So when we went to the track it was quite clear i needed to have better rubber for nexttime, thing is, I dont really want to buy new tires, just to have to take them off my wheels to have a couple of the wheels repaired this winter, plus that's another $1000ish I could put towards buying a beater for the winter. ANYWAYS, question is, what your guys opinion is about using my winter tires (softer, wider, and lots of treadlife left, tons of grip) mounted on my stock 18"s vs. my damn near bald OEM tires mounted on aftermarket 18"s (which i think may be slightly lighter).

215/45R18 Dunlop SP Sport 5000 M


225/45R18 Dunlop SP Winter Sport M3


oh and I'd just be throwing them on the front when we got to the track to make runs with..

 

if wider is what you are looking for you could look at the All Season GoodYear F1 All Season. high rating for winter performance, and still meets the minimums for what you want on a track they dont come in 215/45/18 but they have them in bigger sizes.

 

i dont think your winter tires will give you more grip

i would not recommend running your winters on a warm summer day because it will kill your winters quicktime. especially if you're going to be using them for racing purposes.

 

Also I am talking to Michelin about club support and buys for our clubs tires... I hear nothing but good things about the Michelin Pilot Sport A/S Plus

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires....Sport+A/S+Plus

 

+1
winters during summer kills a lot of tread, on street alone not even counting for aggresive driving purposes

plus the winter compound is a bit stiffer than all seasons and summer tires.
winter tread is used to push ice/slush/snow/water out of the way so u can grip the road

summers are for pushing water out the rest is for gripping the road
much more aggresive tread pattern

 

I have no intention driving around with my winters on, i meant just to through them on the front when we got to the track to make my 10 - 15 passes with cause my current tires are bald, i already know what my next summer tires are going to be

225/40R18 Dunlop Direzza Sport Z1 Spec


was just for some added grip off the line as my current tires (OEM) are bald as ****... also not too worried about wearing the tread on the winter ones as I have no intentions (as of right now) driving my car in the winter anymore...

 

I have run two different types of winter tires WELL into the summer and almost right through them (til late August).

"High performance" winters - Dunlop Wintersport M3's
Arctic winters - EcoStudded Nokian Hakka 2's

Arctic winters = very scary if you overcook but manageable if you learn respect and smoothness. Picture driving with an imaginary pot of water in your back seat. Only thing it does semi-well is the go part. Emergency braking and turning = white knuckles since the sidewalls tend to roll over and squirm every which way. Like putting a fishhook through an earthworm.

High performace winters = almost as good as the worst all-seasons in all directions in most weather conditions. Better than the worst all-seasons when it gets cold and damp and more resistant to aquaplaning IMO.


Being as safe as possible is important because you want some headroom in case an emergency avoidance move is made.


Having said that, if you are only concerned about straight line performance and can behave yourself all other times, then I think you'll be good with winters all year. I mean there are people with bald all-seasons out there and that's way worse.

I have taken skinny Wintersport M2's to a dragstrip. On an AWD car, managed a 12.9 with limited wheelspin... not enough power. I put Falken RT-615's on the same car and only managed 12.6 but spun badly so YMMV.

What I'm getting at is the driver makes more of a difference than tires at your stockish power levels.

What's your drivetrain config?

Stockish (read: no on/off engaging drivelines) AWD cars with good drivers do not have enough power to rip them loose. Way too much traction. I'll say you'll start needing summer rubber at about the 400AWHP mark (high 11's/ low 12's) for AWD but less on a RWD and even less on an FWD.

 

Running winters in summer will definitely kill the life of ur tires and also eats more gas.
+1 for Falken FK452s

but if u have the money. go for the Direzzas

 

Also i dont think its a wise idea to go with a wider tire for winter,

 

lol unless they are winterforce tires. haha those things are made of solid rubber. I think I would experiment to see if I could wear it down much in the middle of summer.

I swear the compound they used is hard as well. very un-winter like, but no joke, they look like new.

getting back on topic. there are alot of tires you can go with. but remember for track, light weight rims and tires design is key to good times. oh and break in your tires hahah eh Dan?