Tire Update??

[tdw6974]

Any updates on Hankook or Goodyear availability for this year?

[Andy Bettencourt]

My contacts are saying mid calendar year for the Goodyears.

[Greg Amy]

...and I'm hearing no change in supply chain for Hankooks. From experience, I suggest that means a 1-2 more container shipments - literally, on the boat from Korea - for them between now and October, and if you don't have them pre-bought you probably can't get them.

I'm seriously debating between the purple glue or Toyos: money and speed, versus economy and fun.

Andy, do you have a list of sizes that Goodyear will be producing? Those GS-CS tires were my favorites back in the SSA/SSB days... - GA

[Andy Bettencourt]

...and I'm hearing no change in supply chain for Hankooks. From experience, I suggest that means a 1-2 more container shipments - literally, on the boat from Korea - for them between now and October, and if you don't have them pre-bought you probably can't get them.

I'm seriously debating between the purple glue or Toyos: money and speed, versus economy and fun.

Andy, do you have a list of sizes that Goodyear will be producing? Those GS-CS tires were my favorites back in the SSA/SSB days... - GA

I don't but I will inquire.

[CRallo]

Andy, do you have a list of sizes that Goodyear will be producing? Those GS-CS tires were my favorites back in the SSA/SSB days... - GA

Does this mean they are bringing the GS-C back on the street too? ~just wish'n

SSA? haha Greg you are dating yourself!

[Andy Bettencourt]

The GS-CS turned RS (in only 205-50-15 for one year) was IMHO the best tire - money no object. The end of the year will be interesting.

[Greg Amy]

SSA? haha Greg you are dating yourself!

GS-CS tires were the cocaine of their day...and, at the time, were very nearly considered illegal.

The idea back then was to require DOT tires so you actually had to use STREET TIRES. I'm talking tires that you could go down to the corner and buy. Then people started shaving them. It wasn't too long after that manufacturers started pouring special runs of sticky rubber into the standard DOT-approved street molds, creating "R" compounds (as I recall, BFG was the first?) and then shaving them.

Well, Goodyear showed up to the '91 (?) Runoffs with the new GS-CS tires that were actually molded to the minimum tread depth and rocked the world. As I recall, they were very nearly declared illegal for that event, almost making all of us GY drivers have to scramble to buy tires. But, they didn't. I remember it being a shitstorm, though (almost as much of a shitstorm as the year SCCA confiscated all the Bell helmets at the Runoffs, saying for whatever reason they were unsafe. Another story, but Bell made it good...) 'Course by then the barn doors were open and Kumho, Toyo and others jumped in with Bridgestone, BFG, Goodyear, and eventually Hoosier et al into the tire wars and we ended up with the DOT-approved R-compound, molded-construction tires of today.

Remember that next time you want a small change in the wording of a rule...

[TomL]

Dang! A Shelby CSX!?! And I thought I was weird driving a Charger. We're both dated.

Tom Lyttle

[Greg Amy]

Dang! A Shelby CSX!?! And I thought I was weird driving a Charger. We're both dated.

Too bad I don't still have pics of my old SSB '83 (?) Shelby Charger (non-turbo, which was eventually converted to ITA)...

Sad part is, we still have that CSX (my crew chief owns it, now) complete with cracked/split firewall...vintage racing, anyone...?

[Gary L]

Too bad I don't still have pics of my old SSB '83 (?) Shelby Charger (non-turbo, which was eventually converted to ITA)...

Sad part is, we still have that CSX (my crew chief owns it, now) complete with cracked/split firewall...vintage racing, anyone...?

Ah Hell, you guys just think you're going way back.

Obviously not discernible in the picture, but this car is definitely on Continental TS771's, shaved to 4/32. It's a '75, ran it during the '76 season in MidDiv, setting new SSB lap records at Ponca, Afton, and Hallett (the latter being the easiest to accomplish, as it was the first race ever at that track).

[Greg Amy]

I've been pwned...

(Damn, I wish I still had my '81 Scirocco S...)

[lateapex911]

I'm seriously debating between the purple glue or Toyos: money and speed, versus economy and fun.

GA

From what I'm reading the economy aspect of the Toyos isn't what it used to be...no more 20 heat cycles is what I'm reading..

[JoshS]

It wasn't too long after that manufacturers started pouring special runs of sticky rubber into the standard DOT-approved street molds, creating "R" compounds (as I recall, BFG was the first?) and then shaving them.

Pretty sure that the first real "R" compound was the Yokohama A-001R, but even the A-008R pre-dated the first BFG. But who knows, a lot of brain cells have left since then.

[lateapex911]

I remember the Yoko oo1R as being the first "Did you read the wear number? it says "0"!!!!!" tire.

In a stock RX-7 with only damper, alignment tuning and 001Rs, we pulled over 1G both ways in multiple skidpad testing. Back then, .85 was a killer handling car.

That was '84/'85, IIRC.

[jimmyc]

I'm seriously debating between the purple glue or Toyos: money and speed, versus economy and fun.

wat???

What happened to all those people saying that the "economy" of the RA1 was completly false, and that hoosier's last just as long and are faster and all that good stuff???

(catch22, and many many others would hammer this down every time a thread about how much money running "toyos" can save you.

[cjb25hs]

From what I'm reading the economy aspect of the Toyos isn't what it used to be...no more 20 heat cycles is what I'm reading..

Most likely the R888's is what your reading about. Nothing has changed with the RA1's so the economy should be the same of course setup dependent here. The R888's do not last as well as the RA1's from all of the testing and use that has been seen. Of course anytime you run a new tire things are gonna happen based on alignment and pressures.

IIRC the only thing that is the same between the RA1's and the R888's is the rubber compound itself, the rest of the construction is revised.

[dickita15]

But the RA-1’s are being phased out and being replaced by the r888’s are they not.

[lateapex911]

thats what I thought, and based my comments on. I could be wrong...

[ekim952522000]

But the RA-1’s are being phased out and being replaced by the r888’s are they not.

Yes they are that is why all the spec Toyo series are being switch to the R888.

[IPRESS]

Guys, I saw the 888s first hand at TWS a couple of weeks ago, and the SM boys were in an uproar. I think from the limited time folks have on them (at least in SMs) they are finding out that the tire doesn't like a sliding car. The RA1 didn't seem to have the wear that the 888s are showing. Hot Temp Weather really has the crowd worried. When it hits above 90, those 888s may melt.