Tires, Wheels, & Brakes Discussion about wheels, tires, and brakes for the new MINI.

What might be the Average life of a track only tire?

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Old 06-13-2004, 09:35 PM
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What might be the Average life of a track only tire?

I purchased a set of wheels and tires for my MCS to be used only at the track..

I have 6 track days on my Nitto NT-450. Each day would be approx 2 1/2 hours of track time. About 70 laps on a 2.25 mile course..

I am hoping to get three more days in on these tires before they are totally trashed..

Is this about right??

I am a total newby when it comes to this type of thing and thought I would ask the more experienced..

a
 
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Old 06-13-2004, 11:55 PM
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Track tire or tire used for the track?

Originally Posted by astra
I purchased a set of wheels and tires for my MCS to be used only at the track..

I have 6 track days on my Nitto NT-450. Each day would be approx 2 1/2 hours of track time. About 70 laps on a 2.25 mile course..

I am hoping to get three more days in on these tires before they are totally trashed..

Is this about right??
You are using a street tire for the track. Don't expect it to last but your mileage will vary depending on the rubber compound of your tire, your suspension, your tire pressure, your technique of driving, and your rotating of the tires (to name a few variables).

For every 1 mile you track the tires you are wearing them down about 100+ miles on the street.The tires have a rating of 300 so they ought to last about 35,000 miles with street use.

70 laps x 2.25 miles each day = about 158 track miles = about 16,000 wear miles. You'll wear them faster if every session is run on exactly the same course and in the same counter clockwise or clockwise direction. You'll wear them faster if you are hard on the brakes and skid and flatspot your tires.

If your tires were new when you started all this and they were kept for only track use then they might last a bit longer. You'd done about 60% of your season so how do the tires look so far. Are they pretty worn on the edge of the fronts?

With an R-compound tire you can wear the tire down to slick and as long as the cords don't show you can still use the tires (performance not as good though). Usually they will last a whole season or one year. Track use is usually a little less demanding on tires than autocross but it varies with the track course and speeds. Also really depends on how you drive and brake. Some are really tough on tires.

I think you'll be OK. Next time you might want to track a Kumho victoracer or Ecsta V700 for a track tire only (not made for the street) or consider Bridgestone Potenza S-03 pole position or Goodyear Eagle F1 DS-G3 tires (good both on the street and track). These aren't cheap.
 

Last edited by minihune; 06-19-2004 at 07:57 AM.
  #3  
Old 06-14-2004, 12:40 PM
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Many R compounder tires may loose the rubber's adhesion prior to actually exausting your tread depth. This less grippy state can work great for DE, or amature auto cross, but not when your running at nationals.

Race tire life is relative-

I have A008R's from my 2002 that are 20 years old with 3/32nds on them - they are good for drifting now....

Alex
 
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Old 06-18-2004, 01:23 PM
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good wear

I have a set of Falken Azenis Sports 15-45-16, started new in Mid-April, have ten track days about 1700 miles track only use. One is worn (spent about 300 miles on left front at Mid-Ohio) to about slick, no cord showing but basically not good any more. The other three have usable tread, maybe 2-3 days at Blackhawk (1.8 mi track). This is good wear. These tires are rated at 200, but if not overdriven will give good grip for the price. The key is rotation.
 
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