Tire sizing help on MPSS for the track

I am about to buy a 19x10 set of wheels for a square set up for the track (road course) and auto-x. I will be using the PP wheels and tires for normal street use. Anyways I see a couple options and not exactly sure which way to go. I plan to go with the Michelin Pilot Super Sport's. Any help on which size to go with and why would be much appreciated. Thanks

285/35ZR19(99Y) - 28lbs a tire, slightly smaller diameter than the rears that come on the PP (26.9" vs 27.7"), little bit wider tread

275/40ZR19/XL105(Y) - 29lbs a tire, same diameter as the rear PP (27.7"), little less width on the tread

285/40ZR19/XL(107Y) - 31lbs a tire, slightly larger than the rear PP (28" vs 27.7")

I'm going with 285/35 myself, recommended by other track junkies and NFSM

285/35/19 RE71R tires

285/35/19 seems to work well for me. A little shorter than stock, but not much.

Why MPSS if they are just for track/auto-x? I don't see them as a dedicated track tire for ultimate grip. Unless you are daily driving AND tracking, then great choice in tire! If only for track, I'd also consider a 200tw tire like BFG Rival or RE71R, or RS-4, etc.

I guess I was figuring I at least want to use the tires that come with the car as opposed to letting them go to waste, but of course they aren't worth a damn for the track. I might have to look into those others as well. Eventually I'll probably end up running one set for both street and track. Who knows, if I can get decent money for brand new take offs, I might do that from the start anyways.

Why the MPSS and not the replacement MP4S?

MPSS have a good record and following, can get them about $70 per tire less at Costco.

chain said:

MPSS have a good record and following, can get them about $70 per tire less at Costco.

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grab em.

Yeah I'm looking at $1080 for the set picked up from Costco for the MPSS 285/35ZR19's.

That sucks. Their website shows the regular MPSS at that price but when I add it to my cart, it changes to the ZP which is the run flat...which I don't want.

As others mentioned, if this is going to be a dedicated track setup for you, you should pick a tire that will be up to the task of repetitive lapping. MPSS are fantastic tires for enthusiasts looking for all around performance on the street, however they can not handle the abuse on track and will quickly drop off. Can you take them out for a track day once or twice a year if you're a novice, absolutely. However if you do not want to burn through the shoulders of the tires rapidly, I would suggest picking up a set of extreme summer tires or r-compounds depending on your experience level. I realize there may be a good deal on the MPSS, but I assure you that any savings upfront would be negated in the long run. You will be back buying tires before you know it.

How many track day's do you have under your belt (read what is your experience level), and how many do you plan on doing this season? What are your camber settings?

Tire selection should be based on your experience level, and should work cohesively with your suspension, brakes and alignment settings. Hankook RS-4, Bridgestone RE-71R, BFG Rival, and Yokohama AD08-R are all good extreme summer tires, with slightly different characteristics.

Both the 275's and 285's would work well with a 10" wheel, and running wider compounds will come at the expense of sidewall support where a wider wheel would be desired.

- Ryan

ApexRaceParts said:

As others mentioned, if this is going to be a dedicated track setup for you, you should pick a tire that will be up to the task of repetitive lapping. MPSS are fantastic tires for enthusiasts looking for all around performance on the street, however they can not handle the abuse on track and will quickly drop off. Can you take them out for a track day once or twice a year if you're a novice, absolutely. However if you do not want to burn through the shoulders of the tires rapidly, I would suggest picking up a set of extreme summer tires or r-compounds depending on your experience level. I realize there may be a good deal on the MPSS, but I assure you that any savings upfront would be negated in the long run. You will be back buying tires before you know it.

How many track day's do you have under your belt (read what is your experience level), and how many do you plan on doing this season? What are your camber settings?

Tire selection should be based on your experience level, and should work cohesively with your suspension, brakes and alignment settings. Hankook RS-4, Bridgestone RE-71R, BFG Rival, and Yokohama AD08-R are all good extreme summer tires, with slightly different characteristics.

Both the 275/40-18 and 285/35-18 would work well with a 10" wheel, and running wider compounds will come at the expense of sidewall support where a wider wheel would be desired.

- Ryan

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As of now I only have 1 track day under my belt and 1 auto-x school day. I am a newb.

Planning on 4-5 track days over the summer, probably just the one day of auto-x school again.

Camber stock for now. Next summer I'll put more money into some suspension upgrades.

I would think the 18" tire sizes above wouldn't be best as they are so much shorter than stock. I don't know. The choices on all of this can drive one crazy I swear.

ApexRaceParts said:

MPSS are fantastic tires for enthusiasts looking for all around performance on the street, however they can not handle the abuse on track and will quickly drop off. Can you take them out for a track day once or twice a year if you're a novice, absolutely. However if you do not want to burn through the shoulders of the tires rapidly, I would suggest picking up a set of extreme summer tires or r-compounds depending on your experience level. I realize there may be a good deal on the MPSS, but I assure you that any savings upfront would be negated in the long run. You will be back buying tires before you know it.

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I buy used MPSS 285/35/19s for the front, usually with about 7-8/32 tread. They are done after 4 track days and it's the shoulders that are shot. Centers have easily 5/32 left.

Take what Ryan said to heart; they are great all around tires and I recommend them regularly. However, if I were paying new prices I wouldn't use them for more than a couple track days a year.

Edit: I drive very aggressively at the track. As a newb you will get a lot more out of a set of tires.

chain said:

As of now I only have 1 track day under my belt and 1 auto-x school day. I am a newb.

Planning on 4-5 track days over the summer, probably just the one day of auto-x school again.

Camber stock for now. Next summer I'll put more money into some suspension upgrades.

I would think the 18" tire sizes above wouldn't be best as they are so much shorter than stock. I don't know. The choices on all of this can drive one crazy I swear.

Click to expand...

Right on, everyone has got to start somewhere and it is very cool to see more enthusiasts getting out there and using the car to it's fullest potential. With the information you provided me, extreme summer tires are the perfect solution. Extreme summer tires have plenty of grip for your experience level (and then some), and will allow you to grow as a driver for a couple seasons. It is really not until you have addressed other aspects of the car, and your lap times are plateauing that you should think about moving up to an r-comp or slick.

Extreme summer tires are fantastic because they allow enthusiasts to use them on and off the track (perfect for double duty cars), last much longer then r-compounds, and will still "speak to you" when the tires are being overworked. Too many drivers believe they need "race car" parts for HPDE's, and by running r-comps or slicks too early, you are typically doing yourself a disservice by masking errors and wasting $$.

In regards to the tire sizing, please excuse my typo. I am so used to listing 18" configurations on the BMW boards, that my fingers were typing faster then my brain was working. 285/35-19 is correct.

Aside from sorting the tires, I would look into adding negative camber to maximize grip and to prevent premature wear on the shoulders of the tires. Negative camber will also help with turn-in. Yes camber plates are an added cost, but they pay for themselves in the sense that you wont be replacing tires as often.

Edit: If you want to talk about the different extreme summer tires available and how they differ, feel free to give me a call!

- Ryan

Agreed with the above.

MPSS are sensitive to camber (as are many street tires), and the factory camber puts you at risk for chunking the shoulders of the MPSS. Look hard at a camber solution (like camber plates) if you want your tires to survive. Seen it first hand and it isn't pretty. Get some added camber, manage your pressures, and put some heat cycles on them before running them too hard and the MPSS can survive, but still I'd look at an extreme performance tire instead.

In the extreme performance category, the Bridgestone RE11 might be a good fit for you.