Thanks to jsi for brining my attention to this.

In case some of you didn't know it turns out that Kumho Ecsta 235/45/13 tires are starting to be made in the new K6A compound. Has anybody purchased a set from Tire Rack and got the new compound or has a source that can guarantee tires in the new compound? I tried calling Tire Rack but they didn't know, nor do I think they have the resources to answer that question.

 

How do we know what compund we have?

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by tunes12 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">How do we know what compund we have?</TD></TR></TABLE>

Its stamped on the sidewall.

 

Yeah, the compound stamp is on the inside sidewall. I'm the co-driver so I dont have the tires here right now. But i've asked him to check the DOT stamps on the tire. I'll let you know ASAP. I didnt even know about all the different compounds until about a month ago. After i found out, of course we checked the compound and it is the K6A.

As for a source, we got them from http://www.talontire.com Ask to speak to John or Howard. They are in Canada though, of course...

There's been a lot of confusion about these compounds. Apparently there is even a K9A brick compound some people got their 235-45-13s in as recently as this spring. Apparenly some people even got a set of 4 tires with mixed compounds...Prolly some distribution problems in Korea or dealer ignorance or misunderstanding of the different compounds available...

I've found some more info on Kumho euro site. Check this out:

http://www.kumho-euro.com/Moto....html

 

&lt;---- owns a set of 225/45-15 K8A's and I am sorry to say I dislike them. I wish I had known about the compound differences prior to ordering mine.

Any one driven on a set of K8's and K6's that can provide a comparison?

Nash

 

I have corded 2 sets of K6A 215/50/13 and 3 sets of 235/45/15 and I can say that the K6A stay stickier longer. My K8As would harden and become useless before they corded and K6As don't do that.

At the Atwater National Tour I compared a brand new set of K8A 235s and a set of 3/4 worn K6A 215s. Guess what, the worn K6A was just as sticky as the new K8As.

 

I got the K6A for my SM civic still havent run on them yet will let know after the 17 how good they are.

Geratol do you run 13 on your GSR?

 

Yes

 

What wheel and brake do you use to run 13 on your GSR.

 

I use 13x7.5 Lenso VPD drag rims with either 235/45/13 or 215/50/13 tires and stock brake calipers with endless brake pads.

 

I have run both compounds on the King RAT GSR and our 944s. the K8 is definitely harder and less prone to wear. K6 wear rate is much higher but slightly more grip. I cant say Im much impressed with either compound. Id say the victorracers, shaved and scrubbed are better. However I am biased as I typically run hoosiers. I have run a lot of different tires over the years here is my list from top to bottom in terms of best to worse:

Hoosier
Goodyear GS
Toyo RA1 (shaved)
Victorracer (shaved)
Ecsta K6 (shaved)
Ecsta K8 (shaved)
BFG R1 - quite the worst tire ever!

Alex.


King RAT.

 

I liked the victoracers when my car was in HS but they only make a 205/60r in a 13 inch size.

 

I am currently running that exact size and compound on my H5 car. I have done 2 HPDEs on them and I am very happy with them. They are wearing evenly and have decent grip. The Hoosier Radials had better grip, but didn't last as long and are WAY more expensive.

I did notice that the Kumhos were starting to lose grip towards the end of my last Sunday session, but the ambient and track temperatures were rising. Still, the car was very predictable and easy to maintain the proper line.

HTH

 

I've been running a set of the K6A Kumho's on my SM civic this year. I had a set of the K8's last year. There is some difference between them, but it's not huge. The K6A compound seems less sensitive to heat (or generate less heat) than the older ones. Last year, I was having to spray the fronts off between runs, and could get repeatable drops in lap times of around .5sec/60sec course just from cooling the tires off. This year, I haven't found that to be the case, so I've nearly stopped spraying the tires at all. Both sets I've had seem to wear really good. I haven't had any of the issues with chewing the tread off the 2nd rib like some people have.

FWIW, all these comments are autocross only, on a 1900lb Civic with a strong turbo motor running the 235/45R13s on Lenzo 13x7.5" wheels.

-Chris