Where Do You Guys Get Slicks From ?

[The Bogan]

Looking for something like 245/40 17 for my boat, tire rack don't do full slicks and I'm after happy prices, Am I going to get some for happy price or am I going to have to bite the bullet and pay through the nose.

Thanks, Mark.

[R31Nismoid]

Depends if you are buying new or 2nd hand?

There was a thread on this a while ago, people were picking them up off race teams quite cheaply with good life still in them.

Just depends if there is a class in the size you want really (if going the 2nd hand route)

[The Bogan]

Was going to get some new ones, I'll be looking at medium to hard as the boat weights 1450ish kg, none of the second hand ones I've seen or asked the tyre dudes at the track about are the size I'm after "245ish/40ish 17" but no bigger(8" rim)

On the tyres hardness, I'm using my totally uneducated guess work, if I've got this wrong feel free to tell me I've got it all wrong.

I'm hoping for them to last a while to, last time I used soft compound the tyres lasted 2 sessions.

I'll only be using them for sprints, so 1 or 2 warm up laps then 2 hot ones.

Thanks.

[Duncan]

don't bother buying used slicks mate....there is a reason the seller is not using them.

I've bought cheap, new slicks from kumho and falken before, both were fine. Why not hit up John from fsport, remind him about sponsoring the SAU/renew days and see what he can do for you.

[hrd-hr30]

I've bought cheap new slicks from Kumho and had 3 of them blow out within 3 track days. Would not recommend Kumho!

[260DET]

Sprints are for road cars, use new semis. They will probably suit you better than slicks anyway.

[hrd-hr30]

yep, everytime I rocked up, bolted the slicks on and hit the track with 99% of other people on semis, I felt like I was cheating even though I was running in the race car class.

But full slicks at least aren't pretending to be something they're not - its those 2 groover cheater slicks I really hate...

[260DET]

See that the AASA Q sprint series this year requires street cars to be road registered and use road legal tyres. That's if you want to be legal for the new competiton with prizes that they are running. Pffft, I only got a crummy trophy in 2010

[The Bogan]

I don't run to win, only to have fun and go as fast as my old bones and small testicles will allow.

I may end up getting the "cheater semi slicks" from tire rack as I cannot justify spending 5 to 6 hundred on tyres I can get for 1/3 the cost from the US.

And as for the classes, I run in SVD so I have no chance in the class even though my car is regoed and engineered, I'm up against all sorts of stripped down race cars with rego plates.

If they stand by the rules that the car needs a engineering cert at scrutiny to comply with the ADR for modified vehicles to be legally road registered then that may change my thinking, until then though I'm rolling in my overweight daily on the best tyres I can get for a reasonable price.

Mark.

[Duncan]

I've bought cheap new slicks from Kumho and had 3 of them blow out within 3 track days. Would not recommend Kumho!

that's damn brave. I don't think I would have put on the 2nd after 1 failed, and I sure wouldn't have put a 3rd on after the 3nd failed. How did they fail, how many laps in the session, what size, what camber and what pressure?

....use new semis. They will probably suit you better than slicks anyway.

+1. And you don't have to go home if it rains. And I don't think they are that much slower in a similar compund anyway, the new semis are pretty damn good

See that the AASA Q sprint series this year requires street cars to be road registered and use road legal tyres....

...If they stand by the rules that the car needs a engineering cert at scrutiny to comply with the ADR for modified vehicles to be legally road registered....

That is the only way for a "road registered" rule to make any sense. We all know pretty much every car that turns up to a track day with a number plate is illegal, so why require the number plate bolted on? wierd rule, and it discourages people from giving it a go with a dedicated race car.

[260DET]

AASA in Q have separate sprint days for race cars plus they have their Top Gear race series for any car so race only cars are well catered for here. As for road registered cars, it will be a sort of honour system I guess but at least now they have laid down some rules that should work to exclude blatant cheating.

[Marlin]

Way off topic, but in regard to the Qld Sprint series, who gives a f**k about so called cheating? I don't, it's a Sprint for christs sake. You're racing to clock, no one else.

[hrd-hr30]

that's damn brave. I don't think I would have put on the 2nd after 1 failed, and I sure wouldn't have put a 3rd on after the 3nd failed. How did they fail, how many laps in the session, what size, what camber and what pressure?

size was 215/40x17 I think, not the usual slick sizing like the 240/610 R17 I had on the back. I was running them at about 32-34 hot as recommended by the Kumho distributor.

It was always fronts the blew out and they all delaminated on the inner edge and blew out. First one happened on the 3rd track day I'd done on them at Lakeside. Each day was 4 sessions of 5 laps, on a 2.4km track. So each day is 48km at full noise, and 19km for in and out laps.

The first one blew in the first session of that 3rd track day. Front left. I had just dropped the wheel off the edge of the track exiting Eastern loop and it blew about 50m later when I turned into Shell Corner onto the front straight. Pulled it up safely before the armco wall on the outside of the track, no big deal, but I was glad it didn't let go in the 170km/h right hand sweeper under the bridge instead! I put it down to maybe hurting it on the edge of the track the corner before. Got a replacement and had a look at the other tyre, which had no apparent damage. Next track day the front right blew out as I turned into Hungry. That sent me off into the paddock smashing my front splitter, bumper and bending the right front gaurd. One of these blowout and resulting offs put a flat spot on one of my Regas as well. Not happy. Anyway, there was a fair bit of smoke coming from the front left after my excursion through the field so I drove it straight to the closest fire marshall, but the smoke turned out to be the front left tyre about to blow - it was blistered all the way around the inner edge. This time it was obvious that the tyres hadn't been cut by the edge of the track and that they were just blowing out - perhaps because they don't like the amount of camber I'm running? but its only about 4 degrees...

Which is the same alignment that the R888s had survived for over 2 years, not to mention the quality Roadstone street rubber, and now the FZ201s have been on there for over a year and 6 track days in total.

And the only lockup they ever had was after they blew out.

Again it was lucky it happened where it did and not at the ~205km/h kink on the front straight! There's not much run-off at Lakeside! But at that point when it was obvious the tyres were not safe (for my car anyway) I ditched them and swore off Kumhos for good.

I've since seen another guy with S700s have exactly the same issues with front tyres delaminating and blowing out the inner edge on his e30.

Edited January 22, 2012 by hrd-hr30

[DCIEVE]

Have you considered the hankook dot slick from tire rack? Around the 200 a corner mark which is ku36 money. I haven't heard of anyone using them locally though...

[The Bogan]

Have you considered the hankook dot slick from tire rack? Around the 200 a corner mark which is ku36 money. I haven't heard of anyone using them locally though...

There only available is soft comp at the moment, but when they get some med or hard they will most likely be my choice, yes they are not road legal and the forementioned cheater slicks but for the price Ill bolt them on at the track.

On a side note my new street hoops, Ventus R-S3,s, will be leaving the states any day now, saved about $300 after fitting using tire rack, cheapest I found here were $300 a corner, tire rack $134 US a corner

Mark

[Marlin]

Some guys here are using the Hankook cheater slick with much success up here. Value from TR too as you've said.

And yep, I'll back Harry on his description. That's exactly how it went down, I was there for each failure. Lucky it wasn't much worse. Hideous tyres.

[Duncan]

nasty Harry...what did kumho say?

Last time we had an issue with a certain brand/model of tyre blowing out in the racing club we had a lot of discussions back and forth, and basically the manufacturer pointed the finger at heavy car/low profile tyres/lots of camber and low tyre pressure. Eg 1800kg commodore (so say 600kg on each front during braking), +35 profile tyres + 4-5o camber +20psi starting pressure (because they grew enormously when hot)

Could be as simple as a bad batch, but I wouldn't be trying them again after that record either.

[hrd-hr30]

I went back there with the first blown tyre but like I said, I'd pretty much convinced myself I'd damaged the sidewall dropping it of the track. So I wasn't really looking for any answers from them.

I didn't go back to Kumho the next time. I thought about it, but I just didn't see the point. What could you achieve? You're not going to get a refund, let alone get them to pay for the damage to the wheel and the car. Best you'd be likely to get is a discount on a replacement set of Kumhos - and at the time I wouldn't have had another set of Kumhos if they paid me! Besides, I didn't want to get into an argument with the guy - I've known him for about 10 yrs and he's a nice bloke. And there were other reasons I wasn't happy with Kumho - like that they sold me K50 compound rears and harder K60 compound fronts. So I just put the whole thing down to experience and bought another brand of tyres elsewhere.

With your example on the commodores - were the tyres load rated appropriately? If so, weight is hardly a reasonable justification for them blowing out regardless of what profile they are. And if the tyres can only tolerate a certain amount of camber, they should be telling us that when we buy them.

But like I said even the cheap-arse 2nd hand Roadstone tyres I use on the street (and at the odd dirt event) have survived on the car for a couple of years with the same camber I use on the track. They aren't even wearing badly on the inside edge from all the camber... If Roadstones can handle it a competition tyre should!

Edited January 25, 2012 by hrd-hr30

[LSX-438]

Looking for something like 245/40 17 for my boat, tire rack don't do full slicks and I'm after happy prices, Am I going to get some for happy price or am I going to have to bite the bullet and pay through the nose.

Thanks, Mark.

Could you go to an 18"?

You may be able to get porsche fronts (240's) 2nd hand.

I've purchased dozens of used slicks (and heaps of new ones too) the 2nd hand ones are a bit of a lucky dip - heaps of tread usually it's just the heat cycles that kills them. SO it's difficult to judge just be looking at the tyre.. Race teams dispose of them simply because they aren't competitive.. but still great for the amateur having fun. The going rate is about $25 to $50 each. The easiest way is to find out which category is using an appropriate size, go to the event and walk through the pits offering to buy them.

Or what about some hoosier A6 or R6 AS A "cheap" option (not slicks but close) some of the north american GTR guys have tried them:

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires.jsp?tireMake=Hoosier&tireModel=A6&sidewall=Blackwall&partnum=44ZR7A6&tab=Sizes

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires.jsp?tireMake=Hoosier&tireModel=R6&sidewall=Blackwall&partnum=44ZR7R6&tab=Sizes

[260DET]

Way off topic, but in regard to the Qld Sprint series, who gives a f**k about so called cheating? I don't, it's a Sprint for christs sake. You're racing to clock, no one else.

Hmmmm, for those trying to compete for prizes it just could be important, I don't know, not me. Yeh and we all know that compared with targas sprints are small time, oh to be a big fish in a small pool.