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Mickey Thompson vs. Nitto street drag radials

Posted By: Valiant_Showoff

Mickey Thompson vs. Nitto street drag radials - 06/24/22 09:50 PM

In the process of building a new ride and shopping for street/strip tires. I had Mickey Thompson E/T Street Radials on my '63 Valiant but have heard good things about the Nitto 555-R2 too. I was happy with the M/T's at the track, but they were dangerous on the street if you got caught in the rain. I have Nitto 555-G2's on my Scat Pack Challenger and they're very stable in the rain so I'm interested in trying the Nitto drag radial version of the 555's on my soon to be 360 powered '68 Cuda.

So the question is does anyone have experience in the difference at the track between M/T E/T Street Radials and Nitto 555-R2?

THANKS!
Posted By: CSK

Re: Mickey Thompson vs. Nitto street drag radials - 06/24/22 09:54 PM

nitto's did not hook at all on my Charger, they drove real nice, MT's or M&H hook great on my junker
Posted By: Brad_Haak

Re: Mickey Thompson vs. Nitto street drag radials - 06/24/22 11:45 PM

I haven't been able to find NT555RII in the size I wanted to try out and bought M/T ET Street S/S instead.

From what I've read and heard talking to people who run the NT555RII at the track, the ET Street S/S works better. The Nitto drives better on the street and should last longer, but you're still talking a soft compound tire with a limited lifespan. A couple of people mentioned the NT555RII losing its grip after being heat-cycled from burnouts even though there is still a good amount of tread left.

Wish I had more firsthand knowledge, though.
Posted By: an8sec70cuda

Re: Mickey Thompson vs. Nitto street drag radials - 06/27/22 12:33 PM

The Nittos are better on the street (more tread, harder compound), but that comes at the expense of dragstrip performance.
Posted By: mopar873

Re: Mickey Thompson vs. Nitto street drag radials - 06/27/22 01:26 PM

^^This. The Nittos will last longer and be a touch better on damp roads, but honestly I would avoid any type of rain with the Nittos as well. I've had both on the same car the same track season, and the Mickey's had considerably more grip consistently. As mentioned above, the Nittos also do get erratic with a little too much burnout.
Posted By: GY3

Re: Mickey Thompson vs. Nitto street drag radials - 06/27/22 01:56 PM

Originally Posted by an8sec70cuda
The Nittos are better on the street (more tread, harder compound), but that comes at the expense of dragstrip performance.


Totally agree with this.

We have always used ET Street Pro's but a friend tried the Nitto's. On a low 11 second car he just could not make it hook consistently at the track. Switched to the Pro's and no issues.
Posted By: Valiant_Showoff

Re: Mickey Thompson vs. Nitto street drag radials - 06/27/22 08:18 PM

Thanks for the feedback. Guess it will be a set of Mickey's.
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