67383wagon

2012 911 Turbo
So I've ran 3 DE weekends and I'm hooked bad. My first 2 events I ran my stock Pirelli's 200's and then picked up a spare tire wheel combo with Bridgestones 140's. The softer Bridgestones seemed to make a real difference. Now I'm ready for a set of track tires but I'm having a hard time finding/figuring out what to get. Tirerack has some Dunlops on clearance that are an 80 compound and $1,073 for a set of 4.

What don't I know?
Am I paying too much attention to the compound rating?
What are you guys running?
What do you recommend?
Where do I get them? (I'm in Ohio)

Thank you
Jason

Thundermoose

Stay with harder compound for the time being

67383wagon

Why is that?

Frank 993 C4S

Better learning experience and less tire wear.

67383wagon

Ok thank you, so what do you recommend?

Sir5n

Run the tires you have and feel them get loose. Move on after you're comfortable with slipping and sliding around.

Have fun and stay safe.

dgrobs

This

rlm328

Buy a Miata it is much cheaper to learn in. After about 4 sets of tires you will have paid for it.

David993S

Congrats on getting hooked. A 2012 Turbo will provide a lot of fun and speed. However I concur with the advice given so far. Stickier tires would be an unnecessary expense at this point. After only 3 DEs you're just starting up the learning curve. Be patient and maybe get an experienced instructor drive your car instead of just riding along. It will show you how much performance is in your car and how much you have to learn.

hf1

Better to learn how to approach and overshoot the grip limit (then correct for that) on low-grip tires. Speeds and stakes get higher with higher grip. You'll spend a lot of money on tires and not learn anything if you keep getting grippier tires and never bring them over 80% of their grip potential. Sure, you'll be "faster" but that's not the kind of fast you want.

As your skill and speed improve you will also need to invest in proper safety (buckets, harness, hans, half-cage) before you move onto high-grip tires, at which point you should consider getting a dedicated race/track car. High HP and high grip without sufficient skill and safety is a disaster waiting to happen.

CCA

This!!

Steve113

All of the above. The learning curve is steep enough with what you have don't make it steeper by going faster with tires. You will learn much more without.

Use the money saved on tires and get a good coach. Nothing is a better investment then that .

67383wagon

I appreciate all of the consistent feedback. I do not have an ego nor do I think I'm that good. With that being said I feel the need to explain myself better. My first DE event at Mid Ohio I ran my factory Pirelli's (200's) and on day 2 they bumped me up a class. My second DE at Pitt same thing. I then picked up a used set of wheels with some worn Bridgestone (140's). At my third event at Mid Ohio I had the pro driver drive my car with me shotgun. This was a major eye opener to not only what the car could do but more so the driver could do with the car. He then adjusted me tire pressure and got them stable. What a difference! My next session I was approx. 7 seconds faster and gave me some false confidence. The next session the pro driver to one of the track cars out and followed me for a couple of laps. Then passed me and I followed him for a couple of laps. Afterwards the pro driver said I did amazing because he was trying to lose me in the turns but could not. So I then asked "what should my next set of tires should be, slicks?" he said " absolutely not, you need to refine your skills on some streetable track tires with a R compound around 100 first"
So this was the back story of my original post and me realizing I probably should not have used the term "track" tires but rather high performance street tires.
Which led me to look at the Pirelli Corsa's (100) or the $500 cheaper Dunlop (80)
Hope this helps, I sincerely appreciate the input

Frank 993 C4S

Good to know the background. Consider upgrading your safety equipment too.

certz

You are getting lots of good input here. One thing to note, the wear rating is only comparable across a particular manufacturers tire line and not across different manufactures. The pirelli 100 cannot be compared to the Dunlop 80 directly.