Hancook vs. Hoosiers = what's the story?

[chaos4NH]

^^ Agreed - having the luxury of carrying another set of wheels & tires is pretty nice. 1 set (GACs) for practice & open track, 1 set of street/rain tires, and a set of stickies for TT. Studded snows for November LRP optional.

That is my plan also. Those GAC tires seem to have a lot of longevity. A note, mine just have CUP on the sidewall, not the GAC. Now for another set of wheels (GRRRRRRR).

[L98Terror]

I've run the RA-1s and Hankook Z214. The Hankooks are stickier. While my average laps this year over last have dropped a bit, I can't attribute all of that to the tires. My car is all-new this year.

Stephan, I'd expect that the Nittos were/are slightly faster than the RA-1, but that the majority of time you dropped was a result of an improvement in driver skill and/or car setup.

Having said that, I've never run the Nittos. They could be the cat's pj's for all I know.

My impression of the RA-1, is that it has been a durable & fast tire for quite some time. Though Toyo would deny it, I find that the tires are faster than they used to be, and wear at a faster rate. The RA-1 has begun a staged phase-out, as it is being replaced by the R888 ("R triple-8").

If you are considering the Hankooks, the Z214 tire is the one you want. There are 3 compounds: C30 (now C31), C50 (now C51), C70 (now C71). I have yet to see it on the tires, but allegedly Hankook has dropped the last number from the compound, leaving them as C3, C5, C7.

C3 - Autocross (soft)
C5 - Road Race (medium)
C7 - Endurance (hard)

You want the C5's. Don't even think about using the C3's for time-trial only. Unless it is a very cold day, and you are driving Ms. Daisy, the C30 compound will probably overheat within a couple of laps.

It's the other way around, C70 are the softest, I ran them at Mid Ohio this week and after 8 or 9 laps they were still fine.

Great tire very, very fast

[WillM]

It's the other way around, C70 are the softest, I ran them at Mid Ohio this week and after 8 or 9 laps they were still fine.
Great tire very, very fast

Of course you are 100% correct. Don't know what I was thinking when I typed that out.

I've heard from Hankook distributors as well as people that race on them, that the C7 compound will deform if pushed hard for a "normal" session on a hot day. I've actually seen it happen at a COM event earlier this year, where tires had an elephant-ear-like rib of rubber coming off the center tread patch. Take it easy and keep an eye on those tires L98T!

I have run several sets of the C5 compound this season. I agree with everything Mickey said. I was able to get great performance and stick from the first set of C51's I ran, and ran NHIS/Tremblant/NHIS on them, for a total of 20+ heat cycles. The 2nd set was used for a couple of sprint races and three qualifying sessions. The 3rd set was used for a 3-hour enduro.

At the NHIS test day a couple of weeks ago, I couldn't make the 2nd set come up to temp. Found that I had a relatively significant suspension problem, so the data I have is tainted. Perhaps even worse, is that the test day schedule was horrible. NHIS changed the run groups and length of each session a couple of times. Many of my sessions were only a handful of laps, as it was a hot day. Many cars had mechanicals, which black-flagged the entire session. Very annoying.

I have a set of BFG R1's, Hankooks, and Hoosier R6 tires all mounted up and ready to test. If only I had the time!

[WillM]

Just wanted to do a little follow-up on this.

After some research, according to Toyo, the compound and construction of the Toyo RA-1 is used in the Nitto NT555R Extreme tire, so performance is very similar. Sounds like Toyo makes the tire for Nitto. Not sure if the two companies are related, but it seems that they at least share product.

A little more research shows that the NT555R Extreme tire uses the same compound as the Nitto NT-01.

Seems the difference between the 3 is tread pattern. Could be wrong, and would welcome correction.

[kfoote]

Ya know, it kinda pisses me off that I have to feel bad about running RA1s when I know that Hoosiers are faster at $220 a pop with a life expectancy of two events. I'd prefer that we ban all DOT race tires in ST classes and below. Think of the money we'd all save.

I get more life out of track tires than street tires, and in most of the larger wheel diameters, the DOT track tires are less expensive than the equivalent street tires. I can show you what happens after 1 session of a right front Toyo T1R street tire being pushed somewhat hard on an STi at NHIS chicaine/chicaine. Suffice it to say, it's not pretty.