333pg333

Sure, there are horses for courses depending on what car you drive but are the Michelins still generally regarded to be above the rest? Seem to have read that some believe the Pirelli is equal or better and a bit cheaper.

Add to this question I'm talking qualifying fastest tyre, not endurance if possible to get opinions on this category.

Veloce Raptor

Also look at Dunlop...

333pg333

Any particular models Dave? Didn't think Dunlop had much of a profile (sorry) in the US?

philstireservice

Michelin is probably the fastest. Expensive and difficult to procure.

Hoosiers are very fast and wide variety of sizes and compounds

Pirelli's are fast, but expensive also.

Toyo's are fast (almost like Hoosiers), priced right, just not a lot of size offerings

analogmike

The Michelin "cup" branded tires are extremely good.

The normal Michelin tires are good but nothing special.

Steve113

Depends on what car you want to run them on ? It also depends on what you mean by best? best traction, best wear , best cost lots of factors based on what car and the cars set up

333pg333

From what I've read in these parts Michelin Cups are very quick but expensive. Pirelli were said to be as fast or faster and a bit cheaper. I got the impression that they were 1-2 seconds quicker than the R80 or R100 from Hoosier. The Hoosiers were quite a bit cheaper, easy to get but did suffer more often from problems. Don't know anything about the Toyo slicks (not talking about the RR version either).

333pg333

Yes, I've edited the title. I'm after the fastest slick but it has to last more than 1 lap type of thing. I would expect to get maybe 10-15 heat cycles of say 5 lap duration. This is a rough guide.

Bob Rouleau

The Michelin Cup slick (325 in back) on the new Cup cars or the GT3 RS is the hottest thing up here. They last about 15 heat cycles but there is a noticeable degradation after five cycles. Pricey though. How fast do you want to go, how much do you want to spend?

333pg333

What sort of cost on those Bob? Assuming they're a 19"?
I'm talking 18"s which I should have qualified earlier.

GT3 Techno

On a Cup car they will fade much faster than that and after 2 HC you can use it for another 3-5 practice HC but you will see your lap time drop significantly. especially for the front tires. But they are really fast for the first 30-40 minutes of a sprint race. For me it looks like the latest version of these tires was built for only 1 stint of a AMLS race. The previous version was as fast but much more durable.

mobonic

In terms of speed, from what I have tested and seen tested first hand:

1. Michelin Blue Cups
2. Yokohama A005 Cup (imsa)
3. Pirelli
4. Hoosier

Michiel blues are the clear speed leader, but the Yoko Cups are a fantastic tire (if you can get them) and I have gotten 15+ HC, but as the Michelin, they loose about 1-3 seconds after the 3rd HC but then stabilize really well until you wear them out completely.

333pg333

Are the Yoko Cups specific to a rear engine car where they're softer fronts/medium rears?

analogmike

the michelin cup rears were only 270, but now 305 for the 2010+ cars. I wish they made a 325 cup tire (they call it a 310) but only factory backed RSR teams can get a good larger Michelin

http://www.michelinman.com/mediabin/...alouge2011.pdf

The Yoko cups are amazingly fast even at the end of an hour stint. Lots of lap records are at the end of a stint in ALMS.

vette6autox

I have tested 4 different makes. To me on my car it goes as follows,
1 Dunlop
2 Yoko
3 Michelin
4 Hoosier r100