Best tire for summer daily driver that will also work well for occasional track days?

[SHOdaddy68]

Until a couple years ago I would not have recommend a Firestone tire. I read some reviews on the Firehawk Indy-500 tire and they were all very favorable. I then found out that Sonoma raceway uses them on their instructor vehicles at the track and they do really well and don't wear out super fast. I took a chance and bought a set and have been very pleased for nearly 20k miles and they still have about 50% tread remaining.
I too run the occasional track day but most of my miles are highway or back-roads. The Indy-500's are great street tires and acceptable for a track day. They are also quite predicable in the rain or on a wet surface.
Compared to the cost of other big name rubber that won't last more than 15k, I would buy another set without hesitation.

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[lizardrko]

The MP4S are pretty much the standard in the category you are looking at. They are a bit pricey though. I personally have the Continental Extreme Contact (formerly the continental DW). They are quiet, decent tread wear, decent price, great in wet and dry.

 

[Vettel-ish]

Yeah for sure 4s if you are not all day track. Cups if you track more than road.

 

[K4fxd]

If you are going to go with 2 sets of tires I'd just get a set of Hoosiers or Goodyear racing tires.

Run the A/S on the street and track tires on the track.

 

[NightmareMoon]

I wouldn’t put a novice on Hoosiers. They’re too grippy for a novice to learn on, their limits are almost certainly too high to approach with a novice’s driver’s comfort level. If you’re a mad man or a track rat they’re amazing.

 

[EFI]

If you are going to go with 2 sets of tires I'd just get a set of Hoosiers or Goodyear racing tires.

Run the A/S on the street and track tires on the track.

A novice going to a few track days a year does not need, and should not be using, R compounds that cost $1500+ to replace every year.

 

[K4fxd]

I don't know, the R tires might last longer than the street tires.

Personally if I'm going to have a dedicated set of tires it will be track tires. There is nowhere I can run 6/10's on the street without being very reckless. So the sticky street tires don't do me any good.

Way too much traffic to push the car safely.

Someone said the R tires are too sticky for a novice to learn on. Hence my suggestion for running the A/S 3+. Learn how to drive the slippery tires then upgrade.

 

[hossman]

Continental Extreme Contact Sport

 

[2015Etrac]

I've been looking at the Yokohama Apex V601 as well, they're about $350 cheaper per set and seem to rate pretty well. Does anyone have any experience with these tires?

 

[NightmareMoon]

I've been looking at the Yokohama Apex V601 as well, they're about $350 cheaper per set and seem to rate pretty well. Does anyone have any experience with these tires?

Tire Rack.com is a great resource.

"Yokohama's ADVAN Apex V601 is a tire whose personality is shaped in large part by its steering. The ultra-fast response makes the vehicle feel eager to change directions on the road, and during dry and wet track use it can certainly aid lap times, but it can lead to some less desirable behaviors, as well. We observed some light but distinct tread noise on our road ride route, and from an objective standpoint some additional wet traction would help the tire keep up with the competition."

https://www.tirerack.com/tires/tests/testDisplay.jsp?ttid=248

From reading, it seems a little 'peaky' which can be a little intimidating to drive on track for a novice. The limit is high but narrow, so it might not be that forgiving. Sounds fine for daily use, probably trackable in a pinch. Don't know anyone personally who's run them.

 

[2015Etrac]

Tire Rack.com is a great resource.

"Yokohama's ADVAN Apex V601 is a tire whose personality is shaped in large part by its steering. The ultra-fast response makes the vehicle feel eager to change directions on the road, and during dry and wet track use it can certainly aid lap times, but it can lead to some less desirable behaviors, as well. We observed some light but distinct tread noise on our road ride route, and from an objective standpoint some additional wet traction would help the tire keep up with the competition."

https://www.tirerack.com/tires/tests/testDisplay.jsp?ttid=248

From reading, it seems a little 'peaky' which can be a little intimidating to drive on track for a novice. The limit is high but narrow, so it might not be that forgiving. Sounds fine for daily use, probably trackable in a pinch. Don't know anyone personally who's run them.

Thank's. I forgot they had detailed reviews. It looks like the PS4s are my best bet. I guess I might as well spend a few hundred extra and get something that is highly rated by nearly everyone. The Extreme Contact Sport are tempting too, and about $200 cheaper than the Michelins.

 

[ice445]

MPS4S have a very short life on track though. Great tire, but they will run hot when pushed hard and I've seen sidewall scrub/tread delamination. Run higher pressures on track to help mitigate that.

 

[2015Etrac]

Right now my car has GT350R springs on it, so a very slight drop. I run 275/40/19 Michelin A/S 3+ and they fit perfetly with very little fender gap. I'm trying to go with a 285/35/19 on this car to get a slightly wider tire, however the tire has less sidewall. Would it make much difference in appearance? I believe that would be like a .4" additional gap between the tire and fender or would you all stick with a 275/40 with the PS4s as well? I'm guessing with a 285/35 it should look pretty close to a GT350 on its stock 295/35 tires? There's like a .2" difference in sidewall but the GT350R springs drop should make up for that additional .2", I think.

 

[Brian@BMVK]

All the suggestions provided are good, but @NightmareMoon hit it on the head re: track and street durability. If you can afford $600-800 for another set of wheels in addition to tires, I promise you will thank yourself later. I tracked/autocrossed on a set of 19x9.5 SVE drifts for a few years, and had another set for DD duty. I completely recommend that approach. You can also get a 19x10 square setup for not much more. Keep your track tires fast and the ones you really want, and keep your DD tires quiet, comfortable and lower wear. It pays for itself quickly.

 

[Modulom4]

also my choice The Michelin PS4S

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