mender

I ordered 4 R-S4 225/45-15 tires and 15 x 9 wheels for ORP last fall, got all of 35 minutes before my first driver broke a rim. No spares so had to use the worn and heat-cycled Z3s for the rest of the weekend. Well off the pace we should have been at just because I was trying to go cheap. Three new wheels and two extra tires means this year I now have a full set plus two spares, hopefully that's enough this time!

How flexible are the halo sidearms on an FIA type seat? Do they have a metal internal structure?

With any ruleset, there are three levels: 1. The intent behind the rule 2. How it is written 3. How it will be enforced I also appreciate seeing things being spelled out. At one time, there was an attempt to reorganize the rule book to make it easier to read for people coming into the series. This is moving in the right direction.

Actually, what I have said many times is that the Fiero has moved on to another series. My current car is at Champ car spec and ready to go when Champ runs a race close enough for me to attend without breaking the bank. No skin off my nose if you want to ignore what is being said by me and others (including you from the sound of it) about freebies.

Sounds like we're on the same side here, Jer. How much did it cost you to catch up?

My point is that I look for a series where my abilities as a driver and not the thickness of my wallet is the key to getting that last bit of performance needed to get me on the podium.

Accessible racing and the possibility of getting on the podium with something other than cubic dollars was what attracted me to Chump.

The $500 entry level car has certainly been replaced by the $5000 entry level car. I can only see that upward trend continuing. As with any series, the ramping up of cost happens, and at some point will cross the line going the opposite direction: entries. That crossing point is determined by the rules and hopefully the people making the rules are aware of that. It's up to them to decide where they want that point to be.

I assume the huge repercussions would be a sudden outpouring of whining and complaining from the teams that most benefited from the list of freebies. Most people still have the old stuff on the shelf, so it wouldn't be a matter of incurring more expense for them; not so with all the other teams trying to catch up. The issue is that if one team spends the money to gain an advantage, everyone else has to follow suit or fall behind. And each advantage is an added expense from that point forward, for all future teams and newer cars. Fewer new teams can afford to build cars that won't be in the way of the pointy end and attrition and lack of finances will gradually deplete the current fields. That is a tightening noose for the series, and that's already been seen. Catering to the 10% of the field that is already at the top of the charts while alienating the other 90% doesn't seem like a good idea to me. I think it is well worth pulling back on a few of the freebies to ensure the future health of the series. Not allowing the newer cars that are appearing to follow the same death spiral of freebies and escalating costs might be a good idea.

I have a column for initials on my pre-race checklist as well, easier to find out whodunnit. Not a bad idea to have a few track maps printed out so drivers can debrief themselves each time they get out of the car by adding notes and also conferring with the other drivers. Trends can be seen when comparing the maps/notes during and at the end of a weekend, and they're a good reference for new or returning drivers next time you run that track. As mentioned, I do an event summary a few days later once I've had time to review everything.

I think this theory is more of an issue than most people are aware of. So far, Champ has been extremely reluctant to pull back on any rules that have become "problems". Lots of "horse has left the barn" type comments and "we'll drive away a team or two" but very little action or retraction when unforeseen consequences appear.

My test day with the R-S4s was on a cooler day (mid 60's F) and short sessions, about 10-15 minutes each. 225/45/15 tires on 15 x 9s, 1900 lb Civic. I simulated race starts each time out by waiting until the session went green then pulling out of the pits and running hard from the first corner. There's a bump through one of the turns that requires a lighter touch and it wasn't hard to lock up the inside front there on the first couple of laps. That more or less slipped into the background with more laps. Checking tire temps: the cold pit requires a drive through the hot pit so the tires had time to cool a bit, and of course I was doing everything myself so even more time to cool. Hottest temps I saw were in the mid 120's, so not up to temp. No graining, just scuffing, especially the rears. I didn't get the feeling that the tires were excessively peaky but could tell that they got more forgiving with heat. Hoping for July temps next time out! I didn't find the Z3s to be as touchy when cold but they seemed to have an upper temp limit. Sounds like Ed found that limit as well. Same comment as NigelStu re: 255/40/17s on 9" wheels, might need a wider wheel to reduce squirm especially on the rear. I went to 275s on the 9" and the car felt very sloppy compared to 255s on 9". If I were to rank the tires that we've had on the Civic like F1 does, I would say that the RE-71Rs = reds, Z3s = yellows and R-S4s = whites.

I swapped year-old RE-71Rs onto the left side of the Civic with one day old Z3s on the right side and could feel the better grip that the RE-71Rs had, even after heat cycling. I did it that way to make sure I didn't change the balance and I could immediately feel the different in cornering when alternating corners. Not the best comparison in that it isn't directly Z3 vs R-S4s but with the R-S4s comparing well to the RE-71Rs I think the Z3s are not quite at their level for grip.

Just pointing out how at least one of the tires compares to the current top tire re: the laptimes that you questioned BM about and seemed to think was pertinent ... Ignore what you're not interested in, the info is free.

These are probably typical quotes but certainly not to be considered fact: BMW: "I've driven both back-to-back. Same car, same track, dry pavement.I was 1 second slower in the R-S4.R-S4 "feels" a bit more like a street tire in that it has just a bit more squeal and a bit more squirm. This is not a big deal at all to me, but noticeable.R-S4 lasts twice as long (no exaggeration) based on my experience.The RE71Rs are amazing tires, no question, but I just can't justify using them anymore given how long the R-S4s last on my car. In fact, the last time I bought RE71Rs was just because the Hankooks were sold out." Porsche: "The RS4 wear like iron and are a remarkable balance of performance & durability. I am on a endurance team (Champcar, Chumpcar) and we have fully switched over to using the RS4s. Easily last twice as long as the RE-71 with only a slight decrease in performance.Unless you're going for time-attack or autocross performance, the RS4 is the right choice."