S2 Exige tyres for the wet

[mesajoe]

I'm interested in the opinion of other S2 Exige owners out there - did you buy another set of tyres to use in the wet? I've only had my Exige for 6 weeks and I have heard varying opinions on whether the tyres can be trusted in the wet - if not, what other tyres are folks using?

Thanks,
Mark

[Davey S1]

Still on the AO48's at the moment.

I find them fine in the wet but standing water can make it quite light and skittish so you have to be careful.

I wouldnt like to do any long motorway journeys in really heavy rain on them.

A second set of wheels with some Toyos on for the winter would be nice but they are several grand a set from Lotus and thats before you get them shod.

I'm thinking of buying a real (and I do mean real) sh1theap for the depths of winter as I do very few miles (driving for pleasure apart)

Edited to say Mark I cant see your profile pic. What colour & spec did you go for?

and welcome by the way

>> Edited by Davey S1 on Thursday 28th July 22:33

[jfrf]

but impractical to swap tyres everytime it rains.

as long as the road isnt flooded there shouldnt be a problem
personally i drive like a granny in the wet anyway

[bogie]

just drive slow in the wet - A048s are really quite good when its just damp....as above - they dont like standing water..with 5mm tread from new, and a light weight car, they aquaplane at 1/2 the speed the avg saloon car does...if you really neeed to run it every day thourhg winter then Id advise a 2nd set of wheels/tyres.

[jamieall]

I have been on a sodden Knock Hill twice now, have to say they are great fun. They have a surprising amount of grip and I found the car progressive and generally a lot of fun.
That said standing water is a problem and on a wet blat both myself and another Exiger found wet white lines and 48s a skittish combo.
Would defiantly recommend a bit of wet track action to see where you are with them.

[mesajoe]

Davey S1 - Sorry for the late reply, just returned from my holidays. You should be able to see a picture of my car on my profile - I went for the same colour as your car, but with Touring spec and A/C.

This is my third Lotus, but the other two never prepared me for the Exige...

[Davey S1]

Looks great mate.

Need to ditch the front numberplate for a 3/4 size one though!

[chris_n]

I'm planning to use my Exige right through winter and agree another set of wheels is too expensive and also impractical to swap over on a regular basis.

Not sure I fancy stone cold 48's on greasy/frosty roads though for my early morning commute so current plan is to stick some winter tyres on the standard rims for a few months in the depths of winter then refit the 48s come spring.

Nice car BTW!

[Davey S1]

I've decided to buy a complete and utter pile of cr@p to use in the winter.

Looking at buying, taxing & insuring an old nail for a grand.

Not sure I will be able to handle the power of a Pug 106 Diesel after the Exige

[boggy]

Yep,

Good idea Dave, I'd go for a Ralle thou still be able to have a little fun

Boggy

[scuffham]

road tyre option for the Exige is Yoko A039,

not cheap, but for an everyday tyres, they are the best out there.

[kinetic]

Scuffham,

What about the best race / track day wet tyre?
For 'intermediate' conditions what tyre would you use to race with?

I am doing the mid engined series this year and we're supposed to be limited to Yokohama tyres but at Donington last time out it was pretty damp in qualifying (not really enough for full wets though!) and I noticed the other guys were using all sorts of 'none' yokohama tyres whilst I'm still there with my AO48's on, naively thinking those were the rules of the game!

[anonymous-user]

scuffham said:

road tyre option for the Exige is Yoko A039, not cheap, but for an everyday tyres, they are the best out there.

Simon

Are they available in S2 Exige sizes? Couldn't find any reference on the Yokohama website to them and they're not listed at BlackCircles under 195/50/16.

Cheers

[bogie]

yes they are but they are 'LTS' so you need to goto a Lotus specialist delear to get them in S2 Exige sizes (actually same as S1 Exige)

[anonymous-user]

Cheers Bogie.

[chris_n]

My dealer talked about the "Exige winter tyres" that he supplied, are these the A039s or something different again?

>> Edited by chris_n on Thursday 18th August 11:41

[gooby]

chris_n said:

I'm planning to use my Exige right through winter and agree another set of wheels is too expensive and also impractical to swap over on a regular basis. Not sure I fancy stone cold 48's on greasy/frosty roads though for my early morning commute so current plan is to stick some winter tyres on the standard rims for a few months in the depths of winter then refit the 48s come spring. Nice car BTW!

My ltd knowledge of the yoko's are that they dont last that long. By the time the winter gets here you would probably be replacing the tyres anyway, put something that would withstand the poor weather in the winter.

If you havnt worn down the yoko's by the winter, STOP DRIVING LIKE MISS DAISY!!!

[chris_n]

gooby said:

If you havnt worn down the yoko's by the winter, STOP DRIVING LIKE MISS DAISY!!!

you're right, I'm increasingly embarrassed by the amount of rubber left on my A048s after 6k miles! The only thing I can say in my defence is much of that 6k is my daily crawl up and down the M40. The rest of the time I do my best to make those babies suffer, honest!

Chris

[scuffham]

kinetic said:

Scuffham, What about the best race / track day wet tyre? For 'intermediate' conditions what tyre would you use to race with? I am doing the mid engined series this year and we're supposed to be limited to Yokohama tyres but at Donington last time out it was pretty damp in qualifying (not really enough for full wets though!) and I noticed the other guys were using all sorts of 'none' yokohama tyres whilst I'm still there with my AO48's on, naively thinking those were the rules of the game!

can't commnet on what they run (polotics and all)

from what I understand from the 'rules' it's supposed to be Yoko only, but in wet conditions, motorsport wets are alowed (yoko ones)

no way can a road tyre compete with a proper wet race tyre, difference is night/day.

[moles]

I had A039's on last winter and they were alot better than the 48's are, had a few moments already in the summer rain that I didn't get through the whole of the winter with rain & sub zero temps. Sizes are the same for S1 & S2 Exiges only downside is the price about £700, & they only last about 6000 miles.