Toyo r888

[R60BBA]

Toyo R888/Rs look cool, but you don’t really need em on sub 500bhp cars.

The PS4 is more appropriate for any Z4 imo.

[mjennings23]

I fail to see any reason to fit track orientated tyres on a road car. Sure, no doubt the ultimate dry performance is better, but something like the PS4 or F1A3 is going to fare far, far better in every other situation. The UK has plenty of wet days, so considering a tyre designed for dry track driving over a tyre designed with wet roads in mind isn't exactly smart.

If you want them for track days, then do what I regularly see track day drivers do... Get a second set of wheels and wrap them in a dedicated track tyre?

[ph001]

Being pig headed to use them and nail marks in the steering wheel... All of this talk of R888 performance - Is this from personal experience or a perception from third hand accounts? I'd argue that any of the List1b semi slick/trackday tyres are better in most conditions than any road orientated ditch finder. So straight away an improved tyre over what many people consider a good deal to save some money for a car to travel from A-B.

You seem to be arguing against almost universal opinion on this thread and just about every other insight from other users of this tyre....e.g. https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?t=238644

But hey, ho - you are welcome to your own views!

[BMWZ4MC]

Well Kierandc5, the majority of us amateurs with no experience have advised caution based on something we heard third hand in the pub. Now that I know that we’re all talking bollocks, I’d suggest you take the advice of the lone expert driving God instead

[jimmybell]

the majority of us amateurs with no experience

speak for yourself

the OP did ask for advice specific to weekend use, and typical conditions. lives in the highlands, so weather invariably flips from bright sun to pissing rain in minutes, and then back again, and most of that sun spell seems to appear in the summer, whereas winter is rain/sleet/snow/cloud/cold/wet. so typical conditions will be <some amount of damp, likely cold, occasional sun or dry spells>. Correct me if i'm wrong OP? I've only ever done a few (glorious) weeks up there, all in aug/sept.



assuming i had no experience at all and say nothing of my experience or opinion, i could at least say objectively that the two professional racing instructors i recently did a handling (including wet+ice driving) course with, happened to be in two identical cars comparing P-zero vs P-zero Corsa, both had opinions that the corsa was useless in British winter, and that the Trofeo R would be near undriveable in any high powered car on british winter roads. This was referring specifically to my current car, but i imagine any car you're fitting track tyres to you'd not be doing so to drive like miss daisy so should be similar here.

did some track time in the passenger seat of two current BTCC drivers (both recent ex champions) track prepped cars too, with them driving their semi slick tyres gave the outer edges of my knees bruises.
... don't think you can do that on a cold wet b-road, or even want to try, thus don't see the point in those tyres on the road for 90% of the OPs likely driving conditions (that bit is my opinion).

I don't think anyone is arguing a positive case for keeping cheap ditchfinders on the car.

[BMWZ4MC]

But have you covered 50,000 miles on track tyres in all weathers Jimmy? And had the BTCC drivers? And the two racing instructors?
You’ve still not persuaded me, I’m off to fit my track wheels and pray for rain

[jimmybell]

But have you covered 50,000 miles on track tyres in all weathers Jimmy? And had the BTCC drivers? And the two racing instructors?

Fair point, i'm a useless mug.

This seems like the sort of weather one might find in the highlands in the last month or two, and didn't go so well for the summer tyres, despite being a 4wd vehicle:


note: you would safely assume summer tyres might beat slicks in this situation, thus imagine the 4wd car had mcdonalds trays for tyres and you get the idea

EDIT: oh look i found a reasonably useful video here - this guy makes video reviews of tyres, perhaps he has some experience, and here's him comparing track tyres to summer tyres:

[BMWZ4MC]

The video with the M3 is pretty impressive
I agree with most of what the Tyre Review guy said, except I wouldn’t use semi slicks rountinely in the winter, even for a weekend only car. He justifies it by saying that he has electronic aids, but I would hate having the traction control kick in all the time even when driving modestly. I’ve left semi slicks on my Zed when I haven’t had an opportunity to swap back to my normal road wheels after a track day and it makes for a exciting experience on a cold, wet roundabout with DSC off and and an irritating journey with it on.

[Mike.]

At no point did I say I was a driving god, far from it. OP asked about trackday tyres for a weekend car. Having used trackday tyres on daily drivers since 2013 I felt I could comment. For weekend use I personally don’t see an issue at all, if it rains - moderate your driving. If it’s horrendous, don’t go out in the weekend car?! Water on road doesn’t just instantly throw you off the road!

Not sure I see the correlation between the car being for weekend use and mention of wet/ice driving. If it’s really that bad, maybe just don’t go out if it’s a weekend car?

Anyway I just survived a journey on a cold wintery evening with grit on the roads using Pirelli Corsa’s. Better thank god im still here! Obviously alone here so I’ll let myself out the door!

[jimmybell]

At no point did I say I was a driving god, far from it. OP asked about trackday tyres for a weekend car. Having used trackday tyres on daily drivers since 2013 I felt I could comment. For weekend use I personally don’t see an issue at all, if it rains - moderate your driving. If it’s horrendous, don’t go out in the weekend car?! Water on road doesn’t just instantly throw you off the road!

Not sure I see the correlation between the car being for weekend use and mention of wet/ice driving. If it’s really that bad, maybe just don’t go out if it’s a weekend car?

Anyway I just survived a journey on a cold wintery evening with grit on the roads using Pirelli Corsa’s. Better thank god im still here! Obviously alone here so I’ll let myself out the door!

Appreciate what you're saying, i guess it depends on how you define fun :p

I'd argue if it's raining or not ideal on a weekend it would potentially ruin your opportunity to get out and drive (wheras with a decent summer tyre you could at least entertain it, i take mine out all winter on p-zeros, plenty of fun to be had and less precarious), as you'd have to nurse it everywhere.i guess you can take all corners very carefully and just enjoy straight line blats hoping for no standing water or sudden braking required - living on the edge kinda fun

[mmm-five]

I’ve had friends drive to and back from the Ring in all weathers, and one insists on ‘proper rubber’ for his GT3.

Most of the time this works out fine, and we have fun on the roads there & back too, but one year (in a nice warm August), and after him blasting past wherever he could all weekend (autoroute, b-roads, autobahn, track), we arrived back in the UK to a wet Dover.

He never took it above 50mph for the first 20 miles (which pissed off some truckers on the M20j as he was sliding around everywhere on his part worn Cups.

...yes, we did leave him to make his own way back north. I believe it took him as long to get back to Oxford as it took me to get to Liverpool.

I’m not saying the tyres were crap, but he just didn’t have confidence in them to risk his GT3.

I’ve not used ‘proper’ track rubber since I used P-Zero Cora’s, Toyo R888, and Silverstone S585 tyres on my M5s. The Supersports are nowhere near their level of grip, but they also last longer than a day on track (in an M5). I’d drive to the track with a set of track wheels on the back seat - stopped doing so as I can’t do that in the Z4, and I can’t say I’ve really missed the extra grip (with its extra wear on everything).

[HarryD]

I used R888's on my 911 for Autocross. Plenty fun (grip in the dry) but I would never consider them a everyday road tire. As others noted, you need heat for grip and on a regular road it is hard to get them warm (I drive 15 miles from my home to the track when I use them and they are still cold at the end of the trip). As with any R compound tire, they do a poor job of warning (e.g. squealing) before they lose grip. Get a nice Ultra or Extreme performance tire for the street.