Tire question.

[Too Big Small Turbo?]

Well I'm running lame Hankook street tires. They are 410 compound! Way too hard I know. I'm trying to trade with my friend but his tires are still 380 compound. Would there be any noticeable difference between 410 Hankooks and 380 Bargian brand tires? Thanks.

[Van]

Jordan, I doubt you'd notice much difference. What size are you using? I don't think it would be worth the effort and money to mount/dismount those tires for the others. Save up and get some good ones! Or keep an eye on the classifieds.

If you give us a size, we can help you find something. :)

Van

[mannix]

Size would be very helpful.

Don't put too much (any) stock in the treadwear number - it is not really a "compound" indicator, it is more a metric of how long the tire will last.

I forget exactly how it works, but the higher the number, the greater the tread life (so the way you're using it makes sense), but it is not standardized between manufacturers - and the manufacturer can manipulate it pretty easily, it seems.

As an example - when the Hoosier A3S02? came out - a while back, 8-10 years or so - it had a treadwear rating of zero.

Rumor had it the Corvette Club had a rule stating that all tires must have a treadwear rating of 40 or greater.

Like magic, A3S0xs all of a sudden had a treadwear rating of 40.....

If you're in SM, you probably should be looking for an "R compound" tire - what size do you use? Surely someone here has something good.



Iain

[Goku]

If your looking for a cheap quite tire check out the Kumho ASX's Good alround tire.

And yes the treadwear rating is useless between brands, and its not even that usefully when comparing one tire to the next in the same brand. I've seen ratings of 400 and 30,000 mile life, and then another 420 rating and that gives it 45,000 mile life. But a 200 might go 25,000miles, and this is all the same manufacturer... From what I've read, the tread desigin has more to do with the noise than the compound.

[Too Big Small Turbo?]

The tires are the same size 225/45/17, on the same wheel 17x7 stock GSX wheel. I'd love to buy new tires, but i just bought these ones right before the season started, before I decided to do autocross. I was just trying to see if it would even be worth it to switch the wheels before the event. I'd love to get a hold of some R-compounds to test out but so far no luck. I've also been trying to get a hold of some stock evo 8 wheels just because they fit perfect and can run a wider tire because it 17x8. But again it always comes down to money and that seems to be a problem for me lately. I'm just trying to do everything i can to get some faster times, for free that is.

[ianacole]

If you want, you can come by my garage and rifle through all my 225/45/17 race rubber - yours to just get it out of the garage ;) No guarantee on times improving though :D

[Too Big Small Turbo?]

Sweet thanks Ian, I might take you up on that, now I just need a set of wheels. I'll start asking around.

[47ford]

If your looking for a cheap quite tire check out the Kumho ASX's Good alround tire.

Just don't AutoX on the ASX or run it on snow or ice (even though it is an all season). It is however a great summer tire with very decent wet traction running up and down the canyons :D Here is how I know. I've got 235/40R17 ASXs on my A4 and have run two schools and about 8-9 events on the tires. They supposedly have a 45K mileage warranty, but I'm hoping just to see 15-18K at this point (have about 9k+/- on them now). I run a different tire (Yokohama IceGuard 205/60R15) in the winter (Oct-Mar). I've gone up to Mary Jane in April with the ASXs and hits some snow on the access road to the parking lot and that is where I learned no snow/ice traction for the ASX (relative to the IceGuards). From what I've heard the MX is a much better tire and not that much more than the ASX (price wise). The MX is NOT an all-season tire, but a performance tire.

However as was already mentioned, if you are in SM you should probably look at R-compound (for AutoX). I assume that is what you were talking about (tires for AutoX)... Drew (99ESP) might make you a deal on some Hankook R-compounds he got a deal on (If you ask nicely):D (I think the are 275s on a 17" rim). If you want a street tire you can AutoX with I'ld check with the ST* guys if you know what I mean;)