360 Modena Slicks

I need some advice on Slicks for the 360. Last year my wife got me a set on BBS wheels with Pirelli Slicks (D3). I used them and had an amazing time on the track. It really improved my track times and confidence in driving. However, I spun the car off the track without damage on my last track day. After the fact I was told that slicks have a limited life expectancy. I thought the "holes" in the tires indicated when they were worn out. My dealer told me that the tires have a certain number of heat cycles before the compound gets hard and loses grip. I did 6 events with 4 runs (twenty minutes) each. That would be 24 "cycles". The dealer said that this was way beyond the normal use for these tires. So, I now own a new set of Hoosier slicks. Does anyone have any suggestions or comments about the use and abuse or slicks? Is there a certain way to "break them in" so they will perform better or last longer. Any recommended tire pressure for these? Help!

 

A few thoughts:

- You've obviously married the right woman. Congratulations.

- In my experience with a 360 Challenge car on Pirellis, the grip is ok for at best a couple of 4-session days, then the tires are entertaining, even fun, but not because they stick. I have hardly ever run race tires down past the wear marks.

- I've also used Yokos on the 360C - a little cheaper than Pirellis, and fine for track days. I've never done any careful comparison of the Yokos and Pirellis. I usually buy Yokos only when Pirellis are unavailable.

- What Hoosiers are you using? I know Hoosier has published run-in advice for their DOT race tires - basically, warm them up, then put them away for at least 24 hours, preferably much more. My understanding is that proper break-in extends tire life, but that's about it.

- I don't bother scrubbing in tires I use for track days.

- To do tire management optimally, you may want to consider using two sets of wheels and tires.

- In general, when using slicks on a street car, you really need to pay attention to parts stressed to their design limits by the additional loads - suspension components, for example, hubs, etc. Perhaps someone can else can advise you as to whether putting slicks on a stock Modena raises any concerns.

- Your dealer should have a recommendation as to optimal hot pressures for the Hoosiers. You'll need to find, by trial and error, what cold pressure will yield the desired result. You can ask your wife to buy you a pyrometer, and really go nuts with set-up, alignment ... and spend a fortune ruining your Modena to make it perform on track ... buy an enclosed trailer ... start racing ... but then you'd just be another sad track addict, like so many of us.

 

This is really a valid concern. If you like the grip of race tires (who doesn't) you might try Toyo RA1's, an R-compound which are about halfway between street and slick tires. They don't have the heat cycle problems and super-fast wear of slicks, and they have another advantage in that you don't have to buy another set of wheels, you can run them on the street if you want. If you continue to run slicks it's just a matter of time before you have problems with suspension components, IMO.

Gary

 

Don't know whether to laugh... smile... or cry.... but what you said is so very true.