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Re: MR2 Tires

To: <mikelowe@pop.c-com.net>, <scott_926@hotmail.com>
Subject: Re: MR2 Tires
From: "Steve Hoult" <stevehoult@home.com>
Date: Wed, 21 Jul 1999 22:29:11 -0500
> > Hi all.  I'm new to Autocross and racing my 91 MR2 (na).  Everyone is
> > telling me that race tires will make a world of differnce.
>
>
>      Stick with street tires for a while.  If your local region has a
> street tire class, run there.  Novices don't like to hear this but
> they are not ready for racing tires.  Do one bad 4-wheel lockup due
> to overcooking a corner and you can kiss a set of racing tires
> goodbye.  I've seen it happen.

Unfortunatley, this is the best reason to move to R compound tires. A set of
flat spotted R tires will only bother you 45-75 seconds at a time. Flat spot
your street tires and they'll remind you all day long, everywhere you go.
Been there, done that, got the crappy t-shirt....

>      Street tires force a new autoxer to be smooth and use proper
> lines/technique.  Racing tires can act differently and a new driver
> won't know what the tires are "saying" to the them.

THIS is the best point for staying on street tires! But I'll make a
recommendation. Find a spare set of rims and put some inexpensive tires on
them ofr your first years racing. You'll learn more about what your car's
trying to tell you and when you're ready to move up to R compound tires
you'll already have the rims.

>      Optimize the car before going to racing tires.  Get the chassis
> set up to the class rules.  There's no sense in trashing the outside
> of a racing tire because you still have positive camber.

Excellent point! Also don't forget to use some of the Online guides to basic
setup and techniques. There are also some good books on the subject. I have
a list on my web page.

Steve Hoult  '89 SC   ASP 9   Flat Duck Racing
Visit the MR2 SC Registry at www.mr2sc.com
Join the MR2 SC Mailing list at www.onelist.com/subscribe.cgi/mr2sc
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