kingkong_dav

my rear tires were cupping and had flat spots. i changed my struts out with acura's sport suspension to repair my problem. for the cost i was thinking about the fierce instinct zr. i also want the directional michelin pilot sport or the bridgestone pole position. i really need it fast and something to keep on the road without wheel spin on cornering with my sport suspension . any suggestion on a good tire with tread life and dry traction?

siularbar

iTrader: (3)

what are you looking for? all-season? strictly summers? if you're looking for all-seasons, michelin pilot sport a/s plus is a great tire, but on the pricier side. or, you can go with continental extreme contact dsw's. if you're looking for strictly summers, nitto nt-05's will be your candidate.

kingkong_dav

continental have soft sidewalls that can break. nitto tires to me are not good because of the lack of their line up of tires. i really have my thoughts on a nice sticky high milage tire made by dunlop

Ricky Pounds

Forget about DUNLOP's, they stink! If you are considering B&M, also consider Pirellis, a great tire!

justnspace

iTrader: (1)

did you get an alignment after your spring/shock install?
if not, the aspec will not fix your problem.

I just bought Nitto Nt05's!

FUCKING GREAT SUMMER TIRE.

fireman252525

^^ too late for me!! I am having the Dunlop's installed tomorrow!! I will let you know what I think ASAP!! I couldn't beat the price. They are going on 19" RDX wheels 245/35 r19. Ricky... What problems did you have with them if I may ask??

justnspace

iTrader: (1)

what model dunlops?
the star spec direzza's compete with the nitto nt05.
very good summmer tire.

kingkong_dav

the nitto is not as good and not as superb as a dunlop tire. few things to remember, history and real world testing. dz star is for track, i need something for the dry season and ready for the wet season. maybe the dunlop fierce instinct zr

fireman252525

I bought the fierce zr!!

Ricky Pounds

I am the guy who rotates the tires every 5K without delay looking for that extra mile on the tires. The Direzzas did not last at all. In addition they made to much noise, and for the price I payed for them, I got a better deal and better tire for that matter in the ACHILLES 245/40/18's I hooked up! I hope you get better life and performance out of your DUNLOP's than I did.

fireman252525

I hope so to!! I got a different style dunlop so we will see how it goes!! Never had any issues with dunlops before?? Always heard good things about them!!

Ricky Pounds

Maybe it was the Direzzas which where not the best. I have always heard Dunlops are great tires. Which model of Dunlops did you get?

justnspace

iTrader: (1)

nitto nt05s and the Dunlops DZ star are both high performance summer tire.
they are direct competitors, probably edging out to the nittos .

justnspace

iTrader: (1)

Nitto Nt05's.

They're modeled after Drag Radials.

justnspace

iTrader: (1)

Nitto NT05 VS Dunlop Star Spec Direzza's @miata club CLICK HERE

fireman252525

dunlop fierce zr's!! I really like them so far!!

Ricky Pounds

I have had two set of the ACHILLES ATR Sport, and I can't say enough of them, I love the tire. But these Nittos look very nice! I will consider them for the next round!

I hate cars

The Nitto is every bit as good if not better on the track than the Star Spec. They're also very good in the wet, not real good with standing DEEP water.

When I was researching, it was always back and forth as to which one was the better track tire. I figured either one would do very well. There were a couple reasons I chose the NT05.

Smooth breakaway, very important if you're going to have fun on the streets. They don't break free suddenly and send you into a spin like many high performance tires do.

Sidewall stiffness vs turn in crispness. I don't know how they do it but the turn-in crispness and precision is almost race tire-like yet they're not too harsh over bumps. The sidewall will absorb small bumps mid corner to keep the car from skipping around.

Noise. The Star Specs had noise complaints, the NT05 is almost stock-like quiet.

Tread to void ratio.... They put more rubber on the road for a given width. It looks like the opposite with the two large voids but I guess all of the little sipes add up on other tires.

Fairly quiet at the limit. They don't squeal until you're very close to the limit.

And finally, for a heavy car like our TLs, the NT05 has the advantage at the track. The Star Specs do fine lap after lap on the lighter cars like the Miatas. Put them on a heavy, high powered or nose heavy car and they start to give up after a few laps. The NT05 has always remained consistent lap after lap.

By no means am I saying the NT05 will always be quicker at the track but with both tires being so close under race conditions, I chose the one that was more street friendly since that's 95% of the driving they will see. The Dunlops should last longer since they start off with more tread and they should do better in deep water since they have more tread but that's a guess.

Currently I'm running on a bald set. I keep putting off getting new ones since it shouldn't rain again until fall. Since I'm going out of town next weekend I might go ahead and pick up another set so I'll have to do extensive "testing" on the current ones... In all seriousness I may do some of my much needed ABS and no ABS testing so if I flat spot them it's no big deal.