Kumho s700 Slicks

[zossy1]

Hi guys,

I have noticed a lot of peeps running the s700 on mx5s (200/580/15).

Interested in feedback on the tyre. Setup? Pressures? Wear? Are they any good at all, or should I stick with Dunlop 220's at twice the price?

[oztrackdays]

They were fine on my car, I think it's PB was set on them, but a PB also needs a little help from mother nature.

Sucky think about tyres and race cars is you have to try them on your own car and setup with your own driving style
to know whether you like them or hate them.

Also if you have a tyre probe and get to set your pressures accurately on a test day that often helps more than the tyre itself.

I remember the Dunlop medium was slower and less grippy on my car than the Dunlop hard's were it's a lottery,
where only you can decide if you are the winner.

[ja9]

My new Dunlop slicks are slower than my worn out Kumho semi slicks. Pretty expensive lesson to learn. No more Dunlop for me. I've been scratching my head wondering all sorts of reasons why I'm slower and never considering that it could be the tyres. Thanks for your post.

[MattR]

A lot of your being slower on the slicks compared to the semis would be to do with the car set up. Did you change anything in the set up between the slicks and the semi slicks or just bolt a set of slicks on the car and try to go faster?

When I was running Yokohama super tourer slicks on my 240 I couldn't get enough negative camber in the car to suit the slicks as they were designed to run around 5-6 degrees of negative camber, you could see the tread on the tyres were built to suit the large camber and were marked left and right rather then direction. Whereas the Michelin tyres I used and the later Yokohamas were sports car tyres, Porsche cup for the michelins and the car went much faster as the car could be better set up to suit the tyres.

I found the same on my road MX5. The old slicks I was given to use on a track day were only as quick as my worn out RE002's because the car was not set up for slicks. Needed stiffer, but not by much springs, better damping and a wheel alignment to suit the slicks and the way they work once up to temperature.

[ja9]

MattR, yes you're right, I didn't make any changes to the set up. However, I did set up the car the way others who run their cars with slicks suggested. Thanks for your post, things are starting to make more sense to me. FYI, I've changed the set up a few times trying to chase lap times. Now I've run out of money and had to stay with what I've got.

I must be the only one complaining about Dunlop slicks not working. Now I know the car needs to be set up but to what????
Everyone who knows the car keeps telling me it should be good for 1.08 - 1.09's at WP. All I can manage is 1.11.04.
I'll be at WP tomorrow to play with tyre pressures.

Thanks for the suggestions.

[MattR]

Can't help with that sorry. I have only really played with old datsuns on the track. The mx just got an alignment to suit road with a bit of track work using r888's and cheap bc V series coilovers and is a bit of fun. The serious track car is slowly being built as the dollars allow.

[zossy1]

For future reference - the s700 is a pretty good tyre. It is a few tenths off the Dunlop (tenths, not seconds), but it is also half the price and much more durable. I make the following observations for the record:

* It likes a few more psi than the Dunlop - around 30psi hot.
* They take a little longer to warm up than the Dunlop.
* They are more resistant to flat spotting - they are much harder in compound.
* They are HEAPS stiffer in the sidewall. For this reason, you can run less neg and they tend to be more predictable under braking.
* They can let go in a hurry when cold so they demand respect for the first few laps (as most slicks do!).

Overall, a pretty impressive tyre for the money.

[frog_a_lot]

Overall, a pretty impressive tyre for the money.

What sort of price are they?

[zossy1]

Around $265 a corner, last time I checked.

[Boyracer]

Will be good to see how they are next meeting.