First track day done but I think I need better tires

ssmoked

I had all 3 tires on my bone stock z, here is my impression

evo v12- first 3k miles decent grip in dry and rain but when the tires were worn half way, the Z felt like riding on hockey pucks. The traction was absolutely horrible under any heavy acceleration and downright dangerous in the rain. Replaced at 10k miles.

A/S 3- great traction in dry (after warmed up) and wet with nice deep thread. Can't complain at all with those for all seasons. I used to brake torque on the street to launch the Z and it wouldn't even break traction, while the other 2 spun. Did over 50 drag strip runs with burnout (12.91 best 1/4 mile) and still lasted 12k miles. I did notice the traction reduced significantly right before hitting the wear bar. From what you described, your A/S 3 are almost done too. That explains the greasy slipping feeling. You definately wouldn't be disappointed with a new set. The A/S 3 are actually underrated, search some professional reviews of it and they are performing very close to summer tires.

So4- I actually bought those based on recommendations, but was unimpressed. First of all, they are smaller in size than other manufactures. Like another forum member stated, go one size larger. The traction was horrible for the performance class it was in. It would spin out every time during WOT from standstill. At least when the V12 were new it would spin out less and the A/S 3 would just grip. Running over any puddle of water would guarantee hydroplane, where the A/S3 had no problem. Only managed 13.3 best 1/4 mile with those. Sold the 370 before replacing.

I also upgraded to 20s from 18s. Running 255/30 front and 285/30 rear. Very spirited daily driving.

If you are on a budget, go with A/S 3. It also has 30k miles warranty. If you want the best track feel, can't go wrong with PSS or re11

Jhill

Awesome man thank you so much. Yea the a/s 3 did go where I pointed they just felt greasiest than I thought they would be. Looking at it now I may have not set the pressure right as I had them at door sticker psi and now reading the car prep sheet for first timer they state to inflate 3-5psi over door sticker. So I may have overheated them too. I'm sure a large part is I just need to learn what is loose and what is truly loose. As for budget it seems the a/s 3 and pss is same price so I'll probably go the pss route.

Slartibartfas

I do not concur with ssmoked impressions of the S-04, especially the rain portion.

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Jhill

Those that don't run an r comp at the track do you guys run higher inflation pressures? Wondering if maybe I just got them too hot and running a higher pressure would help.

abm89

I've run 4 different tires on the track so maybe I can help out a bit based on what i've experienced:

Bridgestone S04 Pole Position: I got these because I was not sure if I would like tracking the car yet. They're decent for beginners providing enough grip to give you confidence, and they communicate (make noise) at the limit so you know when the car is being pushed. However, if you're progressing quickly, you'll overheat these within a few laps, and they cannot hold multiple heat cycles.

Hankook RS3 v1: dont buy these as the v2 is supposedly better with warmup. I sold my set quickly.

Bridgestone RE-11: The best all around tire for the casual track enthusiast IMO. Good grip levels and they last for a good while. They do not require much of a warmup and have decent wet traction should you find yourself in a wet session. I never hesitate recommending these to other Z owners who track.

Bridgestone RE-71R: These tires have freakish amounts of grip in dry and wet conditions. They require about the same amount of warmup as the RE-11. HOWEVER, these tires do not last long (I am known to be easy on tire wear compared to my other Z track friends and they didn't last long). They're sensitive to camber settings, and they do not squeal when at the limit. When they're out of heat cycles (2-3 full days at the track) laptimes will fall and they will give you the equivalent grip of an RE-11 or slightly less.

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Jhill

Cool, I think I am looking at either pss or s-04 for now and a second set with star spec or re-71r etc latter.

When you say the s-04 won't go through multiple heat cycles what do you mean?

abm89

Essentially, the tire will not be able to sustain multiple track sessions exposed to extreme loads. the compound will break down and the tire will eventually lose peak grip. You might think the tire is good since it may have tread, but the actual part of the tire doing the work is useless.

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lhinojos

Noooooo. Lower the tire pressures. At the track with my conti DW's i was at 28 psi rear, and 30 front. The hotter they get, the higher the psi.

Jhill

I understand the concept of heat raises the pressure but the heat is from the friction of the tire. Less air pressure is more surface area and more heat which can lead to the tire compound overheating and that's when it gets melted and greasy. Just reading their car prep list it says to run higher psi 3-5 so I'm thinking they want to resist that heat build up causing the melting. I used door sticker psi and still melted the tire.

RumbleFish

I'm running S-04's on my DD, did a track day @ Streets of Willow (So Cal) with them.
4 x 20 mins sessions, no issues, had a BLAST!

1st track day so had to stay in beginners class w/ passing only in 2 straights w/ 'point-by'.
Best lap was 1:36.5...that's w/o pushing it too hard.

I'm very happy w/ the S-04's for my DD and they did fine on a track day.
30 psi f/r

Yes, having a set of 'track wheels' would be awesome but, not all of us can swing the cash or do enough TD's to justify the purchase.

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gomer_110

Higher tire pressure is often used to help prevent rolling the tire onto the side wall. Sidewall stiffness varies greatly between different tire models so what works for one tire model may not be the best for another.

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'17 Titan Bone Stock

abm89

idk wtf you were reading, but that sounds ***-backwards. Your tires will melt, that's just going to happen when you put extreme loads into the compound. you also run the risk of a blowout with higher pressures, not to mention poor handling characteristics.

I agree with the other statements to run lower pressure cold when starting, and check the hot pressure and adjust accordingly.

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Jhill

Tires blow out from being under inflated which puts more contact patch down and overheats the tires (that's why ca now has it mandatory for shops to set correct tire pressures, also the whole ford/Firestone issue was ford having a door sticker inflation of 29psi when the tires weren't meant to run under 32 or something like that). Also if you look at a MB tire placard there is two psi setting, one for under a certain speed (lower psi) and one for over a certain speed where it puts more load on the tires and it is a higher psi.

However after speaking with a tire shop that handles a lot of track duty you are correct that they want to start a little low and then monitor tire temp and inflation pressure change in this case.

EVOHUNTER

I recently changed my RE11's to AD08R's, im never looking back!

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Jhill

Yea I've been dealing with a guy that sells tires and supports the local event group and he said those are a very good tire and are petroleum free so they don't get greasy however those are super low wear more in the re-71r class.

He didn't sound too enthusiastic about tracking with the s-04 and feels the pilot super sport will be my best option all the way up to low group c depending on how hard I push them and the track temp (so thunder hill is out). Still considering re-11 just wish they had the right rear size.