dannyb

Hey guys,

After 5 years I've finally made the decision to make the switch to a Hoosier.

Any advice? I read the Hoosier R7/A7 pdf about tire care and safety. Curious if any of you R7 veterans have any tips (on track, tire pressures, on the street, etc)!

Thanks in advance gents!

usctrojanGT3

The first sniff will get you. Start your cold pressures at 28ish and shoot for 37-38 hot. Go easy the first 2 laps or so until they warm up. They are magical the first 8 HCs or so then slowly fade.

dannyb

Thanks for the insight!

Haha yeah I'm excited. Decided to spruce up my 997.2 GT3 now that I've been tracking my 991 GT3RS

How many track days do you think are realistic to get out of a set? Similar to a MPSC2?

johnwb

I used to get about 13 heat cycles out of Hoosier R6. This last season I got about 18 out of the new R7.
But I'm in MN and spring and fall events have lower track temps.

You can get more if you're not worried about declining grip and falling lap times.

As usctrojanGT3 suggested they are addictive. You'll never go back to MPSC2.

I don't drive them on the street other than to go 3 miles to my hotel when I'm at the track. If it's raining I leave it at the track and get a ride.

I agree with usctrojanGT3 on pressures. That has worked well for me.
I think Hoosier suggests as high as 40 with a 3,000 pound car.

Have fun!

Tom@TPC Racing

In my opinion the first 3 heat cycles I feel like superman. Then 4-8 is around 90% as good. 9-12 grip falls off some more but still just a tad better than say Nt01's. 13-20 is still okay but driver need to adjust to reduced grip (and perfectly fine driving in a HPDE in traffic where slower cars/drivers won't gave a pass. ). Also keep in mind that how the tires hold up to the heat cycles is relative to vehicle setup.

In regard to tire pressure I have experienced the best grip at 32/34psi but the tire manufacturer recommends closer to 40psi for a 3000+ lb rear engine car, I think for tire wall durability reason. Its a trade off between grip and durability, driver decides which to favor or just split the difference. At track swith high speed + high banking angle such as Watkins Glen or Daytona I'd run the higher pressure.

dannyb

Thanks guys!

DC640

the sniff is wonderful... like everyone says here, you will never want to drive on street tires. Enjoy it!!

Spyerx

Here's my advice despite the drug dealers here.

DON'T DO IT. The eternal chase for lap times is just a matter of faster this and that.

BUT, are you maxing out the NT01? Have you had a pro drive your car for a baseline? If you're close Ok, go for it.

Just be prepared for changing tires every ~10 runs because they fall off.

thekid96

Plus it's fun to stalk all the other GT cars that are running hoosiers, then they realize you're on street tires...like all last weekend.

powdrhound

This^^ I burn up a set of NT01s in 12 sessions. What could I realistically get out of R7s? Half that?

997rs4.0

I agree with this^

Just putting on new set of Nittos for next weekend. Can't remember how many sets I've gone thru.

I don't do this for a living. (Luckily) still a couple of seconds slower than the real fast drivers.
Sure, I would be faster with Hohos. But, I love doing this as a hobby and is obviously still not getting everything out of the Nittos.

Rather drive more than spend more on a faster tire and get less out of it.

FJSeattle

The actual amount of time and money from being out on the track is minimal. Trailer, storage, fuel, time off....that is where the money gets allocated.

So if you want to maximize your fun, go hoosiers. Its just another minor cost of doing business.

15-20 heat cycles on Hoosiers. So that means usually 2 to 2.5 days depending on track familiarity. Once you go Hoo Hoos you never go back. :-)

VID997

15-20 HC's....Are you kidding me...!!!!...you're not driving hard enough!!!! ; ) I have to sit out two or three sessions on a two day weekend just to make sure I have enough tire left for the main on Sunday. I typically see 8 HC's, every once in a blue moon, I see 10-12, but that requires flipping the tires on the rims, insides to outsides, and minimizing quali laps to 2-3 max.

As FJ said, "once you go Hoo Hoos you never go back"

(sidebar: FJ & I know each other, therefore, I'm not being a jerk....just giving a buddy a hard time while armchair racing).

Hoo Hoos are fun....they just increase your operating costs. To sum things up, my season is dictated by my rubber expense. I look at the events I'd like to run and then calculate the rubber needed to do so, then I have to adjust the number of events accordingly to what I can stomach.

R7 burn rate is approximately $225-275+ per session (HC).

etchhead

I'm with Spyerx and may just stick with NTs this year especially with new2me car for the first few events.

mooty

time off? you work?

20HC, lmao. is you or PJ driving? my are done at 4, and no longer ok at 8 and after 8, my hands get really busy catching her ***.