AX racing on street tires - loud is good?, pushin the limits and lookin for more Options

[Chris Pincetich]

I gotta stick to the tires I have now for 2007 due to AX class points and my budget.

I have 195/50 Dunlop 2000 Sport (I think) on 15x6" alloy rims. I got these because I was worried about fitment of 205s and never guessed I'd becaome an AX addict. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/happy11.gif)

These tires seem to get more slippery as they warm up. As a result, I end up fish taling a bit. I tend to 180 slide about once a day, and can keep the back end from swingin around 90% of the time. Some times I mash the brakes, turn in fast, get about 10-20 deg fish tail, and hook up heading right for the next apex. YEAH it feels great and I hear the tires squeel. Other times I have a smoother approach and lots of squeel all through the arc of the turn. Sometimes I'm smooth and don't hear the sqeel. With so many turns adding up to my time, it is tough to tell which approach is fastest. I don't feel like I kill any speed on my little slip slide and hook up and when I watch others it looks fast as long as the tail isn't swingin out wide.

My AX book (with the 911 on the cover) talks about the friction circle, and I think I need more info here. It says that pushing the limit up to the grip release is fastest, and then hints that sometimes going a little outside the cirlce is fastest. Losts of allusions to pushing the limits but no "one size fits all" explanation.

Is this loud sqeelin approach as good and fast as it feels, or am I just enjoying the ride and going slower than I could?
At what point in the friction circle are my street tires making the squeel noise?
Is the soft compounds in DOT-R and slicks too soft to resonante and make the squeel noise? (IMG:style_emoticons/default/idea.gif)

I started dropping PSI this year - from 32-34 down to 24-26 PSI at the last race. Still well on the tread, not rollin over to the tread wear line. Is this extra side wall flex good? I think so!! (IMG:style_emoticons/default/w00t.gif)

I know most of youz guyz had humble beginnins like me and my rustored 1.7 914 so enlighten me on the finer points of maxing out my street tires! (IMG:style_emoticons/default/beerchug.gif)

[Joe Ricard]

Try somewhere near 38 PSI front and back. If one end slips before the other add 2 lbs to that end and take 2 lbs off the other end.

Streets including your Dunlops squeal way before letting loose. Learn how to manage that contact patch through the friction circle and when you can stay close to the edge of adhesion through a brake, turn, accelerate manuever. then you are ready for DOT-R tires which will have a much higher limit and you will have to find it all over again.
When you go to slick it is going to again start over with an even higher and sharper edgy limit.

Stay with what you got and learn how to go fast with it.

I have done a few events on Streets after a few years on DOT-R tires. it was a hoot. I could drive though the course and change the pitch of the squeal at will. My passenger nearly puked. and I did spin once or twice so don't sweat it.