The new Volante V8 36R Tire finally made its way to the Arena33 Racetrack in Andernach/Germany and was tested by some really fast drivers including ETS race winners like Ronald Völker, Marc Rheinard and Yannic Prümper! Today we want to bring you closer to some facts and tips all around the new V8 asphalt tires.
First of all it is important to know the reason which made it necessary to develop a new tire for asphalt racing. The Volante V5 was a very reliable asphalt tire over the last years and allowed us to see some great racing all around the world. Due to a big raw material shortage on the market in 2020, which affected all major tire manufacturers, Volante accepted the challenge and created something new with the goal to make it even better. The result is the Volante V8 tire series!
The actual Volante V5 28CP carpet tires will be available for the next 2 years which means that there will be no change for the next indoor season!
During the first days of testing the V8 tire quickly showed a ballistic performance as the lap times were a lot faster compared to the V5 tires. All drivers reported that their cars felt great with the new tires and they all confirmed that the V8 tires have almost no “drop-off” in the first few runs – something which was always very dramatic with the V5 tires wear the first run was a lot faster than the second or third one. The new V8 tire now gives racers the opportunity to do more equal fast runs with the same set of tires!
Another benefit of the V8 tire is the fact that it has no more air gap between the rubber and the insert. This prevents the new ultra-thin mega fix belt from vibrating and stressing the rubber which sometimes resulted in an exploded V5 tire.
We collected the most important information from the tests at Arena33 for you as there are some things which are completely different from the old V5 tires in case of tire management, lifetime and the look of the tires as well. Some facts will sound a little abnormal but as the Volante V8 36R tire is absolutely made for the highest performance on the track you should use the following tips while using them!
1. We highly recommend changing the tires from side to side after each run. This will cause the tires to wear more equal and will provide you a better performance and lifetime.
2. The V8 tire is 7g lighter compared to a V5 tire. You have to add ~28g to your car to achieve the same overall weight than before. Use these 28g wherever you like to achieve a better handling car.
3. In case of additive and tire warmers there is nothing special to say as the drivers used the MR33 V3 asphalt additive together with tire warmers at ~70 degrees.
4. The tire wear looks more dramatic than you might know it from other tires, but even if the tires were looking really worn after the first runs the performance always stayed at the same level.
5. As you will see more wear debris in your car – especially in your bodyshell, you should check the ride height of your car before every run as the car will slightly get lower from run to run.
6. After 4-5 runs in modified and 7-8 runs in stock (track depending) you will begin to see the inner belt on some spots around the tire. The V8 tires still performed at nearly the same level and it was possible to go really fast with a tire looking almost done. It seems to be not critical until you see the tire insert. Then we recommend changing to a different set of V8 tires for the next run.
We are sure that the new Volante V8 36R will satisfy all ambitioned racers who are always looking for a better performance and faster lap times. The V8 is made for the best possible racing experience so you should know that the V8 will be the best tire in the first 4-5 runs in modified and the first 6-7 in stock until you have to switch to a fresh set. The V8 is not a tire to run 10-20 packs on and we want to let you know that in advance. For hobby drivers who are looking for a very long lasting (and slower) tire there will be something different very soon!
The new Volante V8 36R tire is ready for you and your car – just get your hands on them and go as fast as never before!
