The downside of having such great braking on your late model is that typically a 15-inch drag wheel does not fit. Best case, you will spend thousands of dollars on aftermarket brakes and suspension that will decrease your braking performance and possibly look a little silly inside your 19- or 20-inch street wheels. M&H, and its distributor Coker Tire, have been offering 17- and 18-inch front runners for years, so it should be no surprise then that a drag slick would follow.
The new M&H Racemaster Drag Race Slicks debuted at the 2016 PRI Show in Indianapolis, Indiana this week. They come in 28×10.5 inches for 17- and 18-inch wheels. M&H recommends a 10-inch wide wheel to accommodate the sizeable contact patch. A set of takeoff stock wheels in 17×10 or 18×10 as shown will do nicely, however, a fancy set of dedicated wheels can reduce weight and add a racy look. Either way, you are sure to get plenty of traction from the 28×10.5-inch tire.
“This is a medium compound,” explained Mike Crutchfield, Vice President & General Manager of Performance Brands. “It’s designed for full-body, general application, drag racing. It’s a bias-ply slick. Late model cars with huge brakes, 15-inch wheels won’t go over them. This is for weekend guys, so they can take their car out to the racetrack.”
As a dedicated race tire (with no tread), these are not DOT legal, so you’ll need to throw your tires and jack in the trunk on the way to the track. Mike recommended around 11 to 15psi of tire pressure, and a small burnout to bring a little smoke, generate heat and clean off the tire.
Perhaps the best part about the new slicks is that they can give your car room to grow. The contact patch is large enough, at 28×10.5, that it will handle quite a few upgrades before you’ll need to consider a 15-inch wheel conversion, larger diameter tire or other such upgrades.
Whether you have a Mustang, Challenger, Camaro, Corvette, CTS-V or other late model muscle, M&H’s new slicks will allow you to harness some of that massive grunt without dramatically altering your vehicle.
Check out M&H and Phoenix Race Tires at CokerTire.com.