Are my tires good enough for a track day?

[Brutale arancia]

Mature adult, absolute beginner, don't wanna hurt the car. '13 ZL1, original tires. Obvious garage queen at 2800 miles. Now has 6800 miles. I've spun the tires in first and second gear several times, no burnouts. .8g several times. Would they be safe? Would they get me home at the end of the day? Maybe 200 miles, probably less.

Probably too soon for hard braking and accurate downshifting but I'm not interested in parade laps either. Just want to check it out before choosing between summer tires or Comp-2's. If it's not too late.

[JB'sZL1]

The mere age of the rubber would give me pause...particularly with high speeds or g's. I generally toss rubber before 5 years...your's are going on 6 years.

[mmarx82]

As JB said, the age of the tires is a concern more so than the miles. Miles wise you would be fine if they were newer. I've ran several different ones Michelin has the best grip so far, bout to buy Toyo R888's next to try those.

[Brutale arancia]

So I shouldn't be playing on freshly paved country roads for the same reason. I've been wondering if I will get comfortable with the current arrangement, then make a huge mistake trying to do the same things on Comp-2's. I hate hearing all the debris in the wheel wells.

[ZMEnow]

Originally Posted by Brutale arancia

So I shouldn't be playing on freshly paved country roads for the same reason. I've been wondering if I will get comfortable with the current arrangement, then make a huge mistake trying to do the same things on Comp-2's. I hate hearing all the debris in the wheel wells.

Depends on how the tires where stored, if the have been on the car all that time then probably no. I keep mine in the basement in a cool dry place, no UV.

[StreetRage320]

Get them inspected by a qualified technician.

https://www.edmunds.com/car-care/how...our-tires.html

I am counting the years until I need to replace also.

[Brutale arancia]

Settle down greenhorn! Go get some BFG's today and pace yourself....

Thanks for the input.

[z28lt1]

I had my tracked on my 2014's original tires (with tires date coded from early 2013 to late 2013) earlier this year. They had gotten hard and clearly lost some stick. My lap times were down a little. I decided to replace them even with plenty of tread left. That said, I don't believe they were dangerous, they certainly would get me home, they just lacked some grip that they had when new.


Obviously, I can't compare the conditions of my tires with yours, but mine were of similar age, and while I had a little less miles, had a handful of track days on them, so probably not to different. Tires were always on the car, but in the garage, out of extreme cold, weather, and UV. But I would say mine would have been fine for a first time track day person.

[Brutale arancia]

Originally Posted by z28lt1

I had my tracked on my 2014's original tires (with tires date coded from early 2013 to late 2013) earlier this year. They had gotten hard and clearly lost some stick. My lap times were down a little. I decided to replace them even with plenty of tread left. That said, I don't believe they were dangerous, they certainly would get me home, they just lacked some grip that they had when new.


Obviously, I can't compare the conditions of my tires with yours, but mine were of similar age, and while I had a little less miles, had a handful of track days on them, so probably not to different. Tires were always on the car, but in the garage, out of extreme cold, weather, and UV. But I would say mine would have been fine for a first time track day person.

This is about what I was thinking based on experience with sportbike tires. A lot more rubber on the road but a lot more weight, maybe not the same. A dropped bike still has value. A repaired ZL1, probably not too desirable.

[JBZL1]

.8g ! Wait until you're brave enough to pull 1.19 g's lol

[mmarx82]

There is a difference between using your old tires on the road and using your old tires on a track where you are consistently over 100 mph, Smashing the brakes, and needing the grip to complete the turn. If your grip is only at .8G before breaking loose you need new tires, new tires will get 1.1-1.2 easily before breaking loose. I've gone as high as 1.26G consistently. The other thing you will probably want to do if you plan to make this a thing is change your brake fluid to DOT 4 fluid. It's very easy to boil the DOT 3 stuff on these cars at the track. Ask me how I know.

[Brutale arancia]

It's a little late in the game to be tossing blue collar money at a racing schedule. I was just thinking it would be a good way to better understand the cars capabilities and limits with reduced risk. No loss of grip at .8, just working my way up slowly. On public roads timing and location are critical to risk management so I'm not doing it all the time. Slows down the learning curve.

[ZMEnow]

Originally Posted by Brutale arancia

It's a little late in the game to be tossing blue collar money at a racing schedule. I was just thinking it would be a good way to better understand the cars capabilities and limits with reduced risk. No loss of grip at .8, just working my way up slowly. On public roads timing and location are critical to risk management so I'm not doing it all the time. Slows down the learning curve.

Why dont you head out to M1 this Sunday and get answers to a lot of your questions. Easy track you can take it easy or hard depending on how the tires respond, and of course brakes/Fluid, it boils DOT3.

[Brutale arancia]

Googled M1, looks like a great way to get some answers. Closer than Gingerman too. Prior commitment for Sunday though. Perhaps in the near future?