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The wannabe ST
- Thread starter WannabeST
- Start date
OP
Thread Starter
#143
Thread Starter
#143
Finally had my first track day on my new Eibach rear sway bar and my continental extreme contact force tires last night. It was a night event at streets of willow that went from 5pm to midnight.
I was instructing this event. So thankful I was able to go out in any session. I wanted to put these endurance focused tires to the test. I went out for 5 sessions IN A ROW to test these out. Thats 1hr and 40 mins of driving. With only a stop in the hot pits in between each sessions to start again in the next session. The tires never felt greasy even in 90-106 degree weather and I was doing 1.33-1.35 pace depending on traffic at this time of the early night.
after I did that 5 session stint I stopped driving for a bit to get some food and some rest because I basically did a mini endurance race and my forearms were burning lol.
after that I gave some more ride alongs and instruction for others and I went for a PB attempt around 11:30 at night since the weather was finally favorable. And I finished the night with a new PB of 1.30.1
I think the biggest contribution to the PB was the rear sway bar. The amount of rotation you can achieve with oem shocks and some good trail braking on this setup is amazing now and it’s so rewarding to use. The car went from and understeer/ neutral setup to a now neutral with slight oversteer setup. Ideally I would still want more oversteer but this is a very big improvement over previous.
my continentals did great all night long. I did a total of 12 sessions and each sessions was around 15-20 mins long. I went out three times for 2 laps to test pressure changes but I am not counting those in the 12 sessions I did.
12 sessions is equal to about 2-3 tracks days for most people depending on the organization and driver. These tires look like they went through one light track day. My RT660 would look worse after a single competition day.
im really excited to see how long this tire lasts me. It is already looking favorable in the wear department.
while these tires did achieve me a 1.30 on streets ccw. I still think the biggest contribution to that was my sway bar and not the tires. However the tires were very consistent and predictable. Even with loads of heat all day and constant abuse and try new driving and pressures I felt prettt confident in what the tire was going to do. I think the confidence from the tire and the sway bar is mostly what got me that PB. My biggest complaint with the tire is that the turn in feels lazy and not quite as sharp.
most 200tw will have a nice crisp turn in if you have a good stretch on it and this tire setup (205 tire on an 8” wheel) felt more like a 225 on an 8”
the tire still felt plenty grippy. But compared to the RT660 I would say the falkens have a much crispier turn in. And if you ball out on AO52 or RE71RS that turn in would get even better.
the tire is also VERY communicative on grip levels. I’m not sure how to put it into words. But the tire makes different types of “screeches” depending on what you are doing with the car. For example the tire makes a different sound if you overwork it on entry vs exit. It was very interesting and also increased confidence. Some people like loud tires others don’t. I think it’s a good tool for beginners.
overall this tire is looking promising for me and my only complaint is the slightly worse turn in and about a second or so pace behind an RT660.
(I used the RT660 as a reference because I have driven on 3 sets of them now on this car with the same size combo so it is my best comparison to make)
If you made it this far into my post about the track and tire. Thank you for your time and just a subtle reminder that my discount code for these tires ends on 12/1/2024. I have 4 more track days planned for these tires before that day. They will be in October and November. I am keeping these tires on for the street from now on and will report back on how they do in the canyons, rain and street overall.
thank you again for reading this long.
I was instructing this event. So thankful I was able to go out in any session. I wanted to put these endurance focused tires to the test. I went out for 5 sessions IN A ROW to test these out. Thats 1hr and 40 mins of driving. With only a stop in the hot pits in between each sessions to start again in the next session. The tires never felt greasy even in 90-106 degree weather and I was doing 1.33-1.35 pace depending on traffic at this time of the early night.
after I did that 5 session stint I stopped driving for a bit to get some food and some rest because I basically did a mini endurance race and my forearms were burning lol.
after that I gave some more ride alongs and instruction for others and I went for a PB attempt around 11:30 at night since the weather was finally favorable. And I finished the night with a new PB of 1.30.1
I think the biggest contribution to the PB was the rear sway bar. The amount of rotation you can achieve with oem shocks and some good trail braking on this setup is amazing now and it’s so rewarding to use. The car went from and understeer/ neutral setup to a now neutral with slight oversteer setup. Ideally I would still want more oversteer but this is a very big improvement over previous.
my continentals did great all night long. I did a total of 12 sessions and each sessions was around 15-20 mins long. I went out three times for 2 laps to test pressure changes but I am not counting those in the 12 sessions I did.
12 sessions is equal to about 2-3 tracks days for most people depending on the organization and driver. These tires look like they went through one light track day. My RT660 would look worse after a single competition day.
im really excited to see how long this tire lasts me. It is already looking favorable in the wear department.
while these tires did achieve me a 1.30 on streets ccw. I still think the biggest contribution to that was my sway bar and not the tires. However the tires were very consistent and predictable. Even with loads of heat all day and constant abuse and try new driving and pressures I felt prettt confident in what the tire was going to do. I think the confidence from the tire and the sway bar is mostly what got me that PB. My biggest complaint with the tire is that the turn in feels lazy and not quite as sharp.
most 200tw will have a nice crisp turn in if you have a good stretch on it and this tire setup (205 tire on an 8” wheel) felt more like a 225 on an 8”
the tire still felt plenty grippy. But compared to the RT660 I would say the falkens have a much crispier turn in. And if you ball out on AO52 or RE71RS that turn in would get even better.
the tire is also VERY communicative on grip levels. I’m not sure how to put it into words. But the tire makes different types of “screeches” depending on what you are doing with the car. For example the tire makes a different sound if you overwork it on entry vs exit. It was very interesting and also increased confidence. Some people like loud tires others don’t. I think it’s a good tool for beginners.
overall this tire is looking promising for me and my only complaint is the slightly worse turn in and about a second or so pace behind an RT660.
(I used the RT660 as a reference because I have driven on 3 sets of them now on this car with the same size combo so it is my best comparison to make)
If you made it this far into my post about the track and tire. Thank you for your time and just a subtle reminder that my discount code for these tires ends on 12/1/2024. I have 4 more track days planned for these tires before that day. They will be in October and November. I am keeping these tires on for the street from now on and will report back on how they do in the canyons, rain and street overall.
thank you again for reading this long.
OP
Thread Starter
#144
Thread Starter
#144
TLDR;
- New streets of willow CCW PB 1.30.1
- rear sway bar added good rotation. I still want more rotation
- ECF tires have lazier turn in that other 200tw.
- ECF tires handled wear in 12 sessions on track better than RT660 in 5-6 sessions
- ECF tires very consistent and didn’t get greasy like most 200tw would.
- New streets of willow CCW PB 1.30.1
- rear sway bar added good rotation. I still want more rotation
- ECF tires have lazier turn in that other 200tw.
- ECF tires handled wear in 12 sessions on track better than RT660 in 5-6 sessions
- ECF tires very consistent and didn’t get greasy like most 200tw would.
great report and I think the tires make a great daily driver all season tire that performs really well for the money . I am planning on putting these tires on my M3 as a nice choice for it. Tire rates them higher than PS4’s . The current owner of my FiST does not seem to have any problems with the Conti’s either as the 205/45 was the last tire I put on it.
How did the KE Motorsport T12s hold up to the track curbing?
When I was up at Phil's Tire getting the AD09s installed on mine, Phil pointed out to me the extra thickness on the inner lip of the rim purposely put there for that reason (running over the curbs).
(As well as the knurling machined into the edges where the bead makes contact with the inside of the rim.)
When I was up at Phil's Tire getting the AD09s installed on mine, Phil pointed out to me the extra thickness on the inner lip of the rim purposely put there for that reason (running over the curbs).
(As well as the knurling machined into the edges where the bead makes contact with the inside of the rim.)
OP
Thread Starter
#147
Thread Starter
#147
I agree, for someone who cares more about longevity or does not track as often as I do, or does not care about the fastest tire money can buy this is great. It's looking like it holds to abuse and wear really well. If you order a set, I believe track day tire may be cheaper with my code.
OP
Thread Starter
#148
Thread Starter
#148
I did notice the knurling on the wheels. I mentioned it to some friends that it reminds me of some offroading wheels. I did not have any issues with curbing or the wheel at all. I even had a couple of 1-2 tire off moments on apex or corner exit with zero issues. Buttonwillow is the next track I will be using this setup on and buttonwillow has a lot of curbing for me to use there, so that will be a really good test for the wheels.
I believe that Dpro is speaking about the Conti ECS 02s (340 tread wear summer street tires), and not the ECF 'endurance' track 200 tread wear tires.
But, the ECFs do seem to be long lived enough to use for pure summer only use (in colder climes unlike Cali, etc.) for ~4-5 months of the year, and be just fine, unlike some of the other 100 and 200 tread wear gumballs out there.
But, the ECFs do seem to be long lived enough to use for pure summer only use (in colder climes unlike Cali, etc.) for ~4-5 months of the year, and be just fine, unlike some of the other 100 and 200 tread wear gumballs out there.
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actually you are correct and he ws talking about the extreme contact Force which is a 200TW tire but does not even rate as high as the RS4’s or the Direeza ZIII’s I would never choose it.
On and the Extreme Contact Sport 02’s rate higher than the Forces which are an older tire design from Conti they do have a newer 200TW tire.
Though the ECS 02’s also rate higher that PS4S’s. So ya they are actually a great endurance tire that handles real well in wet conditions. Hence why I had bought them and why I am probably sticking them on the M3.
Even the guys at R Compound USA a well known SoCal track oriented tire seller and installer ( will mount any tire no questions asked) like them.
On and the Extreme Contact Sport 02’s rate higher than the Forces which are an older tire design from Conti they do have a newer 200TW tire.
Though the ECS 02’s also rate higher that PS4S’s. So ya they are actually a great endurance tire that handles real well in wet conditions. Hence why I had bought them and why I am probably sticking them on the M3.
Even the guys at R Compound USA a well known SoCal track oriented tire seller and installer ( will mount any tire no questions asked) like them.
A few on here have claimed to have them on their rides currently, so we will soon hear how good (or not) they really are in practice.
Again, IF they offered U.S. a 215/40-17 (like they do in that model in Europe, UK, rest of world) they would be on my summer wheels right now.
(Same goes for the Conti ECS 02s as well.![[thumb]](/images/smilies/icon_smile_thumb.gif "Thumbs Up [thumb]")
)
Again, IF they offered U.S. a 215/40-17 (like they do in that model in Europe, UK, rest of world) they would be on my summer wheels right now.
(Same goes for the Conti ECS 02s as well.
)
OP
Thread Starter
#159
Thread Starter
#159
The pressure difference shocked me too, I think that is what took me so long to get them dialed in. It was also a very hot day, so that could have played a roll. I'll report when I take them to another track day in ideal temps. That will most likely be at buttonwillow with NASA
OP
Thread Starter
#160
Thread Starter
#160
Looks like I may be adding autox to my driving more now. I am instructing with Corner exit. They primarily host autox events, but they are expanding more to actual tracks so I will be instructing at their next buttonwillow day and likely attending some of their autox days as well now.
