[z3papa]

A couple of thoughts:

1. I notice you live in Portland Oregon, report wet conditions and cold temps. Honestly, while Hankook RS3's are great in the dry/hot of the summer, they are notorious for being poor in the wet and questionable in cold since they need heat. I'd suggest recruiting a co-driver to help warm your tires for early in the season but that's just me. I personally run a second set, Toyo R1R right now and will be Michelin Super Sports when the R1R's are spent, in cold and wet conditions because they perform much better than the RS3's.

2. Launch is a personal matter. I launch by sidestepping at 1500 rpm in cold/cool temps or low grip surfaces to as high as 2500 rpm on hot high grip surfaces. I used to "slip" the clutch and even with the removal of the CDV, there were times when the clutch glazed ruining the run.

3. While I am not against spinning the tires to gain heat on the first run, there is a finite benefit to this.

4. I've tested tire pressures on RS3's from as high as 36 to as low as 25. My sweet spot is 33F/31R both cold and bled down hot but can vary this by a pound either direction. The only issue I'd warn is going too low, the RS3 will grip but does cup and wears prematurely.