Input on next set of track tires

[concretevol]

No love for the Toyo RR?
I think this tire gets easily forgotten. The racers don't like it cause it's comparatively slow and HPDE guys ignore it cause it's not a street tire but hot damn the RR is the best for learning! I would say similar grip and speed to the SC3 (maybe a little slower) but extremely consistent throughout its entire life and probably the cheapest track tire out there at least in a 295/30/19.

And to those of you saying "but I can't drive it on the street to the track"...you shouldn't be wasting your expensive track tires on street miles anyway. You can fit 4 wheels/tires, a jack, and stands in the car.

I don't drive to the track anyway. Am looking at some Toyo R888Rs now....hadn't heard great things about the RRs but will consider it too, thanks

 

[concretevol]

I've been running NT-01's and 1 set of R888R's last year (got a good deal and availability was tight). I went with RR's this year and have only done 1 weekend, but liked them a lot! I trailer my car and have PS4S's on stock wheels for rain tires.

I couldn't even find any NT-01s when I bought the SC3s. I really liked the Goodyear compared to the Michelin SC2 both price and grip but boy they don't last long. Lol

 

[concretevol]

I've been running NT-01's and 1 set of R888R's last year (got a good deal and availability was tight). I went with RR's this year and have only done 1 weekend, but liked them a lot! I trailer my car and have PS4S's on stock wheels for rain tires.

How would uou compare the RRs to the R888Rs grip, speed, and wear wise?

 

[Ewheels]

I don't drive to the track anyway. Am looking at some Toyo R888Rs now....hadn't heard great things about the RRs but will consider it too, thanks

That's interesting. I haven't heard great things about R888R's. No joke, everyone I know who has used them say they're horrible.

I think the RR's get a bad wrap cause for a slick, they are definitely slow. But compared to 100 & 200tw street tires, they are great. I would say similar grip to a SC3 but same level of grip from first heat cycle to last. Last about 20 cycles total and up until this current market, you could get a set for under $1k

 

[concretevol]

That's interesting. I haven't heard great things about R888R's. No joke, everyone I know who has used them say they're horrible.

I think the RR's get a bad wrap cause for a slick, they are definitely slow. But compared to 100 & 200tw street tires, they are great. I would say similar grip to a SC3 but same level of grip from first heat cycle to last. Last about 20 cycles total and up until this current market, you could get a set for under $1k

Cool man thanks for the info, will be checking them out

 

[Bill Pemberton]

Ewheels is quite correct , the RRs are solid for what they are designed for , a Spec Tire for racing at a fair price with good endurance. Not as fast as a Hoosier for example , but they wear a lot longer and they are much better than the R888r. Never a fan of the R888 or R888r as they are super noisy, not really that quick, and in fact I would wager they are not as fast as a few 200 TWR tires.

It has not been a loved design and years back the R888 was actually the Spec Tire for World Challenge and Pro Spec Miata. After one year, after tons of driver complaints , it's one year reign as a Spec Series Tire ended in ignominiously.

 

[Scootsmcgreggor]

No love for the Toyo RR?
I think this tire gets easily forgotten. The racers don't like it cause it's comparatively slow and HPDE guys ignore it cause it's not a street tire but hot damn the RR is the best for learning! I would say similar grip and speed to the SC3 (maybe a little slower) but extremely consistent throughout its entire life and probably the cheapest track tire out there at least in a 295/30/19.

And to those of you saying "but I can't drive it on the street to the track"...you shouldn't be wasting your expensive track tires on street miles anyway. You can fit 4 wheels/tires, a jack, and stands in the car.

4 in the car with a roll bar? At best I can figure out how to get 3 in, and that’s without a passenger seat. 1 in the back and two where the passenger seat would be.

 

[concretevol]

Ewheels is quite correct , the RRs are solid for what they are designed for , a Spec Tire for racing at a fair price with good endurance. Not as fast as a Hoosier for example , but they wear a lot longer and they are much better than the R888r. Never a fan of the R888 or R888r as they are super noisy, not really that quick, and in fact I would wager they are not as fast as a few 200 TWR tires.

It has not been a loved design and years back the R888 was actually the Spec Tire for World Challenge and Pro Spec Miata. After one year, after tons of driver complaints , it's one year reign as a Spec Series Tire ended in ignominiously.

Yep and the RR price point is waaay better than the Hoosiers, that's for sure. I don't like the R888's either, was considering the R888R's after a track recommendation but I want track dedicated tires anyway so the RR's sound better for me regardless. Only issue is they don't come in a 305, only a 295. The difference in grip will probably be negligible anyway.

 

[biggsy]

I just pray the RRs stay at that price point on the 295s lol. One of the benefits of the SC3 last year was that it was a great deal around $330/tire give or take a few dollars depending on the seller. The hike in price to over $400/ tire made it a hard sell for me this year to continue learning on them.

Shoutout to @Ewheels for posting about a few months ago. Going to the shop tomorrow to place my order.

 

[Bill Pemberton]

The price has been down on the 295s for over a year when I and others posted that they were a buy, but rumor is they are getting low on inventory so time to jump.

Luke at TireRack can give you an idea on build dates on them, if the shortage is real or just a rumor , he posts on here on occasion and tell him you are on TMO to get the small monetary benefit for the site.

800 -428-8355 ext. 4362 for Luke Pavlik

 

[Ewheels]

4 in the car with a roll bar? At best I can figure out how to get 3 in, and that’s without a passenger seat. 1 in the back and two where the passenger seat would be.

Not with a roll bar, but that's what this is for

 

[SMGDHG]

In my s197, I can quite easily fit 4 18x11's w/a roll bar if I have the passenger seat removed. I can also fit a full size jack, tools, cooler racing gear, etc.

Tire trailer is a logistical issue imo. What happens if you break down at track and need a tow? I'm not aware of a tow truck which can fit a full size car and it's trailer.

 

[biggsy]

In my s197, I can quite easily fit 4 18x11's w/a roll bar if I have the passenger seat removed. I can also fit a full size jack, tools, cooler racing gear, etc.

Tire trailer is a logistical issue imo. What happens if you break down at track and need a tow? I'm not aware of a tow truck which can fit a full size car and it's trailer.

I know it may be tedious but can’t you just take the trailer apart ? Nobody will be riding in car anyways so everything should fit.

 

[Ewheels]

In my s197, I can quite easily fit 4 18x11's w/a roll bar if I have the passenger seat removed. I can also fit a full size jack, tools, cooler racing gear, etc.

Tire trailer is a logistical issue imo. What happens if you break down at track and need a tow? I'm not aware of a tow truck which can fit a full size car and it's trailer.

I'll have to try this...
Is it 1 in trunk and 3 in passenger area?

 

[Mad Hatter]

You can fit two in the trunk up to 295's (really 2.5 since the rear seat is out and half a tire can fit fine).. After that its three in the cabin and on in the trunk with everything else (maybe with 305's?). Once got five 315/30-18's in but it was a struggle... and I was a little bit younger.

 

[TennTex]

How would uou compare the RRs to the R888Rs grip, speed, and wear wise?

Wow, a lot of comments added in the 23 hours since you asked me this question!

I'm probably still too new to the RR's to comment a lot (1 weekend), but I did set new PB's both days on them - could be the "new" though. I felt the R888R's were similar or slightly better than the NT-01's, and I believe the RR's are a notch better still. Also, these have ~4/32" tread vs. ~7/32" on the other two, but hoping lesser tread movement and wear offsets the lack of pure depth. I noted the Grassroots Motorsports table for these 3 Toyo tires seems to make sense, with the bottom line that the RR's are just a bit faster (B+ rating over B).

I have a buddy that runs RR's and Hoosier R7's on his supercharged Miata, and he says he can get times just under the Hoosiers on them. For my HDPE use, I'm looking for the sweet spot with speed, cost, and wear, and hope these strike the balance!

 

[concretevol]

Wow, a lot of comments added in the 23 hours since you asked me this question!

I'm probably still too new to the RR's to comment a lot (1 weekend), but I did set new PB's both days on them - could be the "new" though. I felt the R888R's were similar or slightly better than the NT-01's, and I believe the RR's are a notch better still. Also, these have ~4/32" tread vs. ~7/32" on the other two, but hoping lesser tread movement and wear offsets the lack of pure depth. I noted the Grassroots Motorsports table for these 3 Toyo tires seems to make sense, with the bottom line that the RR's are just a bit faster (B+ rating over B).

I have a buddy that runs RR's and Hoosier R7's on his supercharged Miata, and he says he can get times just under the Hoosiers on them. For my HDPE use, I'm looking for the sweet spot with speed, cost, and wear, and hope these strike the balance!

Yessir thanks, that's exactly the description I was looking for

 

[SMGDHG]

I'll have to try this...
Is it 1 in trunk and 3 in passenger area?

For s197 at least:

I have two in the passenger seat area and two in the trunk.

For the passenger seat area, the trick is to have one wheel fore/aft (the contact patch of the tire is up against the glovebox). The other wheel is oriented left/right and basically gets wedged between the rollbar, center console and the other wheel.

For the trunk, the trick is you need to undo the truck latch. On my car, it's two 8mm bolts. Once you undo the latch:

Place one wheel in the spare tire area
put the trunk "floor" on top of the wheel
place the other wheel on top of the other wheel

It is a process no doubt, and it has to be done in certain sequences. For example, once you have the passenger compartment tires in place, you can't really access the rear seat area of the car.

I am fairly confident this loading scheme would work for 19x11 315 wheels too, but can confirm it works with 18x11 315mm wheels no problem.

I don't really have any good pics sadly but I can get you some in a couple of weeks if it is confusing.

Also, I have a full containment seat. There is quite a bit of danger involved in having the wheels in the passenger compartment area if you get t-boned and don't have a containment seat. A 40+lb object flying into the side of your skull would not be a good thing.... Just looking out for the bros

 

[SMGDHG]

Also, I now have 2 events on my continental ECF's and have been extremely happy with them. I think they offer better performance than NT01 and should last quite a bit longer too. I will be running buttonwillow in a couple weeks and will gather my final thoughts on the tires after that event, but so far they are great. Will likely post my findings here.

Just to add more confusion to the tire mix

 

[ChipG]

Hey all, next round time! Lack of tire availability is a real issue.

Has anybody successfully run 325s in front on the track? I have 11.5" ET56 wheels on 35mm spacers, BMR springs, and will be running about 3* camber. There are some tire models that have no 315 option so I'm looking at 305 or 325.

Options:

Goodyear Eagle F1 SuperCar 3 - 325/30r19. There are no 305s to be found, but I can locate 325s if they'll fit. I can get USAA discount of 25%, so quite attractive if they'll work.

Nankang AR-1 - trying to get a response from Phil's if they have 305s or 325s in stock.

Pilot SC2s - 315/30r19. Easily available, default option.

These are in order of preference - I would love to hear from those who have run 325s in front.