Best all round tyres for racing in wet/dry

[LeeBarton]

Has anyone been fortunate enough to do back to back track testing of the various tyres available for the 750M/C Roadsports series, which are basically, lists 1A and 1B of the MSA Blue Book permitted tyres?????

I am preparing a MK1 MR2 for the 750m/c Roadsports series (class C with 140bhp/ton) and am seeking the best tyre, both in the dry and the wet. For dry only, Toyo R888's would be favourite, but they are lethal in the wet (I can personally vouch for that following a huge off at Brands in heavy rain, sustaining 3 broken ribs and huge concussion). Cost has to be considered and Toyo R1R's or T1R's seem to be good value. Michelin Sports and Yoko Advan 048's too, but there are a huge range to chose from.

Any feedback would be most gratefully received.

Many thanks to the two members who have already replied.

Lee Barton

[dan4]

what size can you run? Are you allowed Yoko AD08's....ive found them as grippy as 888's, the wear is far better and they are far more resistant to heat

[gtschris.com]

Unless its very wet ie standing water i'd be going out on R888 or A048s as they will still be quicker than a typical road tyre like T1R etc (proving you don't bin the car), obv you need to be alot more mindful of white lines and curbs

T1Rs (for the money) I have round to be a excellent wet choice for the Mk2 1a/1b, make sure they are scrubbed, you don't want to be out in the wet on a sticker set!

Also, FYI.... A048s def worth the extra cash, used to be about 1sec quicker around Croft vs R888.

[Tedtiler]

I run r1r on my 4wd starlet. Same compound as 888 but road type sidewalls for less noise on road. They are however streets ahead of t1r for grip.

We use yoko a048 on the track rev3 mk2 and are very predictable and hard wearing. Not cheap tho.

[Donato]

Federal RS-R 595's are absolutely fantastic wet and dry. Wear rate is pretty good too. A lot of MX5 owners swear by them, it's also what is used and recommended by Driftworks

[Rosssco]

Federal RS-R 595's are absolutely fantastic wet and dry. Wear rate is pretty good too. A lot of MX5 owners swear by them, it's also what is used and recommended by Driftworks

I use these on my supercharged VX220, and although I haven't been on track with them yet, they have proven to be an excellent road tyre. Improved feel (and grip obviously) but have coped really well with standing water and cooler temps where I was a bit more sceptical with the previous set of R888's. Better actually than the Kumho KU31's I was also previously running (IMO).

Given that they are around half the price of R888's, and offer supposedly 95% of the track performance of the R888 /A048, they might be worth a look

They have treadwear rating of 140 vs. 100 for R888's, and start with ~6.5mm tread vs. 5mm of the R888. This also means larger, deeper water channels (comparable to a road summer tyre) which no doubt improves aqua planning performance in really heavy rain.

[LeeBarton]

Many thanks for the replies.

We can use up to 17" tyres and I have obtained a very good set of alloys with slightly used Yoko Parada Spec 2, which have good writeups in forums and tests. I got them purely due to the price, as they will allow me to do a couple of trackdays prior to final fitting out for racing. I will then decide which tyres to use.

Having raced a MK1 with R888's, I can say that they are superb in the dry, but very twitchy in the wet, but then again, my car was newly built and needed lots of adjustments. Unfortunately, it didn't last and was totalled at Paddock Hill in a downpour.

The new car can use any tyre within Blue Book 1A and 1B. I can work to get as close to 140bhp per ton, so need around 165bhp at the wheels with the minimum weight of 750kg, but cannot see that weight as being achieveable, so will calculate what weight I think I can get down to and go from there.

My car is being worked on at present to strengthen it after finding many areas of the dreaded metal worm!!!! I will then get it weighed and start stripping, although the car is going to be so good, I am having second thoughts about racing it, especially as my budget is now shot due to the cost of renovation. The engine is putting out about 150bhp at the flywheel and the car has lots of upgrades (about £4,000) during its ownership by a RAF pilot. It is a Mica blue 1987 MK1b.

If anyone is considering racing a mk1, I have all the parts necessary to convert for racing, including roll cage (from a racing Ferarri 308gtb), new 3"harness, Cobra race seat, new plumbed in extinguisher, new rain light, new master cut-out switch etc. etc. I will consider any offers for these parts (all the new items are fully FIA approved).

I also have a full set of Red Bull stickers for a full MK1.

[dan4]

Im sure RSR's are discontinued? Or they were last time i enquired....

[Special K]

I have a set of (scrubbed) ADO8's for sale. They are lethal on a Toyota GT86 as a road tyre - I cannot maintain temperature in them in the East London stop/start traffic and Yoko GB Ltd won't even respond to my question on tyre pressures... I started at 35psi, down to 32, down to 30, tried 28... sheer horror, car is undriveable on the road.. until they're warmed up, and then they stick like sh*t to a blanket... awesome...

235 x 45 x 17inch. Less than 150 miles road use. Cost me - fitted - £590 less than four weeks ago and I'll part with them for £350. Buyer pays shipping costs ex my works in Essex. Not worried if they don't sell, I'll use them in the TSS series...

Spec K