Track Day Tires

[Emre]

I know I've posted this before, but I'm a big fan of the Hankook R-S3 in 225/45-R15 for track use.

Grip levels are in the same league as lower end DOT-R rubber (e.g., Toyos). They don't chunk. They don't overheat and get greasy. They don't make excessive noise. They work great in the wet or dry. And they're dirt cheap. The 225/45 size fits perfectly on any number of 15x7" to 15x8" wheels, and the shorter sidewalls give you usefully quicker gearing on the track.

Pretty much the perfect all-around street and track summer tire you can buy.

[Wh33lhop]

I know I've posted this before, but I'm a big fan of the Hankook R-S3 in 225/45-R15 for track use.

Grip levels are in the same league as lower end DOT-R rubber (e.g., Toyos). They don't chunk. They don't overheat and get greasy. They don't make excessive noise. They work great in the wet or dry. And they're dirt cheap. The 225/45 size fits perfectly on any number of 15x7" to 15x8" wheels, and the shorter sidewalls give you usefully quicker gearing on the track.

Pretty much the perfect all-around street and track summer tire you can buy.

They have lasted a decent amount for me too. However as everyone else has said, stick to mediocre tires on your first track day.

[nando]

I think that is somewhat nonsense. yeah, you don't want to go out on a DOT-R slick, but mediocre tires are just going to get greasy, chunk, and basically fall apart. If you're worried about the increased limits, there's this thing called your right foot that can fix the speed issue.

[blalor]

I did my first car track day in an '05 MINI Cooper S with Goodyear all-season runflats. They're terrible tires (heavy, harsh, no grip) but were utterly fantastic for this novice on the track. They'd lose grip easily and early and gave me the ability to learn how to control the car at much lower speeds than "good" sticky tires. I learned quickly how to manage the car's line with just throttle. Really, if you're a novice, tires are the last thing you need to worry about.

I've now got a dozen or more events under my belt including a few LeMons races. My team ran the Loudon Annoying event at NHMS a few weeks ago with our '87 325is. This year we're using the Dunlop Z1 (Star Specs, I guess) and they were utterly fantastic. The car ran fast and hard the whole weekend and one of our drivers set the fastest lap time (not counting those cheating bastards with the Miata). We could easily do another two full days on those tires, possibly more. They stuck great in the dry and I thought they did very well in the wet, too (but I've got very little wet-track experience). The Z1s were also the most common tire used at that event by a mile. I'd say half the cars had them.

I'm using the DZ101s on my MINI but plan to replace the ES100s on my 318is (which is mainly going to get used for track days) with the Z1s.

[ballarde30]

Thanks for all the input guys! I have ordered a new set of Dunlop Direzza DZ 101's in a 205/55 R15, same as what I have now. Two of my current tires are not fit for track use the others I will keeps as spares. I will let you know how the track day on June 10 goes.

[Wh33lhop]

I think that is somewhat nonsense. yeah, you don't want to go out on a DOT-R slick, but mediocre tires are just going to get greasy, chunk, and basically fall apart. If you're worried about the increased limits, there's this thing called your right foot that can fix the speed issue.

Sticky tires in general tend to be less predictable and offer less 70s squeal action. Don't sell your Star Specs for all-seasons, but don't worry about getting dedicated track tires for your first time out.