Hankook RS-4
#73
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Join Date: Jan 2008
Location: Statesville, NC
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MmmmMMmmmmm. I do need another set of wheels. Currently have two sets of 9s, one with rs3s, other with r7s, I could ditch the rs3s on use that set to scrub stickers... I could run this setup for the "street"
#74
Hankook RS-4 : First impressions
Disclaimer: Not a controlled A/B test.
Evaluating the 225/45/15 Rival-S 1.5 on 15x9 6UL and 245/45/15 Hakook RS-4 on 15x10 6UL yesterday
Roadster Cup TT at Streets of Willow
Car is Snoopy. 2003 Club Sport, 800/500 Xida, 54103 front, SPM adjustable 14m rear, Urethane bushings.
OS Giken 4.875 with SPM tune, 5 spd, blueprinted NB2 engine on pump gas. Not tuned yet but we estimated 130whp
Sonny and I pretty much matched each others times. His set earlier in the day with no wind and slightly cooler temps on 225 Rival-S 1.5. Mine a tick faster in warmer, windier conditions on the 245 RS4's.
Track temps were about 70° in the morning rising to about 95° in the afternoon. The RS-4 definitely preferred the track about 15-20° hotter than the Rival-S. We would opine that the RS-4 continues the Hankook 200tw tradition of being good in the heat. Most of our fast laps on the RS-4 in a session came at the end, after 5-8 hard laps. The Rival-S seemed to be best on 2nd or 3rd lap. Keep in mind that's with these track temps.
Sonny and I both agreed the 245 RS4 had a a skosh more lateral grip than the 225 Rival-S 1.5. While the Rival-S steering precision was improved, it was still fastest with a bit more slip angle than the RS-4. We did about 3x as many laps on the RS-4 as the Rival-S but the Rival-S showed more wear.
Snoopy doesn't quite have enough power to take full advantage of the prodigous grip of the 245 RS4 on this tight road course. Haven't looked at the data from the skidpad portion of the track but I'm guessing we were 1.5g sustained on the RS-4's. Nuts!
We rolled the fenders last thing before aligning it Friday and didn't quite tuck everything back enough. We caught the front bumper/fender seam on the shoulders and did some tire carving. Minor, fixable. Liners are out.
The Rival-S were, as Tomy Reynolds observed, not too picky on pressure but we did, as always, try to run them as low as possible. The RS-4 was also tolerant of a wide range of pressures.
What stood out to me was the RS-4 exceptional responsiveness, precision and linearity at the limit. 200tw's are getting more and more like race slicks in that regard. To be truthful, none of us felt like we got everything the RS-4's offered in terms of lateral grip.
It was hard to adjust to a "street" tire than welcomed 1.6g corner entries with a manual steering rack on a few of the gently banked turns.
Evaluating the 225/45/15 Rival-S 1.5 on 15x9 6UL and 245/45/15 Hakook RS-4 on 15x10 6UL yesterday
Roadster Cup TT at Streets of Willow
Car is Snoopy. 2003 Club Sport, 800/500 Xida, 54103 front, SPM adjustable 14m rear, Urethane bushings.
OS Giken 4.875 with SPM tune, 5 spd, blueprinted NB2 engine on pump gas. Not tuned yet but we estimated 130whp
Sonny and I pretty much matched each others times. His set earlier in the day with no wind and slightly cooler temps on 225 Rival-S 1.5. Mine a tick faster in warmer, windier conditions on the 245 RS4's.
Track temps were about 70° in the morning rising to about 95° in the afternoon. The RS-4 definitely preferred the track about 15-20° hotter than the Rival-S. We would opine that the RS-4 continues the Hankook 200tw tradition of being good in the heat. Most of our fast laps on the RS-4 in a session came at the end, after 5-8 hard laps. The Rival-S seemed to be best on 2nd or 3rd lap. Keep in mind that's with these track temps.
Sonny and I both agreed the 245 RS4 had a a skosh more lateral grip than the 225 Rival-S 1.5. While the Rival-S steering precision was improved, it was still fastest with a bit more slip angle than the RS-4. We did about 3x as many laps on the RS-4 as the Rival-S but the Rival-S showed more wear.
Snoopy doesn't quite have enough power to take full advantage of the prodigous grip of the 245 RS4 on this tight road course. Haven't looked at the data from the skidpad portion of the track but I'm guessing we were 1.5g sustained on the RS-4's. Nuts!
We rolled the fenders last thing before aligning it Friday and didn't quite tuck everything back enough. We caught the front bumper/fender seam on the shoulders and did some tire carving. Minor, fixable. Liners are out.
The Rival-S were, as Tomy Reynolds observed, not too picky on pressure but we did, as always, try to run them as low as possible. The RS-4 was also tolerant of a wide range of pressures.
What stood out to me was the RS-4 exceptional responsiveness, precision and linearity at the limit. 200tw's are getting more and more like race slicks in that regard. To be truthful, none of us felt like we got everything the RS-4's offered in terms of lateral grip.
It was hard to adjust to a "street" tire than welcomed 1.6g corner entries with a manual steering rack on a few of the gently banked turns.
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