Are autox tires decent for road racing?

[Kentetsu]

I autocross on the Hankooks and absolutely love them! As someone else said, they come in three different compounds, with C71 being the softest (autocross) which is what I run. Dealing with anything under 2 minutes, I don't think there is a better tire out there (I'm making Hoosier owners green with envy by kicking their asses since last summer). They are also sooo much cheaper than Hoosiers, and the Hoosier guys tell me that they are wearing unbelievably well (I'm new to race rubber, so was seeking advice).

Having said that, if you take that same tire on a 12 mile run, it will overheat and turn to grease on you. I do recommend this tire, but you will want a harder compound that is meant to deal with those conditions.

Sorry for the late response (had a small detour/fight with cancer). Hope this helps...




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[RETed]

Originally Posted by Weltall

I've never done this type of racing so any input would be greatly appreciated.

This makes it ever worse...

I would never recommend any top-tier "racing" tire for a beginner.
Recommending Hoosiers to a beginner is asking for trouble.
I would rather recommend a tire that has progressive break-away characteristics over an all-out stick for a beginner.


-Ted

[TitaniumTT]

Originally Posted by C. Ludwig

You driving Miss Daisy or what? Hammer son! No way Hoosiers should last more than 6 sessions.

I've got 7 days on them I think. I thought I was driving the every living hell out of them, then probed them at 145*

Originally Posted by DriFD3S

Listen to TitaniumTT,
he's awesome.

Are you trying to get banned?0000

Originally Posted by Pete_89T2

Maybe tire pressure is a factor in the difference in longevity of the R6's? I know TiTT doesn't drive like an old lady, so the longevity difference must be due to differences in tire pressure, track surface conditions and ambient temps when you guys hit the track.

I drive those tires like a young lady though apparently. I did shave 1.5 seconds off my time @ LRP this year though, so I'm getting more confident with them

Originally Posted by C. Ludwig

Nope. There's no way you can extract maximum performance from this tire and have it last that long. Some tires yes, a Hoosier, no. When I was racing, winning races, championships, and setting track records, our Hoosiers would fall off noticeably after 3-4 sessions. They'll provide decent grip down to the cords, but they heat cycle out of competitive grip much earlier.

3-4 sessions.... that's a day of toying around thought

Originally Posted by C. Ludwig

It's to let the OP know that the A or R-6 isn't a tire of choice for long wearing performance. Doesn't sound like he's looking for that anyway.

[/quote]

Originally Posted by RETed

This makes it ever worse...

I would never recommend any top-tier "racing" tire for a beginner.
Recommending Hoosiers to a beginner is asking for trouble.
I would rather recommend a tire that has progressive break-away characteristics over an all-out stick for a beginner.


-Ted

That's also a very good point

[DriFD3S]

Why am I trying to get banned????????????????????....

I'm trying to say that you're a wise person, with valid information!



I would take your advice to the T.
Pun intended.

[WE3RX7]

Ill jump in on this for what its worth- with those extreme conditions, i dont fee like you would be happy with a slick at all... when we ran ESRC rally events we used a special falken tire developed just for terrain and altitude changes of greater than 60deg... none were slicks. With those types of temp variances you will probably be better off running a tire like the R1Rs or the NT01 as another member suggested. These tires offer more grip than a summer street tire without the short life and needier driver input as the hoosiers.... as redTed said, a beginner should avoid slicks until car control is mastered...

Either way, its a learning experience..

[Roen]

When I read this title, I thought you were looking at the A6.

If you're looking at time attack, or short races, an autocross compound, like the Hoosier A6 is perfectly fine. I lost to a car on A6's at a time attack a few years back.

If you're doing lapping days, then you might want to look at an R6 or something similar.

But if you haven't done racing before, there are plenty of high grip street tires out there that will teach you more than the R-Compounds. Bridgestone, Dunlop, Hankook, Yokohama, Kumho, Falken, Toyo, Nitto all make good tires of that class.

[ducktape]

Originally Posted by C. Ludwig

Nope. There's no way you can extract maximum performance from this tire and have it last that long. Some tires yes, a Hoosier, no. When I was racing, winning races, championships, and setting track records, our Hoosiers would fall off noticeably after 3-4 sessions. They'll provide decent grip down to the cords, but they heat cycle out of competitive grip much earlier.

My point isn't to bag on Brian. Well, maybe a little. It's to let the OP know that the A or R-6 isn't a tire of choice for long wearing performance. Doesn't sound like he's looking for that anyway.

Truth. You could actually see this over the course of a day in the lap times. Once they'd been cooked a few times, they fell off quick.

On the other hand, nothing could touch fresh Hoosiers. The difference between equivalent Kuhmos and Hoosiers were 3+ seconds a lap...

[helghast7]

hmmm very informative

[Weltall]

The more info the better! Do any of you know of anyone on the forum that has run Pikes Peak or anything similar?

[helghast7]

you serious?