tire recomendations for stock FD wheels?
 

Looking to get a set of race tires for this coming season. what are some good choices? I was looking into the hoosiers but wanted to know if any one tried the Yokohoma race tires?

and info? of ya this is roadcoarse racing

I run Yokohama Advan A032R Softs, and I would say they make a great beginner auto-x tire. They stick well, last longer, and most importantly are cheaper. Obviously, they aren't as competitive as the Kumho V710's (which are better than Hoosiers IMO), but they can still keep up.

The Yokos can also be used for road racing, but most people I see use Hoosiers or Toyos.

If you are new to the game and want a tire to last a season, that is not prone to flat spotting go with a Toyo RA1. It's not the fastest tire however can stand alot of abuse and heat cycles.

I ran the A032R hard compound on my WRX this season. It lasted a long time (theres still a lot of tread even after 20 track days), and it was sticky enough to beat anyone with a street tire, but its not sticky enough to be compeditive. I'll probably be going with the RA1 on my FD this season.

I ran A032R hards and hoosier R3S04's (or whatever) and loved both of them, no problems with flat spotting and both of them lasted for the whole season. They seemed comparable for cornering but the Hoosier's definetly excel under braking. This is my second year doing HPDE's so I would guess they last so long because I'm not pushing their limits... yet.

thanks for the feed back guys. i appreciate it

You want speed or you want tire life?

If you are new to the game I would expect you want a forgiving tire that will last.
I would then suggest ToyoRA1 or the Hankook Z211s or even the new yokohama A048R. Althought I do not know anyone who have used the new yokos yet.

I thoroughly recommend the Toyo RA1 as a beginner tire. It is very durable and at the most only a couple of seconds off a lap. You will be gaining more time from the driver than from the tires for the first couple of years. I echo everyone elses comments. The Toyo's are as durable as an anvil. They resist flatspotting, have an almost flat heat cycle curve and provide lots of auditory advice when cornering. I used a 5 year old set of Toyo's back in 2004 to set my cars fastest lap.

I have not had as good experience with Yokohama's. I used to run A032R's and they wore something fierce. Basically a set every weekend (4 hours of track time) As well you only had to look at them wrong to flatspot them. Don't know about the new A048's. One side note is that Yokohama's always seem to be on the small size for a given tire size. For example a Yokohama 225x50x15 is almost 1" shorter and 1" narrower than a comparable Toyo. The Hoosiers and Kumhos tend to be wider and taller than Toyo's.

I have only run once on Kumho's and was very impressed, they were Victoracers though. Lots of grip and they seemed stable on longer runs. Only concern was wear. Hoosiers seem to be the fastest at this time, but are mucho $$$ up here in Canada.

The Michelin Pilot Sport Cup is a very good tire, can be driven in the dry without hesitation on the street, and is a great track tire. I pulled 1.13g's with them on a 200' skidpad. They flat out work for a high performance R-compound streetable race tire.

If you are trailering to the track or can have a buddy bring your race tires then Hoosiers are a very good choice as are Kumhos..... If you have functional ABS the likelihood of flatspotting these uber light tires is slim.

Save up for some 18x10's all around and 285/30/18's. Your car will be unreal with a matching upgraded suspension and some good brakes.

Or if you don't mind stuffing 4 wheels into a 2-seat sports car...

Nothing wrong with that... it just gets sketch when you go over big bumps and see the tires bouncing around in the rea view mirror. Then you realize if you ever got into a traffic accident four 50 lbs tires unsecured will take your head off. Much worse than the laptop you left in the back seat going through the windsheild .

Four tires is stuffing?
I used to stuff six mounted RA-1's, two jerry cans, a jack, toolbox, two sapre brake rotors and four jack stands. This was for a three hour drive. I'd race all weekend and then drive back home. I did that for four years of competition. That's why when people say rotaries aren't reliable I laugh.

-Trent

Ive been a solo2 guy in the past but am doing a season of solo1... im about 90% decided on a set of victoracers...
Ive got no real expectation for the tire, but i think it should be something of an intermediate between the RA1's and hoosiers.

With that said one friend of mine did one track day on a set of 710's and he loved it, keeping in mind the ambient temps were 4*C that day... Draw your own conclusions

why doesnt anyone use falken?

I love my RA-1 toyos, (which are now almost worn down to racing slicks). I may get another set this season unless I decide to get a larger wheel/tire package. Great at the track, plenty of breakaway warning, long life. My car has enough power to overdrive the 245-45-16 size , but if I get a bigger wheel/tire package I will also need a big brake package because even w/ hawk blues things are getting a little too hot already.

I guess it never ends!
T

Pinkrx7:
Falkens are great for the Street Tire classes(over 140 tread wear). Most people in this thread are speaking about the DOT racing tires(usually 40-60 tread wear).

I'm looking for something in a 245/45/16 or a 245/50/16 for the stock FD rim. I'm looking for something in the 200-tread wear range. Anyone got a suggestion? I have looked at the NT-01 but they are 100 tread wear. So what ya got, I'm looking to Auto X the car and take it to VIR.

For a street tire, I've had real good luck with the Bridgestone S02-PP. Treadwear is 220 and I have gotten a lot of miles out of them. Great in the rain at VIR ;-) But if you drive them *real* hard, they will start to chunk a bit. The S03-PP successor is available in 245/45R16 from Tirerack for around $200/ea.

Has anyone played with the Michelin Pilot Sport Cup tires?