In the movie Rubber, an independent horror film directed by Quentin Dupieux, an abandoned tire named Robert suddenly awakens to become a killer. It's like Christine, but with an evil tire instead of a car.
Is Rubber the best of the possessed tire genre? Perhaps, but Mr. Dupieux erred in picking such a small tire to play Robert. The main tire used appears to be near a 205/60R15 size.
Dupieux should have chosen a bigger option, something like the 345/30R19 used on the 2003-2010 Dodge Viper. With a $500,000 budget, maybe he couldn't spring for the higher cost of this sizing.
If he ever makes a sequel he'll be able to easily afford the 345/30R19 Michelin Pilot Sport Cup that's been marked down from $593 to $222* per tire. This super-sticky Streetable Track & Competition tire is the rear Original Equipment on the 2008-2009 Dodge Viper ACR. It's often used as a custom size by many C6 Corvette drivers, too.
*Prices subject to change
Originally an exclusive aftermarket wheel design for the Dodge Viper, O.Z. Racing has expanded the fitment offerings of their Challenge wheel line. Available in black or silver, this wheel is intended to be used in a track environment as it provides extra durability in tough conditions, and is also a great option for the street. The wheel is offered in the 5-130 bolt pattern and as a centerlock for Porsches. It's also available for BMW M3s and the Nissan GT-R.
What makes the Challenge wheel such an attractive track option? Utilizing casting under low pressure and then shot peened allows this wheel to have a reasonable weight while also achieving the coveted TUV approval. This is considered one of the most rigorous wheel tests in the industry. Combined with one of our competition tires, you'll find a great combo for the track.
I am going to t
he Grand-Am races at Mid Ohio on Saturday, June 19. There will be all kinds of different cars in this series -- BMWs, Porsches, Mazdas, MINIs and more.
Continental tire is the title sponsor for Grand-Am’s Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge event. They are running on true race tires, but the cars are as close to a street car as you can get.
The Grand-Am Series is the most competitive road racing series in the US with two classes of cars on the track at the same time. The GT class will be made up of Corvettes, Vipers, Porsches, Mustangs and BMW M3s. The
Daytona Prototype class is made up of mid-engine, 500 horsepower, purpose-built race cars. When the two car classes are on the track together the racing is very intense because of the large differences in speed and handling.
More to come next week…
The next step for project STR is a suspension upgrade to replace the Mazda shocks and springs. We’ve settled on the
KW Variant 3 Coil-Over system. It offers flexibility in adjustments, with separate controls for compression and rebound settings. Ride height is adjustable, too.
All together, this system should do a good job helping to control the increased grip of the
Dunlop Direzza Sport Z1 Star Spec tires we’ll be competing on.
KW has a reputation for winning – with plenty of victories in Europe, chosen as the O.E. supplier for the Viper ACR suspension, as well as on some of the best AMG package Mercedes on the road.
The Michelin Pilot PS2 is one of those great tires that has been around for a long time. Tire Rack Has Tested the PS2 four times since 2004. The
Michelin Pilot Sport PS2 has never ranked lower than 2nd with two 1st place finishes and two second place finishes. Pilot Sport PS2 is used as an original equipment tire on some Audi, BMW, Dodge Viper, Ferrari, Mercedes, and Porsche models. The Pilot Sport is also available as ZP (
Zero Pressure) for models with Run Flat Tires. The Michelin Pilot Sport has been Tire Rack Tested, Consumer Tested and Time tested and still remains one of the premier tires with in the Max Performance Summer Tire.
The PS2 features side-by-side tread rubber compounds molded into an asymmetric design with large outer shoulder blocks and continuous intermediate and center ribs to tune the outboard tread for dry traction and inboard tread for wet traction. A distinct advantage of an asymmetric tread pattern is the ability to design the tread patter for specific forces the tire will deal with as the tire engineers know how it will be placed on the vehicle. Another advantage over a directional tread pattern is the tire may still be rotated side to side on a staggered set up or crossed front to back on a non staggered set up.
The right side of the is the Outboard and the left side is the Inboard on the picture to the left.
The Michelin Performance tires are a great option for the enthusiast that wants to have a tire that has consistently ranked well in consumer survey results and
Tire Rack Tire Testing. It is easy to recommend the Micheline Pilot Sport PS2 as a great Max Performance Summer tire. Check out some of the
Michelin tires reviews on the PS2.
Have you often wondered which
Hoosier race tire would work the best? You are not alone! Many racers have experimented from the A6 to the R6, and some brave souls have sacrificed time and money to find out what applications could work best and get you around the track fastest.
It is common knowledge that the
R6 is more for track racing, while the A6 is more about autocross type of racing. Where do the lines blur though? From the feed back I have heard coming back, many racers who have short qualifying runs, or even lower lap races the A6 can actually cut their track times. Is your track day sprint usually under 30 minutes? Are you an experienced driver with a well set up car? You may be able to get slightly faster and quicker times running the A6 in the place of the R6. Know this though you will use that tires life quickly, and a 30 minute run may be just the limit for the A6 on a track. If the day/track is extra hot, that may even be pushing it. In the name of going fast....all is fair in love and war...and racing!
Check out and read some more on the
Hoosier R/A6. We also have a
tech article explaining the best way to live with your Hoosier Race tires!
From your race prepared BMW, Corvette or Viper to the weekend Auto crossing event and your RX-8 or Miata this tire will shave time off your laps. All things the same on an average autocross track you could shave 2+ seconds from an
extreme performance summer tire!
Sometimes, finding the right tire for your Viper can feel like a snake bite. Painful, to say the least. Fight back with the variety of
Tire Rack shopping tools, all of which can produce a detailed list of Viper tires.
Search by
vehicle or
tire size. Or, use our
Tire Decision Guide.
For example, if you drive a 2009 Dodge Viper SRT10 Coupe with an O.E. size of 275/35-18 (front) and 345/30-19, you'd see the following Viper tires in our search results:
Hoosier A6Hoosier R6
Michelin Pilot Sport PS2
Michelin Pilot Sport ZPThe Hoosiers will get you high rankings on the track and you'll give high rankings to the Michelins for their outstanding street performance. But don't take our word for it. Read these
test results and
survey results for the Michelin Pilot Sport PS2.
2008 Mini Mini Coupe S JCW
