dang i'm still waiting for my wheel/tires i'm getting the same tires, though i opted for the non-staggered setup 17x8s.... i'll running in STX, i'll give my thoughts on them when they come in

 

Just ran Victoracer's (245/45R17 on a 17x7, sticking with DS) for the first time this Saturday. I thought the Goodyear Eagle F1's were sticky, but the car takes on a whole new character with R-comp tires! Slamming the brakes brings it to a screeching halt without the ABS kicking in, and full-throttle out of some fairly sharp corners doesn't bring the backend around in front of you. It's going to take a little getting used to. Plus, I've discovered that running too many times in row without a rest is rather hard on the stock brake pads.. managed to make them smoke pretty good. Time for Hawk HPS+, maybe?

As for the Toyo's, I've been told they're a great value, primarily due to their treadwear, but as one of our local champs puts it.. "they suck for a very long time." I believe the Victoracer is one of the best price/performance tires out there. TireRack carries them.

 

Anybody have any experiences with Hankook's Z214 C70? I heard they reviewed well in the August Grassroots Motorsports.

 

My first autox with the RA1s on with the 17x8 all around Volk TE37s was this past Sunday. I got second place in STX behind a modded wrx (I'm stock minus the wheels/tires), the RA1s are STICKY!!! I couldn't believe how much grip I had compared with the Michelin Pilots. I can feel on the sweepers that I was able to brake much later I basically threw the car into the corner it gripped nicely then throughout the corner I was able to accelerate without holding it (in fear of oversteer) like I did with the Pilots, I was outta the exit in no time, the tires made a HUGE difference in my times I think if I added some more handling mods I'd be pretty competitive, say some sways, coilovers, LSD, lightweight exhaust, I'd surely place in 1st. I'm going to see how well they hold up at the New Hampshire International Speedway on October 17th
http://www.scda1.com/ my manager gave me the thumbs up for that Monday.

 

Henry,

Is this your 1st time at NHIS? If you plan on driving hard there (of course you do!) make sure to have upgraded brake pads and fresh fluid, this track is pretty hard on brakes.

Also, you'll have a great time running with the SCDA! They're a little more expensive than some others but offer a lot in return. There's always a diverse bunch of cars and they do an excellent job of matching speeds in the run groups. They do a great job of eliminating "freight trains" by moving drivers up or down a level based on observation over the course of each session, the best compared to the other clubs I've run with.

Most of all - Have Fun!

 

Yes this will be my first time at NHIS, I saw the grandulations in the video looks fun!

 

I just came back from my first day of road racing at the Poconos East course in PA.
It was more difficult than I anticipated and I couldn't believe the body roll I was experiecing, and the suspension was soft?? How many of you are racing your car stock on the track (stock suspension, tires, no mods)? I'm planning on just getting a set of R-compound tires for next season.

 

I felt the same after my 1st day on the track, not necessarily spring softness but a fair amount of roll and light dampening. The factory sway bars leaned way too far toward the understeer side for my taste too. I got Hotchkiss sways and mounted some R compound tires on my snow rims to tighten things up considerably and not feel guilty about wrecking my street tires on the track. In my opinion the sway bars should be your first purchase, they'll improve the body roll and turn-in response a lot.

 

My instructor suggested me to try more Auto-X because by participating in AutoX it will help you during road racing but road racing can never help you about driving in an AutoX event. Do some of you find this true?