Competition tires only?

[jbrand540]

I am thinking about using a competition DOT tire as my only tire. I put a maxiumum 5k miles on a year so I am not too concerned about the tires only lasting 12k or so.

Any downsides to this I should consider other then short tire life? Also if some of you are doing this what kind of mileage are you getting out of a set from mixed track and road driving?

[nostatic]

Toyo RA-1. About the best "compromise" tire out there. I have no ideas about mileage, and it really doesn't mean much as a mile on the street is a little different from a mile on the track (and it also varies from track to track...Laguna Seca is pretty gentle on tires, Willow tears them to shreds).

I have gotten almost a season out of a set in the past, although these days it is more like 2-3 sets per year. But that is driving to/from the track on them, and a lot of hard track hours.

[GrantG]

Yes, RA1's are great tires (very progressive and friendly at the limit on the track). Just be careful not to push them hard on the street, as they are not sticky until hot (not really possible to get them hot enough on the street for anything close to max grip).

[Jack Olsen]

Most of the stickier-than-RA1 tires lifespan is measured in heat cycles, not treadwear. They can loses their stick and still look nice and fresh.

RA1 is probably the best tire for what you're looking at. It's bad in the rain, though.

[gestalt1]

race tires are also a little hard to live with on the street. they have stiffer sidewalls so the ride is rough, the softer rubber picks up rocks you never thought existed and forget them in the rain. the ra-1 or other treaded type tires may work but once the tread depth is below 3/32 they are a little dangerous in the wet. i use to drive to/from the track on my race tires but i don't think i will do that again.

[KTL]

Another tire to consider is the Michelin Pilot Sport Cup. They wear well and perform well in the rain (compared to my Yoko ES100 street tires) on the track, so they should fair well on the street. Any competition tire is going to be questionable in the rain nonetheless.

The reason I mention the MPSC is because it's another tire, like the Toyo RA-1 that does not suffer from heat cycling like some other competition tires.

[rattlsnak]

ive done it with lots of cars ive had over the years and besides feeling every pine needle you roll over, i had no problems with doing it. and it made all the off ramps alot more fun!

[VFR750]

I recently bought RA-1 for the track. I have not run them on the track yet, but I did rack up 300 miles on the street "scuffing" them in.

I really liked them on dry pavement. My chassis is fairly stiff for street driving, so I did not notice any issue with sidewall stiffness. Quite the opposite. I immediately noticed how much I liked them. They just felt nice.

I did not drive them in the wet. Cold grip is a little better than my ES100's. I would imagine they are a lot like motorcycle tires. Careful in the wet, run them hard in the dry, replace every year or two. I replaced tires on my VF500 and VFR750 after 6000-8000 miles. Didn't care about mileage.

At $1000 a set, I'll be a little more selective on how much I run the RA-1 on the street. Especially with a lot of negative camber in the front.

[rfn026]

I've run the R-compounds on the street more than I care to admit. First, the ride is horrible. Secondly, they pick up every stone on the road and beat it into your paint. We won't even talk about the rain.

The only reason I can see to do this is limited money. I've been there. Actually the street Avons I have on my 911 now were a lot cheaper than than the R-compouds. The car is just so much more enjyable on the street with real street tires.

Richard