mikymu

OMG ... I am glad I did this post and found more info on the R888. I heard some similar feedback on the R888 - how they don't perform as well as RA1 but I did not know they get greasy and overheat fast

Thanks mooty for the PM. I am on the fence now trying to decide if I should pull the trigger on these "older" new RA1's. I almost want to get it just to see what they are about. I looked at my NT01 that I corded and they were made in 2007 - they did well enough on the track and I like them right before it's dead

Now HC or heat cycle. I had to look up the term to learn what it means. From what I can gather, when a tire is HC out it means the tire does not grip well due to change in it's chemical composition eventhough it has plenty of tread left. Where as the RA1 do not HC out but reach the end of it's useful life cycle after it's cored much like my NT01 below

TRAKCAR

+1 on the R888 sucks. Love the RA1's ran them since forever and will go back to them once they are made in right size and sold again.

For now I am on Hoosiers and pending Erik's finding on the Nitto NT-01's will go to those.

RonCT

I never have others heat cycle my tires, though with RA1s you do need to get them shaved. When they are on the car for the first time, I heat cycle them by bedding in the pads (which gets enough heat into the tires to HC them). So, 2 days before my 1st track event on a new set of tires, I do my bedding in process, which also HC the tires. Then they sit for 48 hours, allowing the tire compound molecules to re-align as they cool. See I have to HC anyway to bed in the pads, so why not do that 1st HC myself vs. paying for it and then "losing" 1 HC of the tire's life?

speedoflight

let me know if any of you gt3 guys want to get rid of your sucky r888s. i'll take them off your hands for free as long as i can get at least 4 track days with them.

mdrums

Yep me too...never really thought R888 sucked...they worked perfectly for me at DE's drive to the from the track as well.

mikymu

Thanks for the great HC suggestion. I had to bed my brakes any way. Will give more feedback once I get my RA1

I have a set of Yokohama A048 you can have. They have the same tread pattern as R888 but 20X louder on the road LOL

Hey Joe, You seem to do well with R888 on the track - very fast too. Have you experience some of the same problem as mentioned above. Did you heat cycle out your R888 already ... maybe that is why you had difficulty going faster than 1:31 at Laguna

batmanm3

I believe the Nittos NT-01 are the same compound as the Toyo RA-1, just a different pattern.
I love my RA-1 (275/35/18) square on my M3...just as the others have said...consistent, long lasting and pretty quick tire with no quirky care issues. Great tire if you need to drive to the track...can't do that on Hoosiers. I've used them and they are slightly faster, but price and lack of longevity along with the fact that you need to either change wheels or trailer makes them demotes them on my list.