Manifold

Have any of you guys researched track tires for this car? I wonder if there will be many options in 20", and downsizing to 19" or 18" may be difficult or costly given the CLs.

On our Cayman R, I've corded 5 of the Dunlop tires, at both outside and inside edges, and varying the alignment didn't fix it. We came to the conclusion that the tires are great on road and track up to about 8/10ths, but can't handle more than that for very long. I don't know if the Sport Cup 2 will be much better, and ideally we can get something like the RA1, NT01, R888, etc.

BTW, I put down a refundable deposit on the car to hold a #3 spot, though I'm still considering other options.

jumper5836

Nitto NT05 come in 20's though not the correct sizes
255/45R20 vs 245/35R20 on 9J fronts
315/35R20 vs 305/30/20 on 12j rears

utkinpol

991 gt3 is not an ideal track car by any means. it is a great street car from what it looks like and will be fine for rare track events but if you want a dedicated track toy you need it to be simple in tech, easily repairable, use cheap consumables. none of that will be possible with new 991 as it only comes out. in 3-4 years, may be, but first several years on a brand new model can be painful as you will be one (potentially) doing all the exciting discoveries.

I have no idea at all how all those 991 gizmos would react if you decide to substitute wheels or tires or springs or alter shocks valving. it is a breed similar to R8 and GT-R, they all require massive amount of software mods/tuning to make their computerized suspension track worthy. how 991 gt3 will look like - who knows.

Mike in CA

Hasn't it almost always been the case that once car makers create a demand by increasing wheel sizes, tire companies follow with appropriate tires? When my 3.2 Carrera came out with 16's, nobody had heard of 17's, 18's and 19's in track tires. Now everybody makes them.

With Porsche and other brands using 20's, we'll soon see a much bigger selection of tires in that diameter.

orthojoe

Running 'better' tires won't fix the outer edge wear problem on 987s. I know guys running NT01s, etc with -2.4 to -3.0 camber with the outer edges still wearing on those cars.

NT05 are HORRIBLE tires. I have personal experience with them, and others can attest to the unsuitability of that tire for a GT3. Certainly nowhere near as good as MPSC or MPSC2. NT01 is the bomb, but don't come in the needed sizes. :-(

utkinpol

if you burn outer edge of NT01 at -3 deg camber it most likely means you are overdriving them OR sway bars are not stiff enough.

orthojoe

I don't know what kind of driver or suspension setup the guy with -3 camber has, I only know outer edges are wearing per heresay.

These are my NT01s with -2.0 camber.

Rear tire:


Front tire:



I'm going to bump up to -2.4, but I know they will still wear on the outer edge with -2.4. This is on stock sway bars.

997TTMeteor

Definitely limited options in 20” (at the moment). Like Mike said, with McLaren, Ferrari and others going to 20’s, I believe the tire manufacturers won’t be far behind, but I’m planning to get a 2nd set of (19”) wheels to run Hoosiers on-track. Using a similar overall diameter, I doubt there will be a problem.

SamFromTX

MPSS now makes that size and Pirelli PZero Trofeos are available in that size as well.

85Gold

On my 6GT3 -2.8 front camber seems to be the sweet spot for wear on NT01.

Peter

Mvez

Doesn't matter what camber you run, NT01's like to be flipped once on the rim, about halfway through their life cycle. This is how you get stupid life out of them.

orthojoe

I've been told that flipping doesn't work well, but I believe that may be because they are flipping way past 1/2 way mark. I might try your method. Thanks for the tip!

jumper5836

Good to know, I though NT05's being the newer tire was better then NT01

Also didn't know your could flip the NT01's they look they couldn't be by their tread.

Mvez

You've been told wrong. Just ask any BMW owner, it's practically the only tire you see on DE cars, I've been using them for 6+ years on my M3, flipping them to increase tire life. Work perfectly, even when tread is still showing, or late in their life.

The tire is specifically designed to turn into a slick with 2 circumferential grooves. Flip with confidence, and don't go chasing an extreme alignment to try and cure outer wear. These tires grip and part of that is a sidewall that flexes. Just take your time on the out laps to get them up to temp, then go for it. The first couple laps are when most people do the most damage because they don't have patience.

orthojoe

I wasn't aware of this either. Thanks again for the tip!