What's the best tire on the market for the dollar. Tire size would be 275/40/17 on all four corners. What kind of mileage can one expect on a set as well? I am thinking of getting into auto x(slalom events) in the future.

Curious, does anyone run these on the road as well?

This is what I came up with on Tirerack. What's the deal with those Avon's? They seem like a great deal.

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/Compar...t=All&x=54&y=5

 

What are your goals? The Hoosier A6 is the fastest R compound for auto-x, but it won't last the longest. The Kumho V710 is the a close second behind the Hoosier. Driving either on the street is a bad idea. They will heat cycle out very quickly.

You can expect 20 great runs, 30 good runs, and maybe 30 more not so good runs. This varies with air pressure, alignment, etc, etc, but you can expect cord or heat cycle out around 80-ish runs.

If actually winning a real auto-x is your goal, you need A6 or V710. The Avon, Pilot Sport Cup, BFG, V700 are all second tier tires that won't keep up with the A6 or V710.

If you are looking for something that lasts longer but has less grip, the Nitto 555RII or Toyo RA1 are both great choices. They can put up with some street miles, but I personally won't do it. Both come in a 275/40R17.

Again, just for the street, I wouldn't run any of these. These are for track or auto-x use only.

 

Here's a couple more to consider (not sold by tirerack)

Toyo Proxes RA1
Nitto 555 RII
Nitto NT-01

They're all around $200/tire.

I've been driving on the Nitto 555 RIIs since last spring/summer. Maybe 5000 miles + 1 road course track day on them since then.

They're about done:

1 tire now looks like a slick (it was on the RR most of the time, but has been rotated twice). 1 tire has two visible outside grooves remaining but smooth in the center tread (was on the RF most of the time). 1 tire has some grooves left on the inside 1/3 of the tread (RL still not enough negative camber). 1 tire still shows all grooves at a thin depth even wear (most of the time on FL).

Lowered car with negative camber all around and inflation pressure between 28 and 32 psi. Still seems to wear more on the outside.

Note: The spacer on my RR could be contributing to extra wear due to the increased "scrub". Also this tire is most likely to spin since its the most lightly loaded. It is wearing the fastest, but wearing evenly.

I've heard reports of people getting about 8000 miles out of these tires, which I think could be possible under the right conditions and useage, based upon the appearance of my best tire.

I was hoping to get 2-3 seasons out of them, but now its looking more like 1 1/2. I figure the track day knocked 'em down by about 40% so that didn't help the tread life.

I'm probably gonna get another set of cheap wheels and tires for future street use.

 

Hey Rick,

I concur with the above. I will add that the opinion I have from the other members of the Competition Corvette Club, that for auto-X you would be better of with the V710's...the A6 is still great but really shines on an actual road course.

I'm running A6's and they are night and day when compared to a set of Eagle F1 street tires.

Also, I got caught in a light rain with a well worn set of A6's...not the best of situations.

 

I would definitely say get another set of cheap wheels for R's. It WILL be cheaper to save them for the track.

 

If you run R tires on the street you will destroy your car and your kidneys. The sidewall is just too stiff for the real world. Even on quick trips up to the alignment shop I feel like my car will rattle apart. If you don't want your entire car to buzz, squeak, rattle, and vibrate then don't try this...

They are plenty safe in dry conditions, however. You'll be fine if you just want to drive them to the Auto-X course and back home.

Some additional comments:

Take a look at the new Hankook tires. I haven't run them but they're cheap.

The Avons are ok but I hear they're quite a bit heavier.

A6's are not great as a RR tire unless you just need a few quick laps - the heat range is 40 - 60 degrees lower than the R6.

Toyos and Nittos last forever but are much slower.

Kumho V700's have tread, you might try them as a street / track tire

Goodyear GS-CS suck major bone compared to the new compounds from Hoosier and Kumho (V710). I cord them faster, they are 1-2 seconds slower, and they get slippery quick. I ran faster times on used Hoosier 275's then I did on GS-CS 315's in the rear of the car

Tires are like beer - everyone has a favorite kind. But if you peruse the AutoX / RR forum you will see that the clear winners for all-out speed (not life, not class restricted, just overall quickest laptimes) are the Hooser A6/R6 and Kumho 710.

My suggestion? Buy some scrubs of the different types and see which ones work for your driving style without spending much money.

 

One more comment - depending on which tire you choose make sure you do research to find out the best pressure. For example, the Hoosier R6 likes high pressures, ~40 psi hot. The Kumho V710 on the other hand loves very low pressures, mid to high 20's hot.

Running a good tire at the wrong pressure will make a huge difference in both lap times and tire life.

 

I started with Nitto RII's as my race tire for a year, to see how race tires were compared to street tires at autocrossing and so that I didn't have to buy more wheels and do the tire changes every autoX weekend.

I really liked the RII's as a street tire. I used them up autocrossing in less than a year but it was really nice having a tire for good weather every day driving too. They absorbed more vibration than my Kumho MX's did, making them a favorite. I almost bought a second set for street use too.

Subsequently I bought extra wheels for 710's the next year to stay competitive with the group I race with. My clubs have a street tire class and a race tire class. A couple of us decided we'd do RII's to keep the competition the same. When the C6 Z06 joined us on hoosiers, we all went to 710's. You might want to consider who you race against and what they have, plus how much experience you have makes a difference. I woud not waste expensive tires learning and settign up your car. I'd learn on RII's.

 

I am running the Falken Azenis RT-615 in NCCC Street class they stick much better then the other tires I have tried. I hardly use the car on the road but these tires would hold up pretty good, they have a 200 rating. Price around $160.00 ea.