Wheel alignment & original wheels

[Vidal Baboon]

Since picking the car up I've had it various stages with geometry & tyres & I can tell you, the original settings are the best IMHO.

Originally when I picked it up, it was fitted with the PH2 5 spoke 15" alloys with a mix n' match of budget tyres. It pulled & tramlined all over the shop- alarming at times. At first I thought it was wind buffeting & going light at speed, but put it in for geometry anyway.

£120 later & it was handling alot better. Still had a little tram-lining but still, alot better.

I picked up a puncture the other day so had to put the original 'mini-lite' 14s back on- a job that I've been meaning to do anyway, this just gave me a kick in the right direction. They're all fitted with Dunlop Sport 200.

To say the difference is like night & day would be an understatement. It does not pull or tramline at all & the handling now seems to be somewhat more neutral.

So i'm now one happy owner!


Dare I say it, as good as the MG F?

[MX-5 Lazza]

Great. Now get rid of the Dunlops - they are terrible tyres and will become even worse as the weather gets colder & wetter!

Edited by MX-5 Lazza on Tuesday 19th October 11:19

[Vidal Baboon]

MX-5 Lazza said:

Great. Now get rid of the Dunlops - they are terrible tyres and will become even worse as the weather gets colder & wetter!

They don't seem to have much grip in the wet.

Still, at least it's all balanced!

[MX-5 Lazza]

Predictable is always good but predictably bad still doesn't help a lot

[Vidal Baboon]

What's the current recommended tyre for the 5?

[GravelBen]

Glad to hear you're happy with it - personally I prefer 15"s as long as they're fairly light with the right offset.

I also prefer non-standard suspension geometry though.


Tyre-wise the Toyo T1R is always popular, Kumho KU31 get good reviews too, Yoko AD08 are apparently fantastic but not cheap.

Edited by GravelBen on Tuesday 19th October 12:40

[Gizmo!]

What pressures do you have on them? I find that I can transfoem the handling on mine from jittery to (er, relatively) comfy simply by dropping from 28 to 26 psi. (I usually leave it at 28 because, well... it's more fun).

[The Tea Boy]

if your wanting tyres for 14" wheels may i suggest the falken 912's! damn good in the dry moderate to good in the wet and alright in the snow and ice too

[Mazdamender]

MX-5 Lazza said:

Great. Now get rid of the Dunlops - they are terrible tyres and will become even worse as the weather gets colder & wetter!

Edited by MX-5 Lazza on Tuesday 19th October 11:19

Agreed Hard rubber and last forever,but rubbish at winter time.

[skinny]

i'd compare your 14's with a decent set of 15's with good rubber first before you say the 14's are better

[Vidal Baboon]

skinny said:

i'd compare your 14's with a decent set of 15's with good rubber first before you say the 14's are better

Without taking levels of grip at maximum warp into consideration, the ride seems much more supple & less crashy. I won't be putting the 15s back on anyway as I prefer the original look, so I guess I'll never know

I believe they're inflated to 28psi BTW

[MX-5 Lazza]

My car on 17s with 205/40/17 tyres isn't crashy. It's all the right wheels matched to the right suspension & tyres at the right pressure. Mind you, the Mk2+ can handle bigger wheels than Mk1 but a Mk1 should be fine on 15s (or even 16s!).

Having said that, my ideal Mk1 would be white and run on 13" wheels