Gimmick or useful?

Discuss.

 

Worthless.

 

I've been told by too many people ( both racers and tire company people) and reading in magazines that the only way to properly heat cycle a tire is on the car....slowly get it up to temp in 4-6 laps and then let it sit for 48hrs or longer.

 

Has anyone actually tried it?

 

I have on Hankook Z214's. Tires do last marginally longer, maybe an extra 2 cycles.

 

The margin of error is so wide that 2 extra cycles could be the result of different usage and ambient conditions. Another strike against heat cycling then.

p.s. what do the pro race teams do? I don't seem to hear or read about pre-heat-cycling tires in any race series...

 

Agreed on first point.

On second point, some teams will always keep a set of scrubs around...however, when it REALLY matters, stickers go on. Read into that what you want....

 

Tried with Tirerack heat cycle and without...There was no difference

 

Tirerack's west coast warehouse is in Sparks, Nevada about 45 minutes away from me so I have the luxury of being able to drive over there and pick up my tires. When I ran R6's I always had them HC'ed and was curious as you all are and asked to see how it worked, and I arranged for the warehouse manager to give me the tour.

They have various sets of wheels to which they mount the tires to be HC'ed, then attach the wheel to a machine with an electric motor to drive the wheel, while rollers press on the tread to load up the tire. They spin the tire up and use a pyrometer to determine when the tire comes up to temp. Once it does, they shut down the machine and dismount the tire and prepare for shipping.

Seemed to me to be practical and effective solution to accomplishing the initial (critical) HC which chemically alters the tread for its remaining lifetime. If you respect the performance and reputation of a Hoosier why would you not defer to their "Owners Manual" as well?

From Hoosier (http://www.hoosiertire.com/rrtire.htm):

"Tire Break-In Procedure
Proper break-in will not affect initial performance but will increase the competitive life of the tire.

The procedure can be broken down into phases.

1st phase: The initial run
2nd phase: The length of the time the tire is allowed to "cure"

The Initial Run Heat Cycle

R6 Roadrace

The first laps for the tire are critical for setting up the durability and competitive life. The first session should consist of no more than 10-15 minutes of running. The early part of the session should be run at an easy pace, with the speed gradually increased until the end of the session. The final lap should be run at the fastest possible speed. The intent is to achieve maximum tire temp on the last lap. At this point the car should be brought in and the tires allowed to cool at a normal rate. "Cure" Time
After completing the initial run phase, the length of time the tire is allowed to set is possibly more important. The barest minimum for this process to be beneficial is 24 hours. (Not "the next day"). Any less than this is a waste of time. The best situation would allow a week before using the tire again.

Proper tire management is a difficult process. To accomplish this almost always requires a second set of wheels. The payoff is greatly increased competitive tire life.

Following the recommended break-in procedure will require a lot of planning to make it work. The benefits to doing it right include greatly increased tire life as well as consistent performance and durability under stress. Please make an effort to educate your team on the importance of this. It can save you a lot of money."

 

I have done both (tr hc and no heat cycle) and noticed no difference in longevity or performance through out the life of the tires

That is not to say that I do not believe them but in my experience the lab results are not translating to actual use

 

Gizmo, total waste, selling smoke, let me cash on people's ignorance.

 

All good info. Thanks for the feedback. Going to try it myself this time. I have two brand new sets of hoosiers coming. One HC'd and one not.


I'll log it and see what happens.

 

Ok.....science, I like it! Excellent!

One important suggestion: When you do your 4 to 6 lap srub-in on your "virgin" set be sure to let them cure off the car for 48 hours to one week. In fact take them right off the car at the track hot and load them into your cool little trailer, this way there is no load on the tires when they are curing and the new chemical bonds will form without being disturbed......black magic I know! I my experience (and Mad Scientist experiments) have shown that tires will last 2 to 4 extra heat cylces by scubbing in "manually". But they must cure off the car.

Unfortunately, I haven't been able to do this on my GT3, though, as I drive to the track with my track rubber installed.....hmmm, maybe I should get me a wee trailer too!

Go for it Doctor DD!

Cheers!
Doug N.

 

I really liked what the guy did comparing turbo intercoolers - mounted one of each for comparison on each side of the car. That way they are subjected to EXACTLY the same conditions for measuring performance. Since the heat-cycle discussion is about life, not grip - why not mount HC tires on the right, non-HC on the left. Which side cords (or loses grip) first?

(I love science when it is based on someone else's time, money and hard work.....)

 

The only way I could do that would be to either run the super sports on the stock wheels for the rest of the day or invest in a second set of wheels and more hoosiers I may try it. The supersports are slower but still a fun tire.

I think it would be really difficult to determine which tire specifically is letting go. I like your concept but I don't think I have the "***" for it to read what each tire is doing individually. I think I would prefer to run one set using the TR method, and a second set using Hoosiers instructions and see what happens.

While Hoosier has specifically told me that I will almost double the HC's (this is all about chemical grip) if we follow their break in instructions, I've never asked them their opinion on the TR machine. There seems to be a consensus that they need to be broken in and given time to cure to get more life. However, does the TR machine accomplish the same thing as actually going out and doing laps? I know when I ask Bob Woodman about it they said it was a gimmick and that the only true way to do it is on the car. Then again, they are a competitor who doesn't have the machine