I am going to start driving in DEs this Spring, and I currently have crappy tires. I will need to replace them just to pass tech, so I am wondering what kind to get.

Any recomendations? I want them to last all season, be street legal, and have decent performance. I hope to do around 8 DEs total. The car will be a 944S with turbo S koni shocks/struts, welt swaybars, and probably 400# springs and matching torsion bars.

Thanks for any help.

 

I like the Kuhmo MXs for DE, they handle the heat without a problem like some of the other tires.

 

i have some ES100's and i love them. They did great on the 914 also. I had some Kuhmo supras on a set of d90's on erins 924s, pete hated them but i thought they handled great! Lasted awhile too.

 

8 days or 8 weekends?

Be aware that heat-cycling the tires (any tire) makes them hard. If you DE your street tires thay'll become dangerous in cool temps or in rain.

I've run my Yoko ES100s on the track a few times (like 3 days total) and they're now really slick below 60F. Add some water and it's really dangerous.

It's $$$ but having track wheels and tires is a good investment. Put some Kumho Victoracers on 7x16 phone dials (or other "cast off" Porsche wheels) and you'll have more traction at the track and save those street tires.

 

Agree. Victoracers tend to stay soft for quite a while too, even through lots of heat cycling. It will be $$, but DE is $$.

 

I agree with GlenL ... seriously consider getting another set of wheels / tires for track. I did my first DE this past October on my street tires (Potenza RE730). Two days and the tires are rock hard now. My tires were torn up pretty good also ... the rears had tread peeling off by the 2nd track day.

I drove the car to work this morning and got on the gas coming out of a corner ... when the boost hit the rear wheels had 0 traction (surprised the hell out of me. not at all normal). It was about 38 degrees outside at the time.

If you shop around you can pick up a set of 16x8 phonedials pretty cheap. I have seen several full sets for around $400 or so recently. I paid a bit more for my track wheels with tires (4 16x8 phonedials w/ hoosiers). I can not wait until the 1st event this year!

 

If you are using 15" rims, Firestone has great prices on the SO-3's which I found to be a fantastic handling tire on the track and around town. The only downside is ride quality due to the sidewall stiffness. Wet handling is also very good. If you want a great ride you will sacrifice track performance and turn in quickness. The Goodyear Eagle F-1 GDS is probably the best tire I have used for stickiness with great ride comfort. I have finally moved to R-compound tires for 2006. Khumo Victoracers are DOT so you can drive them to and from the track. Just make sure its not raining..........Still running hard at 58!!!!

 

Victoracers are good for track, but terrible for street (huge hydroplaning in the wet), and wear out fast. Better to go with Toyo RA-1 shaved vs. Victoracers. Both are crappy for street ( Again: hydroplane issues). You can get the RA-1 unshaven, too. But with full tread, they "swim" a little on the big tracks and when they "break loose" it's BIG!!!!

I'd recommend Falcon Azenis Sport tires. I got a solid season of street, A-X, and DE/big track wear out of mine. Very good street tires. Handles heat cycling very well, and really good stick on the tracks ... not as good as the RA-1's but very good competition stick. The cost for "stock" sizes is around $350 to $450 depending on the shop. The bummer: not much in size options. If you have 15" rims: you'll be lucky to find anything over 205/50/R15: 16" rims = 215/50/R16 and 17" rims = 225/45/R17. So, sizing is the issue. (FYI: I have 17" rims, and ran 225/45/R17's for one complete year .... on 1 set of tires).

The Kuhmo MX is a really nice tire, too. Good for all the same reason's as Azenis, but a little less stick. Both Azenis and MX's are very well priced for your needs.

My 2-cents.

 

hes got a turbo so he'll be looking for 16" or better. Pick up a set of wheels-cant tell youwhat kind cuz you dont have a model/ year for your car in your sig- and get some victo's. I have two sets one for autox and one for DE.

 

Michelin Pilot Sport Cups...DOT-R tire which will last you an entire season.

Jason

 

15x7 wheels, then toss on some Toyo Proxes RA/1 in the 225/50/15. It's the tire used in 944spec racing. they're great. sticky as hell.

 

Thanks for the responses. I think I am going with Kumho v-700s that a rennlister has offered to me (new) for a fair price. They will be put on dedicated track wheels, I want to keep some amount of traction in the rain, so it sounds best.

 

I'm pretty much facing the same sort of decision. Browsing around tirerack.com, I found the review on the Michelin Pilot SX MXX3 as highly rated for my expected use.

I'm asking if anyone has run on these tires, and how did they perform? Are the tires a good value for the money?