Which Tire? (240/40R15 Edition)

Interestingly, I found that Nankang makes a P245/40R15 R-comp that looks like an R888R knockoff at $175ea. They don't sell it here in the US though, and I'm not sure I'd trust it anyways

Id opt for the Hankook R-S4 due to the fantastic longevity.  They are still quick too.

NickD said:

KyAllroad (Jeremy) said:

Is a tire trailer and actual Hoosiers (take offs are OK) an option?  

Like, I said, it's just a hassle. I typically have to get up at 5:30am and leave the house at 6:15am, drive an hour and get to the site at 7:30-7:45. By the time I unload some stuff from my car, air down the tires and put the numbers on, it's typically time to start tech inspection. And that usually runs right up to the driver's meeting. Then, as grid chief, I usually have to work the first heat, and then get in the car and run the 2nd heat. And frequently I don't even have time to get a course work in. So now, if I have to get there and swap tires, I'm looking at waking up at 5:00am and being on the road by 5:45 (or even earlier if it's an event at Seneca).

I totally get it man.  I found ways to make it work.  Invite someone to co-drive and have them swap tires for you.  Push off one of those work assignments, if you are tech master, someone else can be grid master so you have the whole first heat to swap tires and get ready.  Take-offs are cheaper than new street tires and I found that R7s last essentially forever (again, that co-driver helps get them hot at this point).

A hitch is pretty cheap and really handy.  Contact pacomotorsports to get one, it installs in 10 minutes if you’re slow and also stiffens the chassis.

My trailer was used from someone who didn’t use it anymore and cost me $100.  Deals are out there if you look.

79rex said:

Id opt for the Hankook R-S4 due to the fantastic longevity.  They are still quick too.

That's probably my frontrunner choice currently. More performance-oriented than the Maxxis but cheaper than the BFGs. The other one I'm seriously considering, is the 225-width Nexen like RedGT suggested

The rs4 are quick, i like them. Drove them one event on a gt350, which is nearly twice the weight of the miata and on only 25% more tire...they still took 3 runs to come in.

KyAllroad (Jeremy) said:

I totally get it man.  I found ways to make it work.  Invite someone to co-drive and have them swap tires for you.  Push off one of those work assignments, if you are tech master, someone else can be grid master so you have the whole first heat to swap tires and get ready.

This is my favorite suggestion so far. Delegating tasks to a willing helper is always a good idea, no matter what tyre you end up running.

I am pretty sure a 245 isn't gonna change a darn thing with regards to rear grip under throttle.

If you are gonna go 245, the rs4 are pretty awesome for longevity and have decent grip.

I have seen the maxxis chunk.  The rs4 I have not heard of a single tire issue in about 2 years of racing them in champcar.

If you are having trouble getting heat into the tires, wider is bad.

Well, I took RedGT's advice and ordered a set of the Nexen N Fera SUR 4 G in P225/45R15. Unfortunately they were on limited-availability/out of stock, so no clue when I'll see them

Grrrrr, just got a all from Tire Rack. Apparently it could be 60-90 days until the Nexens ship because they are on backorder. Again.

Well, I'm a little late since you've already ordered (or maybe you can cancel due to the backorder status?)...  

First, can you fit 245s under stock NA fenders?  Everything I've read says massive pull/mutilated fenders or flares required.

I'd probably lean toward RS4s or VR-1s in 245s.  Rivals are more than likely the fastest, though.

For your situation, I'd reallly be looking toward a tire/tool trailer.  With an electric impact and a jack, I can change tires in less than 10 minutes, and have done it between sessions a few times.  IMHO that would be worth it to optimize your setup toward your intended use, and your competition tires would last longer that way.

One of the unfortunate things about about Miatas is as the power goes up, the tire choice narrows...  

I will say, as an autocross marshal myself, changing tires before an event is a serious PITA for somebody involved in running the event.  It might only take 15 minutes, but that's 15 minutes you don't have while you're being pecked to death by ducks.

Rodan said:

Well, I'm a little late since you've already ordered (or maybe you can cancel due to the backorder status?)...  

First, can you fit 245s under stock NA fenders?  Everything I've read says massive pull/mutilated fenders or flares required.

You can. I've seen people do it on an unflared car. My front wheel well liners are pretty much nonexistent and I rolled and pulled the berkeley out of my fenders last year. Also, -3.5 degrees of front camber (offset upper bushings) and -2.5 degrees of rear camber help.

And, yes, I'm probably going to cancel my order and get something else.

In reply to NickD :

If you want nexens now, Berk Technologies (yes that's the name, not grm joke) should have them in stock. But shipping will be $$.

RedGT said:

In reply to NickD :

If you want nexens now, Berk Technologies (yes that's the bame, not grm joke) should have them in stock. But shipping will be $$.

Whoa, yeah, no kidding on the shipping. The tires themselves were a fair bit cheaper, but that $245 shipping makes them almost as pricey as 245-width Rival S 1.5s

At least in 205, VR-1s are wide. Like, actually 225 wide. I had to roll my front fenders to fit them when I switched from Dunlops on 7" wheels (~2.5 degrees of camber). I like them a lot as a general purpose street tire but haven't been doing much autocross lately.

In reply to NickD :

Yeah, idk what they did but for the past two years we bought all our tires from them and shipping was $25. For all four. I guess they realized they were losing money and corrected that, but holy cow.  Fyi the website generated price is too high, real quotes from them via email were coming in at $150ish shipped to PA. Still a drastic change.

In reply to Rodan :

I know for a fact that you can jamb a 275 Hoosier on a 9” wheel under factory NA bodywork. (Hard roll and pull required but no cutting and flaring).

KyAllroad (Jeremy) said:

In reply to Rodan :

I know for a fact that you can jamb a 275 Hoosier on a 9” wheel under factory NA bodywork. (Hard roll and pull required but no cutting and flaring).

 

If I didn't see the photos and know that you don't make stuff up, I'd be really hard-pressed to believe that. That's absolutely insane. I look at my car with 225s and think "Yeah, I think I can squeeze 245s under there." 275s never even enter the equation

NickD said:

If I didn't see the photos and know that you don't make stuff up, I'd be really hard-pressed to believe that. That's absolutely insane. I look at my car with 225s and think "Yeah, I think I can squeeze 245s under there." 275s never even enter the equation

Yeah... this is what I think of with 275 Hoosiers:

Of course, they're on 11" rims on that NB...

Ordered a set of 245/40R15 Hankook R-S4s. Was it the right choice? Probably not. But, oh, well, we'll see.

In reply to NickD :

Even if you fall on your face, you've at least moved forward...

NickD said:

Ordered a set of 245/40R15 Hankook R-S4s. Was it the right choice? Probably not. But, oh, well, we'll see.

They'll need some warmup and they're more money than you needed to spend, but I wouldn't say they were a bad choice.

They might be less frustrating than the Rival, i.e. they go from (gonna pull some pretend numbers out of my ass) a grip level of '3' to '8' as they warm up over a few runs rather than the rivals that start off trying to kill you with a '1', and still only get up to around an '8' while tempting you with the '10' that happens once in a rare while when good and hot.

The Hankooks are also backordered, but at least only until late April. First autocross is May, so that should work out

In reply to RedGT :

That sounds about right (for wild guess out of ones ass numbers), but the RS-4s should wear (according to what i’ve heard) something like twice as long as the Rivals/RE-71s.

Good choice man.