Tyre choices/reviews

[tm86]

What have you replaced the stock tyres with?
And how has it changed the dynamics of the car?

[sav]

Replaced the 17" rears with the same as stock - Michelin Primacy HP so nothing's changed, it still sucks in the wet.
@JouMaSeHoes is on his 20th or something set of tires so he'd be able to give you a good idea of what to expect.

[Vic_RSA]

About to change stock 16" Yokohama dB E70's with Yokohama dB V550's... Can't seem to kill the original set - nearly 51000km...
@JouMaSeHoes killed his in 8000km...

[Fish Eagle]

OEM (Standard Spec) - Wheels 16"x6.5 ET48, Tyres Yokohama DB 205/55 16
I did about 8000 road kms on these tyres, and they were OK'ish (if you like crap tyres)
Mediocre grip, very quiet, and they showed little wear after 8000 kms despite some abuse.
I recently sold these wheels and tyres to a guy with a 2002 Impreza Sportwagon and he loves them.
Bottom line - not for me...

Wheels 17"x7.5 ET35 ALine GTR Sport (staggered), Tyres Federal 595RS-R 235/40 17
Despite the tyres being a bit too wide for the wheels, this combination worked very well for both road and track.
Firm sidewalls, very precise turn-in, high grip for braking, accelerating and cornering.
Like the car being on rails - very impressive. Quite satisfactory in the wet.
A bit noisy on the road, but not bad.
I expected some roll-under with them being a bit too wide, but they were fine and didn't have abnormal shoulder wear.
They lasted well - much better than I expected from a 140 wear rating tyre.
I estimate 20000 road kms + about 220 track laps.
Two negatives -
(1) They were slightly smaller circumference than stock. I had no problem with the very minor gearing change but despite me not being into aesthetics, I hated the wheel gap which was substantial.
(2) They heat-cycled quite quickly and got noticably greasy after about 12 track sessions. I continued using them on track and they worked OK but just didn't quite have the grip they had when new.
Wheels cost R4600/set, tyres cost R1800/ea
Bottom line - great.

Tyres Federal 595RS-R 225/45 17 (same wheels as above)
I thought it was a clever idea to try 225/45 which is a better match to the wheels (and with less wheel gap looks better).
For some dumb reason, the 225/45's have shallower tread than the 235/40's (5.2mm vs 6.5mm) and they wore out quickly on track.
Surprisingly, 225/45 is the only size with the shallower tread.
Despite a better fit, the sidewalls have always felt squidgy and they lack the "on rails" feel which the 235's had.
However, they actually gripped well and handled great when pushed and I eventually got used to the squidgy feel.
I still use this set of tyres as road tyres, but they're on their last legs and I'll have to replace them in January.
They've done about 20000 road kms + about 150 track laps.
They're not quite as noisy as the 235's were, but still noisier than a typical road tyre.
Tyres cost R1650/ea
Bottom line - disappointing after the 235's, but still quite impressive and good value for money.

Wheels 17"x7.5 ET35 ALine GTR Sport (non-staggered), Tyres Bridgestone RE11S 225/45 17
I bought an identical set of rims for track use, but they're not staggered to make rotation easier.
The tyres were slightly second-hand having done one race.
Not road legal. Noisy (they drone). Very precise feel. Very sharp turn-in.
Squirrely under braking (brake very well, but feel kak under braking)
Superb grip - 2 secs/lap quicker than the Federals at Midvaal.
PITA to transport them, and fit/remove them before and after tracking, but worth it.
They've done about 500 road kms, and about 90 track laps (60 dry, 30 wet)
I'm very happy with how they've stood up to abuse (which they're designed for).
Wheels cost R4600/set, tyres undisclosed.
Bottom line - great. Will certainly continue using them on track.

Next...
Road tyres: I'll stick with Federal 595RS-Rs - it's a great tyre, but I'm going to try 235/45's if I can get them, else another set of 235/40's
Track tyres: S/H Bridgestone RE11S's 225/45. The ones I've got on will last 2 more track days (27/28 Dec), so I'll need more in January.

[JouMaSeHoes]

Jeez guys, make me all bashful ....

Brief rundown of my 24 odd k km's worth of tyres:

Stock 205 16"s: were fine until they got down to the last couple of mm, then had no grip. was a hoot. Lasted around 9k km incl. 1 "HPDE" day.

Michellin PS3 stock size: Most expensive tyres available in the 205, were brilliant on the road, lovely ride and very progressive feel, excellent in the wet. Sidewalls are a too soft for track and overheat quite quickly. Had to rotate after every track day, because of worn shoulders on front left, even with -1 57' odd camber and high pressures. Lasted around 11 k km. 6 odd "HPDE" days.

Bridgestone RE002 stock size: Not badly priced, wanted something that would last more than a couple of laps before cooking. Brilliant on dry track! can run lower pressures without shoulder wear (much stiffer sidewalls, but ride not bad at all), great braking. Not great in the wet. Stability control seems to hate them, get intervention at the strangest times, but when running all off they feel awesome . Pretty soft and don't think I'll make 7k km. But worth it. 3 HPDE days, I think.

I live on a fairly rough dirt road, so every time I use her she has to do around 20 km of rallying and so far all the tyres have been fine on the dirt.

[tm86]

Thanks, this is exactly the type of information I was hoping for

[GeeTee86]

Hankook ventus V12 18's
They grip awesomnessly

[Fish Eagle]

Originally Posted by Fish Eagle

Next...
Road tyres: I'll stick with Federal 595RS-Rs - it's a great tyre, but I'm going to try 235/45's if I can get them, else another set of 235/40's
Track tyres: S/H Bridgestone RE11S's 225/45. The ones I've got on will last 2 more track days (27/28 Dec), so I'll need more in January.

UPDATE:
Track tyres: after 27/28th December (about 140 laps) they still look great and will do at least another 2 track days
Road tyres: My local tyre guy found a set of Federal 595RS-Rs in 235/45R17 in Cape Town (they're in short supply).
Had them fitted today and they look and feel great.

[Fish Eagle]

While fitting my new tyres today, I test fitted the special offer that my tyre place was running just for fun, and it was quite a good fit and looked OK, but more importantly, it's a killer price.

I don't think I'm allowed to say where, so I won't. It's a national chain and this is likely to be a special offer across the country.
If you want more info, then PM me.

The wheels are A-Line 18 x 8.0JJ ET35 5x100 which is a good fit for our cars.
I use A-Line wheels for road and track (2 sets) and I'm very happy with them and I think their quality is OK.

The tyres are Durun (huh?) 215/35R18 which means they're very low profile and very stretched (this special is aimed at the Polo Posers) and about 5% smaller circumference than 86 stock (I think). The rims could easily handle 235/35R18 or even 235/40R18. Both should fit well.

The surprise is the price - R6000 (yep, that's for 4 wheels and tyres)

[sav]

Not my style but good price anyway for track rims and tyres.

Pics of the test fitment?

[Fish Eagle]

Originally Posted by sav

Pics of the test fitment?

Nyet. Never thought of taking a pic.
Tried it on while my car was on the lift so it was difficult to see the wheel gap - which I think will be substantial...?

[sav]

Damn. First rule of taking pics - always take pics.

[Vic_RSA]

New Yokohama v550's on! Will give them a good long run tomorrow and let them settle.

Very slidey right now...

52687km on the original set - treadwear indicators beginning to show but still quite good.

[Fish Eagle]

Originally Posted by Vic_RSA

Very slidey right now...

Yep, be careful with new fitments.
My new tyres had about 1000 gentle road kms on them when I went on track yesterday and they were all over the place. But 3 laps later they'd been knocked into shape and worked great. Must admit that an hour later they didn't look like new tyres anymore

I'm amazed with how long it takes to get the "shine" off brand new tyres.