imager993

I am replacing one pair of two tires after some damage. My current good pair has half of their tread left (4/32's) and I will be getting a new pair with full tread (8/32's).

I would normally put the fresh pair on the front because the TT's quattro is biased towards the front wheels, but I have a track day this weekend. My TT uses up the fronts at a much greater rate than the rears.

Here is my thought and question. If I put the older pair in the front, then I can wear them down on the track and keep the rear pair relatively fresh. I will then buy a second pair to replace the worn fronts and be ready for Laguna Seca in April with four pretty fresh tires. OR I put the new ones up front and wear them down closer to the old pair.

What do all of the pros on here think?

deeno20

Here's my thinking:
1. If the track event is rainy, you'll definitely want deeper tread on the front for the obvious reason of greater ability to clear the water. If its dry, then I think either setup would be OK. So check the weather, that may help you decide.
2. My preference is always to have rubber worn similarly all the way around. If your front scrubs faster than the rear, and you put old on front, there will be an increasing differential in your grip characteristics. Putting new on the front will have the opposite effect; your wear depths will move closer.

Just my 2 cents. I'm interested in what others may think about this.

David White

thats a pretty big difference in tread depth and possibly a difference in the way the tires behave

the new tires will most likely squirm more and provide less grip on a dry track...

or, you could just mix them and see if the new ones work better on the front or the back...the front is going to stress the tires more so it may "chunk" the new tires

i personally just dont like mixing new and "old" tires on a track/race car

mirth

I agree that having all four at the same level of wear is preferable, but for a DE day on street tires, I would do whatever manages wear best. Just be sensitive to changes in the car's handling.

I don't think it'll be a big enough difference that it's worth junking some half-worn tires.

Silver Streakin'

front, since a TT is forward biased, does all of the turning and probably understeers.

mirth

We all know how the TT handles. Why does that mean you should put the new tires on the front?

imager993

the max difference in front/rear tread depth that is recommended for the TT is 4/32". So if I put the old ones up front and wear them down on the track, by the end of the day I could have up to a 6/32" or greater difference. I would be driving on the track and on the street for a few days with that big f/r difference until I could get the new pair on to replace them. Probably not a good idea for my AWD.

I'll put the new ones on the front and wear them down to match then rotate accordingly.

Thanks everybody for your input!

S4V8RCR

Put the new ones on the back and keep the old ones on the front until after the track event.

imager993

Reason being? Read why I am leaning against doing that below.

David White

a lot better chance of really tearing up the new ones (chunking them) on the front...will also probably understeer worse (most likely get less grip in the dry with the new ones on front)