Tire Opinions

[Rotarynut]

Hey guys.
I'm part of Western Washington University's FSAE team. We have decided that we want to base a lot of our suspension design off of tire characteristics and so I'm looking for info and opinions of different tires that teams are using.

We used to run the Goodyear 2692 20x7x13, this year we ran the Hoosier R25B 20.5x7x13 because of Goodyear no longer distributing the 2692.
We loved the characteristics of the Goodyears and they lasted a long time, but we are wary of using tires that haven't yet had Calspan data released.
We loved how the Hoosiers performed, but we are a fairly low-budget team and they didn't last nearly long enough for us to test or compete on and we aren't sure whether we can bankroll enough sets of tires to justify using them again.

We have no info on Michellins, Avons, Continentals, or any other manufacturers.
We are not restricting ourselves to 13" wheels. Information on 10" wheels would also be just as appreciated.

Info that would be good to know is: tire, tire weight, performance experiences/characteristics (example: tire A was good because it got to running temp easily and gripped well... but in longer races would get too hot... etc etc), longevity, and anything else you feel would be important.

Thanks a bunch,
Evan Horner
WWUFSAE

[Rotarynut]

Hey guys.
I'm part of Western Washington University's FSAE team. We have decided that we want to base a lot of our suspension design off of tire characteristics and so I'm looking for info and opinions of different tires that teams are using.

We used to run the Goodyear 2692 20x7x13, this year we ran the Hoosier R25B 20.5x7x13 because of Goodyear no longer distributing the 2692.
We loved the characteristics of the Goodyears and they lasted a long time, but we are wary of using tires that haven't yet had Calspan data released.
We loved how the Hoosiers performed, but we are a fairly low-budget team and they didn't last nearly long enough for us to test or compete on and we aren't sure whether we can bankroll enough sets of tires to justify using them again.

We have no info on Michellins, Avons, Continentals, or any other manufacturers.
We are not restricting ourselves to 13" wheels. Information on 10" wheels would also be just as appreciated.

Info that would be good to know is: tire, tire weight, performance experiences/characteristics (example: tire A was good because it got to running temp easily and gripped well... but in longer races would get too hot... etc etc), longevity, and anything else you feel would be important.

Thanks a bunch,
Evan Horner
WWUFSAE

[Jersey Tom]

As a side note here... Goodyear 2692 hasn't been made in years. Has since been replaced by the D2696 and I believe a more recent code yet. Hasn't been a secret.

Have you not looked into these at all? Performance benefit on a minute lap is several seconds without even touching setup.

[Chris B]

we use the hoosier's, not sure of the weight but as for performance, and this may just be our car too im not sure, we've found that if the ambient and track temp are reasonable (i.e track temp 25 degrees C or higher), the tires heat up nicely, grip nicely and hold on pretty well. but if the ambient and track temps are low (i.e track temp 10 degrees C) then we've had issues with the tires not warming up which in turn results in poo grip.

we've found durability to be reasonable, but even our "new" hoosiers have been sitting around the workshop for a couple of years so i suspect that they may have age cured a bit.

i hope something here is of some benefit

[Spetsnazos]

not sure how this thread is any different than the last...

On your criteria

Tire Weight: how is this going to help you? Are you really going to go off of tires that weight the least?

Performance experience/characteristics: Every team doesn't run the same suspension set-up, or the same drivetrain as you do. I don't even know how you can compare this because every driver likes the car to feel a certain way...

Longevity: How you drive, will determine longevity. What kind of terrain you drive on, will determine longevity. What kind of tire performance you are getting, will determine longevity. There are too many factors in this...

[Rotarynut]

Jersey Tom: I'm not positive on this but I see documentation from past teams that we used the 2692 in 08-09 and 09-10. The 09-10 could have been the 2696 compound and somebody forgot to change the code in our records.

Chris B: Thank you. This is the info I'm looking for. Do you happen to know around how many hours of driving and the intensity of the driving before they wear out? Or how many heat cycles go into them? P.S. What team are you?

Spetsnazos: Yes this post isn't too different from the last one. Like I said, I lost track of it and was not sure that it even made it onto the forum. After I reposted, I found it.
I'm aware of all of the factors. Tire weight is not critical but still something to be considered. More critical is longevity vs performance characteristics. For example, number of heat cycles, hours being driven at said style and intensity.
As for surface, we do our testing in parking lots and an old airstrip with pretty rough road surface. We have a few experienced drivers on the team who can push the car very aggressively and do so during testing if our plan dictates we need to.
That being said, the tires get pushed hard on a rough road surface. I'm not looking for what we should do, I'm asking what has worked for you and why you like it.

[flavorPacket]

19 of the top 20 teams in the rankings run hoosiers...

[Sameh]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by flavorPacket:
19 of the top 20 teams in the rankings run hoosiers... </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

He, who follows another, is always behind.

[flavorPacket]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Sameh:
He, who follows another, is always behind. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

Aphorisms don't win competitions or put you in the top 20 of the rankings. Achieving objectives by intelligently allocating resources does.

[Chris B]

im with the UQ team in Aus, we've done about 6 hours running on the current set we've got over 2 test days. so two full heat cycles. one of these days was on a hot day on an abrasive surface the other was quite cold (for QLD at least) on a smooth dusty surface.

every time the car has been driven as hard as possible and our team loves ripping skids for the sake of it so the tires have had a bashing but theyre still going strong.