Discussion
Can anyone advise on the normal wear pattern for tyres during a trackday?
I've just had a most enjoyable day blasting around Wroughton airfield but have found that all my tyre wear seems to be to the outer edge of all four tyres. Is this normal or have I got the pressures wrong or does the suspension alignment need checking?
I think I'll only get one more track/airfield day out of them then its new tyre time - thats about £140 per track day - ouch! 
Edited by s3 bob on Monday 7th May 22:09
Edited by s3 bob on Monday 7th May 22:09 Could be any of the above. If the tyre is underinflated it will tend to distort (trying to roll off the rims) and you end up cornering on the sidewall. You can often see severe wear just over the outer inch or so when this happens. A small amount of 'feathering' is normal. If the tyre is just a little too soft and you push it hard it can overheat and then wear relatively quickly. Warning signs for this are tyres almost too hot to touch, and rubber marbles building up on the tread blocks as the soft rubber is scraped off by the road. There is no 'right' tyre pressure but I reckon on very grippy surfaces like a high-grip runway you probably want to be somewhere around 28/30 psi, on normal tracks perhaps 26/28. On high grip surfaces you also get more body roll which gives more tyre wear on the outer edges. The answer is wind on more camber, fit stiffer springs or go slower. None of these are very good answers are they?
Tyre wear also depends a great deal on what sort of surface you are driving on. You can get very high wear rates on rough concrete and lower wear rates on smooth tarmac surfaces like most race tracks have.
BTW you can have the tyres swapped left/right and almost double their life. If you have directional tyres like S02PPs you will have to have them taken off the rims to do this - still cheap compared to new tyres!
Hope this helps,
Peter Humphries (and a green v8S)
quote:
Can anyone advise on the normal wear pattern for tyres during a trackday? I've just had a most enjoyable day blasting around Wroughton airfield but have found that all my tyre wear seems to be to the outer edge of all four tyres. Is this normal or have I got the pressures wrong or does the suspension alignment need checking? I think I'll only get one more track/airfield day out of them then its new tyre time - thats about £140 per track day - ouch!
It seems mine were under inflated then. I usually run at 22psi on the road and upped it to 25psi on the airfield. Out of interest, what signs would I get if they are over inflated? ie would I experience poorer handling or would it be uneven wear again?
I was very envious on the day of folk who were able to carry four spare wheels c/w track day tyres and the Seven driver whose yokohamas were only £35 each!
I have Yokohama A520 on my S3. The last set lasted cira 12,000 miles and about 5 track days.
I start with 25psi then increase it after I get a feel for the track (the track may be wet due to dew or over night rain) up to 30-31psi. If it is a warm dry day I may start with 28psi and see how it goes.
Airfields tend to be harder on tyres then circuits.
Mark
Edited by TVR Mark on Sunday 13th May 10:28
How do you rate the yoko's and what do you pay for them?
quote:
I have Yokohama A520 on my S3. The last set lasted cira 12,000 miles and about 5 track days. I start with 25psi then increase it after I get a feel for the track (the track may be wet due to dew or over night rain) up to 30-31psi. If it is a warm dry day I may start with 28psi and see how it goes. Airfields tend to be harder on tyres then circuits. Mark Edited by TVR Mark on Sunday 13th May 10:28
I like them, good handling for track days when run >28psi and good road holding at <25psi.
I found them better when new first 6 months. Also half the tread on outside edges of the tyre are shallow and the tyre looks like it needs replacing long before it does.
£296 incl vat etc. Hendon Tyres 020 8205 6633
Oh no, I don't like the sound of that at all. Sounds like it will be sacrificing dry grip. Surely a better answer is to increase the roll stiffness and wind on more negative camber?
Peter Humphries (and a green V8S with increased roll stiffness and camber 
)
)
quote:
Just found this info in the Easytrack forum - so its not just me then
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