New Tires; BF Goodrich Rival S

[ViperJohn]

Well, if you own a Gen 2, at the moment you only have one choice when it comes to getting a tire with a "street" compound. The Toyo's are still out there as are the Pilot Sport Cups, but both those options won't work well on wet roads.

I finally bit the bullet and bought a set of the Rival S. Apparently Michellin owns BF Goodrich and is essentially using that brand to offer tires for the Viper. I have attached some pictures of the tread. Unfortunately, the weather conditions haven't been favorable in Maryland, so I don't have any road feedback to offer yet. I will say that they do a much better job of pulling debris off the floor as compared to the PS2's I took off. Higher res photos in my gallery.

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[Jc121285]

I just did the same... Been hesitating for a while and with no other options figured I would give it a shot. Im just waiting for the last of the 4 to come in. Ill also give some feedback on tires once the streets clear up here in NOVA.

 

[ViperJohn]

Excellent. You will have to come out and join us when we are in the area. Hope tires work out for you.

 

[chrisd0729]

I went through the same exact issues and came to the same conclusion, along with Luke from TireRack's suggestion. I had to wait 5 weeks for the fronts to deliver in December and installed them 2 weeks back. Coming from original tires from 2002, I'm extremely happy with the G force Rival. I recommend them!

 

[white out]

R888 are fine in the wet.

 

[SquadXX]

I heard the same as above regarding the r888, just have to be smart as with any tire in the rain.

On another nite, any of you local guys have an AEM obd2 comm cable you would be willing to sell or rent? I've been looking for 3 months and it's the only thing keeping me from driving my car, the tune.

 

[Bill Pemberton Woodhouse]

Those that autocross are well aware of the Rival S as it is one of the top choices for a 200 wear rating street tire -- solid track tire and better in the rain than a R888 ( though all these tires are primarily designed for dry pavement or competition)

R888 is a DOT Competition tire , whereas the Rival S has a higher treadwear rating and is promoted as extreme performance street tire. In the real World they are not that far apart and some folks will likely argue the BFG is just as fast, yet the one variable is those that track can state the BFG is better in the damp/rain.

 

[SquadXX]

I may have to look into these when I get my car back as I'll need tires. How well do they manage over stock hp?

 

[Bill Pemberton Woodhouse]

Actually either should do better over what originally came with your Gen 1 or Gen IIs --- compounding on both of these tire brands listed above is a lot more aggressive than original OEM. That said the later model Michelin Super Sports or PS2s were pretty darn good tires for the street and occasional track use.

 

[white out]

R888 is a DOT Competition tire , whereas the Rival S has a higher treadwear rating and is promoted as extreme performance street tire. In the real World they are not that far apart and some folks will likely argue the BFG is just as fast, yet the one variable is those that track can state the BFG is better in the damp/rain.

Very good point. I was referring to normal street driving and not track use in the wet.

 

[Bill Pemberton Woodhouse]

Probably should have written my comment better, since using reference about folks that track, implied this was our experience with these tires while racing. Actually I should have stated something more concrete in just conveying that folks who go through a lot of performance tires will tell you most R compound , DOT competition tires are beyond spooky in the wet ( especially with even a little bit of standing water) . So for overall driving the Extreme Performance BFG should last longer and be better in the rain than the R888.

Always good to check our friends at TireRack ( Luke in particular ) as they often note the driving conditions suited for each tire, and since we are limited with the Viper it does become important to decide which tire better suits the buyer/driver's true needs?

Luke has been advising Viper owners on tires since the late 90s, and many of us have relied on his expertise as he is a track rat and has been a friend of all Snakecharmers for close to 20 years. Good choice , by the way Viper John an my apologies for not being clearer.

 

[Gen2man]

After 80 autocross runs in my 97 GTS on 17" PS2s I decided to go with the Rival S. I bought a used set of 18" ACR wheels. Here's what a 315 looks like squeezed on a 10" rim.

 

[TalonTSi90]

After 80 autocross runs in my 97 GTS on 17" PS2s I decided to go with the Rival S. I bought a used set of 18" ACR wheels. Here's what a 315 looks like squeezed on a 10" rim.

Looks fricking sweet to me!

 

[Jc121285]

Got my new tires put on and love them so far, got out to do a little spirited driving on them this weekend before the crews starting salting. Even in colder 40-50 deg weather they seemed to give me some fairly decent grip.
I now have a full set of original Michelin Pilot Sports for 18 inch second gen wheels sitting in my basement...
Anyone have any interest in them. They have had 13,000 miles put on them but have plenty of tread left.

 

[ViperJohn]

Put them up on the classifieds.

 

[jwolf]

I had BFG's on my Gen 2 a few years ago I went to the Midwest Muscle car Challenge and BFG was a sponsor with free techs and they were great, they took your tire temps after each run and set your air pressure as well as gave you suggestions on getting the most out of your BFGs. At the drag strip portion they said not to do a burn out, as the street tires are not design to grip better at the higher post burnout temps. They grip better cold or at moderate temps. They said just dry hop them to clear off any debris. I was also surprised the according to the temps it was best to autocross at 55 PSI front 52 PSI rear. I was not running them that high. This was a very grippy old concrete airport for the autocross and slippery paved taxiway for the drag strip. If you are at an event where free techs are available take advantage of them.

 

[walker]

Just a heads up for other Gen 2 owners out there. Costco in Canada has 335/35ZR17 Pilot Sport PS2 in stock. I paid $2200 for a full set of front & rear.

 

[AZTVR]

Just a heads up for other Gen 2 owners out there. Costco in Canada has 335/35ZR17 Pilot Sport PS2 in stock. I paid $2200 for a full set of front & rear.

For the US guys, it looks like Tirerack has the 17" PS2 tires in stock also. Recommend calling JonB at Viperpartsrack for a good deal.

 

[Stuntman]

Actually either should do better over what originally came with your Gen 1 or Gen IIs --- compounding on both of these tire brands listed above is a lot more aggressive than original OEM. That said the later model Michelin Super Sports or PS2s were pretty darn good tires for the street and occasional track use.

Fun fact: The Gen 3 PS2 "C1" tire actually used the "Pilot Sport Cup" compound.

 

[SwampViper]

Thanks to all on this thread for providing great tire info. My Michelins on my 2000 RT/10 are 10 years old. Living in sunny Florida (read: lots of pop-up rain showers) I went with Luke and the BF Goodrich Rival S. It came as no surprise that the fronts are back ordered thanks to you folks. Hope to have them mounted and running by the end of April.

Hate to see Michelin reducing product availability. I run them on just about every vehicle I own and they have been good to me over 4 decades!

Thank you again, see you down the road.

 

[AZTVR]

I went with Luke and the BF Goodrich Rival S.

Hate to see Michelin reducing product availability. I run them on just about every vehicle I own and they have been good to me over 4 decades!

Just a side note. The Rival is a Michelin product. BF Goodrich has been a Michelin brand for almost 30 years; but, with the positive aspect of being made in the USA. (mostly Alabama)