Track tires?

[JiM P 2001]

I'm looking for a good DOT track tire for a 17" wheel. I'm leaning twords the Yokohama ADVAN A048. Anyone have any experience with these tires? I could use some direction here... I'm dying to hit some twisties this summer. I've never road raced and I'm really looking forward to it. Drag bores the hell out of me.

[mikecentola]

Those are good tires, but if you've never been out on a track day, I would stay away from r-compounds, as they're less likely to be forgiving at the edge. Some falken azenis rt-615's or some bfg kdw's would do nicely on a track day

[JiM P 2001]

Originally Posted by mikecentola

Those are good tires, but if you've never been out on a track day, I would stay away from r-compounds, as they're less likely to be forgiving at the edge. Some falken azenis rt-615's or some bfg kdw's would do nicely on a track day

so basically they grip good and consistantly and then they just completely lose it when you push it too far?

[JVG Motorsports]

Originally Posted by JiM P 2001

I'm looking for a good DOT track tire for a 17" wheel. I'm leaning twords the Yokohama ADVAN A048. Anyone have any experience with these tires? I could use some direction here... I'm dying to hit some twisties this summer. I've never road raced and I'm really looking forward to it. Drag bores the hell out of me.

Bridgestone Potenza Pole Position, Kuhmo MX, Falken Azenis RT, BF Goodrich G-force or KDW. Kuhmo MX is a decent tire that doesnt break the bank as much as the others.

[mikecentola]

Originally Posted by JiM P 2001

so basically they grip good and consistantly and then they just completely lose it when you push it too far?

Yeah thats what I hear. I ran a track day at Lime Rock on Kumho MX's which I had failed to mention above, and JVG reminded me of them. They were a great tire out there, but they had trouble taking the heat, as I went home with bluish tread haha

[JClark]

?

The Kuhmo MX has been the most durable yet grippy street tire I've used on the track and I probably have 20 days on them alone over maybe 4 sets. The one set of Falken 615s I used couldn't take summer heat at the Glen for more than 3 laps before getting greasy. However, they were the best autox-speed grip I've ever used.

I also dont buy Michelin PS2s anymore because the MXs grip just as well and are 1/3 of the price. I beat. the. hell. out of them and have never greased over on me or even worn weird. The latest compound finisher Kuhmo has used in these has responded really well to repeated heat cycling. I can run mine down to 25% tread left and still have relatively good adhesion, where as my recent Dunlop extreme perf. summer tires were useless with 60% tread left.

I've also heard good things about the new Hankook z212 (?) in that it is similar to the MX in grip and price. They dont make it in my size, or I would've bought a set already to try.

The A048s are a DOT-R and will be gone in 5000 street miles. They are a decent base comp tire but the really good compounds of them are hard to find (medium and medium-hard are everywhere tho). The Toyo RA-1 is better in all aspects and cheaper. If you're using them to track, save your money and use [good, extreme performance] street tires. DOT-Rs have a steeper learning curve and will ultimately slow you down in the long run.

[Shawn96VR-4]

My Nitto 450 and 550 completely sucked. The new Falken 451 appear to be better but I can easily blaze them. I have heard good things about the MXs and about Mich's AV Sports.

[JiM P 2001]

Thanks for the input guys! Much Appreciated!

Now I need wheels...

[xceebeex]

Originally Posted by Shawn96VR-4

My Nitto 450 and 550 completely sucked. The new Falken 451 appear to be better but I can easily blaze them. I have heard good things about the MXs and about Mich's AV Sports.

I had the Falken 451's on my Z28 when I sold it and I liked those tires a lot. They had decent dry traction, but I dunno if they would be a good track tire or not.

[2fast4u]

I have run for the last 3 years Yokohama AVS ES 100s... They last me about 9k on the street and that includes 3-4 track days and 6-8 autocrosses... An awesome all around sport tire. They are rock hard when cold out but love the heat! A lot of the guys at the PCA DE events run these, even on non street cars because they tolerate the heat well.
Before that I ran Bridgestone RE 730s but they got real slick as the tread disappeared ... didnt like that...

[thefrush]

I echo everything JClark said, the Azenis are overrated and the MXs are a bomb street tire on track. The Hankook RS2s are quite good too, but you can't beat the MXs for performance/price.

For your first time at track, run street tires. R Compounds will cove up your mistakes and hinder your ability to learn. You will still have tons of fun on a set of MXs and you will learn a lot better.

That being said, A048s are a fantastic competition tire!!!

Have fun.

[JClark]

I still take my MXs to the track. Street tires are unholy cheap compared to comp tires. I have just as much fun sliding around on streets than on DOT-Rs or Hoosiers but with mucho less wear on suspension. Plus I get to use cheaper HP+ pads instead of HT-10s, since the HT-10s and street tires means destroyed street tires. It all makes for a relatively cheap track season.