Best street tires for 17x9's & 17x11's???

[slc215]

I am in the process of bringing back to life my 1972 Porsche 911 that I bought 20 years ago when I was a teenager and has been sitting in the garage for the last 18 years. I am going for the 72' or 73' RSR look and I'm planning on having Lindsey Racing build me a set of 17x9 & 17x11 RSR Fuchs, I thought I would see what everyone thought about possible tire options and what would be the best for the street? Tires that come close to/resemble the classic "look" of the original 72'/73' RSR tires will be taken into consideration, but I will be open to any and all tire options and weight the positive/negatives of each.

I have been eyeing the Nitto Motivo 315/35-R17's and 245/40-R17's as a possibility, anyone have any experience with these tires?

Any insight would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,

Sean

[tdw28210]

I think the Nittos are the way to go without breaking the bank. They get decent to good reviews and are supposedly pretty quiet. If you can't find something you like, it is probably the wheels and I will take them off your hands. ;-)

[slc215]

Thanks TDW

[Retro]

Continental DW

[onevoice]

Originally Posted by Retro

Continental DW

Continental has discontinued the 315, along with nearly everyone else. Currently, the Tire Rack lists only two street tires in 315, Goodyear Eagle F1, and Sumitomo HTRZ. Nitto actually makes a couple of styles in 315.

Only others are autocross or drag tires.

Next step down is a 285, which will fit on the 11" rims, but which is also becoming an uncommon tire. Smallest size recommended for an 11" rim is a 275, which is still very common, I think it is a corvette size so it will be around forever. I have 275's on 11's my widebody and it looks fine, tires are a hair wider than the rim. Also, the 275's are 3-4 lbs lighter each than the 315's.

[nippy]

I had Michelin Pilot PS2 on a set of the Zeuff Fuchs on my slant, same wheel/tire sizes singer uses. 17x9 and 17x11 225 fronts 275 rears. The tires were to stretched for my liking. Its a shame Michelin doesn't make the Super Sport in anything close as we feel that's the best money can buy. On my new build I went with the Conti DW 245 fronts and 285 rears strictly to avoid the stretched look. There really isn't to much avail for these sizes. We own a wheel and tire shop so we had access to almost everything.I talked to people w/ the 315s on the rear and most said they didn't like them for track use but did for street use. I plan on using for track as well and my car is a lightweight. The 315s are very heavy.

225 fronts 275 rears Michelin






245 fronts 285 rears Contis

[Joe Bob]

Kumhos make a good sold and cheap tire. Have used them for years, was disappointed when they and most others discontinued the 245/45 and sold my 8s.

[slc215]

Thanks to all for the input and rec's on possible tire options. I'm about to pull the trigger on a set of tires within the next month or 2 and it looks like I am going to go with Nitto's. I am looking at the Nitto Motivo's 225/45R17 or 235/45R17 up front and 315/35R17 for the rears. However, I also am considering the Nitto NT555 G2 225/45R17 up front and 315/35R17 for the rears. Both sold on discount tire direct.

I will mainly be using my car on the street, weekend driver and such, but I am considering a track day possibly every now then. I guess I will have to think about it for a little while longer before I make the purchase, still weighing the pros vs. cons of each tire.

Thanks again,
Sean

[Mick_D]

I have the Motivos on another car and have absolutely no complaints.

[slc215]

315's will fit on the rear of a 72' 911 with turbo flares without any further modifications correct? The last thing I want to do is have to roll out the fenders for added clearance or make any additional body mods.

[RarlyL8]

I had 345/35-15s on my '73 widebody. Had to roll the fenders and tuck the oil line. 315s should fit no problem with correct spacing and wheel width.

[slc215]

Here are a couple of pictures of the steel turbo flares added to my car about 20 years ago. I had purchased a set of wheels about 18 years ago, and the rears were 15x12's w/ 345/35R15 tires, needless to say they did not fit. I know that 345's are just over 1" wider than the 315's, hopefully the 315's will have enough room without any rubbing or issues.

[slc215]

Here is a view from the back, gives you a little better perspective of the width of the flares

[brentrussell]

I have 17x9.5 and 17x11 on mine with 255/40R17 and 315/35R17 Nitto's. As others have said it depends on the wheel offsets made.. Lindsay's should know or you can work it out.
17x11 with 315/35 is tight... but possible, depends how low you want to go, if you are using higher oil lines and of course wheel offset. ET0 is as high as you can go with standard oil lines, even then a bit of massage, I have a said of Braid BZ wheels coming my way at -8N from memory. Have trimmed outer guard a bit, pretty low and maximum camber which doesn't help oil line clearance.

[Cajundaddy]

I need lots of choices in tires and 17x315 is becoming rare air. I would probably shoot for 17x245/275 on 8.5 and 10s to have the widest tire choices available. YMMV

[Sicklyscott]

I honestly think 315 is overkill unless you have a ton of power. I also think you'll hate the handling with 225 up front and 315 in the rear. Especially at a track day. I'm running 245/40 and 275/40 on 17x9 & 11s. If I were to do it again I'd opt for a 10.5 rear wheel as the 11 with 275 shows some stretch.

[Omegaman]

Toyo Proxes R888 255/40 R17 94 W
Toyo Proxes R888 315/35 R17 102 W

[911pcars]

Asking here will mainly produce anecdotal info. Tire size is one factor. Tire specs are another. Do you want all weather, performance, ultra-high performance or DOT spec track tires? Search for the numerous tests by tire resellers (e.g. Tire Rack), car mags and other Porsche forums as well.

Sherwood

[slc215]

Thanks Sherwood and to all who weighed in, taking everything into consideration and will decide here soon. The car will be right around 400HP, so I am still leaning towards the Nitto Motivo 315/35/r17's for the rear and 235/45/r17's up front.

[JeremyD]

Originally Posted by slc215

Thanks Sherwood and to all who weighed in, taking everything into consideration and will decide here soon. The car will be right around 400HP, so I am still leaning towards the Nitto Motivo 315/35/r17's for the rear and 235/45/r17's up front.

It will understeer

Especially if you are tracking the car. At sebring I never had an issue getting heat into the tires - even when I had the 2.7 in the Iroc - I guess you just brake less...

I had 255's and 315's if I would have kept the car - my next front wheel purchase would have been 275's