Time for new 15” tires for a 460 hp Dart.

[MRGTX]

I’ve been out of the loop for a couple years. What’s our best bet for a 60 series 15” tire for a reasonably powerful car?

My 255/60/15 BFG Radial T/As were never good, even when I had 40% less power.

Thanks for any suggestions!

 

[abodyjoe]

drag radial?

 

[496 polara]

Any standard radial is useless at this power level. Nitto and Mickey Thompson make drag radials in this size. If you want maximum hook go with the MT. Drive more miles, Nitto will last longer on the street.

I just bought some Nitto 275/00/15 for my 620hp Duster. Do I expect it to hook on the street? Of course not. But it won't sit and spin either. The cost of them will keep me from doing burnouts and that lessens the chance for law enforcement intervention.

 

[MRGTX]

I have always put in effort toward making the car fun going around corners, and do so as competently as possible. So drag radials have always been off the table but I think you guys are right that regular radials in this size will do nothing.

What is it like to drive around on drag radials? How do they behave under cornering loads?

What front tires do you match them with?

 

[junkyardhero]

I have always put in effort toward making the car fun going around corners, and do so as competently as possible. So drag radials have always been off the table but I think you guys are right that regular radials in this size will do nothing.

What is it like to drive around on drag radials? How do they behave under cornering loads?

What front tires do you match them with?

do you want the bad news first, or the other bad news first?

so, you're in the same boat i'm in... nobody makes good 15" tires in sizes for our cars.

if you're willing go with a considerably smaller diameter tire, there are loads of great performing pieces out there. or if you're dead set on that size, there are a few options that are eye watering levels of expensive.

17's are where it's at now for performance rubber, and even then the mfgr's are trying to phase those out in favor of 18 & 19" stuff.

 

[496 polara]

The Nitto Dr are v rated and I have never had a problem pushing them in a corner with enough air pressure. Fronts are a different story but there are some h rated older sizes if you look around and don't mind an overseas tire. Size dependant of course.

 

[jbc426]

I have always put in effort toward making the car fun going around corners, and do so as competently as possible. So drag radials have always been off the table but I think you guys are right that regular radials in this size will do nothing.

What is it like to drive around on drag radials? How do they behave under cornering loads?

What front tires do you match them with?

I've been running Nitto 275/60-15's on an 8" rear rim. Best traction available with out going to a dedicated drag tire. They are temperature sensitive and have a moderately good range of traction once warm, but become greasy once the heat builds. They are also rated to 186mph.

I use the chalk method to determine tire pressure, which equates to 18psi local cruising pressure, and 24psi on road trips to enhance handling by stiffening the sidewalls. Short sidewall tires just don't hook as good as taller sidewalls. I was able to go full throttle after rolling out about 10 to 15" feet with 500hp, a 3800 stall converter, 3.91's and a 2.76 first gear ratio. Most cars without tall sidewall drag radials spin much farther before hooking up.

For the fronts, I believe I used a Japanese or Korean tire rated to 149mph. The chassis has the full US Cartool Chassis Stiffening Kit, Front and rear FirmFeel sway bars, QA1 adjustable shocks, 1.06" torsion bars and a pair of driver's side 3200 lbs SS springs. The car weighs 3750lbs.

The suspension is compliant, smooth riding and very few cars dare to keep up with it in the corners. It's predictable and doesn't usually surprise me. Like most cars, it is sensitive to being upset once the car takes a set in the corners, especially with the tall soft sidewalls.

It's not that modern cars aren't capable, but most folks never find out how their cars handle closer to the limit on a track and get scared. In the right hands, a lot of modern cars would exceed my '68's capabilities, but there are not a lot of good drivers out there most of the time.

 

[mbaird]

I bought a set of thes for my Barracuda. Traction cant be worse than BFGs. And they are 1/2 the price . Waiting for my buddy to finish powder coating the wheels . I will know come spring.

 

[jbc426]

I bought a set of thes for my Barracuda. Traction cant be worse than BFGs. And they are 1/2 the price . Waiting for my buddy to finish powder coating the wheels . I will know come spring.

View attachment 1716493398

What's the speed rating on those?

 

[65 Cuda 340]

275/60/15 Nitto drag radials on eight inch wide wheels rear, 225/60/HR15 Falkens on seven inch wide wheels up front. 3.55 gears.

 

[junkyardhero]

What's the speed rating on those?

tire rack lists them as a T rating [118 mph]

 

[junkyardhero]

I bought a set of thes for my Barracuda. Traction cant be worse than BFGs. And they are 1/2 the price . Waiting for my buddy to finish powder coating the wheels . I will know come spring.

i don't know if they're much better, but they wear really well and they're not noisy.

 

[mbaird]

i don't know if they're much better, but they wear really well and they're not noisy.

I have M/T drag radials for both my cars as well . I am not the type of driver to be racing from stoplight to stoplight so it doesn’t matter. I do however like to get on it when the conditions permit and I live in the mountains so lateral stability is important .
Unlike my brother in Minnesota that might as well have an on/off switch for a throttle.

 

[496 polara]

My current front tires are Ohtsu in 215/60R15 H rated I believe. I have some Radar Dimax AS-6 in 2056515 V rated to switch to when I do my drag radials on the back. Currently have Milestar Street Steel with no complaints for a T rated street tire. They will likely be saved for my truck or Newport. Or some backup rollers.

 

[mbaird]

tire rack lists them as a T rating [118 mph]

Speed ratings are for sustained mph so they should be adequate. We will see …

 

[jbc426]

Speed ratings are for sustained mph so they should be adequate. We will see …

True! I try to keep my Mopars under 150mph 95% of the time. I figure since the speedometers go to 150mph it was engineered for that, right?

In my '70 E-Body, (684hp, 3800lbs, 4 speed 3.54 gears & 325/50-15's) I've only had the needle down on the H in MPH once, and it was still pulling hard. One time, I unexpectedly got into a race with a brand new Ferrari 599 GTO. We started at about 75mph and seconds later we were up around 160mph. It was a dead heat. Afterwards while looking over at the driver, I realized I forgot my buddies wife was riding shotgun with me. She was pale as a ghost, and the Ferrari owner looked like he'd a been gut shot. I said her name out loud, and she yells,"I've been with Dennis before(her husband's '69 Cornet RT, 440, 5 speed & now banned, Outlaw DennisH), BUT NOT LIKE THAT! She still gives me that look today...lol.

Wasn't it Richard Petty who once said, "The top end on these Mopars is virtually unlimited".

 

[mbaird]

True! I try to keep my Mopars under 150mph 95% of the time. I figure since the speedometers go to 150mph it was engineered for that, right?

I've only had the needle down on the H in MPH once, and it was still pulling hard. One time, I unexpectedly got into a race with a brand new Ferrari 599 GTO. We started at about 75mph and seconds later we were up around 160mph. It was a dead heat. Looking over at the driver, I realized I forgot my buddies wife was riding shotgun. She was pale as a ghost, and the Ferrari owner looked like he'd a been gut shot.

Wasn't it Richard Petty who once said, "The top end on these Mopars is virtually unlimited".



View attachment 1716493617

Had my 70 Charger up to 145 once and it was getting light !

 

[MadScientistMat]

Some drag radials generally have decent lateral grip too; Nitto had an exhibition autocross car on their drag radials.

 

[65 Cuda 340]

Had my 70 Charger up to 145 once and it was getting light !

I saw 6100 rpm in high gear in my 65 Barracuda around 1980. 4-speed trans, 3.23 gears, 26 inch tall tires (or was it 25?). Anyway I figured out it was just over 140 mph.

A few year earlier, Dad was driving his 62 Polara 500 convertible on I-16 south of Macon, GA. 440 motor, 2.76 gears, cruising about 120, then a Superbird came from out of nowhere and passed us like we were sitting still.

 

[MRGTX]

Some drag radials generally have decent lateral grip too; Nitto had an exhibition autocross car on their drag radials.

I spoke with a rep from Mickey Thompson a few years back and they said that their DOT drag radials were not suitable to for the front axle at all. It was something about the construction of the sidewalls. Are Nittos different?

I suppose it doesn’t matter since Nitto doesn’t offer a 15” drag tire in a size that will even fit on the front of an Abody Mopar.

 

[mbaird]

I am running my M/T 255/60-15s Drag radials on my 4sp Swinger right now and on my Barracuda off and on but they wear pretty fast . Kinda expensive burning through a set twice a year if you drive much .
Lateral traction is good but then again I don’t drive like a lunatic on a regular basis. I had 205/70-14s on both cars because I like a stock look but with strokers in both cars traction is dicey . The Dart has W2s and a solid roller and the Barracuda has ported EQs and a small hydraulic roller ( 221/229 on a 112 and .550 list ) . The Barracuda with an A/T actually has more of a traction issue due to all the off idle torque. Of course I don’t drop the clutch at RPM on the street with the 14”ers.

 

[MadScientistMat]

I suppose it doesn’t matter since Nitto doesn’t offer a 15” drag tire in a size that will even fit on the front of an Abody Mopar.

Well, you might be able to fit the 275 mm ones on the front with some really big fender flares.

 

[33IMP]

Nitto drag radials on the rear, with enough air in them to handle.
Nitto G2's on the front.
My suggestion, anyway. If you feel the need to go fast in a straight line, drop pressure from 32-35 to 18-20.


ET drag radial Pro's on my hotrod. 315/65. Won't fit your dart without serious work.

 

[33IMP]

I spoke with a rep from Mickey Thompson a few years back and they said that their DOT drag radials were not suitable to for the front axle at all. It was something about the construction of the sidewalls. Are Nittos different?

I suppose it doesn’t matter since Nitto doesn’t offer a 15” drag tire in a size that will even fit on the front of an Abody Mopar.

I've seen drag radials on the front of fast 4wd suv's and trucks many times, at the drag strip.
Whether or not they are daily driven that way, I don't know.