Tires

Dean

Dean

Well-known member
Do to economic circumstances beyond my control I have not had the budget to race the last couple of years. Things are looking are looking better and I decided to attempt to get back out there again. The first shock to my budget was all new belts, a HANS device and helmet. I figured OK, they will last hopefully for the next 3-5 years. Then I priced slicks. Over $1000. Seems like the last time I bought them they were closer to $700. Just for fun I started looking to see if there were any options. My neighbor runs a circle track car with 15" slicks 10" wide, very similar to mine. He pays $123 a piece for them. The problem is they require a 9" rim. I looked around and there are quite a few options in 13 and 15" but all require larger than 7" rims. Does anyone else think we need to get rid of the current rim width and go with contact width? Cantilever slicks were just a way around the rule in the first place, nobody but SCCA uses them and I can't believer Hoosier and Goodyear will continue to build them long term. I have already heard of shortages this year. Seems like if we want to improve participation this is one of the cost cutting areas we should look at.
 
The Hoosier 13x10 slicks are only $96. But again you need that 10" wide rim. I beleive alot of what road racers are paying for is the extra cost of building the cantilever side wall and the fact we have contingency monies. They give away a lot of tires and that money comes from inflated prices. That and were dumb enough to pay $200+ per tire. So next time you buy a set of tires, remember, your helping pay for the tires they are giving to the winner. And your taking it in the shorts for being a roadracer.
Chris
 
Wouldn't this potentially require an amendment in the allowable track of the car as well? I know I couldn't fit rims that wide in my wells without more offset and flare.
 
team-gpracing":3jbjf8p7 said:
Wouldn't this potentially require an amendment in the allowable track of the car as well? I know I couldn't fit rims that wide in my wells without more offset and flare.
Click to expand...
The tire itself is not wider only the rim so if you get wheels with the same offset the track would not change and there should not be clearance problems.
 
Dean,

I may have some brand new Goodyear cantilever bias ply 13x 8 or 13/9.5 slicks available from a friend in the next day. I will post them only on this website. Would those fit your car?

You'll get first right of refusal if you have interest.

Jay 317-733-9644 x18
 
Thanks Jay, my car is set up for 15" although I have thought about trying 13". It would make the gearing of my stock gearbox a bit better. I've been able to find used slicks but it would be nice to have a new set for the price of used. I sent a request into the board but I doubt if much is done about it. I'm sure they will wait until Goodyear and Hoosier decide not to make cantilevers anymore.
 
Rim width is a neat idea but many of the vintage clubs (like the one I run with) use older PCSs.
 
It's something of a chicken and egg thing since we all already have the "narrow" wheels, but I can't think that anyone would deliberately start off with the current narrow wheel / unlimited tire width rule that we have.

It was a number of years ago already but I was speaking with a Goodyear race tire engineer and he confirmed that the narrow wheel / cantilevered bias tire thing was pretty much SCCA/US market only.
 
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