If this seems like a strange request this is why...

STREET IMPORT

4cyl or 6 cyl Front engine with front or rear wheel drive import or domestic subcompacts.
All motor No Power adders
Drag Radials allowed on FWD cars
All other combos 140 or higher treadwear Street Tires
Street Legal Exhaust Required/Cats Not Required
Interior must retain Dash & Door Panels.

It's the rules for the local street import class where I am from. Like other I am running into traction issues. Especially since I am running the 4.08 final drive. I can seem to get traction and first and second is hit or miss.

I know there are alot of other things that I can do to negate this problem the only thing I don't have the answer to is the tire. I haven't been able to find anything really related to this subject. I guess because most people look into actual drag radials which I plan on doing just for personal use but for the class I was wanting to know what my options are.

The track is 1000ft and I would like to take the track record for the class it is currently 11.08 I have put down 11.2's fairly consistantly with high 2.1 60ft times. Suspension is in the works I just need the tires to complete the package.

I plan to get more track time due to I know my launch is sucking but all in all enough rambling.

Anyone got any advice?

edit - Oh and I don't want to do any motor mods just cause I know the car has the power to do it on its own now and its fun to answer people when they ask what all I have done.

 

ive heard good things about the hankook rs3s which i believe are a 140 treadwear. if not you could look at the 200ish treadwear range such as the dunlop starspecs, nitto nt05s, and i believe the yokohama neova

 

in my experience street tires are pretty much street tires. i'd look for tires that have the following attributes - known to have softer sidewalls rather than rock hard sidewalls, large tread blocks, as little void area as possible especially voids running laterally. obviously you want to size the tire to optimize your gearing for your power level.

you might check out some of the track tire comparisons and look towards the tires that the reviewers describe as having lots of grip, but less sharp handling and turn in. sharp handling and turn in response means the tire has really stiff sidewalls, something that you don't want in a drag tire. The Advan AD08 Neova for instance has razor sharp turn in because it's sidewalls are hard as ****. great when you want to turn corners, but not ideal when you want to load the tire up on a launch.

also, don't get too hung up on treadwear - I realize you have to have a listed treadwear of greater than 140 but don't make the mistake of thinking that a tire will be "better" for your use just because it has a 140 treadwear vs another tire that has a 180 treadwear. treadwear ratings are assigned by the manufacturer, not an outside oversight agency, and you CANNOT compare treadwear ratings between manufacturers i.e. Company X's 140 treadwear tire might actually wear out slower than Company Y's 180 treadwear tire.

I'd also run as small a wheel as possible so that you can maximize your sidewall height and still run the diameter you want (for gearing purposes).

 

You can go fast on a street tire. Just requires a different setup.

Try to take as much weight off the front end as possible. Place ballast over the rear tires.

A lot of street tire class guys like to use cheap *** mastercraft tires. They have a soft sidewall and work pretty well.

Try to fit a 275/60-15 on your car and you should have no problem pulling better 60fts.
I know people that have pulled 1.5 and 1.6 60fts on these mastercrafts. It required tons of passes to dial in the car and great driving.

 

Hmm thanks for the info makes a lot of since. I have started doing a little research and actually finding quiet a bit of information to sort through on this idea. The only problem being going with a smaller wheel as I am about to upgrade to the Akebono brake kit both front and rears. Guess I just need to see exactly what is the smallest diameter wheel I can fit over those brakes and go from there.

But thanks for the start in what appears to be the right direction. I might want to do a little more research on what wheel I can fit in the rear with the bigger brakes. Then return to the wheel search. But even just a couple tenths on my 60ft would put me in a great position for the record.

Thanks again.
-Michael

 

What is your current rear alignment looking like? Specifically camber.

 

Factory right now. I am looking to have that changed when I get the new tires. I'm under the impression it needs to be set as zeroed as possible?

Next weekend is the state finals so hopefully I can get all this taken care of before then.

Oh and I just beat the record of 11.0879 this weekend. Now I' am just looking to get as deep into the 10's in the 1000ft to actually take it and hold onto it for a while.

I know there have been a few civic hatches being built just for this reason so its nice to do it on the stock motor in the Z.

 

You want camber 0 or even positive ideally for just dragging. When you launch it squats going more negative.

But you also dont want to ruin the handling of the car so a good compromise Ive found is -1 degree in the rear -1.5 in the front. Toe in spec for both. This will make a big difference, trust me.

 

Hmm, well I don't mind having it set up just for this weekend. I can always have it re aligned after the weekend. But thanks for the specs Ill see what I can get them to align it too.

 

If you are running Nexens, that is your problem. My GTI came with them, and they will not hold traction.

 

If I had to pick one tire that is 140+ for drag it would be the Toyo R1R. It has the softest sidewall of all the extreme summer tires, and the compound is extremely soft. This tire is popular with autocrossers (particularly light cars like CRX/Miata).

 

Yeah I know the Nexans are the current problem. When I get some new wheels I am going to look into this snow tire thing. For now I just picked up some 265/40/18 Hankook Ventus V12s mainly for daily driving but Ill see how they work for the track in this class. Im getting them mounted tomorrow and will post some before and after pictures back here when I can hopefully finally squashing the debate on 265s on the 8.5 wheel.

 

This is short notice but what about +1 degree of positive camber. I am at the shop now I have it reset Monday

 

Good luck this is one thing I have never looked at when racing. Truthfully I didnt even know treadwear mattered.

 

Thanks well I finally got it all done. I ended up going with a 0 degree camber alignment in the rear all other adjustments are set to factor specs.

Also got 245/40/18s (F) an 265/40/18s (R)

I love the new meater tires. The fronts especially look better because before they almost had a slight stretch look to them.