well someone had to try them.Nankang ns-2r + 520hp car =???

[Beedub]

i see alot of people mentioning the nankang ns-2r semi slick ,well I've actually just fitted a set to my 520+ hp z4m.... I've tried all the top tier stuff but this year was strapped for cash and came across these, so basically I'm giving these a go, they cost quite abit less, sizing wise i went with the 235/40 and the 265/35 18s , the tyres themselves run very wide however, the rear basically 275 section width from my measurements . On handling the tyres off the rim, the tyre was heavy, the sidewall is super stiff too, i went for the 120 TWR version, these will be doing their first track day within 4 weeks hopefully, i have currently only done literally 20 miles and haven't used them in anger, so.... this will either be a great move and will change my tyre choice of the future or it will be a complete failure making my very powerful car even more of a handful, only time will tell. First impressions are Good however, they even look very cool. If anyone else has tried these please put up a review here as i really couldn't find many reviews, however the ones i did find were very positive :-)

things to note,

my car doesn't see rain so won't be able to give wet weather review.
The tyre needed much less wheel weights to get balanced.
The ride is very hard, worse than a pilot cup imo.
Tread depth is very good 7mm i think.
Great rim protection ( 8.5" FR 9.5 Rear)
They don't seem too good from cold (expected)
They are very noisy, the same noise a 888 makes :-(

Full detailed review with pics of wear after first trackday coming soon :-)

Edited by Beedub on Saturday 3rd May 19:33

Edited by Beedub on Saturday 3rd May 19:57

[Beedub]

flame suit on btw.

[nixon1]

I have these on my Audi S4 and I'm really pleased with them. I agree that they are very stiff, and mine have quite a lot of road noise over 60mph.
I went with the softest compound and so far I've had the pleasure of the NS2R hanging on for dear life, whereas previously I'd be enjoying understeer. They get warm quickly too and they are nice and sticky. Maybe they're a well kept secret....

My flamesuit is on too! But these tyres are being used in some championships (as they are on the MSA 1b list) and so far "people on the web" are posting good feedback; myself included!

With the prices of yoko and the other track suspects going up, I reckon these will be commonplace soon, despite the naysayers

Edited by nixon1 on Saturday 3rd May 21:56

[Beedub]

nixon1 said:

I have these on my Audi S4 and I'm really pleased with them. I agree that they are very stiff, and mine have quite a lot of road noise over 60mph.
I went with the softest compound and so far I've had the pleasure of the NS2R hanging on for dear life, whereas previously I'd be enjoying understeer. They get warm quickly too and they are nice and sticky. Maybe they're a well kept secret....

My flamesuit is on too! But these tyres are being used in some championships (as they are on the MSA 1b list) and so far "people on the web" are posting good feedback; myself included!

With the prices of yoko and the other track suspects going up, I reckon these will be commonplace soon, despite the naysayers

Edited by nixon1 on Saturday 3rd May 21:56

great to see your feedback, and i concur. For me personally I'm simply FED UP of spending a fortune on top level rubber , i did a little research into these and the federal 595rsr and found them to be potential unsung hero's, the only thing that put me off the federal was the cracking i KEPT reading about. I had actually came across some championships using the ns-2r as the control tyre so felt their were worth the chance and so far I'm very happy, if they do what i think they will on my upcoming track day, i won't be buying premium track day rubber again. I though it would be good to make a proper thread on these and compile some data. Thanks for chiming in here nixon :-) what sizes did you purchase?

[Wh00sher]

Which championships use the Nankangs as the control tyre ?

Always good to hear actual reports on tyres rather than reading manufacturer blurb

[nixon1]

I purchased the 235/40/18s from tyreleader.

The Max 5 2014 (MX-5) championship is using it:

Class B: 195/50 x 15 Hancook K110 Ventus V12 or Federal 595 RSR or Branded Nankang NS-2R
Class A: 215/45 x 17 Federal 595 RSR or Branded Nankang NS-2R

By coincidence I was running the Ventus V12 and they were great for my normal commute but they didn't like the heavy audi and were screechy things. They also had a tendency to let go quickly and weren't very progressive. The Nankang has more grip for sure and I'm guessing they'll need replacing a lot quicker.

[Beedub]

nixon1 said:

I purchased the 235/40/18s from tyreleader.

The Max 5 2014 (MX-5) championship is using it:

Class B: 195/50 x 15 Hancook K110 Ventus V12 or Federal 595 RSR or Branded Nankang NS-2R
Class A: 215/45 x 17 Federal 595 RSR or Branded Nankang NS-2R

By coincidence I was running the Ventus V12 and they were great for my normal commute but they didn't like the heavy audi and were screechy things. They also had a tendency to let go quickly and weren't very progressive. The Nankang has more grip for sure and I'm guessing they'll need replacing a lot quicker.

, I'm benching marking these against the ad08 ( which they have alot of similarities to), the big test coming soon for me, my car is relatively heavy, has huge power and has proper track setup 3 way coil overs , 6 pot brakes so they will get a serious workout, after one sprint session i'll know how i feel about these....... i have a feeling I'm going to get a very pleasant surprise!!

[Pork_n_Beem]

Used in Funcup endurance championship as control tyre. Sidewalls as mentioned are stiff, too early to say how "good" they are but wet grip was OK provided some temps were in the tyre. Cold grip is as expected and first few laps on brand new are a little surprising in that grip is minimal but that changes after 5 or so laps. After 4 hours, wear was low compared to our previous "road" control tyre.

[DaveH23]

http://www.tyrereviews.co.uk/Tyre/Nankang/NS2.htm

[Beedub]

Pork_n_Beem said:

Used in Funcup endurance championship as control tyre. Sidewalls as mentioned are stiff, too early to say how "good" they are but wet grip was OK provided some temps were in the tyre. Cold grip is as expected and first few laps on brand new are a little surprising in that grip is minimal but that changes after 5 or so laps. After 4 hours, wear was low compared to our previous "road" control tyre.

have you used other semi slicks and how would you compare?? once worn in, how was dry grip levels??

[Beedub]

DaveH23 said:

http://www.tyrereviews.co.uk/Tyre/Nankang/NS2.htm

thats not the tyre we are talking about???


we are talking about the ns-2R, the semi slick r-comp , you've linked their normal road range.

[Dan Friel]

DaveH23 said:

http://www.tyrereviews.co.uk/Tyre/Nankang/NS2.htm

Just to correct this, the right tyre is here:

http://www.tyrereviews.co.uk/Tyre/Nankang/NS2R.htm

[giger]

I've been running these for a couple of months in 120 (track) compound also. These are fantastic tyres and i'm amazed that more people aren't buying them (well actually I'm not due to badge snobbery). The grip and response is excellent, I can't praise them highly enough. When you consider the price of these, they are a performance bargain. They're a little loud on the road, but that's not what we're buying them for.

Due to the grip and energy generated, I had to drop the hot tyre temp by 6-8 psi over my standard road pressure to get them to perform at their best when I was at Bedford last month, but once I'd done this they were consistent all day.

Enjoy!

[Trev450]

How quickly do they get up to temperature.

I do sprints and need a tyre that works straight away from cold. I've used 888's for a good while now and can't fault their performance, but would like to find something less expensive.

[Lefty]

I know of a chap using these on a 550bhp Impreza and is very happy with them. He's not the type to cut corners, especially on something as crucial as tyres(!)

[Beedub]

REALLY pleased to be reading this tbh..... Need to just find some time to run the car and scrub these tyres in.... Struggling between work and family ATM.. track day have been put back to JULY :-(
So between then and now, i really just want to get some decent seat time in :-) ill report back with some hard street use when the decent weather arrives ( hopefully).

[Pork_n_Beem]

Beedub said:

Pork_n_Beem said:

Used in Funcup endurance championship as control tyre. Sidewalls as mentioned are stiff, too early to say how "good" they are but wet grip was OK provided some temps were in the tyre. Cold grip is as expected and first few laps on brand new are a little surprising in that grip is minimal but that changes after 5 or so laps. After 4 hours, wear was low compared to our previous "road" control tyre.

have you used other semi slicks and how would you compare?? once worn in, how was dry grip levels??

Only tyres used on funcup have been Uniroyal Rain road tyres and BF Goodrich fast road tyre. so no comparison to offer with this car. However I have run Corsa R, Corsa System, Yoko 08, hankook on other cars and hot grip is comparable, what we have noticed is that the tyre does not like to slide, grip drop off when the slip angle increases is more noticeable than a lot of more traditional track type tyres, I think this maybe a function of the overall stiffness of the tyre. we are still early days yet and almost certainly have not got the best out of them.

[Beedub]

Pork_n_Beem said:

Only tyres used on funcup have been Uniroyal Rain road tyres and BF Goodrich fast road tyre. so no comparison to offer with this car. However I have run Corsa R, Corsa System, Yoko 08, hankook on other cars and hot grip is comparable, what we have noticed is that the tyre does not like to slide, grip drop off when the slip angle increases is more noticeable than a lot of more traditional track type tyres, I think this maybe a function of the overall stiffness of the tyre. we are still early days yet and almost certainly have not got the best out of them.

very interesting.... PLEASE keep reporting back here, from what I've seen this is the ONLY thread giving some real detail on these puppies....

[AdamGP]

Would you say these are too harsh and loud for anything more than a weekend/track toy?

[Dan Friel]

I've had them fitted (the medium compound spec ones) to the Panda 100HP for about six weeks now. They took a while to "bed in", probably 500 miles, and were very noisy. I was worried. However, either I've got used to them or the noise levels have significantly reduced as time goes on. Used at a damp Wiscombe hillclimb, and were excellent even from cold (although clearly not ideal). Hoping for a dry event next weekend to see how they compare with my everyday road tyres that I've competed with previously. Use for a long commute also, and no problems even in heavy rain. They seem to be lasting very well, and will also be used at a couple of sprints and track days through the summer.