DTM has recently signed a three-year contract to make Hankook Tire the exclusive supplier for its series. After Dunlop pulled out of the series in late 2010, the series was left without an official tire for the 2011 season. With V8 engines, sequential transmissions, and some of the most dramatic and distinctive aerodynamics around, DTM racecars are known for being quick. It would be a complete crapshoot to leave DTM cars stuck on spec all-season rubber.

Eager to expand their brand and international presence (who doesn’t want pseudo-chic European appeal, right? – Ed.), Korean tire manufacturer Hankook recently signed on as the slick tire manufacturer for DTM. The 7^th largest tire manufacturer in the world, Hankook can now claim DTM along with its presence in Le Mans, the 24 Hours of Nurburgring, and time attack. Wait, does that sound right?

From DTM:

Wiesbaden. Effective immediately, Hankook Tire is the exclusive tyre supplier to the international touring-car series DTM. The contract recently signed between the tyre manufacturer and DTM umbrella organisation ITR is initially slated to run for three years. It takes account of both the current set of rules and regulations, valid until the end of 2011, and the future version, which is to apply starting in 2012, and covers the supply of equipment not only to the current teams, Audi and Mercedes-Benz, but also to other vehicle manufacturers as well (BMW from 2012 onward).

This exclusive partnership with the most popular international touring-car series heralds a new era in the motor sport activities of Hankook Tire, currently the seventh largest tyre manufacturer worldwide. In recent years, the company had focused its track racing motor sport activities on long-distance events, to resounding success in spectacular races including the 24-hours classics in Le Mans and on the Nürburgring. From now on the DTM will form the core of the international Hankook motor sport activities in the years to come.

Jin-Wook Choi, Executive Vice-President and European head of Hankook Tire: “The DTM is one of the most professional racing series around. Together with Audi and Mercedes-Benz, two of the world’s most successful premium car manufacturers, the DTM represents top-level international motor sport. That’s why we are very pleased at the trust and confidence that event organisers, vehicle manufacturers, and teams have placed in us and our brand, and we are proud to have been selected as the exclusive tyre partner for the years to come. Now we will focus all our efforts on bringing our motto ’Driving Emotion’ home to global fans of the DTM as well, and on demonstrating the superior quality of our products.”

Hans Werner Aufrecht, 1st Chairman of the Board, ITR e.V. (DTM commercial rights holder and promoter): “We are very happy with the long-term partnership with premium tyre manufacturer Hankook. During the negotiations prior to signing this contract, it already became apparent how motivated those in charge at Hankook are while dealing with the DTM project. The performance of the race tyres also convinced everyone involved right away. Personally, I am happy that we have found another international corporate group that is willing and able to keep our high pace and our quality standards as an exclusive supplier in the years to come. Hankook has everything it takes for that.”

Jamie Green DTM driver (Mercedes-Benz): “My first impressions of the new DTM tyres are all positive. Hankook has identified the requirements for a DTM tyre properly and managed to provide us with a tyre with high grip level and good load capacity right away. The first tests with the new tyres were great and I am looking forward to work with the new DTM tyre partner and to have exciting races in the coming season.”

- Click to play and select “720p” to watch in full HD.

Release from Continental Tire below:

Continental Tire introduced its newest tire line, the ProContact with EcoPlus Technology.  This premium all-season tire was developed to deliver improved fuel economy, treadwear, and reduce harmful CO2 emissions.

“Today’s consumer is very interested in how to save money and be more energy and environmentally friendly,” said Bill Caldwell, vice president of sales and marketing, Continental Tire.  “Our objective was to create a tire that responds to this need without compromising other performances, like wet braking and mileage, that are the typical tradeoffs of other ‘eco’ tires.   Our technical team has managed to overcome these trade-offs, and the result of their efforts is the new ProContact with EcoPlus Technology.”

Engineered using the industry’s most advanced technologies, Continental claims that the ProContact with EcoPlus Technology goes beyond other premium touring tires and makes groundbreaking advances in rolling resistance, which saves fuel and helps reduce driving costs.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency estimates that each gallon of gas saved also means that 19.4lbs less of toxic CO2 emissions are released into the Earth’s atmosphere, so every gallon of gasoline saved helps reduce fuel costs, and in turn, helps to reduce our nation’s dependence on oil.

The hallmark of the ProContact with EcoPlus Technology is delivering greater fuel economy compared to a leading competitor’s standard touring tire.  In the past, reducing rolling resistance meant sacrificing wet traction and treadwear. The ProContact with EcoPlus Technology is built to deliver excellent wet traction and remarkable treadwear.

EcoPlus Technology consists of two main components, Tg-F Polymers and Plus Silane.

The Tg-F polymers are temperature-activated functional polymers that increase compound bonding, improving the wear and fuel efficiency of the tire. The second component of the EcoPlus Technology is called +Silane, an additive that works to enhance the tire’s grip on slippery roads to reduce stopping distances.

The ProContact with EcoPlus Technologyis backed by some of the strongest warranty programs and service contracts in the industry, including a 72-Month Manufacturer’s Workmanship Warranty – with 12 Months Free Replacement; 12 months of Road Hazard Coverage and a 60-day Customer Satisfaction Warranty.

The ProContact with EcoPlus Technology comes with a segment-leading 80,000-mile limited tread wear warranty.  Available in a T-speed rating with a UTQG rating of 600 AB, this tire is available in a variety of 15″ to 18″ sizes to fit a wide range of vehicles for fuel-conscious consumers.

-Click to play and select 720p in the menu bar to watch in full HD.

Features:
·    Reinforced shoulder tread blocks
·    Continuous center rib design
·    Specially formulated tread compound
·    Reinforced internal construction

To the average commuter, the rubber doughnuts underneath their car are only good for one thing – to keep their wheels from getting scratched. Most “normal” people don’t pay close attention to what keeps them on the road. They’ll buy re-manufactured tires (four for $100 on special! – Ed.) and rarely ever check the pressures. So why then has every tire manufacturer on Earth released a new all-out performance street tire in the last couple years? For you, of course.

Compare a normal driver to the average OR reader, who obsesses about the perfect hot tire pressure and tread design. Commuters don’t understand the capabilities and intricacies of a performance tire the way that a gear head would but they’re not the target buyer. The OR reader is the one with the modified car, bursting at the seams, asking for every nuance of grip that it can muster.

The OR reader is the one that will win time attack championships, club races and autocross national titles. These are the things that can help boost a brand’s reputation, reaching down to even the commuter level. When it comes to competition, everybody’s out to win.

The NT05 is Nitto’s latest maximum performance offering. With a low UTQG rating of 200, it’s matched up against the usual SCCA Street Touring standouts like the Falken RT-615, Yokohama Advan Neova, Toyo R1R, Hankook RS-3 and Dunlop Direzza Sport Z1. UTQG wear ratings are arbitrarily determined by each tire manufacturer so they are not true yardsticks with which to measure how soft or sticky a competitor tire really is.

The first striking thing you’ll notice about the NT05’s design is the tread compound. The outer edges feature huge blocks of rubber with a few sipes for water evacuation. The center features what Nitto calls a “continuous center rib design”. This equates to a thick strip of rubber right through the middle and two large channels on each side. These channels will help with wet weather grip, although the NT05 is not recommended for snow use.

Surely taking a few cues from their NT01 r-compound racing tire, Nitto has created a very fast street tire that is capable on track as well. We sampled the 255/40/17 NT05 size at Spring Mountain Motorsports Park in Pahrump, NV during the Redline Time Attack weekend. The test car was our full weight, registered and daily driven Project Evo IX. The NT05s were not heat cycled or shaved before they hit the track.

Right off the bat, the NT05s displayed their high level of grip. Entering into the medium-speed Turn One off of the front straight,Project Evo IX averaged a lateral load of 1.01g and a peak spike of 1.61g. Through Segment 4, a tight hairpin left, the NT05s scored a peak lateral load of 1.22g. Perhaps most telling though is the high 66-68mph average speed maintained through Segments 7 and 8, which are undulating mixtures of hills and turns.

The NT05s also displayed good heat resistance, with no chunking or tearing appearing at all after they had gone on track. The tires also showed very little graining or overheating across the surface, its lack of tread squirm no doubt helped by its large tread blocks and relatively shallow molding depth.

The key thing to remember is that Nitto had the intention of creating a tire that was to be used on the street first and the track second. They were not in the market to create an all-out performance street tire like the Yokohama Advan Neova AD08, instead focusing on a balance of wear life, grip, price and noise. The NT05 doesn’t quite have the steering precision of the Neova tire but it’s still one of the fastest street tires on the market today and comes in at a much lower price than Yokohama as well.

If you’re looking for a decently priced street tire for your project car, you can’t lose with the NT05. You’ll have more dry grip than you can legally use on the street and hitting the track on the weekend won’t require a tire swap. That’s what we’re always looking for in a performance street tire.

Source
Nitto Tire
www.nittotire.com

It’s 8 o’clock in the morning and we’re early. Really early. Like an hour early. Southern California’s reputation for horrendous traffic doesn’t hold up on this day and we make great time down the freeway. Of course, a large amount of giddy anticipation doesn’t hurt either.

Falken Tire’s new 2010 Porsche 911 GT3 RSR has just been wrapped in their distinctive teal/blue livery and Duane and I have been given full access to peer into its intricate details.

The most highly developed 911 racing chassis sold by Porsche Motorsport, the 911 GT3 RSR is a stripped out and reworked racecar that weighs about 2,700lbs and puts out 450hp through an air inlet restrictor. Falken Tire’s racecar was hand-built in Weissach, Germany and then flown straight to California for delivery.

Built from the bare frame of a 911 GT3 RS, the GT3 RSR is hot tanked and then given a roll cage and air jack system at the factory. From there, the Porsche receives an entire list of racing bits – Sachs suspension, Brembo brakes, center lock hubs, spherical arms, bucket seat, fire system, rear wing and an entirely different aerodynamically formed body.

In fact, so many items are changed on the GT3 RSR, we have trouble referring to it as a modified street car. Sure it’s based off of a production model but after seeing the amount of carbon work, wiggins clamps and different suspension parts, it has almost nothing in common with the 911 parked in front of the golf course.

Homologated for GT2 class rules, Falken’s GT3 RSR will be competing in the professional American Le Mans Series. It’s a tough class to race in and their competition will include teams like Corvette Racing, Flying Lizard (Porsche) and Rahal Letterman Racing (BMW).

But under the direction of race manager Rod Everett, Falken Tire will be putting its best foot forward with returning driver Bryan Sellers and new-for-2010 driver Wolf Henzler. As the factory works driver for Porsche, Henzler has loads of experience with the rear-engine platform. Plus, you can’t argue with a racecar driver name like Wolf.

When we dropped in to see the Falken 911 GT3 RSR, Team Falken was busy prepping the car, setting up for a test session at Sebring International Raceway. The 12 Hours of Sebring will open the 2010 ALMS season in March and the Falken guys are serious about their racing efforts.

The 911 GT3 RSR uses a strut-type front suspension and a multi-link setup in the rear with 4-way adjustable dampers all around and not a single rubber bushing in sight. Team Falken was busy dialing in the car’s initial suspension setup and this meant a trip on to the setup pads. With the Porsche rolled on to the pads, the air jacks were released and the car popped up into the air.

In our past Tire Tech – How To Read A Tire Sidewall article we covered UTQG ratings, tire sizing and load/speed ratings. Those are the basic requirements for understanding what kind of tire you’re holding in your hands. But, before you head out and laugh in the face of the tire shop help, there’s more. Much less publicized is the manufacturing date stamped on to the sidewall of every tire.

Imagine this scenario – with all sorts of numbers and letters bouncing around in your head, you head out to buy some new tires for your rubber roaster. You know what size, brand and, thanks to us (no applause necessary, really – Ed.), model you want. It’s got the right stickiness, low treadwear rating and high speed/load index. Now it just comes down to price.

Going Out Of Business Tire Shop (GOOB) has the tire for $100/each. Everything Must Go Tire Shop (EMG) has the tire for $90/each. Since they’re the same spec, you’d just get whatever was cheapest, right? You shouldn’t.

What if we told you that EMG’s tire was actually three years older than GOOB’s? Doesn’t sound like such a good deal any more, huh? That $10 savings means using a tire that has sat on a rack gathering dust and hardening. It’s even worse if they’re r-compound racing tires. We’ve seen pro racing teams lose more than a second per lap from using race tires that are a little over a year old. When it comes to going fast, fresh rubber counts.

The way to check that you’re getting the freshest tires is to check the manufacturing date. Many tires shops won’t mention this to you. Hell, some don’t even know themselves. It’s actually quite simple. Printed on the sidewall of almost every tire is a four-digit code inside an ellipse. The first two digits are the production week of the tire; the second two digits are the production year of the tire.

Example: Kumho V710 racing slick tire

Manufacture code: 3705 = September 2005

37th (week) = September

05 (year) = 2005

In our example, we use a Kumho V710 racing tire with a code of 3705. This means that the tire was made in the 37th week (September) of 2005. Similarly, a code of 0310 would mean that the tire was made in the 3rd week (January) of 2010. With 52 weeks in a year, figuring out the tire’s manufacture date is easy.

And yes, our Kumho is a very old tire by today’s standards. If you remember correctly, we blew one of these up at the track on Project Evo IX.

Next time you go buy a set of tires, arm yourself with OR knowledge. Ask for the tire manufacture date and aim to buy performance tires that are at least less than half a year old. If the shop doesn’t know the manufacture date or how to check, take a look for yourself. Wait for a different shipment if it comes down to it and you have the time. And, if your shop doesn’t move enough of the tire you want and can’t get anything new enough, maybe try buying elsewhere.

Tires are simple to understand, right? They’re all black, round and made of rubber. As long as they fit around the wheel, they should be good. Not really. As an OR reader, you wouldn’t go into the local Pep Boys and sling four of the best Chinese remanufactured specials (on sale for $80! – Ed.) on to your car. You want the best for your dollars and learning how to read a tire is the first step.

Printed on the face of every tire’s side, called the sidewall, is a series of numbers and letters. With these, you can figure out the tire’s general traction capabilities, age and size. Combine these specs with the price you’re willing to pay and you should be able to figure out the right tire for you.

Tire Size

The most important thing to pay attention to is tire size, printed in a format that will read something like “225/45R17”. Some tires will also begin with a letter, such as “P225/45R17”, where the “P” means that the tire is meant for passenger vehicles. Other letters include “LT” (light truck) and “T” (temporary spare).

The first number is the width of the tire’s face from sidewall to sidewall, measured in mm. The above example is 225mm across the face. The second number is the aspect ratio, also commonly referred to as the profile. This number is the height of the sidewall and is read as a percentage of the tire width. In our example, the sidewall height is 45% of 225mm, 101.25mm. The letter “R” means that the tire is a radial tire, the most common currently in production. It’s unlikely that you’ll run into any other letter in that spot. The third number is the wheel diameter.

Tire sizing is important because it directly affects tire fitment (i.e. rubbing), gearing and your speedometer. Your car’s speedometer is calibrated to the factory tire size and the tire’s circumference, i.e. distance around its face. Since tires are your car’s only connection to the ground, tire circumference is used as a function of rotation per time to figure out vehicle speed.

By using too large or too small of a tire, your speedometer will think you’re going a different speed than you really are. You can also use this to your advantage during autocross runs or at the track by using a thinner tire for a smaller overall diameter, shortening the gear ratio.

UTQG

UTQG, which stands for Uniform Tire Quality Grades, is a general system for judging overall tire characteristics. The ratings are broken down into three parts: treadwear, traction and temperature.

Treadwear

The UTQG treadwear rating ranks overall wear rate and softness. In general, the lower the number the higher the dry grip of the tire. Commonly found passenger car tires rank in the low 300s, ultra high-performance street tires in the low 200s to mid/high 100s and racing tires are usually 100 and below.

Traction

UTQG traction rates a tire’s braking grip over a wet surface under a controlled National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) test. Grades given are AA, A, B and C, with AA being the highest. This grade is only partially relevant for OR readers since the NHTSA doesn’t test for dry grip or cornering on a wet skidpad.

Temperature

UTQG temperature grades include A, B and C, with A being the highest. Grades are tested and given out by running a tire against a roller in a controlled test. This test is important because high-speed operation causes heat to build up in a tire. A higher temperature resistance will survive high-speed operation for longer periods of time.

Load/Speed

A tire’s load and speed rating is usually given in a format similar to “95V” and will follow the tire size, read completely as something similar to “225/45R17 95V”. The numbers are the tire’s load rating and matches to a general ability to carry weight. The letter is the speed rating and different letters (below) are used to designate a tire’s maximum speed rating.

Seemingly one of the most successful, cash-infused tire companies at the moment, Continental Tire went balls to the wall for the launch event of the Extreme Contact DW (Dry Wet) and DWS (Dry Wet Snow) tires. California Speedway, now Auto Club Speedway, played host to the event with the oval, infield, go-kart track and parking lot rented out for testing. On hand in the parking lot were a wet skidpad, wet braking test and two tight autocross courses (dry and wet).

Continental Tire’s test fleet of BMWs and Mustang GTs were on hand for journalist abuse and we delivered. The BMW 3-Series proved to be an easy low-speed drift machine on the wet autocross course, while the Mustang GT left us pining for a competent limited-slip differential (LSD) to be installed in the rear axle.

Muscling the Ford pony car around the wet skidpad became an exercise in understeer and throttle management as the V8’s torque refused to properly overcome both of the rear Continental DWS tires with power-on oversteer. Luckily, the DWS tires provided enough traction and wet surface feel that balancing the Mustang around the wet asphalt was no problem.

Still, the star of the day was the Extreme Contact DW tire. We’ve driven on Continental’s previous ContiSportContact 3 performance offering and found it to be very consistent and with a pretty good level of grip. The DW was our main focus for the day and it did quite well for an all-season tire (all season in CA at least, we only get dry and some wet – Ed.).

The DW doesn’t provide the outright dry grip of uber-top tier rubber, like Yokohama’s Advan AD08 Neova tire, but, then again, Neova’s cost an arm and a leg and will wear out faster than you can say burnout. For the average real world driver, the Continental ExtremeContact DW provides a better balance between cost and performance and will provide more than enough grip for the street and, occasionally, the track.

We pushed the DW on the autocross course, on CA Speedway’s massive oval (in an ex-Toyota Pro/Celebrity Celica racecar) and in a timed “time attack” session on the infield course. Even tith the launch event full of club racers and karting enthusiasts, we took the 3rd place trophy. The DW tire proved to be very responsive and had an easy to find limit of grip, making learning both easier and faster.

While out on course, the DWs delivered. They were very consistent over the driving period and delivered more grip than we had originally anticipated. The current generation of street tires have progressed with amazing leaps and bounds, almost matching racing tires for consistency and grip.

The Continental DW and DWS tires are quiet, comfortable, consistent and have a decent amount of grip. These weren’t designed as one-shot wonder Street Touring autocross tires but If you’re looking for a grippy tire that you can slap on to your street car all year round, the Continental DW and DWS are very good choices.

Update (Nov. 2009):

Our very own Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution track car test bed, Project Evo IX, recieved an invite to the annual Evo vs. STI Shootout. The time trial competition is run on a spec tire, the Continental ExtremeContact DW tire, meaning all competitors would be on the same exact tire. This evened out the playing field, making for closer competition.

After a day on track, Project Evo IX emerged as the fastest car of the day, beating full racecars. Equipped with an aftermarket KW suspension, 400hp and 265/35/18 Continental ExtremeContact DW tires, we set a laptime on track faster than both the Porsche 911 Turbo and the Chevy Corvette Z06. Our car is registered, driven regularly and is full weight.

Source

Continental Tire

www.continentaltire.com

Size tested: 285/30/18
Type: Ultra-high performance tire
UTQG: 180 AA A
Test car: Project Evo IX
Test track: Willow Springs

Features:
· Serrated groove walls
· Heat releasing dimples
· Optimum groove position
· Rounded tread block design
· Unique casing shape
· Micro silica compound

The Yokohama PR catalog can talk all day about silica construction, block casings, and environmental designs but, when it comes to performance, tires speak for themselves. As anyone in the street tire autocross scene can tell you, the Yokohama Advan Neova tire is the best street tire on the market today.

With its high price tag and limited availability, the Neova tire scares away many potential buyers. But those owners of high performance or competition cars would be missing out if they let their wallets make their decisions. Yokohama is one of the most well known Japanese tire manufacturers, with offerings in club racing and the ALMS, and the Neova is their best.

First off, the Neova tires is difficult to track down. Not a high volume seller, the tire is, in fact, often out of stock at Yokohama Tire HQ itself. Trying to find a last minute 18-inch Neova at your local Discount Tire is going to be next to impossible. Your best bet is to shop at racing or performance shops and still factor in a wait time.

The Advan Neova is Yokohama’s current flagship tire and sports all the features that they could pack into a street tire. We tested the Neova tire on Project Evo 9, on both the street and the track. Our first impressions of the Neova tire came on the 2-hour drive from our headquarters to Willow Springs Raceway.

The Yokohama Advan Neova sports all the comforts of a true street car tire. There is more road noise transferred into the cabin than from an all-season touring tire, but very little when compared to a racing tire or event some other high-performance street tires, such as the Toyo R1R.

The Advan Neova did however provide outstanding stability, grip, and steering feedback. Through freeway sweepers, lane changes, and off-ramps, the Neova gave more driving feedback than any other tire we’ve driven on.

The Advan Neova is even above average in the wet, as we found later during a rainy stretch. Some ultra-high performance tires get their dry grip by sacrificing wet weather stability and capability but the Neova managed to retain its feedback and feel.

We also took the opportunity to test the Advan Neova tire at Willow Springs Raceway, the “fastest track in the west”. With Willow’s daunting Turn 8 and 9 complex capable of propelling Project Evo 9 over 120mph through turns, many street tires have given up the ghost during testing.

Once on track, Project Evo 9 began to push the limits of the sticker-fresh, full tread depth Yokohama tires. We didn’t do any heat cycling, shaving, or preparation. Especially in the summer, Willow Springs’ high speed and high load turns have a tendency to punish front tires.

Putting Project Evo 9 on the track in 15-minute sessions, we switched on our datalogger and flipped open our notebook. Our test driver returned with similar feedback to our street drive. The Yokohama Advan Neova tire displayed high grip and sharp steering feedback on track, especially through the very quick Turn 2 (average 87 mph) and Turn 8 (average 119 mph) areas. With consistently high grip marks (at or above 1 lateral-g in almost all corners), the Neova tire could in fact match the pace of racing tires from just a few years ago.

Like any street tire, the Neova didn’t display as much heat capacity as a true racing tire, although it was consistent throughout the entire session, not completely dropping off into complete slipperiness like other street tires after a few laps. We found our lap spread to be within 1-second throughout the session.

Our final impression of the Yokohama Advan Neova is one of surprise. It’s not very often that we run across a tire that combines the wet weather capability and noise of a street tire with the grip and feedback of a racing tire. We had heard good things about this tire but its performance truly is excellent. The Neova’s only downside is its pricetag, almost $320/tire in this size, which matches or exceeds racing tire prices.

But, remember, your tires’ contact patch is the only thing holding you to the ground. If you have a high-performance car, such as a Porsche, BMW, Corvette, or Viper, that demands the best in grip and performance, you’ve found it.

Size tested: 255/35/18
Type: Extreme performance tire
UTQG: 140 AA A
Test car: Project Evo IX
Test track: Willow Springs (Redline Time Attack)

Features:
· Silica-reinforced, high-grip tread compound
· Unidirectional “arrowhead” tread design
· Tapered center block edge
· Multi-width EVAC channels
· Stability control slits
· Modified radial construction casing

Before we get too far into this review, let’s just lay it out there – the Toyo R1R tire is not for everybody. It’s not a tire for getting groceries, driving to Granny’s or zoning out in stop-and-go traffic. Toyo sells other tires for those purposes that are both quieter and longer lasting.

The R1R is an r-compound racing tire disguised as a DOT street tire. But if you’re interested in putting every last bit of power down to the ground or autocross in the SCCA’s Street Touring class, then please read on.

Why should the R1R be used by only the most hardcore enthusiasts and drivers? Compromise, really. Every single thing that you change or modify on your car will compromise it in some way. Your car can become stiffer, louder or lighter with a few changes. But luxury and comfort often get thrown out the window.

The Toyo R1R is designed first and foremost as a performance tire. It comes packing many design cues that can also be found in the Toyo R888 r-compound racing tire. Design cues that may bother your average Corolla S commuter.

The R1R’s sidewalls are stiff to give a crisp turn-in response and have a reinforced casing to avoid deflection under hard cornering. Driving on the R1R is not uncomfortable by any means but the stiffness does make the R1R ride hard when compared to your standard off-the-shelf all-season touring tire. The “arrowhead” tread design is supposed to aid with wet traction, which is good since the R1R has such huge tread blocks for dry grip, but it also increases the road noise transmitted into the cabin.

Wear and longevity are also an issue. With a soft, grippy compound and a low 140 UTQG wear rating, the Toyo R1R will not last as long as a El Cheapo touring tire. But, then again, the R1R will demolish any all-season or touring tire in terms of outright grip. In its comfort zone, at the track or in performance driving, the R1R shines.

We tested the 255/35/18 Toyo R1R on Project Evo IX during the Redline Time Attack Willow Springs event (full tread depth, no break-in or heat cycling). With a 255-width and a 140 UTQG treadwear rating, the R1R is at the extent of the limits and is one of the tires to have for the Street Class. The UTQG rating also bumps it up against the rules ceiling in the SCCA’s Street Touring (STX, STU, STR, etc) class.

The R1R was clearly designed to dominate in these street-based performance environments. Once on track, we knew the R1R was not your average street tire. At a hot track in the blazing heat of a Southern California summer, the tire did drop off quite quickly but during the first couple initial hot laps, the grip was commendable. We nailed our fastest lap (good for 3rd in Street AWD) on our second hot lap and spiked 1.32 lateral-g in Willow’s on-camber high-speed Turn 9.

We did wish that the R1R had a more responsive turn-in and steering response, the proper slip angle for the tire is difficult to find at times, but the high grip level is hard to beat. The tire also exhibited zero chunking or tearing (always the bane of a street tire driven on track) during our track testing. Ken Motonoshi, SCCA autocross national champion, also advised us that the tire would get faster as it wore down.

We’re hoping that as the tire begins to wear away and the tread blocks get shorter, there will be less tread squirm and the turn-in response will pick up. If the tire gets even faster, fantastic. Although, it’s hard to believe just how fast this street tire really is already.

Source
Toyo Tires
West Coast: 800-442-8696 (6:30am to 5:00pm Pacific Time)
East Coast: 888-444-8696 (9:30am to 8:00pm Eastern Time)
www.toyotires.com

Size tested: 235/45/17
Type: Ultra-high performance tire
UTQG: 240 AA A
Test car: Project Evo IX

Features:
·    Lower sidewalls reinforced with DuPont Kevlar material
·    Jointless Band Technology to help maintain shape and performance at highway speeds
·    Max Flange Shield to protect rims from curb damage
·    Asymmetric design for easy mounting and tire rotation
·    Motorsport-inspired tread compound that promises dry and wet grip
·    Multi-Radius-Tread Technology that promises to distribute contact patch pressure smoothly during cornering
·    Unique bead fit system helps with tire and wheel mounting pressure

At the moment, it seems most tire companies just want to go to war in the performance street tire market. With outright handling records and SCCA Street Touring autocross national championships on the line, numerous tires have been released with 180 or lower UTQG ratings.

These premiere street offerings provide race tire-level grip but they also come with race-level pricing and incredibly quick tire wear. Not everybody can afford a new set of tires every six months. Luckily, Dunlop has released an ultra-high performance tire for real world street enthusiasts, the SP Sport Maxx TT.

As a summer tire, the SP Sport Maxx TT isn’t designed to be driven through snow or ice. It is, however, designed to provide optimal dry and wet weather grip. Think of it as a year-round Southern California tire (sorry Alaska). Dunlop’s recipe for the tire begins with the construction, which uses Kevlar reinforcement and Polyamide cord reinforced twin steel belts.

The tire tread itself is an asymmetric design that blends large tread blocks, for dry grip, with multiple water evacuation channels, for wet conditions. The SP Sport Maxx TT also features a curb protecting design that bulges slightly to protect wheels from scraping against curbs when parking.

“The SP Sport Maxx TT helps deliver great road feel, which is important for those who really love to drive.  The timely feedback from these tires allows the driver to react to turns and contours in the road,” said Razvan Bosomoiu, Dunlop general manager. By the time you read this, the SP Sport Maxx TT will be available in thirty-five sizes, ranging from 16-22-inch diameters.

On the streets of the real world, the SP Sport Maxx TT is a perfect fit. We tested these tires in a stock size fitment of 235/45R17 (on stock wheels) on Project Lancer Evo IX, which is equipped with stiff springs and spherical upper suspension mounts. Even with hard metal suspension bearings, the tire transmitted very little road noise into the cabin and, with 45-series sidewalls, absorbed bumps and shocks with ease.

Vibration through the steering wheel and directional hunting across the road was almost non-existent as well, which is more than we can say for some edgier performance street tires. With a UTQG rating of 240, the Dunlop SP Sport Maxx TT should also provide plenty of tire life before wearing out.

The concept was simple – regular people, tuned cars and professional drivers. BF Goodrich decided to pump some new attention into their g-Force T/A KDW dry/wet street tire with the KDW Challenge. The event, which is planning on visiting multiple cities and tracks throughout the US, takes and invites regular people off of the street and brings them to the track.

Photo by Duane Uyeda

The first event kicked off at Las Vegas Motor Speedway and had regular people just off the street. They showed up to be greeted by the presence of the NuFormz Formula Drift Dodge Viper, Spoon Sports / Opak Racing Accord Euro R and Civic Type-R, Works Lancer Evo X and Drift Emporium supercharged V8 Infiniti G35.

These lucky visitors were treated to ride-alongs with such pro drivers as Sam Hubinette and Dave Brown. Multiple cameras, including some in-car units, captured the action as well as the passengers’ reactions.

For some of these passengers, this was their first time at a racetrack and their first time feeling extreme lateral-g loads in a car. Of course, it didn’t help that the drivers on hand were trying to give as exciting a ride as possible for the cameras. We heard that at least one passenger got green gills after his ride. But if one thing is for sure, it’s that this is an event that they won’t soon forget. After flying sideways in the 850hp drift Viper, we’re sure that they’ll be thinking about those BF Goodrich KDW tires.