ubercooper

I know this is opening the proverbial worm can but wanted some expert opinions before "making it rain" at JohnB's used slick shop.

Car is high hp, but more importantly high tq (~540/570 crank, not rw). Driver (me), has driven on slicks and high hp cars, but never combined the 2 before.
So until I get a session or two under my belt, there will most likely be some sideways action at one point or another.

My question: will I be able to get a couple DEs under my belt before racing with a set (or 2) of R6's or should I go with the R888s and then adapt to the R6 when race time comes?

Thanks as usual.

mglobe

On my Spec 996 in the dry, I can get only about 15 hc's out of R888's before the rears go to absolute crap. They are great in the wet, and transitional conditions.

I would consider BFG R1's as an alternative. Not as much grip I don't think as the Hoosiers, but they last a lot longer than both the Hoosiers and the R888's.

Another great choice if you can find the right size would be Nitto NT-01's. Less grip than the R1's so a good middle ground tire to learn on, but much better life than R888's.

M758

That is just the R888. When I ran them on my 944 spec I would get barely 15 hc on the entire set. That is on a 135 whp - 2620 lbs race car.

The RA-1 by contrast gets me 26-28. I hear the NT01 has similar life to the RA-1 rather than the R888.

chakka

+1 on the NT01's. Great tire with the consistancy of the RA-1 throughout it's life. Plus, they are cheaper!

ubercooper

thats doubly disconcerting because I was under the impression that the R888s generally get 2x the hc of the R6

I wish the RA-1's were an option but the site I'm ordering from only carries R888s and R6s.... but for 145 per tire I cant complain

also just in case anyone is wondering, sizes are 275/17 in front and 335/18 in rear

wildcat077

Just out of curiosity,what cold/hot tire pressures are you starting at/aiming for with your NT01's ?
I would assume they are in the 225/45 or 235/40 and 255/40 17 inch range ?
I'm asking because i picked up some cup replica track wheels for my 89 and my next set of tires will be the Nitto NT01's.
Most people with my type of car (911/964) in my PCA chapter are using the Dunlop Direzzas as i am presently,not "R" compounds,not yet anyways ...

Cheers !
Phil

Fritz Flynn

I've heard 888s are made from the same rubber as RA1s but have stronger side walls so they need less pressure. The 1st set I had I smoked them in a weekend because of incorrect tire pressures. I started at 28 psi and should of started at 24, you don't want to go over 34 hot on the 888s. I currently have one set I'm using for my FD and 1 set I'm using for my GT3 and the grip and tire wear are what you'd expect from an R compound street tire in other words they suck but are nice for warming up your brain to a given track and then when you're ready to go fast you put on some better tires.

SG_M3

Practice like you are going to race. That means working on setup with the tire you're going to race on.

himself

Are you actually racing or just DEing? Many folks just cycle through their quali/race tires as practice tires. There are only a few golden sessions, then they taper off to a pretty consistent level. R6s (which are not technically slicks) are pretty different from driving R888s (or any comparable R-comp tire). It takes me a session or two to get my timing right. FWIW, it's actually harder for me to go from Hoosiers (slick or R6) to something less grippy as my inputs are too fast and won't let the tire get to its proper slip angle. I actually have to force myself to slow down a bit. Sounds odd, but that's what I've had to do.

As for life, I definitely don't get 2X life from using anything other than Hoosiers. If I nurse the tires, I might get 10-15 good sessions out of Hoosiers. No way would I get 30 (7 days!) out of R888/NT01/etc.

-td

Cory M

If you are interested I have a pair of new 345/18 Kumho V710's I'll sell for $400 (+shipping). Then you could get a new pair of front Kumhos and have a set of tires that will be faster and last longer than used R6's and R888's. I have run my share of used tires from multiple sources and it is always a crapshoot, some have been good some have been junk. Once you factor in mount/balance and shipping along with the reduced life of the used tire I think it's a bit of a false economy..

Fritz Flynn

Good point however if he's racing I doubt he's even considering an 888.

Fritz Flynn

DAMN, I wish those 18s were 315s hehe

Cory M

Me too. They were a little big for my car so I had to buy 315's!

M758

Not sure on compound or construction, but the tires are different. I put alot of work into set-up using R888 on my 944 spec. I learned the R888 needed a couple pounds less pressure and about 1/2 deg less camber. Even so by 12-14 HC they were pretty much done for. I once shaved them to 3/32 and they worked really good for 2 HC. HC #1 I ran the fastest lap at 2009 Nationals of any car in my 30 car class of the entire event. Then HC3 I lead most of the race. Finished 4th 2.5 seconds out of first. Not really sure if the tires faded after 30 minues a bit or I faded. Anyway after that they never stuck very well to be honest. I think I ran them to 10 HC, but thankfuly our class went back to RA-1s and 24-26 HC useable life.

Sboxin

phil,
After 2 years of track testing these are our specs for Time Trial and Racing
-- its really the hot number that is important as soon as you come off the track.
And, each car will be different Edit: add driver style and suspension specs

NT01 pressures 235-40-17 / 275-40-17 2500# '78 911SC:
30/32 cold
35/37 hot
R6:
25/27 cold
30/33 hot