June 22, 2023
Streetable Track and Competition tires can be found on some of the highest performing supercars on the market. They blur the line between a street tire and a full-on track only option, typically utilizing shallow tread depths and low-void patterns that trade wet traction and hydroplaning resistance for enhanced grip in dry conditions. Naturally, track day enthusiasts are often looking for a competitive advantage and want to know where these tires excel or fall short on the track.
The Goodyear Eagle F1 SuperCar 3R was developed as the original equipment tire for the track-ready Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE and is now available in more sizes for more drivers. It has a great reputation for track use, and we’ve been eager to test it in its natural habitat since its release.
Our second tire is the Toyo Proxes R888R. It’s classified in our Racetrack & Autocross Only category because the manufacturer says it’s recommended for competition use only. Because of that, we don’t advise anyone to drive it on the street. Even so, we know people are cross-shopping the two, and there’s no "street" component to this test. On the track, the two tires’ specs seem to indicate that they compete head-to-head, so that’s what we decided to find out.
As our test platform, we used our 2022 Subaru BRZ Limited test vehicles. To help them utilize more of the tires’ contact patch and ensure we didn’t wear through the outboard shoulders of the front tires, we added Whiteline adjustable camber bolts to give both cars identical alignments with 2.0 degrees of static negative camber at the front wheels. To ensure our brakes were up to the task, we installed front and rear TR Select Brake Kits with Hawk DTC-60 pads and Centric 120 Series rotors that delivered fade-free stopping performance throughout the test. The vehicles were fitted with new, full tread depth 245/40R17 tires mounted on 17x8.0 wheels. Hot pressures were set at 32 psi.
The two tires in our test group were designed for use on a full-size track. The compounds take some energy to get up to operating temperature, so they’re not ideally suited for autocross use. Knowing that, this test took place on a 2.1 mile, 11 turn road course in southwestern Michigan.
After some scrub in laps to remove the mold release and get the tread up to temperature, we set our tire pressures and headed out for our evaluation laps. Our drivers immediately fell in love with the driving dynamics of the Eagle F1 SuperCar 3R. The turn-in was direct, with strong front-end authority and decisive changes in vehicle trajectory. The response to inputs was linear from the initial turn of the wheel all the way to mid-corner, with strong lateral grip holding the intended line. Through some of the highest-demand turns, there was more push at corner exit than we would have preferred - the only complaint lobbied against the tire - but in general it was very good at combining two inputs at once. The braking traction was confidence-inspiring, and overall the tire was very fast and highly satisfying. From a purely subjective standpoint, the Proxes R888R was a very nice tire to drive, as well. It had more of a solid, weightier feel than the Goodyear. The steering required more effort to elicit a response, and it was arguably more precise than its competitor. The Proxes R888R always felt stable and planted. It wasn’t light on its feet, but it also was never nervous or twitchy. Despite all the positive subjective characteristics, there was no getting around the fact that it was significantly down on traction everywhere compared to the Goodyear. Braking felt strong, but our team instinctively knew they had to start scrubbing speed way earlier. Cornering speeds were lower, and we couldn’t get back to the throttle as soon or commit as fully before the vehicle was pointed directly down the straights. The end result was lap times that were pushing 2 seconds slower, on average.
| Tire | Average Lap |
|---|---|
| Goodyear Eagle F1 SuperCar 3R | 1:46.05 |
| Toyo Proxes R888R | 1:48.37 |
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