Which Track Tire??? Tire Rack???

Which one looks best? Dedicated Track car. (Track days, HPDE) These are from the Tire Rack, any other suggestions. $80.00 to ship then $$ to mount and balance.

BFGoodrich g-Force R1 S 275/35-18 LL Tire The g-Force R1 S (S for Sprint) radialis BFGoodrich's Dry Racetrack & Autocross Only special-use DOT-legal racing tire developed for the drivers of prepared vehicles looking to run their quickest times in autocross, sprint race and time attack events. Offering more ultimate dry grip, g-Force R1 S… $289.00

Hankook Ventus Z214 275/35-18 Tire The Ventus Z214 radial is Hankook's Dry Racetrack & Autocross Only racing tire developed for drivers who participate in autocross, time attack and road racing competition, as well as for track-day drivers seeking race-slick like grip in dry and damp conditions. The Ventus Z214 is designed to blend… $257.00

Toyo Proxes RR 275/35-18 LL Tire The Proxes RR is Toyo’s Dry Racetrack & Autocross Only tire developed for driving enthusiasts who compete in road racing and track attack events where high levels of grip in dry conditions is required.While Proxes RR radials meet DOT requirements, they are not appropriate for highway use. Proxes… $285.00

Toyo Proxes R888 275/35-18 XL Tire The Proxes R888 is Toyo’s Streetable Track & Competition tire for driving enthusiasts participating in road racing, track days and high-performance driving schools. The Proxes R888’s advancements in casing and tread design improve dry performance while maintaining wet traction and control.While… $257.00

4 NEW 275/35-18 NITTO NT 01 35R R18 TIRES $1,016.00 Free shipping

Google fastest race tire and fastest street tire. There are a couple good articles that lay out the comparisons done in the last few months. What vehicle, suspension, rim width, and driver experience will help folks offer their advice.

What vehicle, suspension, rim width, and driver experience will help folks offer their advice.

BMW E46 M3, Suspension: Ground Control Coil overs, Driver: Beginner, Rim: 18x8.5 Thanks for the tips.

Nitto NT01 has been my favorite so far. Unless you are doing time attack where you need something that can click off one single super fast lap, or are competing in a series with a tire sponsor, they will be the all around best tire: good grip, predictable, designed to handle the heat of an extended session, wear like iron and good until they show cord, decent in wet track conditions, don't need to be shaved to have good manners.

The NT01 is kind of like the RA-1, but a little bit better pretty much across the board. They seem to have a bit better grip. Longer life. About the same heat tolerance for long sessions. All that without having to shave them. At full tread, the RA1 is better in the wet, but not as good in the dry and actually wears out faster due to the greater amount of tread.

RA-1: Still a good choice. But, as listed above, NT01 is better most of the time.

R888: Good but not as good as the RA1 or NT01 for extended sessions. Spec Miata and 944Spec tried switching to them for a year and all the competitors started complaining that they wanted to go back to the RA1. They are faster for the first couple of laps, but peak early and turn greasy pretty quickly. Not the best for long track sessions. Better if you are looking for a tire for time attack where you're aiming for 1 quick lap and can rest your tires between them.

Others: I do not have experience with. But if they are good for Auto-X and super grippy, they're not going to be ideal for longer HPDE sessions. They will peak early and then go greasy, and will wear out faster. A good HPDE/competition tire will not be as good at auto-x because it will not come up to temp to have full grip until after you finish one lap (when I would run PCA auto-x that a warm up lap and then 2 hot laps, I would consistent drop about 2 seconds time on my second lap running an RA1 or NT01, because it would take those first two laps to get to temp).

The RR is like an NT01, but faster. It's now the Spec Miata tire and what I've been running. I don't think it lasts quite as long (it's still a bit early to tell) but it's got the grip over the Nitto/RA1.

For dry I've always done well w/ shaved RA1s. They last longer shaved, which may seem counterintuitive - the absence of squirmy tread blocks keeps the temps more stable. They h=get better every weekend 'til they cord. I flip them once or twice on the wheels to even out wear. I've also used 888s which are not as good. I have a set of Hoosier R6s from when I was doing NASA TTs. Those are some fun tires!

I was going to say, isn't purple crack kinda like the answer?

The 888's suck like a supercharged Hoover. Lousy grip, squirmy, loads of open area, wear like butter on coarse pavement. RA1s were a better tire in almost every way.

Since I'm no longer running for championship points, I've moved down to Rivals. They wear a lot better, but its really hard watching a guy drive away, when you know another five hundred bucks a weekend would let you pass him.

If you want to win, buy Hoosiers.

Interesting - I've run R888s on multiple cars and I found them predictable and reasonably long lived if you don't bolt them to the front wheels on an Integra Type-R.

Mind you, I'm more of a rolling chicane than any sort of competitor, so YMMV.

An instructor I know runs the snot out of the lateset Dunlap Direzzas for two seasons on an E46 M3. He's not slow either! He runs them 2 seasons, flipping them on the rim after the first season.