Best tire for landspeed?

[donpearsall]

I am looking for the tire with the widest contact patch new out of the box without shaving it. Preferably a 200/17/50 ZR. But some 190s may even have a wider contact patch than the 200s. I think the best one would be with as few grooves as possible down the middle of the tire.

Any opinions on this? Thanks

[Charlesbusa]

If you're talking top speed, I'd get the hayabusa specific tires. They're made a little more durable(supposedly) than standards.

The rear's contact patch shouldn't be a concern. Not likely you're going to be spinning the rear wheel at 200mph...

I'd be more concerned with the front's contact patch for braking. A lot of speed to scrub off.

[gnd111]

DaveO says BT 014's...

[ROBOPTI]

BT014 are VERY good for speed .... Pirelli Super Corsas (SC2 compund) get very good marks for the Mile guys ...


I have used Michelins on all my runs .... Noonan uses Dunlops

Go figure

A HUGE piece of advice I could give you ... on all my runs (per the advice of John "THE KING OF SPEED" Noonan and Motorhead) ... I ran tire pressures at about 8-10psi OVER maximum ... It will reduce the "growing" effect that all tires start to experience at super high speed ... and since the tire is holding form ... may even reduce temps just a tad

BE SAFE!!!!!

[Commuta_Busa]

it's not the width but the length that you want.. you don't need cornering grip just accel grip.

I've run Pirelli's and now I'm running Michelin's. Yes, you should over inflate your tires... if you can use nitrogen (even less growth). it's more about mph/rpm/gearing that'll dictate the size you want. When i ran Pirelli I had a larger cir., when I switched to Michelin's I had to re-gear a bit. Do your MPH calculations based on rolling cir. and not static. With high speed you don't need a drag race launch so traction isn't an issue unless you're running a turbo.

Shutdown is always a little hairy since your front tire would be at a higher psi... nice n easy on the brakes...

[frisbee]

A taller tire will help with top speed , a little more pressure will help with tire growing . I would do what Noonan does , he is the man that knows.

[frisbee]

By the way , Welcome to the board ! Check out the geogrphic section and look at the northwest topic . We all keep in contact for group rides . Hope to meet you sometime.