I don't think they're super loud. They "Whine" a lot at freeway speeds (Especially on new pavement). They don't increase road noise that much IMO. Maybe my PS2's are loud though... haha... I don't notice the difference when I switch to my r888s in the summer.

The r888's sidewall is so thick and stiff... The ps2's sidewall is like a balloon compared to the r888.

 

The r888's are louder than most tires that I've run. Personally, I don't mind it I ran them on my Boss, and I'll run them on my Porsche. How else am I going to have my cake and eat it too (great traction and great handling) ?

 

Another vote for Cup2's. They have better grip than Cup1's and won't kill you in the rain. Great tire. R888's I've never liked; don't handle heat cycling well and are loud as hell. Don't skimp on a good tire.

 

I have brand new R888s on a 996TTS with around 750 bhp (E85 tune).. and have driven them this past month in the rain (some of it very heavy) and even sub zero temps (was a necessity)... the r compund still seems to be okay... I did not thrash the car in the wet at all but up to 65 mph they were passable in some MINOR standing water...

I would NOT want to get caught in any major standing water though.

Also, the R888s pick up everything from the road and my driveway and then spit the stuff back out.. little rocks, twigs yada yada yada

But they grip like a horny bull on a supermodel cow

 

Some good info here.


I have both Michelin PSS and R888's. The tire you choose depends entire on what you do with your car. Do you daily drive? Track? Dragstrip/launch from a stop? What trans do you have...stick, auto, pdk?


If you track you should just get a dedicated set of wheels with track tires. All street tires can break down from the heat, although there are some dual purpose street tires that can be used on occasion like the R888 or NT-05.


In my experience with the 911, I found the PSS to be very good in most conditions up to about 560 AWHP. They would provide good grip from a launch and consistently get sub-3 second 0-60 times and on a straight line they wouldn't break free. They could be used on a pinch at a track event but only on a cool day. Warms days they will melt pretty quickly. They are quiet and great in the rain and any other daily conditions.


At over 600 AWHP, the PSS could not hold the launch. 0-60's climbed to over 3 seconds as the tires would spin. And they would spin some in 2nd gear as well. If you don't have a PDK with launch control, this may not be such a big deal. Because they are still great tires. But if you are 700-800 wheel on stick or even auto they will probably not give you enough straight line grip until 3rd gear.


Because my car is not a daily driver and needed a tire of multiple-disciplines because I didn't want to switch out wheel/tires for different events since the centerlocks are a pain, the R888 was the best choice. It's a nice track tire and held up well on a 100+ degree day, it provides phenomenal straight line grip as everyone knows, and can deal with a little rain although my car isn't a daily so it won't see rain. And yes its pretty loud but I have found at certain speeds it actually gets quiet. I avoid 55-65 mph because that's when it's the loudest. The R888's also work great when they are cold which is something the Michelin Cup tires do not do well until they are heated up.


While I have not experienced them, I have heard the RE-11's are also very good for daily drive and occasional track use and a step up from the MPSS but not as good as the R888s. So if you are looking for something with more performance than PSS but you don't want to sacrifice the daily drivability that the PSS offers, then the RE-11s may be your best bet.


Cheers.

 

1) the other poster saying the R888 picking up every little rock/twig/etc is absolutely correct. One of the primary reasons I stay away from the rear of any vehicle running those tires... they throw everything at you.

2) RE-11's are what I have on my 911 right now and at 520 awhp they don't hook -- as such, if the MPSS hook until 560 awhp... I recommend doing that over the RE-11's.

3) Cornering performance was pretty solid on the R888's for my Boss. I'd imagine the cups are probably better though.

 

can't speak to how they are on the street but there are a lot of track guys that hate the R888. in fact it usually goes something like "friends don't let friends drive 888's". never looked into the reasons as i don't use them on my track car so not sure what people don't like about them on the track. who knows, maybe they're great on the street.

nice thing about tires is it's not a lifelong commitment. With that much HP i'm sure you'll be buying quite often to try all sorts of tires LOL.

 

Agreed.... it's nice to be able to swap so frequently, ha. As far as track performance, I've never actually seen someone on those tires on a road course...usually I see either continental, hankook, or hoosier. But for what longboarder does (and anyone else who does the noflyzone/shift sector events) -- I think the R888's are a great tire, especially considering they can be used just as well on the street.

 

A lot of GT-R's and 911's here in SoCal run R888s on the track. I've seem a few BMWs run them as well. There isn't at many tire sizes available and often the R888's are sold out. Maybe because we rarely see rain out here and so people like me can be lazy and just use one tire for everything.

 

2000 whp TTGs run R888s (mainly straight line I know) but some of those bad boys must also drive them around bends on the highway quite fast as well