Tire suggestions for my cobra

[Mattstl]

So I just purchased my first cobra and I need stickier tires. I searched for hours for 15s that would fit on the wheels on it (275/60/15 and 245/60/15) to little avail. I don't want all season at all. The only tire I found was avons, which seem nice but for the price I would rather go with 17in wheels so I have more tire options, save money, and have spare wheels and tires. I am planning on going with ar torque thrust 17x8 and 17x9.5 for tires 245/45r17 and 275/40r17 falken azinis. I hate to go an inch smaller because of the already short 3.50s.
Lmk if you guys have other tire or offset/size suggestions. Thanks

B and b manufacturing kit with a 383 stroker, 5 speed, and 9 inch.

[James Stern]

If it is for the street Cooper Cobra has a nice selection. The price is good.

[Shootnride]

If you want 15's, check out the Mickey Thompson ST's.

SPORTSMAN S/T

Ted

[undy]

Drag radials, if you don't drive in the rain or heavy in the twisties. Also, don't expect a huge life expectancy. I can lift both front tires on a launch with my M/T ET streets. I'm running 17 x 11s in the rear too with 315/35/17s so they still corner pretty well. The taller the sidewall the worse they are in the corners.

[Grey 65]

Go with 18's and run BFG Rival S or Falken's.

Kevin....

[Antny]

I just put new tires on mine. I went with the Mickey Thompson Sportsman S/T Radials. Much stickier than the BFG's they replaced, and the tread pattern appears much more suited to wet road conditions than the BFG's. Tire sizes on mine were 245/60/15 front, 295/50/15 rears....I changed to 275/60/15 on the rears. Slightly taller tire, but the width is a much closer match to the fronts. The car handles much better now. Also changed them to look like Billboards....total cost: tires delivered to my door: $540. Mounting and balancing at the local garage: $80. Stencil kit: $60. Paint: $10. Results: priceless... :-)

[Sawdust]

I went with the Mickey Thompson MT's I love them, an excellent all round tire.

[Sawdust]

Sorry, typo............ should be Mickey Thompson S/T's

[Frank Messina]

If you can abide the goofy (IMHO) sizes, the Mickey Thomson SR tires are probably the best reasonably priced 15" tires you're likely to find. Next in order are either the MT ST or Cooper Cobra.
Frank

[moore_rb]

Originally Posted by Frank Messina

If you can abide the goofy (IMHO) sizes, the Mickey Thomson SR tires are probably the best reasonably priced 15" tires you're likely to find. Next in order are either the MT ST or Cooper Cobra.
Frank

I agree- If you want a stickier tire, without the high cost of the Avons, then the Mickey Thompson SR's are a great option.

[hinoonaz]

After Avon's for sticky is Mickey Thompson SR's. The ST's and cooper cobra are the same tire but are not as sticky as SR's. In the 15 inch.

[TexasSnake]

I'm currently running 17 inch Nitto 555 Extreme rubber on my B&B Cobra. They replaced Michelin Pilot Sports which I liked but the Nitto seems to perform every bit as good on my car. I'm running 245/45/17 front and 315/35/17 rears. If you are wondering about running a 315 tire on the rear of a B&B I can confirm that they will fit without interference if you have the correct offsets on the wheels. I'm running the tires on American Raciing Vintage 427 wheels. The wheel size is 8x17 fronts and 11x17 rear but I would have to look up the wheel offsets. It's a great tire that I would buy again if I needed new rubber. If you want to speak to somebody regarding the correct wheel setup for your car give Bob Lacey at Vintage Wheel in San Deigo a call.

[ACHiPo]

Originally Posted by Antny

I just put new tires on mine. I went with the Mickey Thompson Sportsman S/T Radials. Much stickier than the BFG's they replaced, and the tread pattern appears much more suited to wet road conditions than the BFG's. Tire sizes on mine were 245/60/15 front, 295/50/15 rears....I changed to 275/60/15 on the rears. Slightly taller tire, but the width is a much closer match to the fronts. The car handles much better now. Also changed them to look like Billboards....total cost: tires delivered to my door: $540. Mounting and balancing at the local garage: $80. Stencil kit: $60. Paint: $10. Results: priceless... :-)

The Mickey Thompsons S/Ts and Cooper Cobra tires are the same tire with the same treadwear of 440 and T speed rating, but the MT S/Rs look different and maybe stickier? The S/Rs are H rated (130 mph), but I can't seem to find a treadwear rating on them. The Avons are definitely a step up--a race compound tire with a wear rating of 80. Not that it matters much, but Avon is owned by Cooper, which also owns the Mickey Thompson brand.

I also need to figure out which tires I'll run on my new ERA, but I've got some time to do it. It's good to read a direct comparison of MTs to the BFGs, as they're in the realm of the reasonable. The Avons are ~$450 each and by the time they're mounted and balanced (needs to be done in a race shop) it's north of $2k for a set that will likely last less than 10k miles on the street. Sure would be nice to be able to get Michelin Pilot Super Sports in 15s!

How do the MTs behave at the limit? Do they break free gradually or grip well then release?

[ACHiPo]

Originally Posted by Antny

I just put new tires on mine. I went with the Mickey Thompson Sportsman S/T Radials. Much stickier than the BFG's they replaced, and the tread pattern appears much more suited to wet road conditions than the BFG's. Tire sizes on mine were 245/60/15 front, 295/50/15 rears....I changed to 275/60/15 on the rears. Slightly taller tire, but the width is a much closer match to the fronts. The car handles much better now. Also changed them to look like Billboards....total cost: tires delivered to my door: $540. Mounting and balancing at the local garage: $80. Stencil kit: $60. Paint: $10. Results: priceless... :-)

Like the look of the stencil'd tires!

[66gtk]

Originally Posted by ACHiPo

The Mickey Thompsons S/Ts and Cooper Cobra tires are the same tire with the same treadwear of 440 and T speed rating, but the MT S/Rs look different and maybe stickier? The S/Rs are H rated (130 mph), but I can't seem to find a treadwear rating on them. The Avons are definitely a step up--a race compound tire with a wear rating of 80. Not that it matters much, but Avon is owned by Cooper, which also owns the Mickey Thompson brand.

I also need to figure out which tires I'll run on my new ERA, but I've got some time to do it. It's good to read a direct comparison of MTs to the BFGs, as they're in the realm of the reasonable. The Avons are ~$450 each and by the time they're mounted and balanced (needs to be done in a race shop) it's north of $2k for a set that will likely last less than 10k miles on the street. Sure would be nice to be able to get Michelin Pilot Super Sports in 15s!

How do the MTs behave at the limit? Do they break free gradually or grip well then release?

You have only 2 good choices when it comes to tires you want to use aggressively on the track. Avons or 17" ultra performance summer tires. Huge selection of very affordable ultra performance tires in 17" sizes that will fit our cars. I have had the Cooper Cobras on a couple cars and they are just fine for street use. I opted for the Mickey Thompson STs for my current project just because I prefer the sidewall over the Cooper and wanted to give them a try. I don't suspect any difference from the Coopers. The SR's have a very different tread pattern that I just can't accept for a Cobra and I've read here that some prefer the STs for the street over the SRs.

One option is to have 2 sets of wheels/tires. A set of 15" inchers with affordable street rubber (like Cooper) and another set of 17" inch wheels/tries for track days and such. Best of both worlds. It doesn't take long to swap them out, especially with PIN drive wheels.

[Mattstl]

Wow thanks for all the good fast advise. Also no negativity I think I'll like this community better than hondas. I looked at Mt sr and cobra and they don't seem sticky enough for me. I will be driving it on the street with the occasional autocross.

[Mattstl]

Originally Posted by TexasSnake

I'm currently running 17 inch Nitto 555 Extreme rubber on my B&B Cobra. They replaced Michelin Pilot Sports which I liked but the Nitto seems to perform every bit as good on my car. I'm running 245/45/17 front and 315/35/17 rears. If you are wondering about running a 315 tire on the rear of a B&B I can confirm that they will fit without interference if you have the correct offsets on the wheels. I'm running the tires on American Raciing Vintage 427 wheels. The wheel size is 8x17 fronts and 11x17 rear but I would have to look up the wheel offsets. It's a great tire that I would buy again if I needed new rubber. If you want to speak to somebody regarding the correct wheel setup for your car give Bob Lacey at Vintage Wheel in San Deigo a call.

What offset? Thanks

[Mattstl]

Originally Posted by 66gtk

You have only 2 good choices when it comes to tires you want to use aggressively on the track. Avons or 17" ultra performance summer tires. Huge selection of very affordable ultra performance tires in 17" sizes that will fit our cars.

One option is to have 2 sets of wheels/tires. A set of 15" inchers with affordable street rubber (like Cooper) and another set of 17" inch wheels/tries for track days and such. Best of both worlds. It doesn't take long to swap them out, especially with PIN drive wheels.

I think I'm going to do this thanks

[TexasSnake]

Wheels are American Racing Vintage 427 which were endorsed by Shelby and have the Shelby name cast into the face of the wheel. I'm running the Ford 5 lug bolt pattern with lug cover and really nice knockoff spinner assembly. I think they are the best looking bolt on wheel if you want the pin drive look. You really have to know what you are looking at to see that they are not actual pin drive wheels.
Front 17 x 8 with 5.25 backspace frontspace 3.75
Rear. 17 x 11 with 6.25 backspace frontspace 5.75
However, you really need to take your own measurements because things can vary from one car to another. If you go to the Vintage Wheel web site you can download a document that identifies all the required measurements for correct wheel fitment. I can send you a couple of pictures if you would like see what they look like. Forgot to mention in my original post that the Nitto 555 Extreme tire I'm running is a W speed rated tire which is 168mph.

[TexasSnake]

Forgot to mention that I looked into running pin drives on my car because I like the look. I did all of the calculations and it was clear that you would have to make some significant changes to the front suspension in order to get the tires inside the front fender lip on a B&B Cobra. If you are thinking about going that direction I just wanted to give you a heads up on what you are up against.