Bergwerk06 Posted January 12, 2014 Share Posted January 12, 2014 (edited) I'm upgrading the boots for the upcoming track day season and have always used current 'road' tyres. I now want to kit out the Z with some proper trackday tyres and I'm trying to choose between the three main contenders. Toyo R888 Michelin Pilot Super Sports Yokohama Advan Neovo AD08R The R888s only come in 40 profile rather than the standard 45 which equates to a 25mm reduction in OD. Would increasing the rims to 19" be the best option (only 1mm difference then)?- edit-Ignore this option as the r888 doesn't come in a 40 profile 19" Does anyone have ay experience / comments on the three types? Hard and fast knowledge beats the marketing hype hands down every time. Edited January 12, 2014 by Bergwerk06 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KyleR Posted January 12, 2014 Share Posted January 12, 2014 R888's are semi slicks, the others are not. But it would be interesting to see a test between them and the Yokohama's. I'm off to find one Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave-350 Posted January 12, 2014 Share Posted January 12, 2014 You realise the 888s won't last half as long as the michelins? And although they grip incredibly well when up to temp, they don't make a great everyday tyre! Is it a daily car or full on track toy? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KyleR Posted January 12, 2014 Share Posted January 12, 2014 From a quick google, it appears the R888 is in another league as suspected, but the Yokohama is probably better for every day use as well. BTW if you changed to a 19" rim, you'd need series 35 tyres. i can't remember the best tyre sizes, but it may have been 265/35 and 235/35 to match up OEM rolling radius. IMO, if you only track it and/or drive in the dry, get the R888's, otherwise the Yokohama's are about as good as you'll get Ekona will be along shortly with his expertise Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andy james Posted January 12, 2014 Share Posted January 12, 2014 I am running 888s and the grip is second to none,but I only use in the dry and for trackdays and sprints. Put 245/40/18 on all four wheels,but yes it will alter gearing a little but the speedo will read the same as its driven off the front near side wheel which will have the same aspect ratio as the standard tyre. Wear rate is subjective to what your doing but 2 or 3 all day trackdays would muller the fronts!! Previous to the 888s I ran the Ad08s and although the grip is way down on the toyo's IMO they are the best all round tyre if you do have to use your car as a daily driver with a few trackdays mixed in. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave-350 Posted January 12, 2014 Share Posted January 12, 2014 I am running 888s and the grip is second to none,but I only use in the dry and for trackdays and sprints. Put 245/40/18 on all four wheels,but yes it will alter gearing a little but the speedo will read the same as its driven off the front near side wheel which will have the same aspect ratio as the standard tyre. Wear rate is subjective to what your doing but 2 or 3 all day trackdays would muller the fronts!! Previous to the 888s I ran the Ad08s and although the grip is way down on the toyo's IMO they are the best all round tyre if you do have to use your car as a daily driver with a few trackdays mixed in. Have you ran super sports Andy? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RDON Posted January 12, 2014 Share Posted January 12, 2014 so are MPPS not for every day use then guys? I bought a spare set of alloys for my winters and they had MPPS with decent tread left on them and thought great I don't need to buy some shoes this year! but if they are not for every day use then its best get saving lol.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andy james Posted January 12, 2014 Share Posted January 12, 2014 I am running 888s and the grip is second to none,but I only use in the dry and for trackdays and sprints. Put 245/40/18 on all four wheels,but yes it will alter gearing a little but the speedo will read the same as its driven off the front near side wheel which will have the same aspect ratio as the standard tyre. Wear rate is subjective to what your doing but 2 or 3 all day trackdays would muller the fronts!! Previous to the 888s I ran the Ad08s and although the grip is way down on the toyo's IMO they are the best all round tyre if you do have to use your car as a daily driver with a few trackdays mixed in. Have you ran super sports Andy? No mate but I would guess they would similar in compound as the ad 08s. Lots of guys on here rate them highly too Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RDON Posted January 12, 2014 Share Posted January 12, 2014 hmm ok thanks Andy. I guess I will be selling the MPSS tyres then! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ekona Posted January 12, 2014 Share Posted January 12, 2014 What? MPSS and AD08 ares daily use tyres, R888s are trackday semi-slicks. If you're doing trackdays and purely dry/fun driving then use the 888s. If you're driving it daily or want more than 4-5k miles from a tyre then use the MPSS. If you can't get hold of the MPSS then use the AD08. Sorted. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RDON Posted January 12, 2014 Share Posted January 12, 2014 hmmm which is it chaps? had a look on the net at MPSS and it says they are endurance tyres? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ekona Posted January 12, 2014 Share Posted January 12, 2014 They are high-performance road tyres. Trust me on this. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RDON Posted January 12, 2014 Share Posted January 12, 2014 phew thanks Ekona you have saved me mucho pennies lol. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brillomaster Posted January 12, 2014 Share Posted January 12, 2014 just to back up what Ekona said, Michelin Pilot Super sports are widely regarded as THE BEST everyday road tyre you can put on a zed, so defo dont get rid of them! R888s and Yoko AD08s are both semi slick trackday tyres IMO - wouldnt run either as an everyday tyre as i wouldnt trust either to displace standing water as well as a decent road tyre. However if you only drive in fair weather they would be ok. Also R888s and Yoko AD08s will wear out a lot quicker than MPSS, but thats the compromise for a lot more dry grip. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andysmee Posted January 12, 2014 Share Posted January 12, 2014 (edited) You probably want to consider Federal RS-R (sp?), or at least rule them out. I'd have MPSS on the front and 888's on the rear. Good grip for rainy day steering and good grip for dry day powering out of corners, best of both worlds. Edited January 12, 2014 by andysmee Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ekona Posted January 12, 2014 Share Posted January 12, 2014 Interesting theory, but in reality you'd end up with huge oversteer in the wet due to the 888s giving up their grip much more easily than the MPSS, and understeer in the dry due to the MPSS not being able to give as much grip as the 888s. In short, you pretty much end up with a car that has neither the everyday impressive usage of the MPSS nor the massive amounts of grip offered by the 888s. RS-Rs are worth looking into though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andysmee Posted January 12, 2014 Share Posted January 12, 2014 I didn't experience that when I had that setup on my RX-7, it worked well. I don't know if the 350Z has the masses of turn-in that the RX-7 has, so you may be right. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ekona Posted January 12, 2014 Share Posted January 12, 2014 Driven sedately it's no worse than any other combination of mixed tyres, but driven hard or in bad weather I seriously wouldn't recommend it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HaydnH Posted January 13, 2014 Share Posted January 13, 2014 just to back up what Ekona said, Michelin Pilot Super sports are widely regarded as THE BEST everyday road tyre you can put on a zed, so defo dont get rid of them! R888s and Yoko AD08s are both semi slick trackday tyres IMO - wouldnt run either as an everyday tyre as i wouldnt trust either to displace standing water as well as a decent road tyre. However if you only drive in fair weather they would be ok. Also R888s and Yoko AD08s will wear out a lot quicker than MPSS, but thats the compromise for a lot more dry grip. I use AD08s on my Z and we used to use it for a MR2 tubby on track, lovely tyre. I find there's plenty of grip and progressiveness in the wet/cold to be safe, but I wouldn't want to push too much. We found Brands in the cold+wet after the circuit had been gritted a bit tricky, although you could feel the grip very well still. You'd probably have more wet/cold grip with MPSS, although I haven't tried them. The durability of AD08s on track is great though. I'd change Ekona's advice slightly: If you're doing lots of trackdays and purely dry/fun driving then use the 888s. If you frequently do track days or only really push it in the dry but also want a daily driver without changing wheels then get the AD08s. If you're driving it daily and want to push a bit more in the wet then use the MPSS. Getting some 888s and MPSS and swapping wheels before/after track days would probably be the perfect solution. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ekona Posted January 13, 2014 Share Posted January 13, 2014 Seems reasonable enough, my own experience of the AD08s is limited so I'll gladly bow before you on this one Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bergwerk06 Posted January 14, 2014 Author Share Posted January 14, 2014 Thanks for all the replies- my Z is purely a toy and I probably run 70% track day to 30% road and most of that is getting to the venue. I am planning a Nurburgring trip this year but will have to find a way of fitting 4 track wheels into the Z (or hopefully convince a estate car owning conspirator to run as support vehicle- paying their fuel would be cheaper than running on 888s) and use the current Potenzas for the run through Belgium. I think that the 888s will get the nod- and I may even invest in a trailer! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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