For you guys that have non-street legal cars, how do you break in the following; race brake pads, rotors, tires? Do you "waste" a session to go through the proper bedding and heat-cycling procedures? Or do you just not worry with those procedures, and if the latter, how do these items hold up without being broken in?

Also for the guys that have experience with RA1's. How long do these usually last, in terms of track sessions? Or in terms of endurance races, how long time-wise? Full tread and shaved? Would a new shaved tire last an entire 3hour enduro, for instance? If I'm only doing sprint races, say 6 sessions a weekend, how many weekends would they likely last?

 

I have been known to bed brakes and heat cycle tires on the street.

 

I do it on the street as well. Late at night of course.

 

You don't need to bed brake pads or heat cycle tires late at night because the actions are generally within legal limits anyways (unless you're trying to do it in a residential area). Brake bedding involves not 150 to 5 mph stops but in the 60-70 mph range. Just don't stop in front of other traffic. Heat cycling tires doesn't require racing speeds - I just go for a long drive on Interstates.

There's nothing illegal about this stuff although you can do it illegally...

 

^I think their point is that it's illegal if the car itself isn't street legal.

In general, depends on the equipment. RA1's don't need to be heat-cycled; Hoosiers do. Some brake compounds don't need any more bedding beyond a few warm-up laps; others crumble to hell if you don't follow the bedding routine to the letter. YMMV.

 

If the car is race-prepped, it is probably not street legal. My car is not street legal, and my car is not nearly as prepped as some I've seen on here.

Carbotech XP10 and XP8.

 

How does one properly heat cycle tires on the interstate?

 

As I understand it; drive for a while so they get some heat into them, return to your garage, get the car up in the air, remove wheels & tires, stack 'em, let sit for a couple of days, and you're done!

 

I wouldn't do it on the interstate. Most tires that you can drive on the street don't matter. But for hoosiers I always use nighttime town streets. You can get heat in them faster, and if anything was wrong you have a much better chance of living.

I was just thinking of my first drive on hoosier ax tires on an ax alignment and how scary that would be on a highway.