View Single Post
      01-19-2009, 10:50 AM   #5
mightyaa
Private First Class
38
Rep
117
Posts

Drives: E90 M3
Join Date: Jul 2008
Location: Denver

iTrader: (0)

I’ve run a couple sets on my old Saab on both track and street. I put 8k road miles on them and two time trials events and didn’t hit the wear markers before selling the car (and getting my M3).

On the track, they got up to heat in a couple hot laps. Stuck fairly well, but not as well as the Hoosiers I’ve run in the past, however lasted much longer (I think I got 5 full track days out of my first set before cording versus 3 in the Hoosiers). I did find that they got greasy when pushed too hard. They were sticky enough to literally lift the paddock paint off the asphalt (bring a wire brush and scraper to pull all the gunk off of them). The track, Second Creek in Denver, I ran was very tight and very hard on equipment... I set my EBC brakes on fire for example. They were worthless for autocross since you could not get them up to heat, even with a co-driver.

Don’t let folks tell you they aren’t good on the street. They did fine (aren’t they OEM on some Porsches?). Obviously, they stuck harder than most summer tires. As expected, they tended to track in ruts, hydroplane in the wet particularly when they got down close to the wear markers, make noise, and pitch pretty much everything you drive over into the wheelwells (nice sandblast effect on the rocker panels). It’s also my belief they were also hard on the Saab’s terrible suspension and flexy chassis by putting extra strain on components (bushings went bad, a sheared engine mount, loose fasteners popping & slipping, etc.). Lots of stick isn’t a good thing when your pulling in and out of parking spaces all day long.

I’d recommend them for someone who does track days, but hates changing tires and having a dedicated set. It’s a drive to the track tire. They are a nice compromise between a true track tire and a summer tire. Tough call for someone because the price isn’t that much higher than the PS2 prices, and it's a much cheaper solution than a dedicated track set of wheels and tires (plus they will last longer).
Appreciate 0