth measurement of one manufacturer may be differnt than another manufactureres even though they both say 315/35/17 on the tires sidewall.

These 17x11 315/35/17's on the 3" wider ZR-1 rearend, sure do make these cars look sexy. The only wider tires of the same generation were the Viper's 335/35/17 with a 17x13" rim on the rear for a 95 Viper. I remember placing my outstretched fingertips on the inner edge of a Viper tire, and the outer tire lip reached my elbow. The $100,000 price tag was even bigger though lol.
Those cars have nothing on a LT5 powered ZR-1 IMO.