The Rumours Are True...

[Bullet32]

Hello all,

Well at the SAU NSW Wakefield Park track day on Saturday I was asked by multiple entrants and club members about a rumour that is circulating about Federal now having a proper R-Spec semi-slick tyre.

So I guess I should let the cat out of the bag and see how much interest there is on these new tyres...

Images attached.

It's called the Corsa FZ-201 and it is now available (although some minor changes may still be made as it is tested on more vehicle types).

Technical info:

- DOT approved low void ratio 'R-Spec' grooved race tyre.

- Inner casing is similar to the 595RS-R with steel reinforced sidewall.

- Treadwear rating is equivalent to 60 (medium/hard 'tarmac rally compound').

Test reports:

Without giving away too much info on the testing of this tyre, the reports and results that we have seen when compared to other leading brands have been very positive.

This tyre has been used in the rally of Tasmania (tarmac rally) by Steve Glenney on his WRX and it proved extremely effective with Steve winning the event outright, it has also been used on larger touring cars such as Commodores for events in the IRS (Independant Race Series) and proved extremely effective (lapping up to 2 seconds quicker than another very popular leading brand).

It has been tested against the 595RS-R at Queensland's Morgan Park and although it has a slightly longer warm up time, once up to temp was consistently quicker by up to 3-5 seconds.

NOTE:

The FZ-201 is a Tarmac Rally/Track semi-slick tyre with a medium/hard compound meaning that it is designed for extended race use (long stages or multiple laps) as it works best at higher temps and has a slightly longer warm up time than softer compound R-spec tyres, it is not a sprint or short course tyre (although it will still provide good grip for this kind of racing).

Federal are currently working on producing the FZ-202 which will be a softer sprint/time attack tyre (more info on that as it becomes available).

Currently the size range and stock availability is very limited (as this tyre is so new) and the pricing is very reasonable compared to other brands in it's class:

- 195/50R15 - RRP $300

- 235/45R17 - RRP $440

- 255/40R17 - RRP $460

Please PM me if you need any further info on where and how to get these tyres as they are not available from all Federal authorised retailers - If I don't get back to you straight away please be patient, I will get back to you.

P.S. - I am not selling these tyres, the purpose of this thread is for information only.

[hrd-hr30]

It has been tested against the 595RS-R at Queensland's Lakeside raceway and although it has a slightly longer warm up time, once up to temp was lapping consistently quicker by up to 3-5 seconds.

who did this?

were the FZ201 time done with the same car/driver as the RS-R's?

and was it 3 seconds or 5 seconds??? 2 seconds is a very significant variation.

and what times were they running?

[Bullet32]

who did this?

were the FZ201 time done with the same car/driver as the RS-R's?

and was it 3 seconds or 5 seconds??? 2 seconds is a very significant variation.

and what times were they running?

This testing was done by an independant driver training company called 'Risk Assesment' and it was actually at Morgan Park not Lakeside (the IRS round referred to was at Lakeside) 3 almost identical vehicles and 4 different drivers - results were averaged out.

The FZ-201 proved to be about 1 second per km quicker than the 595RS-R and after each session was completed they were between 3 and 5 seconds quicker (depending on the pressure used, temperature etc).

First post amended.

[Downforce]

I'd try the fz-201's if they came in 18". Here's a vid of them at Lakeside:

[Touge Kyousou]

Option1 garage have had these on their websites for awhile with pricing and all ?