Bill Pemberton
0ld Ford Automotive Racing Terror
My son and I just finished running the 2019 version of the " Worlds Largest Automotive Driver Participant Event," with over 1375 other autocross crazies right here, smack dab in the middle of the Country. I had mentioned to a few folks on here that the Yokohama A052 might be the new trick tire for the track, especially since the company revamped the tire. Yet, we have seen some rapid wear on Yokes with a couple of local drivers who had just switched to them - there is an advantage of living only about 60 miles from the Championship site! Since the Nebraska Region of the SCCA is the host of the event , and this is our Region's regular site, we do have a tendency to be able to stay up on tire technology and change. Luckily my work assignment was checking cars for proper Decal presentation and clarifying whether the tires used matched the contingency sponsor's shown on each racer. The majority of the drivers were running Bridgestones, Yokohamas, and BFGs, not necessarily in that order, for the Street Tire Classes. I would have to say that for the majority of you a set of RE71Rs or BFG Rivals should be your choice, as the Yokohamas wear at a stunningly quick rate and would only be for the individual wanting two or three quick laps at a Time Trial - or one who has unlimited funds. Good example were two friends , one whose tires were shot after 30 runs on the Yokes and the other driver who only made it to 20 --- we are talking autocross runs not track sessions. Mark Daddio ran the fastest raw times of BS ( B Street) in his bone stock GT 350 , losing by .07 seconds, due to a cone penalty. He was on BFG Rival S tires and the wear looked great. No surprise, as the friends I have running the BFGs like the feel and they seem to wear longer on a road course than the Bridgestones --- they also take a bit longer to get greasy. Couple of Region members had switched to Yokes on their Miatas and they are going back to the BFGs ,as the tires got too slimy on Thursday by their third run. It was in the mid 90s on Thursday, but it only hit a high of 82 on Friday. Overall, canvassing the paddock , if you were running a bigger car in the Street Class or in CAM classes the choice seemed to be either BFG or Bridgestones, and it appeared to me the pony cars moved more towards the Rivals ( Both Rival S and Rival S 1.5 ).
Many on here have run the gamut of 200 Treadwear rubber, and my conclusion , if being at the top is your game, the BFGs or RE71Rs are the way to go. Sure there are some others that are decent , but these seem to be the two top contenders and in talking to Peter Calhoun at BFG he said that the requests for larger 18 and 19 sizes are pouring in to his company. I can tell everyone , from years of experience , the advantage often seen with BFG is quick turn around and fast improvement on sizing, due to them being built right here in the US. More often than some would expect the Japanese companies can run out of supplies and distance delays upgrades. With the wacky tariff situation , tires will likely get more expensive if shipped over and with the strong dollar US tire companies are often dramatically less -- BFGs are over 200 less than the Bridgestones in many sizes. Don't believe me , check the link to Tire Rack on our site and remember to order through said link to help out TMO.
Lastly, the other solid option are the Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2s. This may not be the tire for auto crossing, but it is a solid, solid tire for a road course and as Black Boss has noted in some of his threads and also what I have noticed when I was running them, is depending on the track and temperature these black air filled conveyances can run dead even with Hoosiers ---especially if it is a hot day!!! They are priced right and a squared set up works great, plus it gives you the highway/street driving ability you just don't want with Hoosiers, etc.
Many on here have run the gamut of 200 Treadwear rubber, and my conclusion , if being at the top is your game, the BFGs or RE71Rs are the way to go. Sure there are some others that are decent , but these seem to be the two top contenders and in talking to Peter Calhoun at BFG he said that the requests for larger 18 and 19 sizes are pouring in to his company. I can tell everyone , from years of experience , the advantage often seen with BFG is quick turn around and fast improvement on sizing, due to them being built right here in the US. More often than some would expect the Japanese companies can run out of supplies and distance delays upgrades. With the wacky tariff situation , tires will likely get more expensive if shipped over and with the strong dollar US tire companies are often dramatically less -- BFGs are over 200 less than the Bridgestones in many sizes. Don't believe me , check the link to Tire Rack on our site and remember to order through said link to help out TMO.
Lastly, the other solid option are the Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2s. This may not be the tire for auto crossing, but it is a solid, solid tire for a road course and as Black Boss has noted in some of his threads and also what I have noticed when I was running them, is depending on the track and temperature these black air filled conveyances can run dead even with Hoosiers ---especially if it is a hot day!!! They are priced right and a squared set up works great, plus it gives you the highway/street driving ability you just don't want with Hoosiers, etc.
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