Cant Afford Racing tire

[kickster]

I have decided to use Toyo T1-S for next season.
I just cant afford 2 sets of tire. Is there any
one else who is running street tires on the track?

will I be the only one?

[DECH_92]

I ran street tires for my first year as well.
You save money and it gives you a chance to see if you realy want to Solo 1 without the extra cost.
Plus there real noisy on the corners and let you no better when your near your limit and it gives you the sensation of going fast.

[Marsh]

One catch. The T1-s cost more than an R-compound and they will be toast by the end of the season. So there isn't a big savings. Mind you you will save on the initial expenses of a 2nd set of wheels.

[AcidGord]

Keep in mind (And I'm basing this on my Solo II experiences, I have yet to try Solo I) that you pretty much shouldn't exect to go out your first year and be at all top-tier competitive. You're going to spend all your time learning what your car is capable of and learning/enhancing what YOU are capable of. I see too many people swagger out to Solo II events expecting to kick everyones ass and then walking away with 3 DNFs and a time 10 seconds slower than everyone else. Depending on the depths of their attitude they may or may not ever be seen at an event again. :)

Seriously though, spend your first year or at least first bunch of races getting a feel for it. See where you need to upgrade. You'll probably find you need to upgrade yourself long before your tires. Nobody's going to look down on you for not having all the bells and whistles. They didn't start in a track-prepped car either I'll bet. :)

[kickster]

they will be toast by the end of the season.


good point, but I thought Street tires will last a lot longer compare to R tires. Beside I get to use them from Home to track as well.

Last year I used Toyo FZ4 on track (lapping days)
I put on 25 to 30 laps plus 2 soloII events plus aggressive driving on street. After 2 full years they are still in good shape!!!

[Chris P]

Think i'm in the opposite situation to yourself. You see, i can't afford street tires. Currently for the street i use 6 year old OEM tires off a Neon. Talk about crap!!!

Sometimes street tires will last longer then R's when used for track purposes, it really depends on the tire. Tires with large blocks get alot of rubber sqrim and have a tendency to chunk, thus a very short lifespan. Just choose wisely.

Ofcourse you could always use Walmart brand tires and steel rims for the street and have real tires and rims for the track.

[kickster]

The problem is I like to drive fast on street as well. (not street racing)
I enjoy the on ramp and off ramps.

[Chris P]

Well doesn't everone? Only difference is that bistanders have forwarning if your coming...........

Not to mention the chicks dig it. Ask Geo or baby pratte to confirm. But really, you can't do anything fun on the street so why bother?

or can you?

http://www.redpepperracing.com/gallery/albums/Krispy/acs.gif

[Marsh]

Originally posted by kickster
good point, but I thought Street tires will last a lot longer compare to R tires. Beside I get to use them from Home to track as well.

Last year I used Toyo FZ4 on track (lapping days)
I put on 25 to 30 laps plus 2 soloII events plus aggressive driving on street. After 2 full years they are still in good shape!!!

I just occured to me that I was way too brief. I actually think that there are lots of good reasons to do your rookie season on street tires, especially in Solo-2. But I don't think cost is that big reason. That was all I was trying to point out.

[B18C5]

Oh yeah, the FZ4s. Those are by far the worst tire I've ever driven on. They're that bad. I put them on the Typist and hated them. They did last forever though, which just prolonged my agony. Actually, when 3/4 of the tread was worn down they weren't too bad - as long as it's dry out. Those are horrible rain tires even with full tread depth. Ugh.

T1-S would be a very nice upgrade. They're still street tires, but they're not so bad. The sidewall is very soft though, so steering response is a little sloppy. But they look damn cool! I'd buy them again for the street if they didn't wear so quickly. They almost wore as quickly as my RE010s.

[Triumphracer]

I used street tires for 4 years, Yoko A520, same set all that time! On a light car you will not wear them out too badly, they will not flat spot when you lock up or spin, I did both several times over the 4 years. When you change to an R compound you will be amazed how deep you can brake into the corners.
Great graphic on Chris P's post- reminds me of something I did with a friend when we were about 8! And then there was the Honda 350 races in the basesment of the restaurant after closing, it's all fun until someone pins his leg against the freezerAnyway, use the street tires.

[Dave Barker]

Once you have driven on the track , street stuff doesnt have the same thrill.

BTW I agree with Chris , race tires are cheap (relatively ) . It is no good spending lots of money on fancy street tires which will be destroyed on the track . I would spend most of my money on moderate street tires to wreck and learn on this year because you will likelly want to go to race tires next year. Frankly my last set of street tires , I was more interested in wet performance , ride and noise than ultimate handling which I save for the race Kumhos.