Any1 else's tire bill outta control...
01-19-2008, 05:16 AM
#1
Any1 else's tire bill outta control...
its my 1 gripe from last year, crazy amount spent last year on a track that was ever-changin (even when they didnt service it between rounds) and hard on them period. in addition all this hit we have from these modern batts and BL motors doesnt help. strip on my wheels and a film buddies camera set up @ 60fps tells that tale as well.
any1 else have a gripe bout what they spend in tires for 2wd (or 4wd) buggy?
i know u guys out in colorado @ mohrrc know what i mean, ur deal is worse than ours when i visited on a business trip last yr.
and to think if there wasnt acetone, the wheel bill would be even more outrageous.
discuss, have fun racing this wkend
R
any1 else have a gripe bout what they spend in tires for 2wd (or 4wd) buggy?
i know u guys out in colorado @ mohrrc know what i mean, ur deal is worse than ours when i visited on a business trip last yr.
and to think if there wasnt acetone, the wheel bill would be even more outrageous.
discuss, have fun racing this wkend
R
01-19-2008, 05:25 AM
#2
That is why I switched to off road this year. My TC foam tire bill was NUTS!!
01-19-2008, 06:23 AM
#5
This is why I am a fan of control tyres.
If more clubs and race series mandated a control tyre that is pretty hard wearing (ie a hard-ish compound and a fairly large spike) then hopefully you would not have to carry a box of alternatives around, and you could get more use out of them.
Of course, I know that the argument with control tyres is that are generally faster when new and some people will go through two or more fresh sets each meeting.
But for those of us that don't want to spend like that, it is nice to have a usable tyre that will last several race meetings at mid-performance, instead of being wrecked after one or two.
If more clubs and race series mandated a control tyre that is pretty hard wearing (ie a hard-ish compound and a fairly large spike) then hopefully you would not have to carry a box of alternatives around, and you could get more use out of them.
Of course, I know that the argument with control tyres is that are generally faster when new and some people will go through two or more fresh sets each meeting.
But for those of us that don't want to spend like that, it is nice to have a usable tyre that will last several race meetings at mid-performance, instead of being wrecked after one or two.
01-19-2008, 07:27 AM
#6
Sedans are a lot worse imo, be it foam or rubber. At least with dirt you are not constantly switching compounds. Offroad is not that bad imo as far as expense of tires. Granted I don't run mod but I go through more tires on my sedans then my buggy or truck.
01-19-2008, 07:28 AM
#7
Yea, I race at MHOR and you always have to be prepared to have a new set on hand which may last 2 nights. Then they are toast. We have been running BK Bars and they are lasting a little longer and work just as well. Not sure why lately slicks have been loose so that hasn't helped any. In any case, I hear ya man!
01-19-2008, 07:47 AM
#9
Yea, I race at MHOR and you always have to be prepared to have a new set on hand which may last 2 nights. Then they are toast. We have been running BK Bars and they are lasting a little longer and work just as well. Not sure why lately slicks have been loose so that hasn't helped any. In any case, I hear ya man!
01-19-2008, 08:58 AM
#11
Tech Master
iTrader: (10)
I'm still spending no where near what I spent on onroad tires. Right now I buy a set of rears about once a week in the summer and then I use the old set as a practice tire. If you switch to a harder compound in the afternoon when the track gets dry and hard your tires last much longer. I run M3s in the morning and R3s in the afternoon.
01-19-2008, 09:01 AM
#12
I'm still spending no where near what I spent on onroad tires. Right now I buy a set of rears about once a week in the summer and then I use the old set as a practice tire. If you switch to a harder compound in the afternoon when the track gets dry and hard your tires last much longer. I run M3s in the morning and R3s in the afternoon.
+1 agree on everything, as i did and do the same.
01-19-2008, 09:59 AM
#14
I am fortunate to have a local track that is very easy on tires virtually no wear but the foams go quick. We keep the track very wet and tacky misting it between rounds. Its very consistant. Dry tracks eat tires if its packed which most electric tracks are. Only thing you can do is start watering alot.
01-19-2008, 08:19 PM
#15
Tech Addict
This is an interesting discussion. Definitely an issue that has bugged me for the past 8 years of racing.
I really am not looking to get into an argument over which class goes through tires quicker to stay competitive. Certainly there are classes which burn through tires very quickly and others not so quickly, but really, to stay competitive the majority of 'track surfaces' almost require a constant supply of new, fresh tires (there are the obvious ones that don't, such as the indoor clay track that is prepped nicely night after night so all you need is one set of slicks to get you through a season). Whether the tire wears out or the foam, it is 'unusable' to compete at that higher level. I too like to save wheels (another ridiculous cost in my humble opinion), but it is a lot of extra work that sucks up a lot of time. I might as well just buy a new set. Besides, if my wheels get bent in the course of being used, I really don't want to reuse them at that point anyway.
What I'd really like to know from anyone "in the know" is it REALLY necessary to price tires as high as what they are? I understand R&D costs, racing team costs, manufacturing costs, overhead, etc..... but man, it just seems like the tire companies could get by (and get by well) at setting a very low price on tires. As a racing enthusiast, I'd be much more inclined to constantly buy new tires if they were a cheap consumable part. I think out of all the consumables on our cars, tires go the quickest, yet they are very expensive. It seems so odd when you compare the actual rubber mass of our tires to a full size car..... and yet, for the same price as outifitting a truggy, you could basically outfit a cheaper full size car. That seems nuts to me. Sure, there are more people buying tires for full size cars than our cars, but what if tire manufacturers just one day dropped the price of a set of two tires to 5-7$? Would we all buy the same amount of tires that we did before, or would we be inclined to buy a lot more..... even more to the point that we'd spend more money? i.e., I'm going to a big race, I'm spending 100$ on tires. That gets me 1-4 sets depending on your class of racing. Or........... now tires are set at 5-7$ a set. Hmmmmm.... I'd like to really put a good run at getting a sponsorship or really really do well.... I think I'll buy as many tires as I need to have a brand new set each qualifier and main. Now I spend 150$. I certainly can't speak for everyone else, but I would buy lots more tires and spend more money that I would now knowing that I could get a lot more tires for my money as opposed to just buying a few sets and trying to make them last since they cost so much.
Once again, I really don't know how it works at these companies. Maybe they really do need to charge 11-30$ per set of tires. It just seems like it shouldn't have to be that way for them to make money, and I still believe if they dropped the price significantly, they'd sell A LOT more tires even though their profit margin on each sale would be much less.
I really am not looking to get into an argument over which class goes through tires quicker to stay competitive. Certainly there are classes which burn through tires very quickly and others not so quickly, but really, to stay competitive the majority of 'track surfaces' almost require a constant supply of new, fresh tires (there are the obvious ones that don't, such as the indoor clay track that is prepped nicely night after night so all you need is one set of slicks to get you through a season). Whether the tire wears out or the foam, it is 'unusable' to compete at that higher level. I too like to save wheels (another ridiculous cost in my humble opinion), but it is a lot of extra work that sucks up a lot of time. I might as well just buy a new set. Besides, if my wheels get bent in the course of being used, I really don't want to reuse them at that point anyway.
What I'd really like to know from anyone "in the know" is it REALLY necessary to price tires as high as what they are? I understand R&D costs, racing team costs, manufacturing costs, overhead, etc..... but man, it just seems like the tire companies could get by (and get by well) at setting a very low price on tires. As a racing enthusiast, I'd be much more inclined to constantly buy new tires if they were a cheap consumable part. I think out of all the consumables on our cars, tires go the quickest, yet they are very expensive. It seems so odd when you compare the actual rubber mass of our tires to a full size car..... and yet, for the same price as outifitting a truggy, you could basically outfit a cheaper full size car. That seems nuts to me. Sure, there are more people buying tires for full size cars than our cars, but what if tire manufacturers just one day dropped the price of a set of two tires to 5-7$? Would we all buy the same amount of tires that we did before, or would we be inclined to buy a lot more..... even more to the point that we'd spend more money? i.e., I'm going to a big race, I'm spending 100$ on tires. That gets me 1-4 sets depending on your class of racing. Or........... now tires are set at 5-7$ a set. Hmmmmm.... I'd like to really put a good run at getting a sponsorship or really really do well.... I think I'll buy as many tires as I need to have a brand new set each qualifier and main. Now I spend 150$. I certainly can't speak for everyone else, but I would buy lots more tires and spend more money that I would now knowing that I could get a lot more tires for my money as opposed to just buying a few sets and trying to make them last since they cost so much.
Once again, I really don't know how it works at these companies. Maybe they really do need to charge 11-30$ per set of tires. It just seems like it shouldn't have to be that way for them to make money, and I still believe if they dropped the price significantly, they'd sell A LOT more tires even though their profit margin on each sale would be much less.