Ryanmcd2

I was wondering if anyone here runs Hoosier, or what about the A032's slicks on the track? And if so with what wheels and with what size tires? Also how much better is it then the stock tires?

Nyc_Ryc

I recommend the Hoosiers (RS303) if you are a very competitive driver and your lap time is worth the cost and short lifespan of that tire. Also, keep in mind YOU SHOULD NOT RUN THIS TIRE ON THE STREET MORE THAN A FEW MILES. This is an advanced tire for drivers that have an extra set of wheels. The size to run on the stock wheel is 245/40/17 or a 245/45/17. See: http://www.tirerack.com/tires/Sizes....er&model=R3S03

I more highly recommend the Kumho Victoracer V700 in either 245/45/17 or the size I'm currently running, 255/40/17, which I can confirm works fine on an 8" rim. This tire is reasonable for some street use, provided you have no rain. It is a lot cheaper, lasts a little longer, requires less negative camber, and is overall a less intense, more foregiving tire. See: http://www.tirerack.com/tires/Sizes....ictoRacer+V700

Some people like the newer Kumho Ecsta V700. This is a more finnicky tire, I think it doesn't last as long, and it requires more negative camber to work well. This tire is somewhat streetable. Sizes are limited; in 17" for the Evo, you're looking at a 225/45/17 or a 235/40/17. See: http://www.tirerack.com/tires/Sizes....del=Ecsta+V700

Three tires that are quite streetable and all quite long-lived are:

1) the Toyo RA-1, available in 235/40/17 and 255/40/17, but an expensive tire (see: http://www.toyo.com/tires/index_frame.html);

2) the Falken Azenis in 245/45/17, which is really cheap, has 8 or 9/32 of tread and a treadwear rating of 200, but will be the least grippy of these tires (see: http://www.falkentire.com/html/) and

3) the Yokohama AO32R H-compound, in 235/40/17, 245/45/17 and 255/40/17, which is an expensive tire.

A new tire from Yokohama is the A032R in S-compound, which is supposed to be a softer rubber with more grip. I've not heard any first-hand reports on this tire and its grip versus lifespan compromise. You can see both the H and S-compound A032R at: http://www.tirerack.com/tires/Sizes....ma&model=A032R

I'd steer you toward one of the last three, especially the Falken, if you have only one set of rims and will be driving to the track and around town. If you can get an extra set of rims, my top pick for your track tire is the Kumho V700 Victoracer. Very grippy, decent lifespan and a fair price.

Have fun out there. For track use, I recommend tire pressures of low 40's when hot in the front, and low to mid-upper 30's in the back. Use a tire pyrometer if you can to evaluate your pressures.

And by all means, oh man this is key, get your camber as negative as possible in the front and go half or a full degree negative in the rear.

Nyc_Ryc

I didn't answer this part of your question. I can tell you that the stock Advan is a decent track tire... I spent two days running them at high speed at California Speedway. But, the Kumho V700 Victoracer I'm running is a whole lot better.

The AO32R is not a slick, it's got grooves. In H-compound, it may not be a whole lot stickier than the Advan. Probably a little. In S-compound, I'm sure it's faster.

The Falken Azenis may not be much better than the Advan... I think the Toyo will be noticeably better.

The Hoosier has almost a slick tread and will be hugely faster. It is also a very light tire, but has little carcas to protect it from punctures on the road.

SLICKS are a true racing tire and will be MUCH FASTER than any of the D.O.T. (street legal) tires I've been discussing. 17" slicks are limited in size and availability, but if you got some 18x9's and ran 18" true racing slicks, you'd kick some *** at the track if you're an accomplished driver -- and only if you are. I don't recommend that route if you're at the level where you have to ask these questions; I even know all this stuff from experience and I'm not looking to run slicks.

jbrennen

iTrader: (1)

Just a few comments from my experience...

I've been autocrossing on Hoosier A3S03, size 245/40R17, on stock size (17x8) wheels. These are the "autocross" compound, the R3S03 is the "road race" compound. The R3S03 can definitely hold its own on an autocross course though; I got beat yesterday by a stock WRX STi who was running the R3S03 tire in the same size.

Anyway, to answer the question about how they compare to the stock A046 tires, the two of us running Hoosiers at the autocross yesterday were running approximately 3 - 4 seconds faster than the competitors on stock rubber (50 seconds vs. 53-54).

On Friday, I did a driver education event at Summit Point Raceway on the stock A046 tires, and I thought they were a really great tire for a beginner like me. They were totally predictable, and they held up really well with respect to wear. I guess that I did about 35 laps, and I was by no means babying the car. Only twice did the tires lose grip, and both of those incidents were after the rain started to fall.

If I had run my Hoosiers on Friday, that would have been a mistake for three reasons -- first, I would have basically trashed a $900 set of tires in one day; second, my cornering speeds would have been much higher, beyond my comfort level; third, the tires would not have been as predictable, especially when the track got slick in the rain.

Like Nyc_Ryc said, the Hoosiers are a competition tire for someone who is prepared to run them only at the track, and someone who wants every last second of speed out of the car. That's how I am with autocrossing, but not with road racing (yet).

broeli

iTrader: (19)

This is a good thread covering all the tires available.
One thing that would be interesting is the weight of each tire. Weight is pretty important. I know the Hoosiers are the lightest. Does anyone have the weight of each of these tires in the size that would be used on the Evo? The Hoosier or Kumho Victo V700 are definitely the best overall choices for best lap times.

Ryanmcd2

I have been doing track event's for a few years and only run street tires because I never wanted to mess with changing them. Now I have a 2nd set of stock wheels and want to run something else that is better then stock. I will prob do about 5-6 more events with the stock tires then get new A046' and get some Kumho's heheh and give them a shot. I have had a Viper with slicks at the track and you need it for that power.

iodine23

iTrader: (1)

From Kumho's website:

235/40-17 Ecsta V700 = 22.6 lbs.
225/45-17 Victoracer V700 = 25.0 lbs.
245/45-17 Victoracer V700= 27.2 lbs.
255/40-17 Victoracer V700 = 26.6 lbs.

I blieve someone on here was running the 255's on their car with no clearance problems. I think someone else also was running the 225's as well. I was considering the 235 Ecstas at one point due to the weight the weight and stock section width. Right now I'm still using Kumho MX's for my street and AutoX tires.

For the track I don't have any experience or much knowledge, but I'd bet the Toyo RA-1 wouldn't be a bad choice. It seems to work well in the Speed World Challenge. I think you can find them for about 180 a tire, which I don't think is too terribly bad.

jbrennen

iTrader: (1)

The Hoosier A3S03/R3S03 in a 245/40R17 size weighs in at 18.0 pounds. Source: http://www.hoosiertire.com/pricerr.pdf

Nyc_Ryc

I'm about in the same boat. I go to roadcourses just for practice, fun and some relatively unimportant time trials.

I love the auto-x performance of the Hoosier AS303 when new, but after just a couple events (i.e., a few heat cycles) they start to go south, and they can become very slippery before they ever reach the cords. Like a shooting star - briefly brilliant, and then gone. I suspect that the RS303, being a harder compound, is more durable to heat cycles than the AS303 is.

The good news is that Hoosier is coming out with a replacement to the AS/RS-303. A Hoosier rep showed it to me and discussed the changes in September at the SCCA auto-x Nationals in Kansas. It will have a beefier carcass (probably to survive more stringent DOT testing in the wake of the Firestone debaucle) and should be more resistant to both punctures and heat cycles. But it will be a little heavier.

Kumho is also coming out with a new auto-x tire that looks like a slick. IMHO, and this opinion is based solely on picutres of the new tire, Kumho is going in the direction of Hoosier, and I wouldn't be surprised if this new tire is not as durable as the present Kumhos. Let's hope I'm wrong.

IzenGreyEvo7

iTrader: (3)

I've just tried out A032R H-Compounds and I'm impressed. First my impressions on the stock A046's: I did three track days with these tires and with each subsequent track day their performance decreased significantly. For sure the first track day they were impressive, on their 3rd and final track day the felt only marginally better than an S-03 or Pirelli P-Zero.

The A032R's feel grippier than I can recall the stock tires did at their first track day. The real difference is in turn-in response, my god! I'm not running the stock alignment anymore, I have much more negative camber and some toe-out in the rear. With the A032's on the car rotates, it really rotates, it's a completely different car. It may not produce the fastest lap times compared to Hoosiers or Michelin Sport Cups, but it's a fantastic fit with the behaviour of the car.

broeli

iTrader: (19)

So the Kumhos weigh 5-9lbs more than the Hoosiers. That's a huge difference. Anyone know the weight of the stock Advans and the Toyo RA-1's? I used the stock Advans all year in ESP in my near stock Evo and did pretty well finishing 2nd regionally..but my times were 2-3 seconds off the national level driver/cars.
I'd like to hear some experiences with shaved RA-1's. How do they compare to the Victoracers in grip and weight? Also, how do they compare in wear.
There is no doubt the Hoosiers are lighter and stickier, but they simply don't last long.

Ryanmcd2

I drive out of state a lot and do track events. The only problem I see with the hoosiers is I don't want to change tires 2 times a day, I am lazy and sometimes don't like screwing around with it. So I will put them on at the track and swap back coming home. So what would be the best for that?


Thanks again for the help!

Taz

iTrader: (5)

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but your best bet will be to get another set of rims and swap em before coming home.

Ryanmcd2

That's what I am going to do, so you like the victoracer, I may try them what size would you go with and who makes them?

Taz

iTrader: (5)

My last post was meant to tell you what to use if you HAD to drive to and back from the track with the same set of tires. If the ride is more than a few miles I wouldn't drive on the Kumho's Victoracers nor the Hoosiers. However if you must drive to and from the track and it's a bit of a hike, then I'd go with the Yoko's A032 or the Toyo RA1.

The Victoracers are tough to beat at $138 for the 245/45 - 17. A Hoosier R3s03 is over $200 each. Only minus is that the Victoracer is a tad taller than the Hoosiers.