14" Tyres for a Caterham Roadsport 1.8 - Avon?
Discussion
Hello,
I’ve got a Caterham Roadsport SV 1.8K with fairly new Avon tyres on (fitted by the previous owner). I think they’re Avon ZZ1 and ZZ3 (different on the front and back). Someone recommended I should change them as they’re not very good. Is that the general opinion? If so, why is it? What’s wrong with the tyres as they’ve been fine for me.
The sizes are 185/60/R14, what would you recommend I got in these sizes? Also, are winter tyres a good idea for these cars? We plan on using it all year round, but the winters are very mild here on the south coast of Hampshire. We very rarely see snow, and if we do it only lasts a day or two. In which case, I wouldn’t use the Caterham anyway. Temperatures are usually fairly mild too.
Any thoughts?
Thanks,
Dan
I’ve got a Caterham Roadsport SV 1.8K with fairly new Avon tyres on (fitted by the previous owner). I think they’re Avon ZZ1 and ZZ3 (different on the front and back). Someone recommended I should change them as they’re not very good. Is that the general opinion? If so, why is it? What’s wrong with the tyres as they’ve been fine for me.
The sizes are 185/60/R14, what would you recommend I got in these sizes? Also, are winter tyres a good idea for these cars? We plan on using it all year round, but the winters are very mild here on the south coast of Hampshire. We very rarely see snow, and if we do it only lasts a day or two. In which case, I wouldn’t use the Caterham anyway. Temperatures are usually fairly mild too.
Any thoughts?
Thanks,
Dan
13" Wheels are always the answer, with 185/70 tyres if the usual 175/55 (Avon CR500s) or 185/60 won't afford enough ground clearance. With the right tyres, 13" wheels are better in every way.
I thoroughly enjoyed my 7 in the snow with Avon CR322s. Not a lot of traction / grip, but of course very little weight to get moving.
As a bare minimum I'd ensure that you at least rectify the mismatch of tyres front to rear by replacing the older pair with whatever was fitted to the other end.
I thoroughly enjoyed my 7 in the snow with Avon CR322s. Not a lot of traction / grip, but of course very little weight to get moving.
As a bare minimum I'd ensure that you at least rectify the mismatch of tyres front to rear by replacing the older pair with whatever was fitted to the other end.
BritishRacinGrin said:
13" Wheels are always the answer, with 185/70 tyres if the usual 175/55 (Avon CR500s) or 185/60 won't afford enough ground clearance. With the right tyres, 13" wheels are better in every way.
I thoroughly enjoyed my 7 in the snow with Avon CR322s. Not a lot of traction / grip, but of course very little weight to get moving.
As a bare minimum I'd ensure that you at least rectify the mismatch of tyres front to rear by replacing the older pair with whatever was fitted to the other end.
Thanks. Good point re. your last comment. I will check which are oldest. All are in near new condition though, although the car has only done 18k miles anyway so I doubt it's got through many tyres in its life. I thoroughly enjoyed my 7 in the snow with Avon CR322s. Not a lot of traction / grip, but of course very little weight to get moving.
As a bare minimum I'd ensure that you at least rectify the mismatch of tyres front to rear by replacing the older pair with whatever was fitted to the other end.
There’s no way we’d change the wheels. Couldn’t afford to, and our wheels are in as new condition and look fantastic! Is the problem that there aren’t many tyres available in 14”?
My car has done similar mileage and I've worn out 2 sets of 185 x 60 x 14 Yokohama a021r.
There isn't much choice in 14 inch. The a021r tyres are brilliant but very expensive if you do high mileage. I am changing to Uniroyal Rain Experts as I don't want to have to buy new wheels. They were recommended on here, I know a chap with another kit who thinks they're brilliant and Camskill sell them for £35 a tyre
Normal saloon tyres are difficult to get warm on a Seven.
There isn't much choice in 14 inch. The a021r tyres are brilliant but very expensive if you do high mileage. I am changing to Uniroyal Rain Experts as I don't want to have to buy new wheels. They were recommended on here, I know a chap with another kit who thinks they're brilliant and Camskill sell them for £35 a tyre
Normal saloon tyres are difficult to get warm on a Seven.
I'm sure I was the one who commented on the age of your ZV1 tyres??? Cheapest option would be to put the existing ZV3's on the front and get a new pair of those for the rear, then see how you get on for next time. One thing I hate is non-matching tyres, and thrilled that my company car has one odd Michelin to 3 original Bridgestone's as the result of a puncture (I wasn't allowed to specify the replacement tyre by the lease company!)
Mellow7 said:
I'm sure I was the one who commented on the age of your ZV1 tyres??? Cheapest option would be to put the existing ZV3's on the front and get a new pair of those for the rear, then see how you get on for next time. One thing I hate is non-matching tyres, and thrilled that my company car has one odd Michelin to 3 original Bridgestone's as the result of a puncture (I wasn't allowed to specify the replacement tyre by the lease company!)
Hi Mellow, that might have been me. I have the same 14" Minilites and the front ZV1's are original to the 2000 reg car! Planning on a change before my 1st Track day at Brands on 19th December but struggling to know what to buy for the best. I have fairly new ZV3's on the rear but they don't offer much wet weather grip. i'm not bothered about amazing grip but I,'d like to be able to keep a decent pace on what will very likely be a wet circuit. Any recommendations?
I have Dunlop SP Sport Fast Response in that size on my '96 K 1.6. I had them fitted a couple of years ago in preparation for a 2,000 km trip to Italy following the Mille Miglia.
For touring - where you might need to travel in (heavy) rain - all the fancy semi-slicks and other barely road legal race tyres are in my opinion useless, due to a complete lack of aquaplaning qualities for a car as light as a Seven. This includes the A021R which I've had as well. Fantastic on dry roads, scared the living daylights out of me on a Swiss motorway many years ago in heavy rainshowers, where I couldn't go faster than 60 km/h on them without aquaplaning.
The Dunlops were very useful on the way to the Mille Miglia when crossing the Brenner Pass in -8°C and snow slush, and have sufficient grip for my type of fun on dry public roads. They are useless on the track, however. I finished a glorious last in three slalom events this year, being also the only one with pure road tyres. The tyres screamed and screeched through the entire course. Had great fun nonetheless.
There's indeed not much choice in this size. I'd recommend keeping the Avons if YOU are happy with them, but in any case assert what kind of driving you do and whether you NEED to drive in rain.
I might switch to A021R's again, as I don't do any long distance touring anymore, or possibly even get a second set of wheels. My Yokos only lasted 5,000 kms by the way, and currently cost around € 165,- .... each.
For touring - where you might need to travel in (heavy) rain - all the fancy semi-slicks and other barely road legal race tyres are in my opinion useless, due to a complete lack of aquaplaning qualities for a car as light as a Seven. This includes the A021R which I've had as well. Fantastic on dry roads, scared the living daylights out of me on a Swiss motorway many years ago in heavy rainshowers, where I couldn't go faster than 60 km/h on them without aquaplaning.
The Dunlops were very useful on the way to the Mille Miglia when crossing the Brenner Pass in -8°C and snow slush, and have sufficient grip for my type of fun on dry public roads. They are useless on the track, however. I finished a glorious last in three slalom events this year, being also the only one with pure road tyres. The tyres screamed and screeched through the entire course. Had great fun nonetheless.
There's indeed not much choice in this size. I'd recommend keeping the Avons if YOU are happy with them, but in any case assert what kind of driving you do and whether you NEED to drive in rain.
I might switch to A021R's again, as I don't do any long distance touring anymore, or possibly even get a second set of wheels. My Yokos only lasted 5,000 kms by the way, and currently cost around € 165,- .... each.
Mellow7 said:
I'm sure I was the one who commented on the age of your ZV1 tyres??? Cheapest option would be to put the existing ZV3's on the front and get a new pair of those for the rear, then see how you get on for next time. One thing I hate is non-matching tyres, and thrilled that my company car has one odd Michelin to 3 original Bridgestone's as the result of a puncture (I wasn't allowed to specify the replacement tyre by the lease company!)
Just checked, it was a guy called helluvaname in this thread: http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...Gassing Station | Caterham | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff