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Best track tires

23K views 45 replies 26 participants last post by  Snox801 
#1 ·
Any suggestion?
With a lack of camber adjustment not every tire works. I've just got a set of Dmack dmt rc - it's a WRC tarmac tire. I was hoping that it will be great on the track, but it isn't. It's actually worst than original michelin super sport. Alloy wheel Tire Wheel Automotive tire Rim
 
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#4 ·
yeah I have the R888s on my track wheels and they are excellent on a track, but in autox they really don't seem to perform well unless the pavement is hot since you only have less than a minute of driving time and then they cool off while you grid up again

last time I was out during rapid fire fun runs I dropped nearly two seconds because the tires warmed up, but they don't grip at all when cool

I don't know if Bridgestone pays all the autox guys to do this, but it seems like they have all been trained to shill the RE-71Rs at every turn :happy: (pun intended) - so I intend to grab those for my next tire to try them out...most of that praise is coming from several guys with years of autox experience so I trust their judgement on the RE-71Rs personally

BUT if you are on road courses more frequently - I really like my R888s
 
#14 ·
You can't go past Advan (Yokohama) A050's (medium)...the go to tarmac rally and sprint tyre down under.
 
#16 ·
I dont know much about track tires... But on my 700whp Cobra, R888's are where its at.

I see some love and some hate for them. But, in the Cobra community there is no other tire that offers the same level of grip. Aside from full slicks

600WTQ at 3000rpm can be a handful, but the R888's eact it up. Fully hooks from 40, and thats hard to do haha
 
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#20 · (Edited)
Since we can't get any more negative camber from the suspension I plan to use camber tires. I want to put them on the other way around, so the smaller part of the tire will be outside. It will mimic having more negative camber. I hope the additional two degree of camber will give me the perfect tire print under compression. I talked to the producer of those tires and he assured me that the sidewalls are made the same on both sides and can take the load. He didn't think of using them this way but he kind of approved the idea. I think I will only have to adjust the toe in substantially because the difference in the circumference on both sides of the tires. I don't want them to tear apart the car. What do you guys think, will it work? Tire Synthetic rubber Automotive tire Tread Auto part
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#23 ·
I'm assuming you don't have too much experience on autox, one big mistake most people made is asking for good tires, you will be faster but it will ruin your driving skill. if you don't care, then go for the re-71r, it is proven the best 200 treadwear tires.
 
#25 ·
My primary experience wrt track tires has been with the Michelin Sport Cup 2, but due to the high cost (305/30/19's rear on 997.1 esp.) I switched to Toyo Proxies R888 and have been pleased with them. A lot more road noise given the aggressive tread pattern, but my go to track tire now.
 
#29 ·
I agree. I have RS/RR on my cheap track wheels. The "bite" is very good and am pleased with the performance especially considering the total cost.
 
#31 ·
SUPER NECRO BUMP!!!

To some, track season is coming to a close, but for us here in sunny CA, prime track season is just around the corner. So long to triple-digit "melt-your-@$$ off" summer track days and hello to nice crisp, less knock, less over heating, PSL weather.

That said, my current Hankook R-S4's, which have done 8 track days now over 2 years, are pretty much done. They lasted way longer than my previous Federal RSRR's and have served me well. I even flipped them on the wheel and got a couple more track days out of them since there was still plenty of meat on the inside.

While doing research for my next track tire, I found this very handy run down of the current offerings.

Notes:
  • Autocross: Choose A or AA for Warm-up and B or better for Pace.
  • Time trials: Choose by Pace and Wear.
  • Lapping days: Choose by Heat Tolerance and Wear.
  • Street and Track: Choose by Heat Tolerance, Wear and Wet.


Source: https://grassrootsmotorsports.com/articles/track-tire-buyers-guide/

I have already had experience on a few of the tires they mentioned (PS4S, RE-71R, RS4 & RT615k+), so I have a good feeling of how their rating compares to my actual experience. Based on that, I think I'll be giving the Conti Extreme Contact Sports a try this time around. I wanted to try the BFG rivals but they did not come in my size (245/40-18) although the rival S 1.5's do.

I'm also curious about the Valino and the Maxxis offerings. Anybody with experience with either of these? I've heard of the Valino/Pergea/Greeva brand in drifting circles and the Maxxis brand from mountain biking, but not much else.
 
#32 ·
SUPER NECRO BUMP!!!

To some, track season is coming to a close, but for us here in sunny CA, prime track season is just around the corner. So long to triple-digit "melt-your-@$$ off" summer track days and hello to nice crisp, less knock, less over heating, PSL weather.

That said, my current Hankook R-S4's, which have done 8 track days now over 2 years, are pretty much done. They lasted way longer than my previous Federal RSRR's and have served me well. I even flipped them on the wheel and got a couple more track days out of them since there was still plenty of meat on the inside.

While doing research for my next track tire, I found this very handy run down of the current offerings.

Notes:
  • Autocross: Choose A or AA for Warm-up and B or better for Pace.
  • Time trials: Choose by Pace and Wear.
  • Lapping days: Choose by Heat Tolerance and Wear.
  • Street and Track: Choose by Heat Tolerance, Wear and Wet.


Source: Ultimate track tire guide | 200tw, 100tw, street-legal track, R-comp | Articles | Grassroots Motorsports

I have already had experience on a few of the tires they mentioned (PS4S, RE-71R, RS4 & RT615k+), so I have a good feeling of how their rating compares to my actual experience. Based on that, I think I'll be giving the Conti Extreme Contact Sports a try this time around. I wanted to try the BFG rivals but they did not come in my size (245/40-18) although the rival S 1.5's do.

I'm also curious about the Valino and the Maxxis offerings. Anybody with experience with either of these? I've heard of the Valino/Pergea/Greeva brand in drifting circles and the Maxxis brand from mountain biking, but not much else.
This is great! I’ve been using Federal RS-RRs because they are so cheap, but only getting 4 days out of a set. Flipping them on the rim is brilliant! Would cost ~$90 for another mount/balance but still worth it if it gets another 1 day out of them, let alone 2…


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#33 ·
@BigFatFlip if you autocross, you might want to pick something better than the Continentals. I bought my RS used with those already on (in 245/35-19), and while they seemed to be a decent street tire, they were ok on the course. The sidewalls are mushy, and I had to run 47psi in the front and 45psi in the rear to keep off of the sidewalls. Though I don't think they were horrible for a 340 treadwear tire, and they probably would be a really good autocross tire if it's raining.
 
#42 ·
Grass Roots and other forums say the Yokohama A052 require a lot of negative camber to get the proper wear. They will wear out the outside shoulders quick if you don't have the proper neg camber. Some BMW owners say they were close to -3 camber was not enough and the outside shoulders wore out quick.
 
#44 ·
I'm finding the same thing with the Federal 595 RR series. Inexpensive race tire but a lot of shoulder wear in 4 days of racing. Pretty close to the same dry grip of the Toyo R888r's I ran the last two years, but the Federal's look like they will wear twice as fast. Then again they're half the price of the Toyo's
 
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