Hey, I am just curious to see what a lot of you guys like to run for racing tires. Also when you put down the tire of your choice please also post how long they lasted you and how much they were. Thanks.

 

Well I run Hoosier R3s03's but, these are the only R compounds I have driven on and can't compare to others.

I can tell you that my next set of tires will be some Azenis sports for my first HPDA and wet competition, and then Khumo Ecsta V700's for next autox season.

Mine lasted almost a full year but, were free donations from a friend of a friend that already ran them once. I corded one last week, it unfortunately had to be replaced for the rest of this season (2 more races before Limerock.)

R3s02's run $172. a piece for non-heat cycled, non-shaved from The Tirerack.

I got em for free, Thank you to those who donated them.

I have however chosen differently for next year.
I still chose R compounds but, my level of skill and competition does not warrent the Hoosier, A3s03's or R3s03's.

R compounds depend severly on the level of driver. I strongly believe in them for competition but, I just feel that I moved to them too quickly since I am just now beginning to truely appreciate and take advantage of them.

The Hoosier's also tend to be THE most expensive R's to use for AutoX, and one of the most for road racing. They do however take alot of the top positions at national's... They are sticky as Hell with stiff sidewalls and are also The lightest out there.

My suggestion is to get a less expensive R for autoX unless you are at that top level of competition.

Just IMHO and I stress MHO! There are plenty of others with alot more experience than I, who can guide you. Another thing to consider is to post this in the Competition/Autocross/Roadracing forum. You will get a huge amount of responses there.

What type of racing BTW are you talking about or considering?

A.

 

R compound tires vary along a spectrum.

a. If you're not doing timed competition, but you still want the better traction of an R compound tire, then you care more about your cost per mile and how long they last. You also might want a tire that does okay in the rain so you can drive back to the hotel at night. In this case, the Yokohama A032R is a great tire. Very sticky (not quite as sticky as the Hoosier, but still very sticky) and lasts a relatively long time.

b. If you're doing timed competition, and every last tenth of a second advantage, then you want the tire that is the absolute fastest in dry conditions, and you don't care how long they last or how much they cost - in which case, you should get the Hoosier R3S03 for road courses, or the Hoosier A3S03 for autocross.

c. If you are somewhere in between, there are tires like the Kumho Victoracer V700 and the Kumho Ecsta V700.

I have heard very good things about the Michelin Pilot Sport Cup but haven't tried them yet.

I don't care about that last tenth of a second, since I do HPDE events on road courses. I use the Yokohama A032R in 205/50-15. I replaced my first A032R after it had 1601 total miles on it including 1158 actual track miles (the rest were to and from the hotel). The others lasted a few hundred more miles than that. That's a lot of miles for a track tire IMO. Notes: I always put the tire with more tread on the front, so they get rotated front to back. I do not bother flipping them on the rims to extend treadlife by moving them from the left side to the right side; I don't think the savings in treadlife are more than the extra mounting costs.

I got them from the Tire Rack, where the cost of a single 205/50-15 tire, not including heat cycling ($15/tire) or shaving ($10/tire), is:

$138 (Yokohama A032R)
$170 (Hoosier R3S03 or A3S03)
$115 (Kumho Victoracer V700)
$110 (Kumho Ecsta V700)
$199 (Michelin Pilot Sport Cup)

Remember that what matters is cost per mile, not cost per tire.

Yokohama A032R:


Hoosier A3S03:


Kumho Victoracer V700:


Kumho Ecsta V700:


Michelin Pilot Sport Cup:






[Modified by nsxtcjr, 4:27 PM 10/7/2002]

 

This month's Grass Roots Motorsports magazine has a good comparison test of a bunch of the most popular competition tires...

 

Hoosier RS303 for road racing.

Hoosier AS303 for auto-x.

Kumho V700 Victoracer (Not Ecsta) for road racing/auto-x on a budget.

Bang for the buck and all around tire would have to be the V700.

Note: Not trying to badmouth the V700 Ecsta, just can't comment on that particular tyre since I have no experience with it.

 

Are any of these tires Suitable for the street? i dont mean on a short term basis either.
erik

 

AO32R kept up with me for 6000 mile sof daily driving, autocross and a trackschool.. but they were very hard after that. Not bad for $130 each and R compound grip with wet traction too.... But now I have had Azenis for almost a year and it is a close call between the two, of course AO32R has much more grip but not worth the price for street use unless you want to runm at 10/10ths on the street, and we all know you should NOT do that.


[Modified by owen_the_soyboy, 1:16 PM 10/8/2002]

 

Toyo Proxes RA-1 in 205/50-15 is the best bang for the buck tire.

Wear rating is 40 - so dry grip is really really good. They are an excellent rain tire as well.

They are better (faster) and quieter than the A032R at the expense of treadwear. If you want a longer lasting tire get the Victoracers or the A032R's. If you want even more grip then go for the much more expensive Hoosiers.




[Modified by Big Phat R, 10:25 AM 10/8/2002]