R comps to drive to track
 

Hey guys,
My car is an 87 911, set up for track, track wheels are Fikses 7.5 and 9x17. Been running 225 in front and 255 rear. I do have street wheels and tires. I like to drive to the track with track wheels and tires on the car. For a number of years I was using Victorracers, good grip on track drivable if I got caught in rain to and from track. Last year I used Goodyear R1, good grip on track, but really bad if caught in rain driving to and from the track. I usually do 4 weekends a year at tracks that are 3 hours drive time from my house. I run in the fastest DE group. I am looking for a tire that I can drive back and forth. It is a compromise I know, but am trying to avoid trailering, pulling a trailer, roof-rack, and/or getting someone else to haul my tires to change them at the track. Thanks.

Toyo RA1 or Nitto NT01's

BTW - some people us the full tread RA1's as a rain race tire

For similar reasons, I ran Bridgestone RE-11's on my SC. With my 996 I am now running Hankook R-S3's. The Hankooks are cheaper and seem to like heat better than the RE-11's and that is important here in the SE.

But in your run group, you sound to me to be a good candidate for a Wilwood Systems trailer hitch and a small lightweight tire trailer. That way you can run track rubber on the track and not worry driving home.

Toyo RA1s

I drove RA1's to and from the track for years without problems. I would also suggest Dunlop Star Specs, not an R-comp but amazing grip on the track.

I had a great track day recently with new NT-01s. Do I remember that they are built in the same factory with same compound as the RA1s? I think so.
I cannot attest to their wet capabiilities, but they do have a decent tread to start with.
I was real impressed with dry performance. I chose not to heat cycle or shave (the tires :D) before the event.

Doug

I run Toyo R 888's t/f the track and have liked their performance both in the wet and dry.

+1 on the Hankook R-S3's.

I'm on my fourth set (I think) of the Nitto NT01s. In my opinion, they've got all of the advantages of the Toyo RA1, with none of that tire's full-tread wiggle-shimmy (wait and next even they'll be fine) issues.

In other words, it's an RA1 that you don't need to shave.

I drive them to the track -- and everywhere else.

ditto on the NT01's same compound as RA1, which means they are good to run to the cords,

I run Kuhmo V710s on my 72. I drive 80 miles round trip to autocross once a month. The tires last over a year doing that with perfectly even tread wear. Uhh, if you want to call it tread. My set up is 2.0 degrees camber front, 2.5 rear. 1/16 toe out front, and 1/16 toe in rear.

That being said, with the Kuhmo at a 30 treadwear rating, you should have no problem at all with NT-01, or R888 with 100 treadwear.

I even know a guy who has a bunch of early cars who runs Hoosiers on the street daily. You can find his thread around here someplace. Tall guy with dreads, you can't miss him.

I have been on the NT01s for the last 3 sets. They are supposed to be the same compound as the RA1s but they cost less. The tread pattern sucks in the rain but in the dry it is as close to a gumball as you can get.

The great thing about the NT01s (besides the price) is the compound is very cycle resistant. I've run nothing but DOT race tires for 10+ years and tried a number of different tires and these just don't seem to go away even after a huge number of heat cycles. (Obviously RA1s are similar.)
- Victoracers have higher grip when new but after 6-10 hard heat cycles they are toast.
- Yokohamas are pretty good but they still cycle out to some degree but it is gradual and nothing like the Kumhos. They don't have the grip of the NT01s and they tend to get greasy when overheated.
- Hoosiers probably have the highest grip when new but they cycle out faster then any of the others.

End result is the NT01s have the cast iron compound of the RA1s at a lower price and with a superior dry tread pattern.

Question for all the NT01 users ???

Do you need to heat cycle them or could you run a 20-30 minute session with sticker tires,wait an hour or two then go back out with them ?

Or is it better to wait 24 hrs after the first session before using them again ?

Cheers !
Phil

I've never heat cycled my NT01s. I don't think it would make any difference at all.

Jack,

What you're saying then is that you're good to go with sticker tires for four or five 30 minutes sessions per day right off the start with the Nittos ?

I looked into this on Rennlist a while back and there were conflicting statements ...

Cheers !
Phil

I would say that, with the note that they are pretty fast to start, but keep getting faster as you get closer to the cords. They are never as fast as Hoosiers and the like. But for the money, they're a pretty quick tire.

Thanks for all the great feedback. I am going to get a set of the NT01s, and will report back with impressions. First track event is in May.

So the next question is: Where is the cheapest place to buy them now?

I had a little racer shop off the I605 that had them for about $10 less then anyone else and I can't remember where they were. Can't even remember if they were north or south of the 91...

How many DE weekends can one expect to get out of a set of NT01s???