Hankook Ventus R-S3 vs Dunlop Direzza Sport Z1 Star Spec

[Emre]

For track use, the R-S3 is miles better than the Z1 in almost every way: better dry grip, wet grip, longevity, and feedback. The Z1's might have a slight edge in terms of turn-in (the R-S3's can be a little mushy), but that's about it.

[Brew]

I've got the Hankooks in that size, and I love them. Almost at the wear bars after about 10k miles and 100 or so autocross runs and they're still fast.
NOT a very good street tire though- they get very noisy as they wear and wet traction is not great.

You'll be giving up some grip and response with the RS3s if you put them on anything narrower than an 8" wheel though, keep that in mind.

I agree with the suggestion of the NT01's for a track day tire. I had a set and they were very predictable and actually better in the wet than the RS3s, at least when new.

Either tire would be fine for an intermediate level driver on the track, people who say that R-comps are only for experts are full of it. Street tires like the RS3 are approaching the grip levels of some of the lower-tier R-comps now anyways.

[e30pq]

I use the Hankooks R-S3's as my street tires. I think they would make a good track day tire.

I'll let you judge your experience level to determine what your track tire is. With that said, if you make the jump to R-Comps I would go with the Nitto NT01's. They last a long time and they get better as they wear down.

[dude8383]

I'm looking at either one of these two.

Quick breakdown of the tire sizes and treadwear:

Hankooks: 225/45 15 - 140AA
Dunlops: 205/50 15 - 200AA

Mounting on:

15x7 Euroweaves

I plan to use these on the track, no R compounds for me because I'm simply to at the experience level. Also, the car will still be driven on the street. More street mileage if anything.

What do you track heads think? I'm leaning towards the Hankooks because they have more meat and lower profile.

These are the only two sizes available for each respective tire.