Cory M

I'm looking for some good track tires for my 1987 911 Turbo in 315/35/17 and 275/40/17 sizes. The car has been upgraded with bigger torsion bars, sway bars, and revalved shocks. I am using them for track days and time trials and I'm willing to give up a little performance for longer life. A quick search showed Yokohama Advan A032R, Kumho Victoracers, Kumho Ecsta V700 and V710, and Hoosiers in these sizes. I know the Hoosiers won't last long enough for me and I don't think the V710's will either. I've used Victoracers in the past and I liked them, but they were in much smaller sizes on a lighter car. I haven't heard anything great about the V700's, and I've never used the Yokohamas and don't really know how long they are expected to last.

Right now I'm leaning towards the Victoracers but the Yokohamas are about the same price. Whatever I get I plan on shaving and heat-cycling prior to use. Are the Yokohamas any good? Compared to the Kumhos? Any other recomendations in my sizes? Thanks!

Geoffrey

My experience talks to several issues. The Kumho tires don't tend to last on the heavy powerful 930, they like to blister, especially if the weather is warm. The Yokohama 032Rs are a great DE tire and give good grip with good warning. I would choose the 032r over the Kumhos. However, the 315 or 275 sizes you mentioned cause issues with the 930. They are 25.8" diameter tires and the 235/40/17 fronts that are available in the Yokohama brand are 24.4" diameter compared to the stock sizes of 24.9" diameter. When used with this combination, the rear of the car needs to be lowered so much to maintain the proper rake that on heavily loaded corners the rear tires tend to hit the quarter panels and burn the paint. Terrible, terrible combination. I switched to 18" because tire choices were much better and the overall diameter was better.

I wouldn't waste money on shaving or heat cycling the Yokahama tires. I've done both and wear difference was not noticable. I was able to get 20 DE days out of a set.

JCP911S

IMHO Victroracers overheat and wear too quickly. I don't like them. Maybe shaving them would help, but I wouldn;t recommend them.

Hoosiers are pretty expensive for DE but offer the best cornering and should last 3-5 weekends if you do not abuse them.

Michelin Pilot Sport Cups are very hard wearing but pricy... for me they seem to be pretty competitive on a cost per day basis.... I am still on my first set from last year.

Alot of people really like Toyo RA-1. I have never used them but for DE they may be a good bet relative to the Gummos

SGOGT4

Has anyone else run into problems running 315s in the rear of a 930 at DE events?

mmporsche

I race on Victoracers and V710's and I have a PCA E stock 944 Turbo S that weighs nearly 3200 lbs. with me in the driver seat. I drive my car very hard and have never experienced any blistering problems as mentioned above - although maybe that is related to the amount of power the 930 is putting down at the rear and spinning the wheels???? I just raced the 710's at TWS in March and found them very comparable, if not more predictable over the duration of the race, to a Hoosier R3S04 and they are much more reasonably priced. I cannot speak to durability but I have heard they are similar to Hoosiers. I would definitely not waste your money shaving the Victoracers though, I notice no difference. The one caveat is you want to scrub them in with two or three 20+ minute sessions before they will be ready to race on. The V710's are good after you scrub them just once. I run 3.25 degrees of camber in the front and 2.25 in the rear but again this is a front engine car so make adjustments accordingly. I find the optimal operting pressure between 38 and 40 psi hot. The blistering problem reported above may have occurred on a full tread tire that will obviously retain more heat due to the tread thickness?????

Good luck with your decision.

FormulaOne10

I have put about 15 track hours, 5 autocrosses and about 4000 miles (highway) on a set of A032R tires and I still have some life left in them (about 1/3 tread - this was with a poor alignment for part of their life). This is in a ~2900lb car with only ~200 hp. They wear very well and are actually quite decent in the rain.

Alan G.

Where does on find good prices on said yokie tires?

Geoffrey

Alan, Tire Rack

Alan G.

Geoffrey,

Do you know anything about the difference between "Hard Compound" and otherwise? Tire Rack has a pretty sweet deal on "hard compound" in the sizes that I need.

Alan

Geoffrey

You want to buy the hard compound. The soft compound is the autocross version of the tire. You'll be happy with them and the'll give you good life. I ran them on the street as well. Other than the odd tread pattern and associated noise, they are a good R compund tire.

Edward

FWIW, I've used Victoracers on my 993 (3100 lbs!) for a few seasons of timetrial and never had a problem. I like how they stick, feel predictable, they wear well, and are priced right. At the end of their life they absolutely feel greasy and one's time suffers, but that's to be expected. I can't comment on their performance compared to yokos though, other than I've heard (for whatever that's worth) from more than a few that they were less than satisfied with yoko A32s. Of course you can spend more for R-compounds than victoracers, but it all depends on what you're trying to achieve. Given the gamut between running street tires and hoosiers, I like the victoracers price/performance compromise.

Edward

Alan G.

the beauty of 16s. $612.42 at my door next tuesdayh or wednesday!

Cory M

Thanks for the replies. I actually run 275s on the front and 315s on the rear, so rake shouldn't be a problem. I'll give the Yokohamas a try.

Cory M

Well I just tried to order the Yokohamas from Tirerack and they told me that the A032R HARD compound has been discontinued in the 315/35/17 size, great... They do have the SOFT compound though but I don't think it will stand up to track events and I don't really do any autocrossing. That basically leaves Hoosier and Kumho as the only suppliers for competition tires in the 315/35/17 size.

JackOlsen

The Yokohamas, especially in the hard compound, are in an entirely different category than the Victoracers. The Victoracers are an r-compound tire that's going to be closer to the Hoosiers, Kumho V710, etc. You'll get great stick, but not a very long lifespan -- especially if you also drive the car on the street.

The A032R behaves more like a street tire, in spite of it technically being in the r-compound category. I'd put it in the same camp as the Michelin Pilot Sport Cup or the Toyo RA-1 (although the MPSC's and R-1's are stickier), in that it can be driven on the street and has a longer lifespan than a Hoosier-type tire.

The downside to the A032R is the same as its strength. It's a 'neither-or' tire. It's neither a great track tire or a great street tire, although it's one of the few tires that's actually capable of both.

It's also a very LOUD tire. You'll think you've got bad bearings after a track day, when your helmet's off, or after spending a lot of time in someone else's (quieter) Porsche.

I get better lap times on the BFGoodrich g-force T/A KD, which is a sticky-as-they-come street tire, than I did with the A032R's.

I don't think you'll be able to find the Toyos or the Michelins in your sizes.

In your shoes, I'd go with the A032R's if you want long-lasting track tires, or the BFGoodrich g-force T/A KD's, if you want to use the same tires on street and track.