So, who can even GET tires right now?? The AR's don't come in sizes I can use on my 911 (I hear good things from them from the folks running them at the track this season. Was going to give them a try). Nitto is back ordered until December 31! Just found out today that the A052 is "discontinued" which is new news (can any one confirm that?), and as I roll through the list of likely alternatives, no sizes, and none is stock! Yikes! Is anyone actually BUYING tires successfully right now? I was going to do another event to close out the season, but cant do it on roasted Nitto's. Dang. ;-(

FYI: my Discount Tire peeps let me back-order the Nitto's (went for 2 sets just in case this is a new "thing"). Where can one buy track tires right now?

 

At the risk of being laughed off of Rennlist, I'm wondering how the AR-1s might do in the rain or wet. While I don't normally drive on track in the wet, I do drive to/from the track in the Northeast... I've found Cup2s and RE-71s (when they were available) to be fine on the highway in the rain, but the AR-1's tread pattern doesn't look too promising.

 

Ask me. I'm very familiar with the AR-1 and CR-1/CR-S.

 

Thoughts on AR-1 vs CR-1/CR-S?

 

The AR-1 is a little easier drive/learn, more forgiving. Very good in the brake zone, fast the first few laps, then very consistent thereafter. They come up to temperature quickly. The CR-1 maybe just little harder to figure out, but when you do, the lateral grip is amazing. As good or better than a Yoko AO52. Both need a good setup to last and work well. The CR-1 likes a little higher hot pressure than the AR-1 generally. Tire pyrometers are your friend. Both need negative camber to take advantage of the better handling they can offer. Neither tire is plug and play, but like I said initially, the AR-1 can be more forgiving. The more data you record, the easier it will be to repeat and or adjust for different tracks and driving conditions. One very important point - both the AR-1 and CR-1/CR-S benefit greatly from an initial heat cycle, not a full blown session, but a gradual break in heat cycle. After the break in cycle, both tires will perform much better (usually the next day).

 

I've driven them in pretty heavy rain around Houston, both street and highway. It's not awesome, but wasn't catastrophic by any stretch. Sketchier than MPSC2's, for sure, but do-able if needed.

 

Shout out H-Town.

I normally load my track tires into a separate trailer and never drive them on the street. I have a set of Nankangs arriving later this month and these are my first tires requiring scrub-in phase. Don't feel like dealing with the trailer just for a scrub-in day. Any idea how much life you use up driving from Houston to MSR-H and back for a scrub in? I doubt the tires heat up more than 2 psi in this weather. Would the cumulative travel be less than 2 heat cycles?

 

I probably can't give you a great answer to that yet, but I'll try. I had my AR1s mounted at the end of July and then promptly headed out of the country for a couple months; only driven them on the street so far. Finally getting caught up and back out to AX and HPDE over the next couple weeks, so I might have a little more data in December.

What I can say is that driving about 30 miles in September (relatively hot still) weather was about a 4psi increase on the roads, and right now 2psi is about right. I had MPSC2's on prior and always just left them on to drive to MSR from the north side of town. I got 3 AX days and call it 3 HPDE weekends. The fourth weekend was a mess. The grip was shot and eventually cracked a sidewall. I was also leaving them on for 'daily driving', but I work from home - really short grocery store trips and whatnot. I say all that to say that I didn't really seem to see big degradation driving those to/from the track, so I'm optimistic the AR1's will show similar traits although we're talking about a different compound. I'm also not at the limit at MSR, mid/high 40's at MSR in a 991.1 GT3. So I'm sure as I progress more I'll see less longevity. Who knows. Hopefully that was moderately helpful...

 

Check out the tire ratings here: https://grassrootsmotorsports.com/ar...-buyers-guide/. There are many tires compared here but as always YMMV. The Nanking AR-1 gets a decent rating for a streetable 100TW tire. I just bought a set to try on my '07 GT3 but haven't had a chance to run them yet on the track. I've been using the Sport Cup 2's as a tire that can be driven to the track, but I'm not real thrilled with them. They are one of the most expensive tires out there and their track life is quite short. They start going downhill after the first few heat cycles.

The NT01 is a decent alternative but the problem, as others have noted, is that the popular sizes are out of stock everywhere. I'm also interested in trying the new Goodyear F1 Supercar 3R, which has received great ratings from a number of sources. However, nobody seems to have any stock of the GT3 sizes I need.

 

I have that article bookmarked--Andy Hollis is a wealth of information.

I've not tried the Goodyears but they are said to be fabulous.....in the dry. From what I've been told (by Andy) they don't work in the rain as they need heat to turn on, and the wet douses that.

As always, YMMV. I'm using A052s on a low-hp fwd car and like them in all conditions, but they wear quickly if you lack camber.

 

Have experience with all of the above. Speaking to dry conditions only since wet performance is an afterthought for all except the Cup 2.

3R the best of the lot, pace, feel, overall quality, price/value, road manners. If you can get a set in the sizes you need, don’t hesitate.

AR-1 and NT01 are in the same mold. Think AR-1 is faster on most cars & tracks. TBD is whether the AR-1 can match NT01 durability (only 2 events in with my AR-1’s). My $ would be on no, NT01 are exceptionally durable. Both tires are very vocal on the road.

As mentioned, the problem with Cup 2 is that they don’t stick around after a handful of heat cycles. Great all-around tire other than that, with big advantages in wet traction and comfort, if you drive any distance to/from the track.

Definitely grab the 3R's if you can.

 

The NT-01 Is old technology. 7-8 years old. The AR-1 is up to date. The key to the AR-1's is this - scroll down and read the "break in" procedure for the AR-1 - it makes a world of difference.
https://philstireservice.com/shop/nankang-ar-1/

 

Old technology or not, NT01s are still the king for durability and consistency at speed in an HPDE environment IMO. Love sliding them around and wish there was a magic bullet in the new compounds but haven't heard one yet.

 

Not sure what you mean. Set PB's from session one with AR-1, so no break in issues. Agree they're fast. Suggested they're similar on the road and might not be as durable as NT01. Newer tech doesn't necessarily mean more durable. We'll see.

NT01 is even older than you're thinking. Has staying power in the track community and is a favorite across many platforms for good reasons. https://www.motortrend.com/how-to/05...und-tire-test/

 

"Break in" has more to do with the tire life and performance longevity than it does setting personal bests in the first few laps/first session. You say you had no break in issues, but how many sessions did that set last before grip fell off? I think that was the point....break them in properly and you get longer lasting tires....