Cheap, long lasting track tire?

[bigjae46]

I’ve been running heat cycled Toyo RRs for a weekend at COTA and MSR Houston. As a long time NT01 user I would describe these as a slightly faster NT01. I switched from an old set of NT01s to the RRs mid day and didn’t skip a beat.

I ran my NT01s at 30psi hot, 22psi cold. Anything hotter the tires would grease up. The RRs like a little more pressure. 32psi hot - 24psi cold seemed like the sweet spot. Had some longer sessions and the RRs never got greasy.

The RRs tolerate sliding just like an NT01. The NT01s still make some noise, the RRs are dead silent when you go over the limit.

Lap times, I think the RRs were a little faster but not by much. Maybe a second at MSR Houston.

The wear rate looks better on the RRs although not quite as easy to tell since there is no tread pattern. I run -3.8 camber in front and -3.0 in the rear. The shoulders look good, same as the NT01s. So I expect to get similar life…maybe more!

Overall, glad I got the RRs. I think these will be my new tire. They cost $60 more per tire including heat cycling but I think these tires are going to last longer. I beat them up and the tread shows very little wear. If I drove the NT01s that hard for that long they would grease up and wear out pretty fast. In the end, I think these RRs are going to be cheaper.


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[Radekxpl]

This season I been running Federal fz-201 Mediums NOT Soft there a significant difference in wear and handling in 285/30/18 square. I very surprised how long the have lasted me so far I have 34 20 min sessions on them and I’m at just the wear marks with tread still left easily for another 1-2 days on them which far more than I anticipated from them. Like the grip on them as well predictable break away, grip has been consistent throughout full session does not grease up. Only downside side is they do require more warm time than others. In comparison this season I have also ran rt-660s they get up to temp in half the time , in terms of lap times I been running very similar lap times on both with one giving the edge to the other depending on conditions, but rt-660 lasted only 24 sessions plus you have to fill them from side to side half way through their life to get even wear patter since their directional. Fz201 you can just rotate front back side to side since thread is not directional which I think is really helps in terms of wear usually bern rotating them every event depending on which track attending since some tracks have provide more left side wear then right ect. the noise is insane on the fz201m really bad compared to rt-660 but that to be expected with the thread pattern this tire has, after all it’s a competition tire not street tire so that shouldn’t really matter since it’s meant for the track not street driving. For the price fz201m can’t really beat them got set for $700 last year cheap compared to others like rt-660 where $1k lasted half of the time. Think I’m going to getting second set of these.


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[Obioban]

What's your experience with the shelf life of NT-01s if they are covered and stored in a climate controlled garage before losing grip? 2-3 years? I'm worried about the # of events a year ill do versus their wear.

When not in use I plan to put in those tire rack tire covers and in my garage (climate controlled by then hopefully) I will drive to and from events and do some auto x.

The longest I've ever had a set was 2 years, but that was fine.

[Tonggi]

I run NT01s because they last ~forever, and stay pretty much the same until you see cord.

What's your experience with the shelf life of NT-01s if they are covered and stored in a climate controlled garage before losing grip? 2-3 years? I'm worried about the # of events a year ill do versus their wear.

When not in use I plan to put in those tire rack tire covers and in my garage (climate controlled by then hopefully) I will drive to and from events and do some auto x.

[foolio]

Just wanted to report back on my first experience with the Maxxis RC1 R2’s. I was running at Grattan this weekend up in Michigan. This was my first time at this track and it was a three day event. Since I was going to spend the first part of the weekend just learning the track I decided to keep on my Toyo R888R’s to set a baseline. The Toyos only had one session on them at Pitt-Race back in June so they were pretty new as well. By Saturday afternoon, I feel had gotten everything out of those tires (in terms of my skill after two days at this track anyway) and was consistently turning laps in the 1:30 time range. As usual I was running with no traction control so I could move the car around to my liking without interference. On Sunday morning I switched over to my wheels with the RC1’s.
My findings were that the RC1’s were worth two seconds on this track. I got consistent times down in the 1:28 range. I found them to be easily controllable and quieter than the Toyo’s. They honestly felt very much like in NT01s. This track is very easy on tire wear so after five sessions I can’t really say how they’re holding up because they still look pretty much brand new. They did seem to lose a little bit as the day got hotter (I think we hit 86°F) but I suppose that’s pretty much to be a expected of any tire.
So, overall a good first impression. I look forward to trying these out in a couple more weeks at my home track (Putnam Park) to see how they fare against my times with the Nittos.

[Albino09]

The endurance racers use Hankook RS4s, Dunlop Direzza Z2/Z3s, Falken RT615k+ as the gold standard of lasting a looooooong time. I have personal experience setting my own PB on a set of corded Dunlops - the grip doesn't change. I have a set of 615Ks right now on my own car in 235/265 fitment because they've come down in price since the RT660 came out as the top dog for Falken track tires.

[bigjae46]

I was going to try the Maxxis RC1s but I just ordered Toyo RR’s. They are $250 more per set with heat cycling. If they can last one more weekend I’ll be happy. From what I’ve read, the RRs last a little longer than the NT01s.

I need a 3rd set of wheels to heat cycle them myself. It was only $60…why not? Saves having to swap wheels at the track.


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[foolio]

Well, I ordered a set of Maxxis RC1 R2. I’ll report back on my findings. I have a couple track weekends coming up in the next month. One of which is at my “home” track, Putnam Park where I have plenty of reference laps with NT01’s.

[Nick_P]

I recently switched to the Federal FZ-201M cuz they’re cheap and thought I couldn’t really go wrong for the price $700-800 in 265/35/18…but man so far these tires suck! Coming from Yokohama A052s in same size so far it feels like the FZ-201s are a downgrade in plenty of aspects:
1. Lower levels of grip, about 2secs slower lap times on a 1:25 track
2. More time to get up to temp, with the A052s my outlap was normally enough to get them up to temp. The Federals require a couple of warmup laps.
3. Annoyingly loud on the street whereas the Yokos were dead silent!
4. They felt greasy towards the end of a couple sessions but I need more time with them to form an opinion on this. They def require lower starting (cold) tire pressure.

I only have ~2 track days on the Federals so ~6 cycles but so far I can’t wait to get rid of them. They’re almost half the price compared to Yoko A052s or Goodyear S3R but so far imo you get what you pay for with these tires. We’ll see how they wear out…

[Obioban]

I have found the R888Rs get super greasy ~15 minutes into the session.

[Feffman]

I've from a good source the Toyo R888R wear like iron but doesn't quite have the pace of the NT01. Reach out to TrackDayTire.com.

https://trackdaytire.com/product/toyo-proxes-r888r/

Feff

[foolio]

Still having trouble finding NT01s. Discount Tire Direct said they called Nitto for me and apparently NT01s are getting ready to go back into production and should be available late September early October. Interested to hear if there are any more opinions on the Maxxis RC1s. Currently running Tokyo R888Rs and disappointed in times. Seem to be a couple seconds a lap slower than my trusty NT01s. Still fun and easy to drive. Not showing much wear after a three day at Mid Ohio.

[lcrain]

Which compound on the RC1? I’m waiting for the updated compound for the 275/40R17. How much faster are the RC1s vs NT01s? I’ve heard about 1-2 sec on most tracks.

The NT01s are like a street tire in regards to its breakaway characteristics. Much more progressive. They like holding a slide vs the BFG R1, Hankook Z2142 and the various scrub tires I’ve used.


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I have only used the original RC1, not the new version. I saw similar times with nt01 and rc1 in my car, but never did any sort of real back to back testing. I would certainly say the nt01 is more progressive and street-tire like as you break traction. The RC1 would just push when over driven, in my experience, where the nt01 seemed to almost prefer some level of slip. As far as feel, I preferred the nt01, but the longevity of the RC1 was compelling for me when I was running mostly DEs.

[bigjae46]

Maxxis RC1 would last way longer for me than an nt01. Cost is pretty much the same, but I would get close to 2x the useful life. I also got 25 heat cycles absolute max out of nt01s. The maxxis I would get 40 with seemingly plenty of tread and just replace them as they had lost a step or two. I prefer the "feel" of the NT01. They were more forgiving of general sloppiness and poor heat management. The RC1 prefer a more precise line in my experience.

Hankook RS4 is also a great tire that gives up a bit of grip to the RC1 and NT01, but last a loong time. We use them on our endurance miata and have plenty of life after a full weekend of 2x 8 hour races.

Which compound on the RC1? I’m waiting for the updated compound for the 275/40R17. How much faster are the RC1s vs NT01s? I’ve heard about 1-2 sec on most tracks.

The NT01s are like a street tire in regards to its breakaway characteristics. Much more progressive. They like holding a slide vs the BFG R1, Hankook Z2142 and the various scrub tires I’ve used.


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[r4dr]

Hankook RS4