Sponsored by The Tire Rack

[cmo_93]

I would like to offer my experience thus far with them...if anyone sees a way I can fix any of these issues, let me know...or is it just the tires?

I bought a pair for the rear just to try out since I got them for dirt cheap and some drag buddies recommended them... 275/35/19 . Previous tires were the Pirellis 265/35/19 (ZCP)

Initially, the car felt extremely loose in the rear, literally like the back end was sliding out when changing lanes. I dropped the air pressure to about 32 (from the 41 the tire shop set) and it made a pretty noticeable difference on that front and I have little to no complaints about that now.

However, the car still feels much more loose. Granted, I just did my tune and test pipes and all right before installing the tires (so maybe thats part of what I'm feeling), but when I accelerate hard, the car doesn't feel nearly as planted. Feels almost like the car is just floating around on hard acceleration and at higher speeds. Almost feels like, after the tire change, my suspension changed. (Alignment? Variation in tires from front to back? Softer compound tire?)

I was told to give them time to break in and see what happens so I guess I will, but so far, I doubt I'll ever get a set again. They have me wondering if my car is out of whack... I'll probably just stick with Michelin PSS or Advans

However, if i must give them some praise, I did a few pulls from a stop and they seem to hook up initially much quicker than my Pirellis did. They chirp into 2nd and 3rd gear but never seem to lose much traction...other than that unstable feeling. Also, I've taken some curves and been wondering why I felt like I was at my limit (and started blaming the tires in my head) only to look down and realize I was doing 70-80 so the grip is there, I suppose. Maybe its a softer sidewall I'm feeling?

[Dave07997S]

This is the advantage of the Nitto 555's, the off the line prowess. The sidewall is soft, which helps off the line acceleration, but not the most crisp tire as far as handling is concerned. Had these on my 04 E46 M3 on the OEM 19" wheels back in 04. This tells you how old these tires are. There is a newer Nitto 555G2 out but in limited sizes.

Dave