I finally got a new rear for the Buick, it came from a 69 GTO, BOP posi rear. It has been re-done with an Eaton posi unit and Richmond 4:11 gears. So now I need to pull the 14 rims and BFG 245x60x14s before I swap the rear! What are the best street tires I can put on the rear? I plan on getting 15x8.5 Centerlines more than likely. As I went through the previous threads there were a lot of comments for and against using DOT approved drag radials on the street. Are they really that bad? Of course with the torque we are producing we want the best possible traction to swat off the Chevy flies! Another tire that popped up a lot was the Nitto 555rs, this appears to give better traction also. As with the 4:11 gears I will more than likely put 3:55s in to keep the RPMs down unless I can fit a 29 tire in the back. Once again thanks for helping. Ken
What year is your Buick? How serious are you about hookin and winning on the street? If your using your car daily and commuting,the real sticky street tires"M&H,Hoosier Quicktime Pro's",etc.will wear out real quick on a daily driver,but you'll be using the stickiest tire legal for street use,and we all know how the all important Holeshot ,is half of what it takes to win a standing start race. Now if your not so Gung-Ho about serious street racing,I don't think you can beat the BFGoodrich Drag Radials,very nice tire,good adhersion and will last a lot longer then the real sticky tires!:Smarty:
The Buick is a 71 hard top, 455 with a lot of extras, Hemi Killer cam and ported heads. The engine will definitely move the car but Ive always been held back by the rear gears (2:91) hence the smaller tires. I drive the car maybe a few times a month and usually in nice weather which is very common in California. But it seems that every time Im out & about someone is wanting to race. Last month a Ford Expedition took off like a bat out a Hell from a stoplight I wasnt ready for that one; he probably thought he had a hot truck until we got to the second stop! Anyway I do want better hookup without the spin. I dont do many burnouts anymore because Ive grown and have come more appreciative of the value of money but if friends are there I usually cant hold back.
I used to run 275/60 DrgRadials on 15 x 8, 4/5" backspacing, Buick rallyes. They were good with lots of room all around so no rubbing at all. I now run 325/50 DrgRadials on 15 x 10 rims with 5-5/8" backspacing. I did have to trim about 1/4" off the top of the fenderwell to insure no rubbing there. I also put airbags in to lessen the bouncing when I go over a big bump. They REALLY fill up the rear wheelwells, but I have 1/2" or so clearance on the inside, about the same on the outside, and I can stick my hand between the exhaust and the tires with no problem. Several others on this board have checked the car out at Norwalk and seen it. I've got no complaints about the DragRadials, other than you only get about 7000-10,000 miles out of them. Nittos are a harder compound and will give you some more mileage out of them. But to me that's just giving a ricer an excuse to say, "See, even you need import parts for your car." So I'll stick with the BFG's, even though it means more money for the French:moonu: I run my tires at about 20-22 psi around the street and drop to 15 psi or so when I do go racing, but usually use my slicks anymore when I go to the track. Overall, I'm happy with them. M&H now sells ET Street-style tires through Jegs. I think they're called Muscle Car Tires, or something like that. That may be my next tire when these wear out, just to see if there's any difference. Phil
Ive been looking at the 275x60x15s but their diameter is 28 with my gear options that puts me at close to 3000 rpms @ 60mph. Id like to keep it lower, about 2600-2700. That puts me with a 26 27 tire with the 3:55 gears. The 275x50x15s look like they might work, wider tread also. It does look like the M&H muscle car tires offer more sizes also I will look at those tomorrow. I will more than likely be putting the 3:55 gears in also. I think it will be impossible to get a tall enough tire back there to get a reasonable RPM. I wonder what size tires the GTO was running, might have had a small block though. Anyway thanks for the help, I got to get away from this PC & get back to the Buick. Ken
If you want to keep your rpm's down, you want a taller tire. Going to a smaller diameter tire will increase your rpm's. At 60 mph, with a 28" tire and 3.55 gears, that's about 2550 rpm. I'm at 3100 rpm's at 70 mph with a 3.73 rearend and 28" tall tire. I believe with a 3.55 and 28" tire, you'd be at almost 3000 rpm's. Here is an rpm calculator so you can play with various combos. Good luck. http://www.quiknet.com/~ke6vut/rpmcalc.html
I have 4.10's and 255/70r15's (29.06in) on my 72 GS. Still kinda high RPM's at speed though but I can bear it since it's never on the HWY. Say goodby to your traction tho... I can spin them in second. But with my foot out of it on the street (its my Daily driver) I havent had any probs with traction in wet wether (I'm very carful). No snow here tho:grin: :grin: I was thinking of trying a BFG 285/70R15, But It'll be a real tight fit, I have a shop that is going to order them for me so I can test fit them to be sureo No: Otherwise it'll be the 275/60's for me.
Another tire / gear question.... what is the ideal rpm range? It seems the stock Buicks ranged from 2300 (GS) up to 2760 (GSX). One web site recommended 2600 @ 60mph for a big block. I'm not too concerned about highway driving & it's not a daily driver, just don't want to run out of top end. I'm thinking maybe a 27" tire with 3.55 gears. That will put me at 2650 @ 60mph. Thoughts? Thanks for the link Phil, that's easier than the calculator or Excel! Thanks, Ken
