How tire size effects understeer/oversteer
 

My understanding is that tire sizes need to be in check to keep the car balanced and have neutral handling. Too much difference between the front and rear tire, and there will be increased understeer. I like to drift a lot so geometry and balance is important to me. I noticed some people run 285/35-19 to match the Nismo tire setup but I want to know how that feels at the limit and how it breaks traction. There should theoretically be more understeer with 245/285 compared to 245/275. I want to experiment a little with different setups but I don't want to regret it and have to stick with it for a year or more. I'm not interested super grippy setups like 285/315, since it'll be harder to break traction.

This article at Project Nissan 350Z Part 2 - Project Cars - Sport Compact Car Magazine explained how they created a neutral balanced 350z with stickier square tire setup, Hotchki sway bars in the middle setting, and a LSD on 30% locking setting.

your drift tires last that long? i cant get the tires i baby to last 6 months. :confused:

I just ordered Continental DW's. I'll post and tell you what I feel when I get them Saturday.
245-40-19 fronts
285-35-19 rears.

At first they didn't last long and then I got smart with the tires after. I realized you can just flip the tires around and mount it on the other side since they're directional

It may be hard to assess with the DW's since they are a luxury comfort summer tire with soft sidewalls I appreciate the response.

To be honest, when I was drifiting and screwing around, I found it infinitely cheaper to own a second set of 18" cheapo-dont-care wheels (in my case, oem M35 wheels), and asking a buddy at a tire shop to hook me up with properly sized used 18 in tires and mount them for cheap.

I have a picture of tires in my backyard, funny as hell how many I have back there.

any updates?