I was talking with Roger Kraus racing ordering up some tires and it turns out he can't get R210 cantilevers as the new 2004 book no longer lists them. I like the R210 compound for auto-x. He can get a "non-catalog standard R270 compound which isn't listed in the general Goodyear websites but still available along with the R430 canti's.

May not have been enough demand for the real soft compound slicks as they are primarily a road race tire. Too bad...they were pretty sticky...

Anyone heard anything?

Bill P.

If Roger said it.. I would tend to believe it. SCCA changed a rule in GT2 that allows us to run 12 inch wide slicks in the rear of our road race cars.. they changed the rule because it was becoming increasingly more difficult to find the 10 inch wide slicks (which we ran on front and rear).


B

hmmm...I ordered the R270 set. I'll see how those heat up....

Have you tried the Hoosier slick yet ??


B

Hi B,

I ran Hoosiers all last year on both road courses and auto-x. Towards the end of the year I tried a set of R210's for auto-x's and R430's for the road courses. The stiff sidewall of the Goodyears feet good, while the compliance of the not as stiff Hoosiers felt good on the track.

I bought 2 new sets of Hoosier slicks (R45 and R60 compounds) at the end of the season last year that I didn't get to use. I just bought 2 new sets of Goodyears (R270 and R430) this week. I plan to track test the things and figure out which one works best for me and my car. I've found that I may like the feel of something and be slower, or conversely not like the feel of a certain setting or suspension change and actually be faster.

I keep a log book with suspension settings, tire compounds, pressures, air temp, etc. I'm trying to pick the optimum setups for my car and my abilities.

I like puzzles...I guess that's why I like car setups...

Bill P.

Way to go Bill...... That's the way to do it. Hard evidence all the way :-)

Had a set of Goodyear 260's on my car at the last LPR AX at the Marina. The difference between the 260's and the 210's, at the same venue, was substantial.

How do you measure it, well from a drivers point of view when the 210's got hot they stuck, allowing you to drive harder into corners than the mind can imagine. I honestly couldn't believe it; way to much fun.

With 260's, at the same venue, it wasn't the same. The car reacted more like normal, i.e., under steering when you went into a corner to hot.

With a 914, 2.0 you simply have to pour on the coal in corners to compete with other more powerful cars. 210's were wonderful. What a loss.

Hi Randal,

I haven't confirmed the R210 compound has been discontinued, but both Roger Kraus Racing and Bob Woodman Tires can't get them at the moment. Woodman has the R270's in stock. R430's are still available at either place.

After I burn through these next sets I'll have enough data to let me know which brand I'll pick....

BTW, did you order that Raby big 4 yet?

Bill P.

I just finished talking to the Goodyear rep at PIR yesterday as I needed to order a new set for the HSR-West event at the end of the month. He said they have a new compound which is slightly harder than the very soft ones (R210) as Goodyear did not like the ones that were initially made and tested so they changed the compund slightly. I would doubt there will be much difference, as he said they are pretty close to the same hardness but handle heat cycling better. That makes me happy as I usually do not wear them out, but get them brittle and they end up with a wear rating near 300 or so!!!

Hi John,

Thanks for the update. It confirms what we are hearing. Roger Kraus Racing was told that the new sticky compound will be in the R240/R250 range.

Did the Goodyear rep say when they will be released?

Were you running R210's on the track? I would have thought they would tear up pretty quick, but maybe not.

Thanks,

Bill P.