All Tires are NOT created equal

Here is a little known fact about tires that everyone who is anal about choosing the correct one should know before buying. While it appears an easy task to read the numbers on the sidewall (ie: 285/30/20) and expecting to find tires that are all the same - beware it is not true. I know this and have known this since the early days of selling Goodyear tires. But, as time goes by, I didn't give it much thought until my new tire arrived yesterday. It shocked the hell out of me since I bought the same size tire that was currently on the slingshot. I had originally upgraded from the stock 255/35/20 a few tires ago, to a better looking 285/30/20 Nitto 555 since it had a wider tread, almost identical overall height, and would be the largest size that would safely fit the stock 9" wheel (it's recommended to be on a 9 1/2" wheel, but close enough for me). I just purchased a Continental Extreme Contact DWS in the same size, but placing them side by side, I was shocked to see the difference. The Continental is 26.7" overall height VS the Nitto 555 which is 26.93". That's almost a full 1/4" shorter in height, but more importantly, the Continental has a 10.5 inch wide tread VS the Nitto 555 which is 11.02 inches. So if having the wider tread and proper height is as important to you as it is to me, make sure you compare the tire specs before buying one so you'll receive what you thought you were buying. The funny thing here is while the Nitto 555 has those specs, the newer Nitto 555 G has an even more impressive 26.77 overall height and 11.42 tread width. I'm hoping this new Continental tire works out for me, but deep down I hope it doesn't so I can buy the 555G2 for my next rear tire. In either case, that's going to happen within the next 7,000 miles anyways, so it's not that I'm going to be stuck with this siuation for long.

Quote from Clueless

Let me know how that tire works in the rain. Currently have it on my suv.

Would like to use on my fronts next

I sure will. In doing the research on which tire to buy, I found it a safer choice to get a tire that has a better rain traction rating than to focus solely on dry traction. While dry traction is important, making it home safely through an unexpected downpour is worth the trade-off.