So after my first track day on the stock rubber, Goodyear F1's (Front: P265/ 40ZR17 Rear: P295/ 35ZR18);

I need tires BADLY! I have two questions:



1) The only tires that I can see that are available are the Goodyear Eagle F1 Supercar, Firestone Firehawk Wide Oval, and Michelin Pilot Sport PS2 (which I hear scream like a little girl). Does anyone know of any others?

2) Has anyone used an alternate sized tire on the stock wheels to find a cheaper alternative for tires? I would like to find a tire like the Sumitomo or the Kuhmo Ecsta; I don’t want to pay $2000 for a set of tires that are going to be gone on 5-10,000 miles of road trips and track days....


HELP!

Thanks,
Eric

 

What were the other racers using?

 

There was only one other C5 out there with Goodyear F1's. All of the C6's had a variety of tires , and I didnt realize at the time there are wheel size differences between the two gen's. The C6's have 17's all the way around and the C5's have 17F and 18R. The tires on the C6 cars that i liked in particular were the Sumitomo and Kuhmo tires, but they dont make sizes to fit the C5...

 

What about the Nitto 555R's or Mickey Thompson ET Street Radials. Go to Jeggs.com and look for nice and cheap selection.

 

From what JEG's says the Nittos are really, really soft and I will only get about 2000 miles out of them. And the Mickey Thompsons dont come in that size.....
Thanks for the sugestions though...

Anyone have any expericence with BF Goodrich KDW G-Force tires? JEGs has the rears, I would have to find the fronts....

 

I just recently replaced my tires all the way around. I put the goodyear eagle GS-D3's. I paid $273 each for the backs (295/35/ZR18) and $212 for the fronts (275/40/17). The total with shippiing was $1035. These tires are 8 out of 10 on traction in wet and 8 out of 10 for traction on dry. The best all around tire in my opinion. Some people say they get 20k out of these tires. Depends on how you drive. They have very deep groves for traction and work very well in dry and wet pavement. Oh and I have an 03 Z06. Good luck!!!!!

 

So after an exhaustive search for the right tire, I came to the determination that they are not out there at this moment for the wheel size that comes stock on an 03' Z06. What I finally decided, and it’s ‘to be determined’ whether my choice was correct or not, is a set of Sumitomo HTR ZII tires, even though they are now discontinued for the HTR ZIII. I have ridden in a C6 Z06 on the track with these tires and I was impressed, a tiny bit noisy; but very sticky. And, I put less than $500 into a new set of Z rated tires, although I had to drop a height size in the front and the rear to 285/35/ZR18 and 265/40/17. I called everyone I know, including the Corvette dealer and several tire shops to see if it was advisable to drop a size. I was told the only thing it will affect is the ride comfort; and so far it seems that the ride is even more comfortable that the Goodyear F1 tires that I took off; maybe because the sidewalls are not as stiff on the Sumitomo tires.

Time will tell if the tires are right for my driving style or the car itself, but for >$500 I'm willing to make the sacrifice for 10,000 miles or so....