E46 M3 Chassis News Nitto NT05 - The M3 Gets New Rubber - Street and Track Review

My new to me 2003 M3 was a solid machine when I got it but it did need a few things and one of them was tires. Having 'invested' in a performance upgrade from my 330i there was no way I would put anything less than the best tires on my new whip.

Too many enthusiasts spend thousands on suspension, brakes, and engine performance to only cheap out on how that handling, braking and power get put to the ground. What good is 333 horse power and M handling if you're constantly over driving the tires?

With that in mind I had my eye on the Nitto NT05s. The NT05s are a step above the Nitto Invos I had on my 330i, and with the M3 being a step above the 330i for performance it made sense.

Just like the Nitto Invos the NT05s have a crazy tread pattern. With wide solid bands of rubber for great traction with highly angular cuts. Just like the Invos these tires are not going to be confused with anything else. I love how aggressive the fat bands of uninterrupted rubber look at 275 wide in the rear of the M3!

With the NT05s mounted by the great guys at Bavarian Performance Group I was impressed with their street performance and more than anything the lack of road noise. I was expecting those wide bands of rubber to transmit tons of noise but the tire geniuses at Nitto some how figured out how to make another great high performance quiet tire!

So on the street the tires are great, but what about the track. I could not wait to get the M3 on the track, I hardly slept the night before! The 330i was great, but the M3 has the extra power and the extra rev range that makes a small track like NHMS that much more fun with less shifts.

To say that the M3 and the NT05s were phenomenal would be an understatement. The power and LSD going up the up hill (NHMS drivers know what I'm talking about) was so much fun and the grip the NT05s gave was nothing short of amazing. Even with the bit of rain we got the tires did not give up and I was impressed with the grip the tires offered in the rain. I drove the car and tires so hard I had to cut my last run short with over heating issues.

On the way home from the track with a huge grin on my face I knew that the M3 upgrade and the NT05s was one of the best decisions I could have made! Look for more M3 fun from me in the coming months and I enjoy my new beast!

Tim

sweet choice! That tire looks kick ass too!

How do they perform street wise compared to PS2's? Is there a big difference on the track between the two?

Nice! I might have to give thise a try. Can you please give us a little feedback on performance in wet weather conditions?

If you ever need another shop to work on your car let me know... my fam owns a garage in Cambridge, 3 bays, 3 Lifts, and an inspection bay

Originally Posted by e46fanatic...

How do they perform street wise compared to PS2's? Is there a big difference on the track between the two?

NT05s will rock the socks off of PS2s on the track, wet or dry.

Nice Ive always been a fan of Nitto tires...When I had my old shoes on I had NT-555's but now that im trying to sell my car I had to sell my shoes/tires as well

Originally Posted by Activ3

NT05s will rock the socks off of PS2s on the track, wet or dry.

Umm are you sure about that lol? I don't think you are... these PS2's are Fvcking gripppppppay

Originally Posted by Freeflow

Umm are you sure about that lol? I don't think you are... these PS2's are Fvcking gripppppppay

I wasn't that impressed with the PS2's... I liked the bridgestone potenzas (Forget which type) that were on my 944 10x better. (They just didn't last very long )

Why is this in the news section

nice Tim

do want tires!

I went from proxes t1r to the nt-05's and I have to say they are WAAAAY better. I feel a bit more of the road and bumps but it's not terrible and actually makes you feel more connected to the road.

how long are those nittos projected to last?

That tread looks sick!! Anyone try out the Toyo R888?

Where is a good place to purchase these? Do they come in a 245/40/17 or 255/40/17? How much are these tires?

I just bought Hankook Ventus R-S2 245/40/17(don't make 255/40/17) for only $85 a piece from the Tire Rack. They have the same treadwear(200) so they make a good track/autocross "street" tire

that ish is bananas

Originally Posted by roastbeef

how long are those nittos projected to last?

tread rating is 200 not thaat bad

Originally Posted by roastbeef

how long are those nittos projected to last?

+1

My set of NT05s lasted me ~9k miles and they were pretty much bald after that. I did 2 small road course events, and about 10-15 drag strip passes, plus street driving.

where is a good place to buy from? i'm looking on tirerack.com and they don't have them listed. i want to compare them to the bfg g-force t/a kdw2.