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Bridgestone Potenza S007A

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72
65
Exp. Type
HPDE
Exp. Level
5-10 Years
New Jersey
I think you might be overly concerned , as it was not too ,many years ago there was virtually only one 315 200TW tire, and now there are actually 3 in 18s -- Falken, Yokohama, and BFG ( I actually think I am missing another?) The bigger sizes are more prevalent now than just 3-4 years ago. The folks at Bridgestone, BFG and Falken were checking competitor tires at the Solo Nationals and I know Peter Calhoun at BFG said the requests for bigger 18s, 19s and 20s was the main comments he heard. At Hoosier the number of folks on 335s was insane ----- I needed a couple of used 315s and they were non existent, but 335s would fill a large trailer.

With the 200 TW rubber , as well as the Competition Rubber, there are actually more choices now, and the change with the 305 RS4 may have been a marketing change for Hankook and have nothing to do with Tire Rack?

Heck, you can get the BFG Rival S and the S 1.5 both in 315/18s and the 1.5s also come in a 305/19. Great tire that saw a ton of usage at the Solo Nationals on Pony Cars and those in the CAM classes.

You're probably right, I'm probably just biased and bummed about nothing in 285/35 anymore.
Sounds like jumping up to 305/30/19 is my answer. The 18s are still too short for me.
 

Bill Pemberton

0ld Ford Automotive Racing Terror
8,425
8,356
Exp. Type
Time Attack
Exp. Level
20+ Years
Blair, Nebraska
Alot of the wide 18s are around 25.5 OD, and some feel this is too short, yet it seems to be what many of the faster drivers I know are using. A 315/30/18 R7 is 25.6 inches OD and a BFG gforce R1S is 25.5 and for most courses this seems to work well. The argument comes from drivers who run really high speed courses and they seem to prefer a taller tire for the top speed sections. The BFG Rival 1.5 S is supposedly just a bit shorter OD than the 305/19 RE 71Rs, but it is a tiny bit wider in the same size also. With the high winding motors in the recent Mustangs ( 7000 to 8250 rpms depending on model) many of us like tires in the mid 25 inch outside diameter range for lower end gearing. Overall ,it is personal preference and there is not a right or wrong since so many use their track cars in different ways.
 
It was mainly a rhetorical question aimed at the other poster.

Seems like a 305/35/18 is his best bet.

I also run 18x10s, and it is a tough spot as far as tire sizing if your car isn't 100% track only. But like anything else, trade offs.
 
72
65
Exp. Type
HPDE
Exp. Level
5-10 Years
New Jersey
Basically it comes down to two things:
I have 3.73s and don't want to shorten my ratio or spend the money to re-gear.
The car is 20% track and 80% street, and the current setup does a nice job of not scraping - barely.


I currently have 19x10s with 285/35 RE11s and don't want to downgrade to 275/35.
If these S007A's were decent I would stick with 285s. If I could get new RE11s I would.
So basically I'm at 295/40/18 or 305/30/19. I'm leaning towards the 305s due to more choices.
 

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