I had a chance to push a new set of Hankook RS3's at Road Atlanta this past Monday with Chin MotorSports and since there seems to be a good bit of interest in the tire I thought I'd do a little write up.
The 1st session of the day was damp while the 2nd was very wet with standing water all around and 3 streams running across the esses. Drainage is often an issue at this part of the track and the ground was saturated so across the track it flowed. There were quite a few people in my group but hardly any of them went out in the morning so I practically had the track to myself. I decided to turn MDM on and leave M off in the wet while I shut everything off in the dry. I've got to say that MDM in the wet is awesome. In the wet I tried using a higher gear in many corners and actually did a few laps leaving the car in 4th gear the entire time. Even then the torque was causing a little wheel spin coming out of the slowest corner on the track (T7)!
Stats:
Tire sizes are 18" @ 265 F and 285 R. The temperatures were in the low 70's in the morning and mid-high 80's in the afternoon with sunny conditions so the track really heated up late in the day. After lunch the track was completely different so it gave an opportunity to get a good feel for the tires in wet and dry conditions.
Suspension (Moton Super Sport DA's)
I set them up totally soft in the morning and then stiffened up the front about 80% with the rear almost all the way soft in the afternoon. This gave the rear more give since oversteer out of the corners was a problem when they are too stiff in the rear. The rear would still rotate but it was very predictable.
I played around with the pressures a little and found 33-35 hot in the wet worked well, giving the sidewall a bit of flex while 38 hot in the dry was ideal. I came in a few times in the afternoon to find pressures creeping into the 40-41 range and I could tell they were too high for the previous few laps.
I've got to say I really like these tires in both conditions. Some have said they are not good in the wet but I didn't think they were bad at all. I've raced with Nitto NT-01's Toyo RA-1's and Toyo R888's in damp conditions and flooding conditions when everyone else was on true Hoosier rains (that I didn't bring because it wasn't suppose to rain!) In the dry they were a bit noisy but I was pushing pretty hard in the afternoon. On the way to the track that morning, with wet roads, I shut electronics off at a traffic light where no one was in sight. (It was 5:50 am) I turned right, gave a stab of the throttle in 2nd gear and the rear came around fast. I counter steered and spun the rear tires for about 250+ feet while going straight down a 4 lane road. With a little lift they grabbed and there was no drama. At 65 mph in the wet on the street they felt like they were handling the water just fine.
I hope this helps those who are considering this tire. For the price I think they are a real bargain. The wear was minimal and although they are a bit noisy on the street I think they are a great multi use tire. With a 140 tread wear rating I'm not so sure I'd recommend them for daily driving so I'm throwing the stock wheels/tires back on soon and keeping these for track and some street use.
Here are a few videos from my helmet. I'm uploading some good laps in the wet so I'll post them soon.
Chasing an EVO MR in the wet:
2 Laps in the dry: