S2 tyres again

Author
Discussion

saaby93

Original Poster:

32,038 posts

177 months

Thursday 16th April 2015
quotequote all
Matey's S2 front tyres are becoming hen's teeth
My first PH table smile
euro rating = economy (G worst), wet grip (A best), noise dB

Make size load mph rating where supply fitted
Bridgestone RE040 175 55 R16 80W 169 FC73 lovetyres £87
Yokohama AD07 175 55 R16 80W 169 GB71 mytyres £81


AD07 ought to be the winner but doesnt like low temps

A 50 tyre is more available (thanks to Smart) and has 2.7% less diameter

Make size load mph rating where supply fitted
Yoko Sdrive 175 50 R16 77T 118 EC72
Yoko CDriveA539 175 50 R16 77V 149 FC71 Blackcircles £80
Vredstein Sporttrac 175 50 R16 81H 130 EB70 Blackcircles £89
Vredstein HiTrac 175 50 R16 81H 130 FC69
Joyroad Sport RX6 175 50 R16 77V 149 EC72 Camskill £43
Blackcircles own 175 50 R16 77V 149 EC73 Blackcircles £55


The Vredstein Sportrac like the AD07 has a B rating for wet grip without the temperature limitation
but only good for 130mph. The Yokohama Sdrive is out of the picture with 118mph tops.
With their lower load factors the Joyroad Sport RX6 looks useful, as does the Blackcircles own brand and the Cdrive A539

Anyone tried any of these?


Edited by saaby93 on Friday 17th April 18:16

lee111s

377 posts

187 months

Thursday 16th April 2015
quotequote all
AD07 are still the best front tyres, coupled with AD08R's on the rear.

Just ordered myself a set of 4 for £360.

kambites

67,461 posts

220 months

Friday 17th April 2015
quotequote all
I've never really had a problem with using the AD07 all year 'round. Yes, grip is low in the winter until they warm up but it seems to take no more than a couple of minutes of gentle driving for them to get warm enough to start working. Admittedly they're a bit crap on snow.

grumpy

966 posts

240 months

Friday 17th April 2015
quotequote all
lee111s said:
AD07 are still the best front tyres, coupled with AD08R's on the rear.

Just ordered myself a set of 4 for £360.
And me. Although they cost me £371.

dgr

289 posts

233 months

Friday 17th April 2015
quotequote all
70,000+ miles on AD07 in all weathers here, thoroughly recommended. Lotus know what they are doing when it comes to handling!

saaby93

Original Poster:

32,038 posts

177 months

Friday 17th April 2015
quotequote all
dgr said:
70,000+ miles on AD07 in all weathers here, thoroughly recommended. Lotus know what they are doing when it comes to handling!
What about low mileage a few thousand per year?
Anyone else noticed RE040s going rock hard with no grip, particularly at the front, where you can smoke a wheel in the dry much to all arounds surprise, or in the wet get the foot back off the brake and pray the wheel starts rolling again
spinrotate


grumpy

966 posts

240 months

Friday 17th April 2015
quotequote all
saaby93 said:
What about low mileage a few thousand per year?
Anyone else noticed RE040s going rock hard with no grip, particularly at the front, where you can smoke a wheel in the dry much to all arounds surprise, or in the wet get the foot back off the brake and pray the wheel starts rolling again
spinrotate
30k on the rear with the original Bridgstones. The fronts need replacing for the second time so I decided to replace them all as the rears are 10 year old. To be honest I've not found grip a problem although I don't use the car much in the wet.
How is it possible to get 70k out of a set of tyres on an Elise?

lee111s

377 posts

187 months

Friday 17th April 2015
quotequote all
I assume 70k was done on multiple sets of tyres....

otolith

55,899 posts

203 months

Friday 17th April 2015
quotequote all
I wouldn't put any of those alternatives on an Elise, to be honest. The problem is basically that most tyres in that sort of size are not designed for anything high performance and sporting.

AD07 is really the only game in town for the fronts, unless you are willing to put wider wheels on, in which case life gets a lot easier and choices get a lot wider. I've put Exige alloys on mine, which allow the fitting of 205/50 to the front and AD08R all round. They're OK in the cold, unless it's below -10C;


barchetta_boy

2,187 posts

231 months

Friday 17th April 2015
quotequote all
I've just ordered a full set of AD08R for my S1 Sport 160 in 195/50/15 and 225/45/16. Had to get the fronts from Camskill and the rears from Pneusonline.

dgr

289 posts

233 months

Sunday 19th April 2015
quotequote all
lee111s said:
I assume 70k was done on multiple sets of tyres....
Er yes, should have made that clear. 30-35k out of the fronts, 10-12k rears for me

RobM77

35,349 posts

233 months

Friday 24th April 2015
quotequote all
Personally I'd go for Lotus' own branded tyres, because they run a specific compound and width for the unusual requirements of the Elise's rearward weight bias (thin tyres at the front needed to prevent aqualplaning from the lightly loaded front, but a soft compound needed to balance the car in the dry). Just my thoughts.

Tickle

4,880 posts

203 months

Saturday 25th April 2015
quotequote all
barchetta_boy said:
I've just ordered a full set of AD08R for my S1 Sport 160 in 195/50/15 and 225/45/16. Had to get the fronts from Camskill and the rears from Pneusonline.
Same as what I have just ordered. £350 for the lot from Ears.