Cobra Nationals - Control Tyre Class

[Kimbo]

I agree the Nitto NT05 looks like a pretty good candidate for the control tyre.
I contacted Toyo head office (owners of the Nitto brand) and they don't actually bring the NT05 into Australia.
I did question them on why then am I able to find them on ebay - they said that you can buy them from companies that are are able the deliver into Australia but officially, they are not sold here.

Other than offering the TOYO Proxes R888 or the R888R (both R spec tyres) he was unable to offer another tyre in their range that would satisfy our range of size requirements.

I guess the search continues.

[Wazza]

I've had the Toyo R888s on the car for a couple of years now.
245/17 Front and 315/17 rear.

I was just after some good traction
(I've used them for many years on the track on previous Cobras),
didn't really expect them to last as well as the Kumhos that I had previously.

Can not get over how well they've lasted...and stick like glue when they're pushed.
Cheers,
Warren

[Kimbo]

Actually Wazza,
the guy at Toyo I was dealing with was really pushing the R888's for exactly that reason. He said that they stick very well and they are very resilient - he says better on wear than most non-R-spec performance tyres.

The problem we have is the control tyre class was introduced partly to be easier on the car.

[Tenrocca]

888's are great but I think defeat the purpose of the control tyre class's intention, which was for blokes wanting to have a bit of a go without going stupid fast or pushing the car to the absolute limit.

I think its going to be difficult to come up with one tyre - Maybe the Falken RT-615k? It does seem to come in our typical sizes.

The federal RS-R looks to be a good tyre for the price, but in the 17's only goes up to 255\40R17. You can get a set of 2 x 235/45R17 and 2 x 255/40R17 for less than $600 from here:

235-45-17 Federal 595 RS-R 94W - TyresForLess

[Modena]

Toyo R888 Alternatives

[Kimbo]

The size range for 17 and 18's looks OK in the Falken RT-615k. Up to 275 in the 17's and up to 315 in the 18's.

[gjkrv8]

I am probably going to go with Nitto NT05's as they seem to have the most size options and fit my needs and seem to be the closest match for the KU36's. St George tires in NSW have them avail. Cheers Gregg

P.S. Shame KU36's aren't around anymore they were a great option

[Kimbo]

Maybe for the control tyre class, we could have the KU36, the Nitto NT05 or the Falken RT-615k???

[gjkrv8]

Originally Posted by Kimbo

Maybe for the control tyre class, we could have the KU36, the Nitto NT05 or the Falken RT-615k???

Spot on Kim. I don't think we will get a single tyre in the future that would suit everyones sizing requirements and availability etc.

As long as they are moderately similar in performance its then just down to the driver - bugger :-)

Although I still think anyone with a Le Mans top should be docked 10 secs - just stirring :-)

cheers

Gregg

[Gav]

You should borrow one Greggy

[gjkrv8]

Originally Posted by Gav

You should borrow one Greggy

can't do that as then it will come down to driver skills again and then I'm stuffed :-)

[LoBelly]

Originally Posted by Kimbo

Maybe for the control tyre class, we could have the KU36, the Nitto NT05 or the Falken RT-615k???

This looks like a de-facto UTQG based selection, unless there is another basis for choosing these tyres. (?)

Knowing that the tyre range will have to be addressed for 2018, has the Nationals Committee come up with firm criteria for the control tyre(s).

so far looks like

- not 'R' spec
- available
- fat

I find myself quite interested in this class, sadly tyres mentioned to date don't seem to come in suitable sizes for 15"


LoBelly

[gjkrv8]

Michael, there's a neat site tiresize.com that allows you to put your sizes in and it gives you what manufacturers have in your size etc. I thought one of the ones above had a few 15" sizes. Although from what I've seen the 15" tyre of choice seems to be the Avons. Cheers Gregg

[boxhead]

I use this one Gregg.
Custom wheels, wheel tire packages for your ride - RIMSnTIRES.com

[Kimbo]

You are pretty right with the criteria Lobelly, just add sporty performance and desirable for Cobra owners to have as their every day tyre.

With regard to the 15" wheel sizes, we have considered that the best class for them would be class 1 - the 15" wheel class.

[Tenrocca]

What would be nice is if Falken were contacted and were able to come on as a sponsor with a discount for Cobra club members on the RT615K?

Or alternatively just:

"Control Tyre UTQG 140+ class"

I cant see any tyre from any manufacturer that would give anyone an unfair advantage if the tyre met that one simple criteria.

[Serpnt]

An earlier post suggested that the Kumho V720 was going to be the replacement for the KU36 and after a bit of research, I do not believe that is the case. Here is a snippet from tirerack.com

The Ecsta V720 is Kumho's Extreme Performance Summer tire developed for passionate driving enthusiasts looking for a tire that was bred for performance and domesticated for civil society. Because its design focus is street use and specifically to excel in the short runs seen during autocross competition, the Ecsta V720 should not be driven on a race track.

Just thought I would throw that in the mix. Good luck with your decisions

[Gav]

It's a hard one that's for sure.
The UTQG rating is speculative given that the manufacturer nominates their own rating.
The class is definitely useful though given that it breaks up what was a huge class 3 at the Nationals.
Multiple tire suppliers looks to be the only answer for the class to continue.
Those competing in the class need to be aware though that there will be a better tire amongst the selection and that will only be shown after the class is next run.

[gjkrv8]

Originally Posted by Gav

It's a hard one that's for sure.
The UTQG rating is speculative given that the manufacturer nominates their own rating.
The class is definitely useful though given that it breaks up what was a huge class 3 at the Nationals.
Multiple tire suppliers looks to be the only answer for the class to continue.
Those competing in the class need to be aware though that there will be a better tire amongst the selection and that will only be shown after the class is next run.

I agree. But it doesn't worry me as our cars do vary a fair bit along with driver skill/experience and car set up etc

I really enjoy the fun of slightly closer competition with a bit of friendly rivalry thrown in. Cheers Gregg

[gjkrv8]

Well a few of us went up to Winton yesterday for a Test N Tune open track day.

It was a balmy 32 degrees, so a hot day on the track was had by all.

I was keen to see how my new front types (Nitto NT05) would go compared to my old KU36's.

Overall I reckon they are about the same. My time was a second slower but I put that down to the hot conditions making the track, driver, car a little slower/underpowered etc.

All our cars went ok without any issues other than brakes and Oil temps getting a little high.

They have revised the "Test-n-Tune" days at Winton now to make it more friendly to novice and non-racecars etc.

They have seperate days now for the motorbikes and cars.

The cars are split into 3 groups now: Open wheelers, Racecars with slicks and full roll cages etc and Others (e.g. Cobras).

We found that mostly the cars in our group were around similar time spread so it was quite enjoyable and you weren't constantly looking in your mirrors trying to get out of the way of much faster race cars.

So in summary: IMHO Nitto NT05 seem like a reasonable replacement for the KU36's.

Cheers Gregg