BFG vs Hoosier DR's on fwd?

[daren_p]

Well I'm getting sick of horrible ET's at the track & am looking at picking up a set of drag radials. I'd go slicks but because of my Wilwood brakes my rim size is limited. 15's won't work for sure, think I can squeeze a 16" on but don't want to run a 26" tall slick, so as far as I know slicks are out. Think I've narrowed it down to two options, the BFG drag radial in the 225/45/17 size, which seems to be a good choice from what I've read or the Hoosier DOT drag radial in a 225/50/16 size. I haven't found much on the Hoosiers but what I did find seems to be very positive. I think the larger sidewall with the Hoosiers is a good idea & they seem to be more track specific as they basically don't have any tread vs the BFG's that have a street tread design. Wondering what everyone's experience with these tires is like.

 

[bmwisthekey]

i know there was a guy 2g guy on the forums with 13in bogarts (stock brakes though) i wouldnt quite rule out 15inch rims not fitting even with the brake upgrade , i think it really comes down to specific rims (a rim more flat and open inside so nothing gets in the way of the calipers, possibly weld draglites- there is one size they make that fits dsm's well.

its Weld Draglite 90-Series Wheel
Size: 15 x 7
Rear Spacing: 5-1/2''
Bolt Circle: 5 x 4-1/2''/4-3/4''

this equals about a 38mm offset fairly close (may use a spacer if caliper clearance is an issue.) something with more of a negative offset from stock is going to have better clearance.


.......on to the radials, i have used the nitto dr's- 225/50/16(discontinued size), i couldnt get them to hook very well, heated them up decent just werent real sticky, some cars do fine with them though (lots of f-bodies, mustangs run them on the street , swear by them.)

a friend of mine ran the hoosier drag radials on several 11 second passes on his 03 svt cobra, also daily drove them, they are one of the stickier drag radials out there, plus more sidewall, this would be my choice over the bfg's. (i.e.-hoosiers are alittle more expensive)

there are a few fwd members on the board that may chime in that run the bfg drag radials, they would have alitte more insight.


my choice would be to run slicks on 15in rims if somehow u can get them to fit, since your looking for a tire to run specifically at the track, i run slicks @the track now and have never been happier with them compared to a radial tire, very sticky, easy on drivetrain, no wheel hop.

 

[daren_p]

Thanks for the input. I too sorta ruled the Nitto's out. Your right lots of rwd guys think their great but mostly saw negative reviews for us fwds. As for the 15's, its not the spoke clearance that I'm worried about. The 15" rims diameter physically isn't a large enough diameter for my 12.2" rotors & 4 piston calipers. I tried a factory 16" GST wheel & there wasn't enough caliper to spoke clearance (IIRC) but not taking that into consideration, there was only about 1mm clearance between the outer of the caliper & the inner of the rim, so there's no way a 15" diameter rim will squeeze on.

 

[unlmtdndeavor]

if you can get some 16x7 on there i would get some Mickey Thompson ET Street Drag Radials. With those my friend was able to cut 1.5' 60' with his cobra.

 

[bmwisthekey]

the smallest size for 16in rims in the micky thompson et drag radials is the
P255/50R16 (26'' x 10.5'' - 16'')

which is pretty big, if your going that big might as well get those 26" slicks..

those hoosiers are decent size for a 2g with 16in wheels

 

[daren_p]

Thanks for they replys so far. I've done some searching & it appears I should be able to squeeze some 16's on, ROTA Slip streams have been mentioned with my setup. I'm also looking at another light weight 16" that hopefully will work. I did look at the MT's but I think there abit on the big side (but ya, heard good things about those as well). Has nobody here tried the Hoosiers? I guess they haven't been out all that long in this size & most who want good times give up on fwd anyways.....

 

[bmwisthekey]

i know a talon in orlando, fl, guy named johan , tuned by cft ( central florida turbo) that runs that size hoosier on their awd talon, running low 10s i believe, hes had them over a year.but that doesnt help u ### your fwd. slipstreams are pretty light, are u planning on getting a set of 4 for the whole car or just 2?

 

[EclipseSH21]

Funny, no one seems to have any experience with these on a FWD. I'm in need of a good set of drag radials as well, hopefully someone will chime in on these tires...

 

[iluvmy4g63]

a buddy back home has the bfg tires. he said it was a big diff. plus they are a decent price

 

[daren_p]

Well as an update, I found a good deal on a pair of 16" rims that will clear my calipers, so the BFG's are no longer an option. I figure the taller sidewall of the 16's is a plus & it appears the Hoosiers will be even stickier then the BFG's. I think the Hoosiers are about as close to a slick as you can get in a drag radial style tire. The tread pattern (or lack of) only consists to two groves around the circumference of the tire. They are also very light weight (like at slick) at 18 lbs for a 225/50/16. These tires combined with the rims should take about 13-14 lbs of each side compared to my current street setup, which is always a bonus.

 

[bmwisthekey]

cool man, keep us posted how it does at the track when u get the new running shoes installed

 

[daren_p]

Ya will do but it will be 6 months or so before that happens. Car will be going into winter storage in the next week or to, so I'll have the setup in a few weeks but won't be till next spring till I get to use them.

 

[rjclagett]

Did you already get the rims? I have a mint pair of 16" Nitto 555R already mounted on rsx-s rims. Let me know if your interested.

 

[daren_p]

Well here's an update, as I have the setup ready for this year. Went with the Hoosier Drag radials in the 225/50/16. With my brakes making me run 16's & the current drop on the car, my choices were very limited. Out of the few I can currently run, I think these should work the best. They are a pretty light tire, around 18 lbs (my street tires are 23 or 24 & have less rubber) & seem to have a pretty soft sidewall for a radial tire. The rims I picked up were a pair of BSA's in 16 x 7" & they were the typical silver powdercoat. I wanted black, so I picked up some Duplicolour satin wheel paint & gave them a couple coats. They came out great & the paint seems pretty durable, now here's some pics:

 

[bmwisthekey]

nice darren glad to see you finally got them, lemme know how u do with them at the track, good luck

 

[spyderturbo007]

You'll have to post back and let us know how well you hook up. I wonder if they would fit on the stock rims???

 

[daren_p]

You'll have to post back and let us know how well you hook up. I wonder if they would fit on the stock rims???

Believe the stock 16's are 6.5" wide? My rims are 7" & the tires fit pretty well, not pulled in much to fit the rim, so I would think a 6.5" wide rim would be doable (& most reg street tires in this size will fit on a 6.5" rim) but Hoosier does recommend a 7-9" width for these tires, maybe to keep the best contact patch?

Will defently post up some result data. I'm not expecting them to hook like a true slick, but my hopes are to get down to the mid 12's from the mid 13's & hopefully gain a couple mph on my current 113 with basically the same setup/boost/tune as last year. With awd or slicks the car should be a very low 12's.

 

[mnetwork]

Which Hoosiers are these? I am in the same desperate boat as you are, when I went to the track it was a joke, just pure spinning. Funny I just happened to see this thread...

Are they anything like these?: Hoosier R6

 

[daren_p]

Which Hoosiers are these? I am in the same desperate boat as you are, when I went to the track it was a joke, just pure spinning. Funny I just happened to see this thread...

Are they anything like these?: Hoosier R6

They have the same tread design (or I guess lack of tread design ) as those but those are one of their road racing tires. I would imagine the tread compound is specific to road race, while their Drag Radials have a drag specific compound (same as the Hoosier QTP's, very soft compound). I would also think the sidewalls on those are going to be much stiffer.

Hoosier actuallys calls them their DOT drag radial. If you follow this link, it will bring you to their drag racing section. Click on the specs link on the left of the page & it will bring you to the page with all their drag radials. These drag radials are about half way down.

https://www.hoosiertire.com/Drtire.htm

 

[mnetwork]

I'd probably just go with a true slick for the track... I have stock brakes and can fit a small rim...

 

[rhamlinii]

I'd probably just go with a true slick for the track... I have stock brakes and can fit a small rim...

I have a local around here that put down 565 fwhp on a mustang dyno, that uses these tires to compete in power street. He has been 10.70s in a fwd @145 with the 225/50r15 and hopes to go faster this year. I will be running 225/50r16 tires and will see if I can sneak past with "STOCK" 6.5 inch wide GST wheels.

 

[bmwisthekey]

should be a 9sec car with slicks if hes trapping 145 id just try to throw some slicks on for a few passes to see what it could do

thats still not bad for those radials either 10.70s

 

[mnetwork]

should be a 9sec car with slicks if hes trapping 145 id just try to throw some slicks on for a few passes to see what it could do

thats still not bad for those radials either 10.70s

I thought you do run slicks

 

[bmwisthekey]

I thought you do run slicks

i do run slicks...



rhamlinii said that the car is using the same hoosier drag radials that darren_p bought 10.70s@145

 

[daren_p]

I have a local around here that put down 565 fwhp on a mustang dyno, that uses these tires to compete in power street. He has been 10.70s in a fwd @145 with the 225/50r15 and hopes to go faster this year. I will be running 225/50r16 tires and will see if I can sneak past with "STOCK" 6.5 inch wide GST wheels.

Wow, I'm defently impressed with that kind of time on a drag radial in a fwd. Is he on this forum, I'd be interested to hear more about his setup & how he runs his hooisers? (tire pressure, amount of burn out, launch, etc)