Advice for Street/Strip tires

[HawaiiTitan]

Sup guys I need some advice on some tires for the Street/Strip. I been looking at the BF Goodrich G-Force T/A KDW2 and I really would like to run a 17 inch rim but the widest tires I can find for them are 255/40YR/17. I want wider tires so I was thinking of just going with the 18 inch rim because they have a 295/35YR/18 in it. Now which one would be faster for me? I figure the amount of extra rubber from the 295/35YR/18 would make up for the 1-inch difference from the 17 but I/m not sure. If they had a 295 in a 17 inch rim that would be badass. Do the G-Force T/A KDW2 tires get good traction on the strip? I know the Head used to run 15 inch rims if I'm not mistaken but I wan't tires that I can run on the Street as well that wont look too small. So I figure either the 17 or the 18 with these tires can give me the best of both worlds, what do you guys think? Also if theres other super sticky tires out there any info would be appreciated. Thanks guys. Aloha

[motoman139]

if you plan on running a tire that small put what ever you want. those tires are for cars like a mustang or something. the bfg new tread comes in 18's so I would go that route. If you put a tire that small on a truck that isnt laid out on the ground it is going to look ridiculuos

[NorCal 4x4]

HawaiiTitan, I think motoman139 is right about the sizes that you suggested -way too short w/o a major drop, but I found several options that will work.
Tire Size Comparison - too short:
Specification Sidewall Radius Diameter Circumference Revs/Mile Difference:
285/70-17 _ 7.9in __ 16.4in _ 32.7in __102.8in ____ 617/mi _ 0.0%
255/55-17 _ 5.5in __ 14.0in _ 28.0in __ 88.1in ____ 719/mi _ -14.3%
295/35-18 _ 4.1in __ 13.1in _ 26.1in __ 82.1in ____ 772/mi _ -20.1%

TireRack.com has a couple of 285/60/17 street truck tires that seem like a better fit - a Yokohama AVS S/T and a Kumho ECSTA STX
285/60-17 _ 6.7in __ 15.2in _ 30.5in __ 95.7in ____ 662/mi _ -6.9%
These are still 2" shorter that stock. Below are better options but you will need new rims for them.

If you really want the BFGoodrich g-Force T/A KDW 2 I think you should consider going with 20" rims. An almost perfect size match and not too wide is the 305/50-20, 285/50-20, or the 18-inch 285/60-18, while not as wide as the 305, would be a cheaper option.
Tire Size Comparison
Specification Sidewall Radius Diameter Circumference Revs/Mile Difference:
285/70-17 _ 7.9in __ 16.4in _ 32.7in __102.8in ____ 617/mi _ 0.0%
285/55-20 _ 6.2in __ 16.2in _ 32.3in __101.6in ____ 624/mi _ -1.1%
305/50-20 _ 6.0in __ 16.0in _ 32.0in __100.6in ____ 630/mi _ -2.1%
285/60-18 _ 6.7in __ 15.7in _ 31.5in __98.8in _____ 641/mi _ -3.8%

Now since you would need to buy some 20" rims, here is a link to a bunch of other tires, (some cheaper), in the 305/50-20 tire size, at TireRack, or for the 18" rims: 285/60-18 tires at tire rack

Calculations from: http://www.miata.net/garage/tirecalc.html
.

[FlimFlamMan]

I agree with motoman as well. Don't go way to short.

Those are some great options provided by swarren1.

Whatever you do.... I highly recommend you do NOT get the Yokohama Geolandar (G052) 285/60/18. They are P.O.S. tires that will NOT balance properly. I wish I'd have done more research before I chose them.

Fortunately, discounttiredirect.com is being very cooperative with me. They are sending me 4 new Falken Ziex S/TZ-04 285/60/18 tires. I feel pretty confident that those will work out quite well.

They are replacing my stock steelies 245/75/17 (minimal change).