Hankook RS-3 on stock suspension?

[John Stimson]

It's time for new competition tires for the S2000. The Dunlop Z1*s that are currently on it are 2.5 years old and I think that they have probably dropped off their peak performance. I know that the Hankook RS-3s have done well on S2000s in STR, but I have also heard concerns that they are very sensitive to wheel width and need more camber than other tires. Given that my wheel width is restricted to 7" for a 225 tire and 8.5" for a 255 tire, and I am running a car that has limited camber on the front wheels (-1.8 compared to the -3 that some STR competitors say they think they need for the Hankooks), I am hesitant to put the Hankooks on a stock-prepared car.

Has anyone had experience with RS-3s on a stock car, especially something similar to an S2000?

With the Toyo R1R, I'm concerned about the heat resistance -- and being Toyos, I assume that they are also sensitive to wheel width. Any good reasons to look at them more seriously for a stock car?

I don't need to hear stories about the Dunlops chunking or otherwise misbehaving -- mine have been just fine.

[Mako Koiwai]

In the Miata Challenge, Street Class, most of the folks are using RS-3's. Back to Back testing shows that the wider the wheel, up to 9" the better with the RS-3 in 225/45/15's ... for track events.

Unfortunately because of our Miata's pre-existing modifications we ended up selling our 9" wheels and had to go with 7" wheels ... in order to stay with-in the Street Class. Certainly the tire isn't as direct on the narrower wheel and probably takes a bit longer to take a set, but since we don't have the quick transitional elements of AX'ing, I thought it was an acceptable trade off ... for now.

I thought an 8" wheel would be ideal, but the experienced Miata Challenge drivers say the 9" is definitely faster then the 8" wheel.

We've got max'ed out stock Miata NB camber.

[Jonathan Lugod]

john, i would suggest sticking with the dunlop star specs. Although the s2k isnt exactly camber challenged, i think the increase sidewall from the dunlop would be better for those wheel widths.

[John Stimson]

Jon, that's what I was thinking (if you mean sidewall stiffness). Dunlops are ordered, see y'all on the 12th!

[Mako Koiwai]

Since we're stuck with 7" wheels ... I wonder if our next set of tires should be Dunlops (for "Street" class track use). We LOVED them when we ran them a few years ago. So progressive at the limit.