Hoosier VFF "life" ?

[Lotus7]

(searched "VFF", drew a blank; has this never been discussed?)

Has anyone run the new VFF's enough yet to get a feel for competitive life?
eg: drops off a bit after x cycles, stable for another y cycles, throw them away after z cycles?

thanks

[scott fairchild]

6 weekends at the front. I did 7 and regretted it.

[Jayeff]

6 weekends at the front. I did 7 and regretted it.

For me 6 weekends is a years worth.

[reidhazelton]

I ran a set on my 92 VD at the Indy SVRA event in 2017. It had a lot of sessions, with a good amount of laps. It was mid 90s and the track had very little grip so the car was really sanding the tires to death. That said, I'd try to run them another weekend but have a new set just in case. In normal situations, I'd guess 3 weekends before you are out of rubber. Being R60 compound, I'd think you will run out of rubber before the turn to plastic. The R60 is a really stable compound.

Over all I was really impressed with the grip they did have. For vintage, it's a great tire. Cornering grip was much more than I expected and the largest difference I felt was under braking compared to the R35s.

[DanW]

I guess that's about the life I got from my set. Plenty of tread left, but they felt dead. Avons are more responsive and you can run them nearly to the cords, 10+ weekends.

I usually buy mine used from the guys who buy a new set every event. Tire costs have dropped to $300 a season for me.

[holmberg]

Just to be clear, we're all talking about Hoosier item numbers 44165 and 44170, right? Sizes 135/545-13 and 165/580-13 treaded vintage "VFF" tire.

And not the Hoosier Club Ford tires, 43130 and 43307, sizes 20.0x6 and 22.5x7.2, slick with R60A compound.

[pooch776]

My experience with Hoosier VFF tires is the same as Scott's. I get a season (6 race weekends) out of them. Once the tread is gone it is my understanding that you are into a different compound which would explain why Scott had a difficult time with his 7th race weekend.

If you want to get the most out of the longevity and performance of the Hoosier VFF tire, you will need to take about .5 degree out of the static camber. If you don't stand the tires up, you will wear out the inner third of the tire and only get about 4 race weekends out of them.

My experience with the Avon VFF tires is very different than Dan's. I found that from a performance stand point, when new, they were better on cold tires then the Hoosiers but were equal once the Hoosiers were hot. I only got 4 race weekends out of a set of Avon VFF tires before they started to go off. They still had lots of tread but they fell off by 1-1.5 seconds at Lime Rock. I started to "chase" a handling problem by making suspension adjustments. I did not solve the problem until I put on a new set of tires!

Your mileage may vary!

Cheers, Joe

[Lotus7]

Just to be clear, we're all talking about Hoosier item numbers 44165 and 44170, right? Sizes 135/545-13 and 165/580-13 treaded vintage "VFF" tire.

And not the Hoosier Club Ford tires, 43130 and 43307, sizes 20.0x6 and 22.5x7.2, slick with R60A compound.

My original question refers to the treaded VFF, not the slicks. Only comes in one compound to my knowledge.
So I'm not sure if post #4 is applicable, although Reid does mention "for vintage..."?

More inputs welcome.
Thx.

[tstrong]

Hoosier VFF are good till the tread is worn out. Will not heat cycle out. Actually slowest times are the first 1-2 heat cycles (don’t put a new set on to go qualify). After the first couple cycles im guessing you have worn off any mold release and allowed the tread block to wear in and the grip and times are consistent until they are worn out. All this assumes proper care and storage. Todd

[Jayeff]

So pardon my ignorance here, but I have a few questions on these, since I'm just getting back into this and I'm planning out tire purchases.

Doesn't SVRA require treaded tires in Club Ford? So wouldn't the slicks be only for SCCA races? As far as the Hoosiers vs the Avons,
It seems from the SVRA web site that Avons are no longer SVRA approved?

Third question, aren't the Hoosiers a shorter/lower profile tire/but heavier? Wouldn't that mean you have to change gearing, especially for the faster tracks? And what about the slip angles, do the Hoosiers run with a bigger slip angle? So bottom line, Do I have to set up the car differently with Hoosiers vs Avons, and which one of them is closer in profile to a slick? in other words, let's say I do back to back weekends, one a vintage event and the next week a regional, can I use the same set up?

[Lotus7]

So pardon my ignorance here, but I have a few questions on these, since I'm just getting back into this and I'm planning out tire purchases.

Doesn't SVRA require treaded tires in Club Ford? So wouldn't the slicks be only for SCCA races? As far as the Hoosiers vs the Avons,
It seems from the SVRA web site that Avons are no longer SVRA approved?

Third question, aren't the Hoosiers a shorter/lower profile tire/but heavier? Wouldn't that mean you have to change gearing, especially for the faster tracks? And what about the slip angles, do the Hoosiers run with a bigger slip angle? So bottom line, Do I have to set up the car differently with Hoosiers vs Avons, and which one of them is closer in profile to a slick? in other words, let's say I do back to back weekends, one a vintage event and the next week a regional, can I use the same set up?

I'd say that's a subject for a fresh post .....

[reidhazelton]

My original question refers to the treaded VFF, not the slicks. Only comes in one compound to my knowledge.
So I'm not sure if post #4 is applicable, although Reid does mention "for vintage..."?

More inputs welcome.
Thx.

Sorry about the lack of clarity. The VFF tire is an R60 compound, which is what I meant. Not the CFF R60 bias ply.

[BorkRacing]

So pardon my ignorance here, but I have a few questions on these, since I'm just getting back into this and I'm planning out tire purchases.

Doesn't SVRA require treaded tires in Club Ford? So wouldn't the slicks be only for SCCA races? As far as the Hoosiers vs the Avons,
It seems from the SVRA web site that Avons are no longer SVRA approved?

Third question, aren't the Hoosiers a shorter/lower profile tire/but heavier? Wouldn't that mean you have to change gearing, especially for the faster tracks? And what about the slip angles, do the Hoosiers run with a bigger slip angle? So bottom line, Do I have to set up the car differently with Hoosiers vs Avons, and which one of them is closer in profile to a slick? in other words, let's say I do back to back weekends, one a vintage event and the next week a regional, can I use the same set up?

Hoosier VFF and the Dunlops and Avons are all basically the same size within 0.25"at 21.4/22.7 diameter They are taller than slicks such as the American Racer with 20.4/22.4 diameter. At the very least you would have to change your bump steer between the treads and slicks.

Avons are ok for SVRA and other vintage groups but they are at a $300 premium over the Hoosiers.

Robby

[pooch776]

Some of this has been covered before but......Hoosier treaded VFF tires vs Avon/Dunlop treaded VFF tires.....Hoosiers are slightly less diameter (around 3/8") so you will need to raise your car if you are already on the rub blocks with Avons/Dunlop's. Because the circumference is also smaller, you may also need a gear change at some tracks. I found that I needed a 4th gear only change (one tooth higher) at VIR and the Glen. The Hoosiers want less negative camber (see above). They also want less air pressure. I was running 19-20 PSI hot with the Avons/Dunlops and I a finding the Hoosiers want 16-17 PSI hot.

There you have it...all the top secrete stuff!

Cheers, Joe

[Jayeff]

Some of this has been covered before but......Hoosier treaded VFF tires vs Avon/Dunlop treaded VFF tires.....Hoosiers are slightly less diameter (around 3/8") so you will need to raise your car if you are already on the rub blocks with Avons/Dunlop's. Because the circumference is also smaller, you may also need a gear change at some tracks. I found that I needed a 4th gear only change (one tooth higher) at VIR and the Glen. The Hoosiers want less negative camber (see above). They also want less air pressure. I was running 19-20 PSI hot with the Avons/Dunlops and I a finding the Hoosiers want 16-17 PSI hot.

There you have it...all the top secrete stuff!

Cheers, Joe

Thanks to both of you for the info. Very helpful. I had found some of it, but I couldn't find the circumference of the Avons for comparison.