Question: What 200TW Track Day Tire Should I get for a 17 inch Wheel?

[Jdubbya]

@Economatic - I've been really impressed with the 660 thus far. Granted, I only have one day (5 sessions) at The Ridge on them. They had great grip and didn't get greasy. Tire wear was minimal as well. Count me impressed. I drove R888Rs last season, and while I liked them, they seemed to get greasy really quick and didn't hold up as anticipated. For what it's worth, while a don't drive my Fiesta daily, the 660 road manners are much better than the R888Rs. Night and day difference.

 

[Economatic]

Thanks for the additional suggestions! I actually have a bit more time to research and decide now since I won't be tracking the Fiesta on the 31st like I had planned. I was originally going to purchase through Discount Tire for convenience but now I have a couple more weeks to call around to get quotes from a couple of the local tire shops, which will give me a few more options.

@Economatic - I've been really impressed with the 660 thus far. Granted, I only have one day (5 sessions) at The Ridge on them. They had great grip and didn't get greasy. Tire wear was minimal as well. Count me impressed. I drove R888Rs last season, and while I liked them, they seemed to get greasy really quick and didn't hold up as anticipated. For what it's worth, while a don't drive my Fiesta daily, the 660 road manners are much better than the R888Rs. Night and day difference.

This is great to hear. Did you run them in any wet conditions?

 

[Jdubbya]

Nope. It's been an abnormally dry spring in the PNW. The Tire Rack (which I am sure you've read) review indicated wet performance to be adequate. That was enough for me. I have OEM tires and extra set of wheels on hand if the weather gets real bad

 

[ronmcdon]

what are the conditions that would make the tire greasy? Is it the type of event, duration of hpde run, maybe temperature.

have been on the fence with 660s due to fear of wear and worry it may get greasy with 25min runs in 90something degree weather (which seems like the case with a good amount of the year in southern CA)

 

[Lays]

Nope. It's been an abnormally dry spring in the PNW. The Tire Rack (which I am sure you've read) review indicated wet performance to be adequate. That was enough for me. I have OEM tires and extra set of wheels on hand if the weather gets real bad

Hi fellow Oregonian !

 

[M-Sport fan]

They remind me of Bam Bam Bigelow from WWF/WCW. Nice tire but the tread pattern is so cheesy. Flames do not belong on a tire in any capacity - molded in or the tire actually on fire.

I could accept the flame tread pattern of my 215/40-17 RS-RRs IF they did not scream like banshees at any speed over 25 MPH, and if their tread width was a bit wider.

 

[kevinatfms]

what are the conditions that would make the tire greasy? Is it the type of event, duration of hpde run, maybe temperature.

have been on the fence with 660s due to fear of wear and worry it may get greasy with 25min runs in 90something degree weather (which seems like the case with a good amount of the year in southern CA)

Overheating them.

Also, most HPDE sessions are 15-20min. If youre on track for 25+min sessions id be more worried about the brakes.

 

[ronmcdon]

I dont overheat the Z3’s. which is why i’m curious whether or not its worth trying the 660s for track use.

 

[Jdubbya]

Hi fellow Oregonian !

Howdy! Do you live in the Portland area? If so, do you ever make it out to PIR?

 

[Jdubbya]

Howdy! Do you live in the Portland area? If so, do you ever make it out to PIR?

Disregard my question about your location - it's right there on your profile... still getting used to this forum. Noob mistake

 

[Jdubbya]

I'll keep this thread posted on how the 660s hold up over the summer. I hope to make it out 6-8 tracks days, which should provide a good indication of wear on the track.

 

[Jdubbya]

Overheating them.

Also, most HPDE sessions are 15-20min. If youre on track for 25+min sessions id be more worried about the brakes.

Agreed - my brakes have been the weakest aspect of the car so far. I can't seem to keep them cool and have melted through calipers, brackets, rotors, and pads. Trying my luck with the Wilwood kit this season. I'm hopeful this will be the solve.

 

[Economatic]

Agreed - my brakes have been the weakest aspect of the car so far. I can't seem to keep them cool and have melted through calipers, brackets, rotors, and pads. Trying my luck with the Wilwood kit this season. I'm hopeful this will be the solve.

I learned my first day with the Fiesta at ORP that the front brakes were not up to the task of track days. I started turning the pretty red calipers brown after my 3rd session.

Did you already buy the Wilwood kit? I have the OTS DP6 kit and would suggest you go with a different option if you have the opportunity. I'm not entirely dissatisfied with the kit but it hasn't been problem-free either.

 

[ronmcdon]

my stock-ish brakes holding up ok. just have ebc orange pads, endless fluid, ss lines. boomba deflectors. have lsd which might help.

but, I have done my technical shorter tracks like streets of willow, buttonwillow, chuckwalla. my lap times could use improving but arent terrible.

 

[Lays]

Howdy! Do you live in the Portland area? If so, do you ever make it out to PIR?

Yea my girl lives in Newberg and I work in hillsboro, but my house is down in Salem. I'm usually in Newberg/Hillsboro M-F and Salem on Friday night thru Sunday.

I want to do a track day so bad!

 

[Jdubbya]

I learned my first day with the Fiesta at ORP that the front brakes were not up to the task of track days. I started turning the pretty red calipers brown after my 3rd session.

Did you already buy the Wilwood kit? I have the OTS DP6 kit and would suggest you go with a different option if you have the opportunity. I'm not entirely dissatisfied with the kit but it hasn't been problem-free either.

Yep - already installed the kit. I had the EBC Apollo kit in hand, but I couldn't find a wheel that would fit the kit without a +10mm spacer. So I exchanged the EBC for Wilwood, knowing it's not going to be optimal for the track. I'm hoping the Spec37 rotors and upgraded (BT-20) pads make the kit work a little better than the OTS kit. What problems have you encountered with the Wilwoods?

@ronmcdon - that's a very similar set-up to what I was running (Orangestuff, Stoptech Slotted, and RBF600) - I really like the feel of Orangestuff, but I was melting my pads, and scorching my rotors (almost) every track day. However, and i should have mentioned this earlier, I was only bleeding the fluid a couple times a season. This could have been primary culprit ...

@Lays You gotta take the plunge and participate in a track day. Your set-up would be great out there and would surprise a lot of people. Just don't go on the same day I do - You car would make mine look real slow Kidding - I recommend trying out the BMW Club HPDE. It's pretty chill and they have a lot of great cars that show up.

 

[Lays]

Yep - already installed the kit. I had the EBC Apollo kit in hand, but I couldn't find a wheel that would fit the kit without a +10mm spacer. So I exchanged the EBC for Wilwood, knowing it's not going to be optimal for the track. I'm hoping the Spec37 rotors and upgraded (BT-20) pads make the kit work a little better than the OTS kit. What problems have you encountered with the Wilwoods?

@ronmcdon - that's a very similar set-up to what I was running (Orangestuff, Stoptech Slotted, and RBF600) - I really like the feel of Orangestuff, but I was melting my pads, and scorching my rotors (almost) every track day. However, and i should have mentioned this earlier, I was only bleeding the fluid a couple times a season. This could have been primary culprit ...

@Lays You gotta take the plunge and participate in a track day. Your set-up would be great out there and would surprise a lot of people. Just don't go on the same day I do - You car would make mine look real slow Kidding - I recommend trying out the BMW Club HPDE. It's pretty chill and they have a lot of great cars that show up.

If you want to go for a spin sometime and make suggestions, I'm all ears. I've done some suspension tweaks lately and not sure how I feel about some of them, lol.

 

[Economatic]

Yep - already installed the kit. I had the EBC Apollo kit in hand, but I couldn't find a wheel that would fit the kit without a +10mm spacer. So I exchanged the EBC for Wilwood, knowing it's not going to be optimal for the track. I'm hoping the Spec37 rotors and upgraded (BT-20) pads make the kit work a little better than the OTS kit. What problems have you encountered with the Wilwoods?

I had some issues with heat and finding pads I like. I tried Polymatrix H pads and they had too much bite for my preferences. I melted and weirdly tapered a set of BP-30 pads. I finally found Hawk DTC-60s worked well for a track only pad and Polymatrix E has worked well for something I can use on street and track.

I also have the Spec 37 rotors and use Boomba deflectors to try to keep things cooler. I got about 10 track days out of the rotors before cracks made their way to the outside edge. I even contacted TCE Performance before going with this BBK and I got a matter-of-fact "You're gonna tear it up on the track" response from them. I should have listened to the experts...

 

[Jdubbya]

I had some issues with heat and finding pads I like. I tried Polymatrix H pads and they had too much bite for my preferences. I melted and weirdly tapered a set of BP-30 pads. I finally found Hawk DTC-60s worked well for a track only pad and Polymatrix E has worked well for something I can use on street and track.

I also have the Spec 37 rotors and use Boomba deflectors to try to keep things cooler. I got about 10 track days out of the rotors before cracks made their way to the outside edge. I even contacted TCE Performance before going with this BBK and I got a matter-of-fact "You're gonna tear it up on the track" response from them. I should have listened to the experts...

Ron from Whoosh also said the same about the Wilwoods, but the price was right and I knew the they would fit.

Thank you for the experienced insights. Really helpful. I expected to have to replace rotors every track season. To read you got 10 track days out of the rotors before they cracked is about on par with what I expected.

 

[Jdubbya]

If you want to go for a spin sometime and make suggestions, I'm all ears. I've done some suspension tweaks lately and not sure how I feel about some of them, lol.

I might just have to take you up on that! My only concern is driving your car may cause me to spend even more money on my FiST!!!