csmarx, since you do not swap street and track tires out with separate set of wheels I highly suggest you just use 245/305 MPSS. Any R- Compound tire will quickly heat cycle out with street use and you will not get the advantage of a R-Comp tire.

Also seems like Trofeo has a stiff bead but soft sidewall and rolls over unless you are at -3 or more degrees of camber. The low tire pressures needed compound this issue.

Toyo R888 has a stiff sidewall and has a crisp turn in, only requires around -2 to -2.5max of front camber, costs a lot less and seems to wear better than Torfeo and other current model tires except the Nitto NT01 which really doesn't come in proper 997 car sizes.

 

Thank you for the advice. I'm definitely considering the MPSS's as an alternative to a true R comp. I'm also considering the RS3's.

Could you tell me why you are specifically suggesting 245/305 vs. stock 235/305?

Of course, I'd rather have a true R tire, and when I used the MPSC race spec on the 996 GT3, I didn't seem to have that much trouble with them heat cycling with highway use. They even seemed to wear pretty well. For the 997 the R comp choices seem to be more heat cycle sensitive, wear out faster, and be more expensive.

-Christian

 

Ran Trofeo R's at VIR last week. Sunny day, 60 degrees max. Perfect weather. Have run at VIR many times on MPSC - personal best time of 2:08. Second session on the R's - 2:05. Not just once either, consistently lapping at 2:05 and 2:06. Ran another session in the afternoon, this time with a passenger in the car - consistent 2:05's again. Stunned...(all timing via my racekeeper system). Know I have more time to make up, looking at the data and video.

They have a ton more grip than the cups, no question. I could lean on the car much more with the R's, especially turn 1, 3 the snake, hogs pen etc. Stable under braking as well. Real revelation was the increased confidence they gave me, uphill esses were taken much much faster again as I felt I could really lean on the car.

No degredation during each session, if anything they got better each cycle.

29-30 psi all around. Did notice them start to drop grip if I got up to 31 or 32psi. Keep em at 29 and they were perfect.

Running RSS stage II suspension with -2.5 camber up front.

All in all, I am totally sold. So much more enjoyable to drive at VIR than the cups Ive run for nearly 3 years. They were about $400 cheaper as well.

 

^My experience as well. Any amt over 30 pounds and you feel it!

 

Sure...more front grip. I ran MPSC 235/305 and had under steer especially coming out of corners. I put on some 245 MPSC for the front and that helped a lot.

 

Looking great! I did a day on them and then a day on the Toyos at VIR north course. No comparison. Trofeos kicked ***!

 

HNY.


Thought I would share that I am on second set of Trofeo Rs and really like them.

Should be able to get 4 Laguna days out of this set....cost has recently made me pause and reflect - after tax, shipping, balancing, mounting looking at 2200.00 or thereabouts.

Thats 550.00/day or 110.00/session (5 session per day at 25 min each). Each lap cost is about $8.00 if I am pulling roughly a 1:45 - 1:50/lap.

However, unaware of other tires that stick so well and work as well.......

Regards,

UJ

 

Since this thread came back from the dead I'll take the opportunity to clear the last of my GT3 garage stuff and offer up a pair of new Trofeo (not R) 325/30-19" including CONUS shipping for $1000. These are GT3RS/GT2RS/GT3RS 4.0 OE exact size.

Email Pete@Trackrat.com

 

I'm running -2.5 in the rears on Trofeo Rs. Conventional Internet wisdom suggests this is right (i.e., what others are saying) but visual suggests I need more negative camber. This is after 1-1/2 days of lapping. I run tire pressures at 29-30, w/ temp profile ranging from 175-210. Thoughts?

 

I am on my 3rd set running -2.5, and the innermost block is typically not as worn as rest of the tire. Pirelli suggests up to -3 all around.

Since I also drive on the street a fair amount, -2.5 seems like a good compromise in my experience thus far.

Some food for thought.

 

I haven't run the Trofeo, but my limited knowledge on this subject and per literature on a different tire says that you want your tread temperature spread to be within 25°F, so with your 35°F spread, some suspension adjustement would better optimize your setup. Is the tread temperature 175°F on the inside of the tire? If so, then I would think increasing the negative camber would even out your temperature distribution.

 

Does anyone have any experience on temperature range on the Trofeo Rs? From the sound of things it is more sensitive to pressure rather than temperature? Many track days in my part of the world only have 5-6 hot laps, so building temperature up is a problem on those days.

Any info on effective spring rates the tyres like to operate in?

 

They're at 90% grip on the 2nd flying lap. If anything these tires tend to have an overheating problem for hotter climates, rather than not coming up to temp.

Spring rates are a different conversation... and frankly because of your post count I'm tempted to be skeptical rather than constructive... who's nuanced enough about spring rates (and have the wherewithal to change them at will) for DE's and yet bother running around on Trofeos? Just don't compute for me, sorry.

Then it's also possible that my response belies my utter lack of knowledge on said topic.

 

For some reason I find this photo very 'attractive"

I have stared at it a few times...find a lot of interest

 

what is heat cycle?

I was unhappy with Corsa in daily driving but they are amazing in track, now I have PS2 and I have the opposite feeling, happy in DD but not in track.