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Dedicated track wheel/tire set up on R

ImolaR

Ready to race!
Location
Florida
Need some clarity on this..I have destroyed the OEM tires, ContiSport5P from two track days, plus 15k miles. I am going to replace them with Pilot Sport 4s for the road. Thats all fine.

My question is this; does it pay to have dedicated wheel/tire set up for my car? I am planning on tracking about 6 times a year. I would swap out the wheels in my shop then drive to the circuit about 400mi total. I no longer need an instructor in the car, if that means anything to you guys about my 'ability.' I know it isn't racing, just learning, but I want to get the economics of this to make sense. Ive read elsewhere that a 911 can get more than 6 trackdays on Cup2s with the correct suspension set up. What can I expect from the R stock?
 

ImolaR

Ready to race!
Location
Florida
Also, I would like to bump up the track wheels to 245's on 19'' wheels..or should I go down to 18''s? Stock wheels are 19''
 

Slow*Jim

Ready to race!
Location
Ohio
If you are looking for a dedicated track wheel/tire you would want 17's for lightness. I run 245/40/17 on a 17x8 rim but would prefer 17x8.5 or 17x9.
 
Location
St. Olaf
My question is this; does it pay to have dedicated wheel/tire set up for my car? I am planning on tracking about 6 times a year.
Yes, it certainly does.


Ive read elsewhere that a 911 can get more than 6 trackdays on Cup2s with the correct suspension set up. What can I expect from the R stock?
Noticeably more than on a 911. :D

Get 17" wheels and R-comp tires. Not for weight reasons but for cost reasons
as both (proper) wheels and (proper) tires are expensive. 17" is the minimum
that fits over your brakes. 235/45 R17 is more than sufficient if you can find
the PSC2s in that size. You'll be amazed about the added grip over the Conti
SC5P.
Next, you want more front camber and less roll. I'd consider CSS swivels and
stiffer sway bars (front and rear).
Finally, brakes. I'd swap brake pads before any event to some serious stuff
like Pagid RS29, bleed fluid more frequently, improve ventilation by using some
sort of air guide (RS3) or hoses, and do some VCDS tweaks (alter the bloody
brake assist).

;)

.
 

ImolaR

Ready to race!
Location
Florida
Just the information I was looking for. Thank you!

For R-comp tires, what have you used and what do you recommend? How much life on the track have you got from them? They cant be full slick, for multiple reasons but mostly because I will drive these wheel/tires to and from the track.
 

2015WhiteGTI

Go Kart Champion
Just the information I was looking for. Thank you!

For R-comp tires, what have you used and what do you recommend? How much life on the track have you got from them? They cant be full slick, for multiple reasons but mostly because I will drive these wheel/tires to and from the track.

If you go with a dedicated track setup, swap the wheels at the track. The super soft compound will get chewed up on the street (you said 400 miles round trip). Then you can get a proper R-compound tire and really have fun at the track. After all, you have plenty of space to carry the extra set of wheels/tires. I carried mine in my BMW sedan (put them across the back seat).

I've used BFG R1 with great success. They grip like there's no tomorrow and will last a lot longer than you think. I used them on my street car when I would track it and love them.
You could also look into Federal Tire for a more budget R-comp.
http://www.federaltire.com/en/products.php?class=UHP

Last note of wisdom. I know you're signed off as solo. I too got signed off after a couple of seasons, but refused to go solo for a long time. I figured I'm not an expert so I still have a lot to learn.
The nice thing about having an instructor in your car is as you get better, you can work on different things that the instructor will notice and you may not. It'll accelerate your learning. It's what I did for a number of years and it really paid off.
When I got my comp license, I won both races in identically prepped cars.
 

ImolaR

Ready to race!
Location
Florida
If you go with a dedicated track setup, swap the wheels at the track. The super soft compound will get chewed up on the street (you said 400 miles round trip). Then you can get a proper R-compound tire and really have fun at the track. After all, you have plenty of space to carry the extra set of wheels/tires. I carried mine in my BMW sedan (put them across the back seat).

I've used BFG R1 with great success. They grip like there's no tomorrow and will last a lot longer than you think. I used them on my street car when I would track it and love them.
You could also look into Federal Tire for a more budget R-comp.
http://www.federaltire.com/en/products.php?class=UHP

Last note of wisdom. I know you're signed off as solo. I too got signed off after a couple of seasons, but refused to go solo for a long time. I figured I'm not an expert so I still have a lot to learn.
The nice thing about having an instructor in your car is as you get better, you can work on different things that the instructor will notice and you may not. It'll accelerate your learning. It's what I did for a number of years and it really paid off.
When I got my comp license, I won both races in identically prepped cars.


Yeah I think you are right about swapping at the track, I certainly have the room for the wheels and jack etc. The BFG R1 look like a good choice for price and track life.

Always so much to learn from the well experienced, that is for sure! I will certainly take your advice. I am looking forward to getting some alone time though, for me thats how I can begin push myself..but (hopefully) not too much :)
 

Jb991

New member
Location
Spring TX
wish I saw the comment breaking badly made prior to last weekend :) Definitely need some negative camber dialed in for the front wheels. I ran 9, 25 min sessions at Texas World Speedway over two days and chewed the shit out of a new set of RE71 R tires. I'll rotate front to back next time, so hopefully that'll even them out a bit.

I was really surprised how well the stock brakes held up. My first time running the R and wanted to see what it would do before putting extra money into it.

Anyways, for the OP, yes get a set of dedicated wheels and tires for track days. Also, dial in some negative camber for the front wheels.
 

AR11

Ready to race!
Location
CA
wish I saw the comment breaking badly made prior to last weekend :) Definitely need some negative camber dialed in for the front wheels. I ran 9, 25 min sessions at Texas World Speedway over two days and chewed the shit out of a new set of RE71 R tires. I'll rotate front to back next time, so hopefully that'll even them out a bit.

I was really surprised how well the stock brakes held up. My first time running the R and wanted to see what it would do before putting extra money into it.

Anyways, for the OP, yes get a set of dedicated wheels and tires for track days. Also, dial in some negative camber for the front wheels.

The RE71 can also be flipped on the wheel so that the outside edges can become the inside edges and you can go right on back to abusing the new outside edges. I feel like this is a pretty key feature based on how unevenly my PSS wore.
 
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