Teggsan

My Pirellis are pretty shot after about half a dozen days on the track.

I see that they're $350 or so apiece so I'm looking for a lower cost option.

This Car and Driver article says the Hankooks are really good. Tire Rack reviews are also pretty good but many mention a 500 mile break in period during which the tires can be a little sketchy.

Any real world experience on the Mustang, particularly when tracking the car (around a loop, not in a straight line)?

Thanks for any help.

parchisi

I would go for the Hankook R-S3s

Teggsan

Not available in 255/40x19, as far as I can tell. Plus they're nearly the price of Pilot Sports.

parchisi

Hmm, I see that now, the 19" tire selection is lacking.

Argonaut

As an alternative that is available in your size: I have a set of the Continental ExtremeContact DW and have used them on Summit Point Shenandoah in both wet and dry conditions. They are in the same class as the Hankooks you mention. I bought them specifically as my "rain" tires and to drive to/from events on. I did some datalogging with my Traqmate. In the dry they are about 2-3 seconds slower per lap than the Toyo R888 R-comps over a ~1:40 track. I didn't expect much in the dry but was actually kind of impressed. They are very loud though, lets just say they offer lots of feedback. In the wet they worked well. Tended to understeer, which is expected, but the grip was reasonable - way better in the wet than some of the R-comps I've used (R888, NT01).

Ansibe

Tire advice is always appreciated, but no one has answered the OP's question directly. Are the Hancooks a worthwhile track tire?

Teggsan, I'm in the same boat - PZeros are nearly dead after 4 track days, and I'm seriously considering Hankooks as a replacement for the same reasons as you. I'm also considering the Contis, and the new Cooper Ziex. "Inside line" just got a set of PS2s for their long term 5.0, so I'll be following that closely.

FWIW, I'm not an R comp guy. I tried them, and while they are grippier, they offer less feed back and break away quicker. Plus they melt (4000km out of the last set), and suck in the rain. An R comp tire's limit is way out there, and reasonably difficult to play around with. When I'm at the track, I'm searching for the limit, but I want to come back when I find it!

If I was racing, I'd have R comps. But I'm not. I let faster cars by.

DPE

Have not had them on a Mustang, but in my experience they are a great tire everywhere except the track. They really don't handle heat all that well, and get deformed and start chunking quicker than most. I had them on a Mazdaspeed6 and a friend had them on an RX-8; we both really liked the tire, but on track it was not in its element if you are one to drive at the limit on a regular basis. If you go out and run 8/10ths and maybe hit a couple 9/10ths laps in a session they'd be fine, but when running 10/10ths if they're chunking on an RX-8 that doesn't bode well for something with an extra 600lbs and a whole lot more horsepower. Won't see them on my Mustang unless it's exclusively for road use, where they are quite good.

68DARKHORSE

How does the Ventus V12 Evo K110 compare to the NT555?

plupus

I have them on my 11 gt and don't like them at all. Hard as a rock!

OLOABoss

You might also look at the Bridgestone Potensa SO-4. Got a pretty good review in Tire Rack.

Peter