Getting A Grip: How Much Grip Do I Need on the Track?

Performance tires vary from tire to tire, and what you need from each tire varies depending on you, your car, and how you’re using it. Whether you’re slamming it sideways around a bend or competing for the best time around a lap, the amount of grip you need can be a little different.

How Do I Know How Grippy the Tire Is?

You will know how much grip the tire has by what the UTQG (Uniform Tire Quality Grade) is. This number details what your treadwear (TW) is, and this will let you know how much grip your tire has. The lower the number the more grip the tire has to offer. Just like how the Accelera 651 Sport is a 300 treadwear tire, which is the perfect amount of grip you need when throwing smoke while making eye contact with the winner’s circle. However, the 651 Sport XTRA is a 200 treadwear tire that is perfect to keep you right where you need to be on the track to break your lap record.

What’s The Right Grip.

The grip you need depends on how you’re gonna use it. If you are a track guy, going for speed you wanna get run the grippiest tire you can. The Accelera 651 Sport XTRA is the grippiest r-compound Tire Streets carries. This tire is gonna stick you to the track and keep you right where you need to be. Drivers like Brian Smith use this tire top their records and fly past their competition.

However, if you’re a drift guy who likes to slide sideways you want slightly less grip, but still enough to make sure you don’t go careening into walls. The Accelera 651 Sport is a 300 tw tire that has the perfect grip with the right breakaway point that allows high-horsepower drifters to do what they do best. This bad boy is the rubber drivers like Nate Hamilton use to land themselves at the top of the podium.

 If you’re rocking a car with slightly less horsepower the Accelera PHI line may be the one for you. It is a 400 tw tire that’s sole purpose is to perform like no other UHP tire has performed. It will grip when you need it and breakaway when you want it to. Some of our biggest drivers use the PHI such as Max Fuerst and Baggsy.

So, What Do I Choose?

Now that you know what level of grip is used for different applications you can decide which tire and treadwear is right for you. If you are a drifter with a high-horsepower car, than you are going to want something with a UTQG of 300. This will give you the grip and longevity you need to get through an event without changing out your rubber every single run. If you are a time trial guy with a high-horsepower car you are gonna want to choose a 200 tw tire. This will give you the accuracy you need to stay confident on the track.

Ultimately picking the right tire comes with a lot of trial and error. While you will use the UTQG to narrow down your options, at the end of the day the tire that feels right for you and your style of driving will differ from driver to driver. But now that you have the knowledge you need to get started, you can start narrowing down your options to perform your best every time you hit the asphalt.