I just bought myself some Falken Azenis RT-615's for autocrossing with, and my buddy tells me I should vulcanize them to give them a longer lifespan. I asked him what that meant and he says that I should basically drive the tires real hard to heat them up pretty good and then to let them cool down overnight. He explained that this heating/cooling helps the composition of the tire and they last longer. Now, in the past he has given me good advice on all things cars. But this sounds pretty far fetched and I can't find anything to support it or even address it on the internet. Do any of you have advice on this?

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by BigBlue &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">I just bought myself some Falken Azenis RT-615's for autocrossing with, and my buddy tells me I should vulcanize them to give them a longer lifespan. I asked him what that meant and he says that I should basically drive the tires real hard to heat them up pretty good and then to let them cool down overnight. He explained that this heating/cooling helps the composition of the tire and they last longer. Now, in the past he has given me good advice on all things cars. But this sounds pretty far fetched and I can't find anything to support it or even address it on the internet. Do any of you have advice on this?</TD></TR></TABLE>


Why don't you put them in the oven while your at it.

A few things.

1) If you are auto crossing them you will end up heating them up anyways.
2) They will cool down anyways and it certainly does not take over night for tires to cool down
3) Longer treadlife always means less grip.
4) Not to sure about the exact manufacturing methods of tires but I am pretty they they are already vulcanized onto the belt.
5) Your tires are meant to hit up for racing and then cool down with out under going a chemical change or reaction.
6) You were right to doubt this, good call.

Cheers!

 

What you are referring to should be called "heat cycling", not "vulcanizing". (Vulcanizing is part of the tire manufacturing process; you can read more about vulcanizing here.)

I have heard people talk about two different kinds of heat cycling.

First, the Tire Rack recommends an "easy" heat cycle to tires, not getting them super hot, just up to normal operating temperatures, then taking them off the car. There are two ways this can be accomplished: you can take the new tires out for normal highway speeds for 15-20 miles, then take them off the car; or you can pay the Tire Rack an extra $15/tire to put it through their heat cycling machines which do the same thing. Here's what they say on their website:

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Tire Rack Website &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">As participation in autocrossing, track days, driving schools and road racing continues to grow in popularity, the tire manufacturers have developed unique DOT legal competition tires which feature very sophisticated tread compounds. However just like other high performance parts, these tires will provide more consistent performance and last longer if they are properly broken-in.

The first time a competition tire is used is the most important. During that run, its tread compound is stretched, some of the weaker bonds between the rubber molecules will be broken (which generates some of the heat). If the tires are initially run too hard or too long, some of the stronger bonds will also be broken which will reduces the tire's grip and wear qualities. Running new tires through an easy heat cycle first, and allowing them to relax allows the rubber bonds to relink in a more uniform manner than they were originally manufactured. It actually makes them more consistent in strength and more resistant to losing their strength the next time they are used. An important heat cycling step is that after being brought up to temperature, the tires require a minimum of 24 to 48 hours to relax and reform the bonds between their rubber molecules.</TD></TR></TABLE>

Second, I have heard people refer to getting tires REALLY HOT, like you would on the autocross course or on a racetrack, as "heat cycling" them (and it sounds like this is what your friend is recommending). However, I have heard mixed opinions on whether this extends their life (by stretching those molecules) or shortens their life (because tires may - or may not, depending on whom you believe - have a finite number of heat cycles in them before they "get hard"). As neri mentioned, once you start using them on the track or autocross, they're going to get hot anyway, and I'm not convinced it does anything to extend their life to do so beforehand.

When I buy new track tires, I take them out on the highway for 15-20 miles at normal highway speeds and then take them off the car for a couple of days. I haven't noticed whether it makes them last any longer, but I figure it can't hurt. I don't get them really hot until I'm actually using them on the track.

 

While Azenis do have a finite number of heat cycles, they are still street tires and do not need to be heat cycled before use. If left unshaved, the grip will typically not drop off until the tread is worn well into street-illegal depths. If shaved, they will probably maintain their grip until they cord.

As mentioned, "vulcanizing" is something completely different.

 

I think I was able to adequately 'heat cycle' my tires now... Thanks for all the good info!