Choosing tires for HPDE's

[EMWHYR0HEN]

I'm looking to buy a new set of rubber I don't have any experience with tires having tread wear under 200. I'm currently looking at tires in the $200 range suitable for track events and light street driving to and from the track.

 

Here's the lineup ranging from fastest to slowest.

 

1. Hankook ventus Z214 C71 (soft compound slightly softer than a Hoosier A6) UTQG 40 C A

 

2. Hankook ventus Z214 C51 (medium compund slightly harder than a Hossier R6) UTQG 40 C A

 

3. Toyo proxes RA1 UTQG 100 AA A

 

4. Nitto NT01 UTQG 100 AA A

 

5. Toyo proxes R888 UTQG 100 AA A

 

I'm considering the soft Z214's because I have problems getting my tires up to temperature. I will be running 275/40/17 all around and the car weighs in around 2200 lb. The C71 is an auto-x compound which means that they might become greasy after multiple laps.

 

I'm also drawn to the RA1's because they have been known to last even after 40+ heat cycles and just marginally slower than a Hoosier R6.

 

This also brings up a another tire topic. Shaved and heat cycling for non competition use. Worth the initial cost and less tread depth?

Edited April 25, 2012 by EMWHYR0HEN

[thehelix112]

I have C51s I think sitting there going to waste. You're still welcome to come try them out. Would be a setup change to account for same width at all four, but I reckon we could handle that? When are you doing HDPE again?

 

Dave

[EMWHYR0HEN]

That would be awesome if I could demo your tires Dave. I don't anticipate too much change in setup after increasing front tire width from 255 to 275. I'll also be installing rear camber plates. I was going over tire temps you took for me and I was only using about 75% of my rears( too much - camber) and 100% of my front tires.

 

I'm looking to go out soon. I will let you know.

[EMWHYR0HEN]

Anyone have any other tire recommendations? I'm finding Good info but might be biased because of sponsors, etc.

 

To be more specific i'm trying to find out what kind of wear and # of heat cycles are expected from a light S30 and sticky tires.

[Leon]

I've been considering Dunlop Z1 Star Specs and Hankook Ventus R-S3, which is cheaper than the Z1SS. They're probably not as grippy as the ones you mentioned, but those are the tires I'm considering for street/autoX/light track duty.

[johnc]

For an open track event (non competitive) I would run the cheapest, longest lasting tires I could find. IMHO, its pretty silly to run Hoosiers when lap times don't matter. RA1s or Nittos for me...

[JMortensen]

The RS3's are supposed to be pretty damn good, as are the Star Specs. I just bought R1R's for my Miata, they're supposed to be good in rain but not so good in extreme heat, so that might be a better choice for Seattle than SoCal, although a friend of mine pulled a 2:06 at Buttonwillow CW13 on them in a stock Evo, so they must not be that bad.

Edited April 27, 2012 by JMortensen