Uniroyal Rainexperts

[Smitters]

Just had a set of Uniroyal Rainexperts fitted (Chris Mullins in Gloucester - recommended). Saddled with 185/60R14 limited options without blowing the bank on specialist track rubber, something I can't afford right now, so I decided to skip the normal ZV3 ditch finders and try something from left of field.

Got a track day at Pembrey on Saturday too, which ought to be interesting.

Initial impressions were of a very soft tread, with some vagueness to the blocks, but I expected that coming from close to limit A021R's. Once the release agent is off, I'll see how feel and progression is.

[grenpayne]

I have Uniroyal Rainsport 2 tyres on my RS Clio 172. If they're anything like the Rainexperts (and I think they're similar) then you should find them really good. I find the grip (wet and dry) to be superb and it makes the rear-biased Clio's handling a delight and very predictable. I can't tell you much about wear rates as I don't do big miles, but I'm very pleased with them.

[framerateuk]

I'll be at Pembrey on Saturday too in my black/red Seven along with my dad in his Impreza.

Come and say hi if you spot us. I'll be keen to know how you find the tyres! It's going to be my first track outing since tweaking my suspension heights, so it should be interesting to say the least!

[Smitters]

Initial impressions is they could make an excellent touring tyre - very quiet and supple. Certainly a loss of feel versus the Yokos A021R but that's to be expected due to the height of the treadblocks. My old Yokos were partworns anyway, so I can't compare to a new A021R. There was noticably more grip on the damp roads this morning at the rear wheels, but they are less eager to turn in and initially less confidence inspiring when you lean on them. There is also a lighter feel at the wheel in both wet and dry conditions.

Look forward to catching up with you at Pembrey framerateuk, licence willing. Eeek.

[downsman]

How were the Uniroyals on the track day?

[Smitters]

downsman said:

How were the Uniroyals on the track day?

Surprisingly good, all things considered. The day started out wet as a wet thing and dried out slowly. I will admit I didn't play too much with pressures, preferring to see how the car changed feel as the day improved against a consistent baseline. I started out at 18psi front and rear. In the wet the car was balanced, perhaps a little understeery, and the breakaway wasn't as progressive as the A021Rs, but when leaning on them, they inspired confidence and weren't nervous at all.

As the day dried out, their road-bias became more obvious and I think I over-heated them by driving a little too hard, too fast. The understeer set-up drifted toward neutral as I was able to carry more speed and get some actual heat into the fronts though. I think a couple of psi out of the fronts and a careful warm-up would have been a better set-up. On the very fastest corners, Woodlands and Honda, the less rigid sidewall made minor adjustments more difficult, but it also forced me to be smoother.

Wear-wise, I was impressed, with very little, though the wet weather will help here too. A totally dry, hot day and some careless management would probably see some chunks torn out, so I think they're better suited to a shoulder season/occasional track tyre and a brilliant touring tyre. The reduced road noise and slap and the additional compliancy in our potholed and bump-riddled world were very welcome and I felt tangibly less tired at the end of the drive. If you did mostly road miles and one or two trackdays a year, and didn't were prepared to drive with some sympathy, I think they'd make an excellent Seven tyre. I paid about £50 a corner inc fitting and disposal too, which makes them affordable on a second set of wheels too.

[downsman]

Thanks for the reply

I think I'll stick to my 021s, but it's nice to know there's a reasonably priced alternative out there that isn't rock hard.

[Smitters]

downsman said:

Thanks for the reply

I think I'll stick to my 021s, but it's nice to know there's a reasonably priced alternative out there that isn't rock hard.

If you've got the £££, then Yokos are the way I'd go, possibly trying out a pair of 888s, which were recommended by Neil Garner Motorsport as an alternative, but for the budget, I'm pretty impressed. Given that when I bought the car it had the original 1994 rubber on the fronts, I think we all know how suitable car tyres are for Sevens! If I was touring only, I'd have them again like a shot.

[Steve-B]

Interesting post -- think I'll stick with AO21r's for fall/winter/wet weather and AO48r's for track days but nice to know there's a better alternative than the Avon Tyre O'Misshaps out there!

[downsman]

Now my a021Rs have worn out, I decided £400 plus fitting is too much for tyres that last me only 1 year.
Just ordered 4 Rainexperts for £150 delivered, so I will give them a go

[masterslamma]

DON´T buy the Rainexperts!!!!!!!!!!!!


I had rainexperts on my westfield in 185/60/13 and before them i had Conti premium contact 2 and after the rainexperts i had dunlup sport blurespone.

Buy the dunlops! They are so much better then the rainexperts. I wet condition i would say both tires are same, but in dry the Dunlop is MILES better than the Uniroyal.
I go twice a month to driving slalom with the westfied, with the rainexperts i always needed 1:08 per Round. With the Dunlops i drive 1:04 easily!!!!

Also the Rainexperts start to lose grip very fast when the heat up. 2 mins hard driving them and you have to make a break because the get to hot. The rainexpert is a nice tire nothing wrong with them, but the dunlop is much much better. And the price is about the same.

Again, buy the Dunlops or if you got the money get a set of A048/R888/ZZR

Edited by masterslamma on Friday 3rd October 22:53

[downsman]

Thanks for your warning.

If I was rolling in money, I just buy more a021r tyres as they are great.
However for 99% road use they are expensive and wear out frighteningly quickly.

Obviously on a dry track the Rain experts will over heat easily as mentioned earlier in the thread.
However that feature is why I think they will make better road tyres on a 7. It is almost impossible to get normal road tyres up to temp in a 550kg car on the road without being antisocial.

I only do 1 untimed track day a year and really don't care if I'm slower as long as I'm having fun

[forest07]

I have Rain Experts on my Plus 2 Elan and they are fine.

Wouldn't put them anywhere near a Caterham, I still believe CR500's are the best all round tyre for a Caterham, and can't believe the factory still fit the cheap Avons to standard models, which are awful & bordering on dangerous.

[downsman]

forest07 said:

I have Rain Experts on my Plus 2 Elan and they are fine.

Wouldn't put them anywhere near a Caterham, I still believe CR500's are the best all round tyre for a Caterham, and can't believe the factory still fit the cheap Avons to standard models, which are awful & bordering on dangerous.

I'm not going to argue with you over the CR500s apart from pointing out that the cost is high like a021r, and in addition they would require a swap to 13 inch wheels along with a substantial drop in sump clearance compared to 185 60 14.

Agreed the Avons are awful and bordering on dangerous

So as the original post said:

Smitters said:

Saddled with 185/60R14 limited options without blowing the bank on specialist track rubber, something I can't afford right now, so I decided to skip the normal ZV3 ditch finders and try something from left of field

I'm in the situation where I'm doing enough road miles in a year to wear out a set of a021rs each year, and it is getting very expensive.
One option I considered is swapping to 13 inch wheels with 185 70 a021rs which are a lot cheaper, but I understand that from the end of next year the a021r will not be E marked and will be illegal for road use. Also, I'd still have the problem of having to replace them every year.

I have a good friend with a kit car who swapped to the Uniroyals and he raves about them. In view of the fact that I can get 4 delivered for only £40 more than the price of one a021r in 185x60x14, I decided they are worth a go, and will report back here whatever the result

[Smitters]

Sadly, I sold the Rainexpert shod car, but it will definitely be of interest to see how they perform as they wear. Given they are a full tread depth tyre, unlike a Yoko race tyre which comes with only 4-6mm max (from memory), it will be interesting to see how the feel changes as they wear.

Interesting to see the Dunlop option seems to work on the road and track, but I don't see that as surprising. The Uniroyal seems to be geared to wetter roads, not economy and low rolling resistance. The opposite, if anything, thus the overheating seems likely. I guess it depends on your mentality. Going for time would kill them. Sympathetically lapping and having fun, being smooth and just pedalling round a track in general and I reckon they're still ok, plus not bankbreaking to replace. Price really was a factor too. In my case, the idea was to possibly save on road rubber, which then provides a kitty for a second set of wheels more suited to the track.

Anyway, let's face it, if we found a tyre for £3, we'd put it on, lap everywhere sideways and still have change for a bacon sarnie and a cuppa from £15. Performance is one thing, fun another.

[DickieH]

Thread resurrection.
Im in a quandary on this too and very interested in a cheaper option than the ao21s. The Uniroyals and Dunlops sound interesting.
Downsman how are the Uniroyals going? Any update would be very welcome.
I do all road stuff (approx 3k per year)so im interested to know how many road miles you did to get through a set of Yokos in a year.
Thanks in advance
DickieH

[downsman]

Hi Dickie, I did a lot of miles last year, and I had the 21s on the car a little longer than a year in the end. I think it was about 8000 miles in total including one trackday and some fun at Dunsfold. I've only had a chance to try one short run on the Uniroyals so far and I am sure the ride was better, less noise and better stability along the very bumpy roads at Beachy Head. I had brand new tyres and brake pads, so didn't push too hard, but so far steering feel and grip was fine in very cold conditions. I'm pleased so far

Considering they were £150 delivered (but not fitted), even if they don't last any longer than the 21s, I'll be a lot better off.
As I said above, I went for the Uniroyals as I'm looking for a safe tyre in bad conditions and mainly road use. If I only went out on warm sunny days and did more track work, I would have probably chosen something like the Dunlops, but in cold wet weather I'm hoping the Rain Experts will give more grip.

[DickieH]

Thanks downsman that's v helpful and gives my use some context. The dunlops do appear to give good wet grip according to the new labelling regs , same rating as the rain experts,but sound liike they might offer slightly better summer grip according to op, which all in all might well suit my lower and type of mileage over the year. Either way both sound like a reasonable option at at least half price on the a021's, which would last me just over 2 years by the sound of it.
Thanks again
dickie

[BritishRacinGrin]

Smitters said:

I think we all know how suitable car tyres are for Sevens!

This is the crux of it really. You're putting a tyre which is developed to support around 500kg under a load of a little more than a quarter of that.

I've put Rainexperts on my Mum's Corsa for her. I wouldn't put them anywhere near a caterham. For me it'd be a cost compromise too far; stodgy uncommunicative 'comfort' 'touring' tyres would severely dampen the experience for me.

forest07 said:

can't believe the factory still fit the cheap Avons to standard models, which are awful & bordering on dangerous.

CR322s? They're excellent! I managed to wear out two sets!

I think I should have a couple of lapel badges for that actually.

[Smitters]

BritishRacinGrin said:

Smitters said:

I think we all know how suitable car tyres are for Sevens!

This is the crux of it really. You're putting a tyre which is developed to support around 500kg under a load of a little more than a quarter of that.

I've put Rainexperts on my Mum's Corsa for her. I wouldn't put them anywhere near a caterham. For me it'd be a cost compromise too far; stodgy uncommunicative 'comfort' 'touring' tyres would severely dampen the experience for me.

I agree to an extent, but the quote in isolation isn't really representative of my view. You've nailed it though - it's about the experience. I believe the URE tyre can actually improve the experience, but it depends what you're after. I can't say I liked my Seven more on AO21Rs, irrespective of their performance, and I totally disagree with the seemingly widely held opinion that a Caterham must be shod in road-legal racing tyres or nothing. It's very much owner by owner.

The biggest issue I faced was the astronomical cost of putting a performance tyre on a 14" wheel. In this instance the cost/compromise balance tipped the other way.

Another thought occurred to me - do tyres like the Toyo R888, Yoko AO21R etc have an upper weight limit? And if they do, is it below 1000kg? If not, surely the discussion is about the compound and tread grip, plus sidewall stiffness and it's contribution to feel and overall suspension. They are, after all, potentially a tyre designed for, albeit a high performance, full size car...