PDenbigh Posted October 10, 2006 Share Posted October 10, 2006 NASA, This weekend at Summit Point will be my first weekend on "Real" tires. I have run the past two years on some cheap Fuzion street tires. I have graduated through the ranks and have now participated in three HPDE 3 weekends. I managed to aquire some Grand Am Hoosiers and with some creative body work have them comfortably fitting on my XR4Ti. I would like to ask for a little advice on what to expect out there this weekend. I have read Hoosier's site on tire care, so I have that under control. However, regarding feel, forgivness, traction, fall off, etc, I just don't have any idea what I'm in for. I know to take it easy and work up, and I have no problem working my way into it. I guess I am more concerned about how the tires act at "the edge"? Any tips? Thanks in advance! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gfaules Posted October 11, 2006 Share Posted October 11, 2006 The truth is your question is a loaded one. There are many variables such as your set up, what tire pressures you will run, the track temperature, etc. The bottom line is do not expect anything but instead "learn" what they do for you and most importantly "be objective" in determining if they are right for you. Having had various drivers on my team over the years I can tell you also that 10 different drivers will give you ten different views of what they did. However, the best viewpoint is from the driver that is objective and analytical. Compare times, and then remember that set up for your Hoosiers may be better or worse that they where with your street tires. And don't forget what I call "Racing Placebos". A good example of a racing placebo is a young guy buys a set of headers, a new cam, new carb, some hot sounding exhaust, puts it all together and starts it up and reves it up a few times and says, "WOW, did you hear that? Boy does that sound great?" But the truth is, until the timing is set properly, the correct range of spark plugs is found, the carb adjusted, etc, the engine probably has less horsepower than it did before he messed with it. It's all part of the learning curve, so put on your tires, write down your tire pressures before and after you run and keep notes!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nasaregistrar Posted October 11, 2006 Share Posted October 11, 2006 Pete, What I understand is the GA Hoosier is a different animal than the regular Hoosier tire. The GA tires are built to last the endurance races they run and are harder(?) than the gooey sprint tires. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BrianZ Posted October 11, 2006 Share Posted October 11, 2006 Pete,What I understand is the GA Hoosier is a different animal than the regular Hoosier tire. The GA tires are built to last the endurance races they run and are harder(?) than the gooey sprint tires. They are a harder tire! They will still look almoste new but have no traction left (they seem to have a limited heat cycle life). I would think they are going to be better than the street tires you were using tho! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
white_2kgt Posted October 11, 2006 Share Posted October 11, 2006 Pete,What I understand is the GA Hoosier is a different animal than the regular Hoosier tire. The GA tires are built to last the endurance races they run and are harder(?) than the gooey sprint tires. They are still pretty stickey though. I ran them Friday at VIR, warmed up pretty quick and only seemed to get better as I got on them harder. Definitely more traction than the RA1's, you should have seen Kent after 1/2 hr on his RA1's and me busting his balls, hahaha Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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