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Let me inject another important ingredient in this discussion...
Two weeels ago Bridgestone tire company generously sponsored a track event. They offered tire pressure gauge calibration to all participants. They Oslo went further to say that most tire gauges are not well calibrated both high and low.. well sure enough my gauge was low by 2 PSI..
This is very important. I used to be in the repeataility not accuracy camp, but have changed. I want both out of a gauge.
For anyone at the track with me, I have a test gauge and my regular gauge. The regular gauge is always right on and people are welcome to check against mine if they want.
For db, I run Nittos but the car is way lighter. We aim for about 30 hot, so 34ish on your car sounds about right.
Two weeels ago Bridgestone tire company generously sponsored a track event. They offered tire pressure gauge calibration to all participants. They Oslo went further to say that most tire gauges are not well calibrated both high and low.. well sure enough my gauge was low by 2 PSI..
I have two models of the exact same dial gauge (VDO/Motometer) and they read 1lb apart. They do vary. Of course, one has been dropped more often than the other
How do you guys know what's the right temp? Trial and error?
For me, I had been told to mark the sidewalls at the little triangle with a silver sharpie or some chalk (sharpie works better). Then after a session, check to see how much has rubbed off. Ideally, it should rub off right at the tip of the triangle. If it goes past, that means your sidewall is flexing too much and you need more pressure. If it's not quite rubbing up to the triangle, then you have too much air in the tires and should relax them slightly. Through this exercise, I found 37 "Hot" was the ideal pressure (for a 17" wheel).
This method, empirically, seems to be better grounded in an evidenced-based approach to finding the "ideal" tire pressure that is void of pressure gauge variances, ***-o-meter variances, and other variables.
I'm curious if others have used this approach and found it to be accurate or not.
I found this picture on the web showing what I mean, except I extend my marks past the triangle and let them wear down.
How do you guys know what's the right temp? Trial and error?
For me, I had been told to mark the sidewalls at the little triangle with a silver sharpie or some chalk (sharpie works better). Then after a session, check to see how much has rubbed off. Ideally, it should rub off right at the tip of the triangle. If it goes past, that means your sidewall is flexing too much and you need more pressure. If it's not quite rubbing up to the triangle, then you have too much air in the tires and should relax them slightly. Through this exercise, I found 37 "Hot" was the ideal pressure (for a 17" wheel).
This method, empirically, seems to be better grounded in an evidenced-based approach to finding the "ideal" tire pressure that is void of pressure gauge variances, ***-o-meter variances, and other variables.
I'm curious if others have used this approach and found it to be accurate or not.
I found this picture on the web showing what I mean, except I extend my marks past the triangle and let them wear down.
Buy a Pyrometer and find a helper to help you get readings immediately hot off of the track....like while you're still in the hot pits directly after many hard laps.
It'll not only tell you pressures but alignment tweaks needed as well.
While the triangle is a good data point if you go out and drive hard on cold pressures you're going to wear away the triangle before they come up to pressure. I've always found you can go real hard on a nitto after just a half lap or so but they are fastest at lap 2-5 when they are in the idea pressure range and before they get too hot.
you're going to get suggestions all over the map based on personal preference.
I run 18" NT-01's at 36 front 37 rear and really like that pressure combo. Most told me I was crazy for running them that high.
Crazy
Originally Posted by Protocav
All above are correct, I like 34F/37-38R hot pressures.
You're crazy too :-)
Originally Posted by CosmosMpower
Not over 34 hot or they get greasy in my experience. I start 26-27ish cold then bleed down to 33-34 hot
Yes
Originally Posted by Blue Chip
I start at 25 cold front and rear - end up 32/34 ish - sometimes to 33/35
I haven't had an issue with grip.
Yes.
Depending on ambient temps... they tend to come up ~8lbs by mid day hot. I like mine about 33F/34R. Any higher in the rear I feel like I'm losing grip, even though with the NT01 its pretty predictable and progressive slip.
I've burned through 20+ sets of NT01s over the last 5 years on my 996. On 245/305s I liked 33/34 hot. I'm running 275/335s now and 32/33 hot is the sweet spot. Anything over 35 starts feeling greasy. 25/25 cold is what I start with.. Tried the 315s a few years back and hated them.
It's a very short 25.2" tall tire with a sidewall that feels rather weak and mushy. Just didn't feel solid or confidence inspiring. I switched to the taller 26.4" 305/35 and it was night and day. The 305 has a much larger load rating, grip, and just all around feels better. Pretty much all the fast 6GT3 guys in my area run the 245/305 combo now.
Interesting! When I switched TO the 315s, my 996 opened up - lots more grip and predictable. I ran with those for 2 years and did really well. Still have that car - maybe I need to throw on 305s and see what I was missing!
I've burned through 20+ sets of NT01s over the last 5 years on my 996. On 245/305s I liked 33/34 hot. I'm running 275/335s now and 32/33 hot is the sweet spot. Anything over 35 starts feeling greasy. 25/25 cold is what I start with.. Tried the 315s a few years back and hated them.
I tend to agree that being around 25 cold is a good start. I would even be a little bit lower, but, ..my preferred garden being Laguna Seca, that is rather low speed and very curvy, give me the feeling that tire temp in the lower side fits better.
Also, I'm on a Boxster, not a 911, which also change the cards !
Should for sure add, that cold temp depends very much about how cold that can be, i.e.: out of an open trailer, after one tow hour, in the early cold Californian morning, ..is certainly different that cold in the morning near Sebring !
But: altogether yes, these NT01 are REAL lovely ones !
I just picked up 30 min ago a new set of NT01's . Normally I run a 17" wheel, but these are on a set of 18's. It will be interesting to see how these compare to the 17's. As I said previously, I normally shoot for 37 hot on all 4, but may experiment with going down a degree or two to see how they react.
Will be at Road America on Friday, so it shoudl be fun! Woot!
05-15-2017, 10:04 AM
