Tire Issue

[tatawaki]

all my tires are tired. There are no outside edges anymore. unless I rotate the tires on the rims so the inside edge is on the outside ( can anyone do this? ) my tires won't last too much longer. Even if I did 'rotate' the tires it would probably only last for this season.

question1: is it worth rotating them so I have an edge, + whatever is left for tread? went to gimli yesterday, and my grip wasn't there.. I was easily rolling on my sidewalls.

Question2: do I buy new cheaper tires, and buy some rims for R's (which I won't get till next year)? or do I buy another good set of streets. and hold off on R's again.

This sport is getting too expensive. :P my tires 'should' have lasted another 2 seasons ::)

[Corey]

1. *Tough call. *Do you have lots of tread left on the inside edges? *If so, it might be worth it. *Also, if possible, it would be worth dialing in some more negative camber to prevent this problem from happening on the next set. *I think I recall 50 Below having very good prices on tire flipping.

2. *I think it's about the same cost to use R-compounds and a set of street tires versus just one good set of tires for everything. *R's can take much more abuse but they wear out faster in general. *Your street tires last a lot longer so it kind of makes up for that.

It is a pain hauling extra wheels around, but it's worth it to me. *Another bonus is if you screw up royally and flatspot your R-tires, you don't have to drive home on corded tires. *A negative is that it sucks changing wheels before and after an event.

In a perfect world I'd have four sets of wheels for my car:
-Street tires
-Winter tires (assuming it was winter driven)
-Fresh R's for autocross
-Older, tired R's for lapping at Gimli

:grin: I need that roll bar first though...

[tatawaki]

lots of tread on the other edge.. i'm sure it would feel like a new set of tires...

hey I just remembered, doesn't Jeff S. has a machine? how much does he charge.

Thanks.

[mzf]

I would recommend flipping them on the rims. See if you can last the summer on them. I would also recommend some R's and cheap streets. Your street tires will last for years if you don't autox or track on them, and you can find used R's for cheap. I've never bought a new set of R's cause there's so many good deals on used ones.

[apex]

I'm in the same situation Jer. I've got no tread on the outside edge of my streets.. Gotta flip 'em for sure.

[tatawaki]

k, I'm off to 50 below at lunch. it was the cheapest around anyway, discount or not.

[STi_Sue]

I'm in the same situation Jer. *I've got no tread on the outside edge of my streets.. Gotta flip 'em for sure.

I'm in the same boat. Unfortunately, my tires are directional and I can't just flip them on the rims. I was hoping that the tires would last the summer, but they are starting to drive me crazy! They are getting dartier and noisier every day... :P

I think I've heard everyone say it would be best to learn for an entire autox season on street tires before going to R compounds though.

Sue :)

[90RioGS]

Sue, can you not still swap the tires? (ie put the left ones on the right wheels, and vise versa?) or do your tires have the "Mount this edge to the outside" on them too? :-/

[tatawaki]

$63 to take the tires off, swap them and put them back on. It looks like I have normal tires on now :grin: ready for another day at gimli.

[Corey]

I'm a big fan of learning on street tires. R's can hide mistakes very well, so you don't learn as fast as someone on streets.

That said, you've been autocrossing your STi for almost a year now. I'd just buy R's whenever you feel you want them. It would be harsh on the pocketbook to buy new streets, R's, and a second set of wheels all at once. It might be good to try to stagger those purchases.

[MR2_Racer]

Sue, can you not still swap the tires? *(ie put the left ones on the right wheels, and vise versa?) or do your tires have the "Mount this edge to the outside" on them too? * :-/

They are not actually directional, the inside edge and the outside edge are unique and only ment to be mounted that way.

Jim

[STi_Sue]

I'm a big fan of learning on street tires. *R's can hide mistakes very well, so you don't learn as fast as someone on streets.

That said, you've been autocrossing your STi for almost a year now. *I'd just buy R's whenever you feel you want them. *It would be harsh on the pocketbook to buy new streets, R's, and a second set of wheels all at once. *It might be good to try to stagger those purchases.

Well, I've still got a lot to learn, and my AWD car already lets me get away with too much, so I think I'd like to stick with streets for this year. ;)

I'm thinking that I'll look into getting that new set of performance summer streets now, and put them on my winter rims. That will solve my everyday driving discomfort. I can leave the RE070s on the lighter BBS rims and use them just for autocross. That way I can thrash them without worrying about having to drive home on them and I won't have to adjust to any handling differences.

That leaves me budgeting for a second set of SDR rims eventually, and; most likely, a set of R compounds for autocross next year! Time to find some more sponsors! :grin:

On original topic: great to hear that you're all set to go again Jeremy!

Sue :)