Hi all, My rear tyres are just about dead, im currently running TOYO TR1 PROXES but im not sure if i should replace them with the same... i have never really got that involved with tyres before as i have always sold my cars before replacing them...(Yes i have had a lot of cars..)Any how im on a budget and don't want to have to spend a small fortune on tyres ! So what's best, i would say the car spends 40% of its time on the track and covers around 4000 miles a year,the car is not used that much in the wet but you know how the weather can change here and abraoad, other tyres i have been looking at are GOODYEAR F1 GSD3 , HANKOOK K107 S1 EVO , HANKOOK K104, FIRESTONE SZ80, AVON TYRES ZZ3, MARAMARANGONI ZETA LINEA , MARANGONI MYTHOS , FALKEN FK452, KUMHO KU31 ECSTA SPORT, NANKANG NS2 NANKANG NS 2, Any of these any good, is it safe to have a different tyre on the front to the rear but with a near like for like tread pattern ?
Tyres 40%track and 60% road...
- Thread starter stevespic
- Start date
I'd have thought Toyos are as good as any of them and better than most. That said the only one I can offer personal experience of is the Avons (nobody is going to know all of them after all) and I'd say categorically don't go there.
My indie says Goodyear Eagles don't suit the 944/968 chassis and in the absence of anyone saying that they have them and like them I'd suggest avoiding them also.
Marawho?
I'm not sure I've heard anything good about Nangkang (though at least I've heard of them!)
Some Kumho and Falkens are good, but I don't know specifically which.
I personally don't think there is an issue with different tyres front and rear so long as you keep to the same type at both ends of the same axle. Some people may disagree and I see the logic, but given that tyre model X can be quite significantly different in 205, 225 and 245 sizes and that 944s have different widths front to rear I can't really see it's that crucial.
My indie says Goodyear Eagles don't suit the 944/968 chassis and in the absence of anyone saying that they have them and like them I'd suggest avoiding them also.
Marawho?
I'm not sure I've heard anything good about Nangkang (though at least I've heard of them!)
Some Kumho and Falkens are good, but I don't know specifically which.
I personally don't think there is an issue with different tyres front and rear so long as you keep to the same type at both ends of the same axle. Some people may disagree and I see the logic, but given that tyre model X can be quite significantly different in 205, 225 and 245 sizes and that 944s have different widths front to rear I can't really see it's that crucial.
Fen, I sugest you pop back to the 968 forum to see what people think of the Goodyear Eagle over there, or change your indie cos he is talking bo**ocks. The GY GSD 3 is a fantastic tyres and I am yet to find a tyre that suits the 944/68 better. The Bridgestone SO2's are also very good.
I have GY's on my 968 and done many happy road miles, the dry and wet grip is superb and the feedback the chassis gives is enhanced by the GY's. (More so than any other tyre I have tried, which include Pirreli , Michelin, Conti's) They also quieten down the road noise. They have survived rather well on a few track days as well.
I have GY's on my 968 and done many happy road miles, the dry and wet grip is superb and the feedback the chassis gives is enhanced by the GY's. (More so than any other tyre I have tried, which include Pirreli , Michelin, Conti's) They also quieten down the road noise. They have survived rather well on a few track days as well.
Big Dave
New member
I second what Petes just said..
Defo change your indie.[8|].... In my opinion + many others, the Goodyear GSD3 is THE best tyre for a 944-968 chassis....Fabulously forgiving + totaly predictable....With lots of grip...Although i have heard that Goodyear are changing the tyre....[ Progress] i suppose....
On the other hand ,, DONT fit Contis OR Pirelli P6000.....There RUBBISH......
Defo change your indie.[8|].... In my opinion + many others, the Goodyear GSD3 is THE best tyre for a 944-968 chassis....Fabulously forgiving + totaly predictable....With lots of grip...Although i have heard that Goodyear are changing the tyre....[ Progress] i suppose....
On the other hand ,, DONT fit Contis OR Pirelli P6000.....There RUBBISH......
peanut
Active member
I cannot see how any tyre is going to be acceptable in both wet and dry conditions on the road and the track all at the same time. If anything is b******s as you put it, then its expecting one tyre to be good under all those conditions. ..crazy?
suggest you get one set of tyres for road and another for the track that way the tyres have got half a chance of doing the job adequately.
I have used Khumos ecsta SPT quite a bit (cheapskate) and I find them a good all rounder but not brilliant in the wet tbh. They wear well (but then I don't road race or track my cars) above all at less than £50 each fitted they are darn cheap.My personal opinion is its better to have a new cheap tyre than a half worn expensive tyre so I change mine as soon as they are half worn
At the moment I have new Mich Pilot Sport 255x40x17 on rear (nice looking tread) and Khumo ecstaSPT 225x4017 on the front (another nice looking pattern and I have found the como fine except for those times after a long dry spell and quick shower the greasy roads make it very twitchy when booted but then I would imagine most tyres would
suggest you get one set of tyres for road and another for the track that way the tyres have got half a chance of doing the job adequately.
I have used Khumos ecsta SPT quite a bit (cheapskate) and I find them a good all rounder but not brilliant in the wet tbh. They wear well (but then I don't road race or track my cars) above all at less than £50 each fitted they are darn cheap.My personal opinion is its better to have a new cheap tyre than a half worn expensive tyre so I change mine as soon as they are half worn
At the moment I have new Mich Pilot Sport 255x40x17 on rear (nice looking tread) and Khumo ecstaSPT 225x4017 on the front (another nice looking pattern and I have found the como fine except for those times after a long dry spell and quick shower the greasy roads make it very twitchy when booted but then I would imagine most tyres would
The Goodyear GSD3 dry performance is superb, its wet weather handling is as good if not better than any I have tried, and as I said, they have performed well on track, not as well as a dedicated track set of tyres I agree, but very well indeed on track. They also last rather well which is a bonus.
They are still making the GSD3, but as Dave mentions a new version is on its way, lets hope it is as good.
They are still making the GSD3, but as Dave mentions a new version is on its way, lets hope it is as good.
dixhuit
New member
Given your budget I'd stick with the Toyos . You will avoid the make/axle debate. I run the TR1's on my track car and given I drive from Devon to Castle Coombe or Goodwood my road /track usage is probably 60/40 as well. Great dry grip but just wait till it gets wet and slippery as it has over the twisty Devon roads and hills this summer ! The grip is prodigous and if your lucky enough and get a wet track you might even drive past some serious machinery.
I ordered the Kuhmo's for the back of my S2 from an online place about 6 months ago and they sent me the Falken FK452's (which were supposedly more expensive.) They seem to be an excellent tyre, with more progressive break-away than the Conti Sport Contacts I had before. (However, since I changed the suspension I simply can't make them break away at all in the dry.)
They generally get regarded as a good budget all-rounder, which offers very good value for money.
Oli.
They generally get regarded as a good budget all-rounder, which offers very good value for money.
Oli.
Hi Oli, do you track day these tyres ? I was told by a Toyo tyre guy sunday that the square type pattern with less gaps between the tread would be better like the pilot sport, which he said would be best for the car...! The falkens are a bit cheaper than the Toyos and i like the tread pattern which looks between a toyo and a mitch...
Neil Haughey
New member
I used to swear by Toyo but having moved to Hankook RS-2 I will not be going back. They seem way better to me. A strange type of tyre since it has an almost road car tread pattern, fairly hard compound but race tyre construction. This last part is what IMHO makes this tyre so blooming good. If I am being honest it probably doesn't have much more grip then a toyo but I can push the car much harder much more easilly on this tyre then I ever could on my old T1-S's. The car really does feel like it is on rails and the tyres do an amazing job of soaking up all the tiny road imperfections. They seem to be wearing incredibly well which IMHO means they are not really a track day tyre as Hankook promote them. I would reckon on several thousand road miles and a few track days per set.
The big downside is they have hardly any grip when new and take an internity to break in.
In the future I will probably use this tyre as my road tyre since I don't do that many miles any more but you could easilly use just this tyre IMHO.
The big downside is they have hardly any grip when new and take an internity to break in.
In the future I will probably use this tyre as my road tyre since I don't do that many miles any more but you could easilly use just this tyre IMHO.
Spic,
I have to say that I have yet to do a track day in my 944 (and have only ever done one in my life - in a Mk2 Golf and a Subaru WRX-wotsit), so can't comment on the Falkens on the track.
But I think that Paul Smith uses them as well, and swears by them. (Although I could be wrong - he may use the Kumho's instead.)
Oli.
I have to say that I have yet to do a track day in my 944 (and have only ever done one in my life - in a Mk2 Golf and a Subaru WRX-wotsit), so can't comment on the Falkens on the track.
But I think that Paul Smith uses them as well, and swears by them. (Although I could be wrong - he may use the Kumho's instead.)
Oli.
Big Dave
New member
Well if your wanting recomendations on 2 sets of tyres. Then get a set of Dunlop D01J,s for the track,[ unfortunately they stopped making them.[
]] Thats for the DRY..
And a set of Goodyear GSD 3,s for the wet t-days....
Fabulous combination....+ Well tried + tested....[][][][][][]
]] Thats for the DRY..And a set of Goodyear GSD 3,s for the wet t-days....
Fabulous combination....+ Well tried + tested....[
][][][][][]
Diver944
Active member
Yes I use Kumho KU31 on the road and Kumho V70A on the track (though the V70A's seem fine on a wet road too). However I still recommend the Toyos for a dual purpose tyre if you don't want to be switching wheels all the time and don't want to risk a track tyre on a waterlogged road [
]
Hmmm I've only ever really used Contis on the road and thought they were OK. I'd agree they are far from great on the track though. After three laps of Doni, and Silververstone, they have heated up nicely and are starting to move. By five laps they are as squirrelly as a squirrelly thing. I doubt they'd allow you to do 10 laps before you crashed.
I have a set of now redundant 16" Pirelli P Zero C's. They were superb on the track but would be a little "exciting" in the wet.
I think I will be going for Toyos next time around.
TRACK DAY / DUNLOP SUPER SPORT RACE DUNLOP SSR - 265/35ZR18 Just seen theses on the web for 80 pounds each... Has any body used theses before ? could i keep my Fronts as Toyos and fit theses to the Rears ?
Diver944
Active member
While I am normally not precious about fitting the same type of tyre front and rear on a 944 it is a different matter when one set is a track tyre.
Dedicated track tyres have far, far, FAR more grip than a normal road tyre so they will upset the natural balance if you fit normal tyres to one axle and R rated track tyres to the other. If you are going to do this then it is perhaps slightly better if the R rated rubber is at the back because it will tend to make the car understeer noticeably when approaching the limits.This would be preferable to oversteer caused by extremely grippy fronts and normal rears.
Dedicated track tyres have far, far, FAR more grip than a normal road tyre so they will upset the natural balance if you fit normal tyres to one axle and R rated track tyres to the other. If you are going to do this then it is perhaps slightly better if the R rated rubber is at the back because it will tend to make the car understeer noticeably when approaching the limits.This would be preferable to oversteer caused by extremely grippy fronts and normal rears.
Posts made and opinions expressed are those of the individual forum members
Use of the Forum is subject to the Terms and Conditions
