Doubtful for two reasons. 1 the RS3 is discontinued and 2 road tire makes up such a small part of their business I doubt they would notice.

Wait, WHAT?!? They have only been out for about 2 years or so.

Like the Star Specs, they are stopping production on them for their replacement (RS4?).

Got a source? Google has not brought up anything to support that the RS3's are going bye-bye. The new Star Specs I knew about,
http://squarespokes.com/04/news-dunl...able-in-japan/

I don't. Several people were discussing it at Nationals like it was common knowledge and I was the one out of the loop though I don't use the tire.

From Andy Hollis regarding new tires...

So, new Dunlop, new BFG. I believe the RE-11 will get a sequel. A lot of this stuff is rumor until spring. There are a lot more tires than there used to be. Off the top of my head...

Dunlop Starspec
Hankook RS3
Toyo R1R
Yoko AD08
Falken RT-615K
Bridgestone RE-11
Kumho XS
Conti DW (rain tire)

More tire info (I hope the link works, I can't get to it from work)
www.facebook.com/HollisRacing/notes

He thinks no one will care.. What about the people with existing tires? i bought my current set just days before the 180 treadwear announcement

Once again, unless you are running the car at Nationals, no one locally will call you out on running the RS3s, T1R or whatever it may be.

Most local clubs should let it slide for the first year or so. Just be sure to let your class competitors know in advance and get their consent as a courtesy.

If it becomes an issue, you could always just run TIME ONLY and at least be able to compare your times to your class competitors.

Quick question for RTR guys who WILL NOT be using their competition tires on the street:

Do you have your wheels/tires balanced?

I have heard of many people who run R-Comps not balance their wheels/tires, as supposedly the R-Comps actually rotate on the tire while racing and thus a waste of time.

I used to not always balance my Hoosier and Kumho R-comps when I was just planning on using them for autocrossing, and swapping tires at the event. I've been running ST and RT classes for the last few years though, and driving to the events on the same tires (and occasionally on the street, but not lotsa miles) and I always get those tires balanced.

I suppose it isn't really necessary to get tires balanced that are only going to be used on the autocross course and not see any street miles or track use, personally I'd save the $40-60 it costs to balance if that were the case for me, but one of the main reasons I run RT and ST classes now is that I just got tired of swapping tires at the beginning and end of every autocross event (the other main reason is the price increases for R-comps over the last few years).

I did not balance my old set of Hoosiers for another car. I will be shaving (I think) and balancing my RT tires on the wheels for next season.

If they are just race wheels, then you don't NEED to balance them. I prefer to have mine balanced since it can help diagnose suspension issues. Also, would an unbalanced wheel poorly affect suspension? I don't know. but I'll pay the $10 per wheel to not worry about it.

Do they actually move around on the wheel? Sounds odd.

As far as shaving goes - I have never done it before on 6+ sets of ST tires. I think I would on this set, though. I have never burned through a full set of ST tires. Even if they are driven in the summer and at autocross, they usually lose their edge before they get corded.

Unless the tire is special (a la R1R), I'd probably shave it to 6/32". It saves a lot of weight and reduces some squirm. It could affect the heat retention of tires that like heat, though. Full tread RS3s are harder to get warm, but stay hot. Shaved RS3s heat up quicker, but cool off quicker.

With the recent rule change allowing for 140 treadwear and above, any new suggestions on brand and size?

The new rule will be 180 or higher, not 140. RS3s will be better on hot days, Star Specs tend to be better on cooler days. And I know RS3s are below 180... for now. I won't say much else, just "For now"

Not according to the new Fastrack! 140 or higher is the ruling from the high court that is SEB!

They changed back? I haven't read the newest. I heard rumblings of a retraction of the new rule but I assumed it was unbased rumor

http://www.ft86club.com/forums/showp...63&postcount=1

Yup! Back to 140+

So...Hankook RS3s, Toyo R1Rs?

Anyone have any thoughts on 235/40-17 Toyo's on the 7" rim?

R1Rs are not very good in anything other than the magic size. I don't think I've ever met anyone experienced recommend them outside that size.

I've heard many say (no personal experience on this) that the R1Rs are exceptional but only in 195s and those 195s on super light (<2200lb) cars. I've only run across one heavier car running them at an Autocross.

I know I'm buying another set of RS3s for sure though. Slight disadvantage from November through Feb here in Florida but 8 months of advantage > 4 months of disadvantage (since it's always warm here)

I'm two seconds from ordering Star Specs. I can't find ANYTHING that says the tread wear rating has gone back down to 140. That is sort of a HUGE bit of information for those that are getting ready to buy next years tires. It's also complete crap if they have back tracked on this as I know several people that have already bought next years tires based on the information we had regarding the change to 180.

It's wonderful that no matter what I try to open Fastrack with, IT WON'T OPEN!

It says they pulled it back down.

Does it say anything about this rule being set in stone for 2013 now? I have the budget for A set of tires. Don't want to blow that money on the wrong thing!

I can't find anything regarding this. Can someone please link me or post exactly what Fastrack is saying please?

Relevant portions quoted above. Just to nitpick, they didn't actually specify the effective date for the retraction of the RT treadwear change, but with my common sense turned on, I would guess that as a retraction of a change not yet in effect, it would be effective immediately.

There is no retraction date since it never went into effect (was due 1/1/2013).

Thanks a bunch folks! This is rather huge news and calls for a rethink in tire strategy for next year. I kind of liked not really having a choice, lol. Now, the book, she is wide open! Game On!

There would be a choice anyway. The RS3 WILL be a re-released with a new rating due to that (now defunt) rule. No true change in tire though

Will it be an RS3 or 4 next year? I've heard rumor, but no fact to this change. If prior experience tells me anything, the RS-whatever will trump the Star Spec in a big way if the compound is unchanged.

It will still be badged as RS3 Im being told (dont want to say who but Ill say its a very reuptable source, not some tire jockey working for a tire shop).

Nothing with the compound will be changing.

Dunlop has a revised StarSpec already and they are showing better performance over the Z1s. However, its only in Japan (since March of this year). Should be stateside early '13. RS3 mostly > Z1SS now but Im interested to see what happens with the Z2SS. Dunlop is claiming the tire is signifcantly quicker and wears slower

I'll probably go with the RS as I have driven on them and know their characteristics somewhat. I have some Star Specs on our Mercedes, but haven't driven the car much this year as it has lived in a few different shops, lol.

I expected this after the meeting at Nationals between us road tire folks, Howard, and the SEB....well at least the 180 to 140 reversal. The voice of the SEB said the rule should have been published as proposed and they were still considering the change. They took a hand vote of those at the meeting and it was very favorable towards keeping it at 140. They also heard many of us recommend they should start using the exception list more and the unicorn size R1R should be on it. I hope they continue to use that exception rule to keep tire manufacturers honest. Thank you SEB!

I've run RS3s for two seasons and I would not buy them again. This is based on my experience running these on an NA miata in STR. 225s on a 9" wheel. I've been autocrossing for 5 years.

Pros:
-Fantastic lateral traction and stickier than anything WHEN HOT.

Cons:
-Not very good when cold. Your first runs will be a warm up. On a cold day, you won't get any good runs.
-Poor longitudinal traction. i.e. easy to spin the tires when accelerating or under hard braking.
-Not very communicative. They don't talk. It's stick, stick, stick, spin without warning.

If you are a good driver, you can take advantage of these tires, but they are not very user friendly or forgiving. My money is on the new Starspecs. These have been a solid tire in their last iteration and have proven to be a good all 'round tire in the cold, hot and out of the box.

I really liked the star specs on my CRX ( a light car) especially on cool and wet days autocrossing and at track days, they really stick on a wet track. But I did notice on hot days 80's-90's, after several quick runs they would start to feel greasy and lose traction. Cooling them down between runs with water does help, but when they get heat soaked that is hard to do. I would still highly recommend them, just be aware that on hot days you have to manage the temperature. I will be curious to see how the new ZII's are.

RS3's a track tire not an autocross tire.

While its not usually my first choice, I will disagree with you there. It's quite a great autox tire, just beware of cold and rain.

so it's a mediocre autox tire

because if what you describe is great then starspecs are OMGBBQSAUCE, right? :drinking:

RS3s do quite well in SCCA competition, especially in cars with codrivers. I need new tires in January and I'm using them once again. Im hoping it's a warmish day at Dixie in March but Ill have a codriver to keep the tires warm (or more like Ill keep them warm for him, he'll likely wipe the floor with me!)

In typical summer autox conditions, it is as fast as any other street tire in most sizes. The Star Specs which I prefer have more operating conditions but generally don't like getting hot (require more spraying) and cost more. They all have their place and in STX I think the RS3 might be a better choice. Call it mediocre is hardly accurate IMO. I lost a ProSolo this year to someone on them in a slightly smaller size and in conditions I figured I had an edge on Star Specs. Same thing at Nats, 1st/3rd were on RS3s and were quite a bit faster than I was on the colder second day though I had a bad day anyway.