Mounting:

Hankook tires should be mounted and installed on the car according to the directional arrows on the sidewall. After one or two heat cycles, the tires can be rotated on the car. Worn tires can be dismounted and flipped on the wheel to extend tread life.


Scuffing:

The longevity and consistency of the grip level can be increased by properly scuffing a new set of race tires. It's very important not to run hard for an entire session on new tires. Think of it like breaking in a new engine, or bedding in new brakes.

To scuff a set of tires, start by taking two or three moderately paced laps to gradually bring the tires up to operating temperature, and then run one hard lap followed by a cool down lap. The ideal situation would be to stop and remove the tires from the car, and allow them to cool down to ambient temperature before running them again.

When running an entire session on a new set of tires without stopping, one should still follow the scuffing procedure at the beginning of the session before turning laps at a fast pace. It’s also very important to run a slower lap at some point in the middle of the session to allow the tires to cool off before running hard laps again.


Pressure:

Moisture inside of a tire can cause excessive pressure build-up and handling problems. After purchasing a new set of mounted tires, the valve cores should be removed to purge out any moisture, and the tire should be inflated with dry air or nitrogen.

When switching from another brand of tires to Hankook tires, it isn’t necessary to change cold or hot inflation pressures. Start with the same settings, and then make adjustments to achieve the desired handling characteristics that the driver prefers.

An approximate hot pressure target for DOT approved R-compound road racing tires is 40 psi. It could be a few pounds less for lighter cars, and a few pounds more for heavier cars. FWD cars may require higher inflation pressure in the front tires. 13” slicks for formula cars and sports racers should initially target for 20 psi hot. Changing hot inflation pressures to alter the handling characteristics of the car is a fine tuning adjustment. Improving the overall grip level should be done by tuning spring rates, dampers, anti-rollbars, ride heights, alignment settings, etc.


Temperature:

Tread temperature will vary depending on ambient and track temperature, the type of circuit, and the type of car. The temperature should be within a range of 160 to 220 degrees when measured in pit lane. Optimum grip level is at 180 to 200 degrees.

A probe type pyrometer is recommended for temperature measurements, and a consistent technique must be used. Check the tires in the same location (inside, middle, outside) and in the same order (LF, RF, RR, LR) each time the car comes to pit lane.

The data should be recorded as follows to make it easier to interpret:

out__LF__in___in__RF_out
180 190 200_|_200 190 180

---

180 190 200_|_200 190 180
out__LR_in____in__RR_out

Depending on the width of the tire, the inside tread temperature should be 10 to 20 degrees hotter than the outside. If the inside is too hot, camber may need to be reduced. If the outside is too hot, camber will need to be increased, or inflation pressure will need to be increased to prevent the tire from rolling over on the outside shoulder.

If the front tires are hotter than the rear tires, it may show an understeer condition, and if the rear tires are hotter than the front tires, it may show an oversteer condition. This isn’t the case for all types of vehicles. The front tires on FWD cars are usually always hotter, and the rear tires on high horsepower RWD cars may be hotter due to wheel spin.

The tires should be relatively new when using tread temperature data to interpret car set up issues. Tires with a worn shoulder may give a misleading temperature spread across the tire because the thin area doesn’t hold as much heat as thicker areas.


Wear:

In addition to utilizing tread temperature data to evaluate how the car and tires are performing; the inside and outside tread wear indicator pins should be measured with a depth gauge to determine if camber or pressure changes need to be made.

If the inside of the tire is worn more, camber may need to be reduced. If the outside is worn more, camber will need to be increased, or inflation pressure will need to be increased to prevent the tire from rolling over on the outside shoulder.


Heat Cycles:

The number of useful heat cycles that a set of race tires can be run is dependent upon whether or not they were properly scuffed, ambient and track temperature, track surface, length of each track session, and most importantly => driving style.

Drivers that toss the car into the entry of a corner and slide through the middle and exit of a turn may have excessive tire wear and a reduction in the consistency of the grip level. A smooth driving style will result in faster lap times and better tire performance.