Wet weather. Not fun! :-(

[DuncanM]

Hi there,

I have been quite literally loving my Cerbera so far (bought in May).

Unfortunately due to doing shed loads of miles and being a bit slack in checking my rear tyres I ended up with cut slick SO2's on the back :O.

Great in the dry .

Almost threw up with the concentration it took to get me to work on Tuesday morning due to violently slick oily wet road surface and said slicks .

I have now put on some brand new SO3's all round.

I'm running the original 16's 225/45/16 and 245/45/16.

Driving home this morning, albeit I know tyres take a while to bed in (driving carefully). I am still having to concentrate so hard to keep the car on the road .

Please someone tell me these tyres will improve?

I've read very mixed reviews on the SO3's.

I have also softened the shocks up but hate the vague feel compared to how I had them.

The SO2's, when they had tread were excellent in the wet.

As an aside, is there a tool to adjust the settings on Nitrons as I had a nightmare with them today!

All in there's no point having this car if I can't find a good wet setup.

We live in England FFS!

Duncan

[Big_M]

Have you checked the tyre pressures? New tyres are often over inflated to make sure they 'set'. It is amazing how bad the handling can be if the tyres are not at the right pressures.

[DuncanM]

Checked them straight away!

They were at 30/front 32/rear.

Changed them straight away to 26 all round as recommended on here?

Duncan

[Big_M]

Hope it handles better than a greasy sausage in a frying pan on the way to work tomorrow.

[DuncanM]

Cheers .

At work now actually as I work nights.

Didn't enjpy the drive in as I just can't get on with the softer shock settings.

I think I'll have a chat to Joospeed tomorrow and ask for some advice.

I really hope the SO3's aren't lemons as if they are they're expensive lemons to boot!

Duncan

[simonsparrow]

Hi, I've got the same sized tyres (16" 45 profile). I've had a set of S03s and they were fine. However I've since put a set of Goodyear Eagle F1s on, and I much prefer them on the road. Seem much less prone to tramlining.

Haven't been on a track day with then yet, but I've heard they don't grip as well as the S03s.

The only real drawback with the 16" wheels is the limited range of 'Y' rated tyres.

[DuncanM]

Thanks for that Simon .

So the SO3's aren't that bad then?

Tramlining is an issue, especially in the wet.

Heard good things abou the F1's but couldn't get them for a while.
Duncan

[Tatlow]

I'm not being funny, but since I got my Nitrons put on at TVR Power last summer the car has been very well behaved in the wet (not to mention the difference in the dry!).

I haven't altered the set up since they were put on and I don't fiddle with the tyre pressures, which I THINK are 24 all round.

I automatically change my driving style from aggressive to passive when its wet and I don't really feel the car is ever about to leave the road. You can still give it a reasonable amount of welly in a straight line.

I'm not giving it the "my cars great in the wet" bit, but its not intimidating really. Maybe, as you say, the set-up needs adjusting to give you more confidence in the car?

[DuncanM]

Hi Tatlow,

Problem is that the car was excellent in the wet with the SO2's (when they had tread).

The issue has arisen recently and was orginally due to the worn SO2's and now with the new, not scrubbed in SO3's.

I don't ask to much of my car in the wet and drive passively as you have mentioned.

However my cars behaviour has had me fear taking it over 50mph in some cases .

I am sure I'll get it right, just a little shell shocked I guess because in the dry the car is outstanding and the best I have driven.

btw do you know what settings your shocks are on? And do you have a tool to adjust them if you wanted to?

Duncan

[Tatlow]

Hi Duncan,

I've had a mixed bag of tyres on my car in the past. Was chatting with a mate of mine today who has a Tuscan and he was asking me what tyres I use.

Slightly embarrassed, I admitted that, although I've got Toyo Proxes on the front, I'm running my second set of Fulda Carat's on the back (255/35/ZR18's).

I was looking for the usual tyres that are recommended on here and they were WELL expensive. I got the Fulda's for £200 a pair! Apparently, Fulda's are just German Dunlops so the quality is very good and they seem to last for ages. I can give them maximum hammer in the dry without lighting them up (other than in 1st gear).

Anyway, I digress. I haven't got an adjustment tool for my Nitrons and I wouldn't know where to start coz I'm not savvy when it comes to tinkering with cars. Similarly I don't know what the settings are - all I know is that Dom at TVR Power said he'd set them up for "best all-round driving".

Before I had the Nitrons fitted I was forever hunched over the wheel in the slow lane, tramlining all over the place. Now I'm quite happy over-taking in the wet with a progressive acceleration and cruising in the upper echelons of what is decent on the motorway, with no tramlining at all.

Jeez, I can tell I'm being no help at all here, sorry. I just feel you should be able to drive in a FAIRLY spirited fashion in wet weather without these problems.

I spose scrubbing the new SO3's might help a bit, I know that new tyres are a bit slippery. Maybe a different set-up with the Nitrons might help.

Perhaps the best thing would be to get Joolz to test drive the car and see what he thinks. He might know of a fix for it.

Anyway, good luck - I'll stop waffling now!

[NJW 77]

Duncan, put SO3s on my old Griff last year, changing from worn SO2s. I took the car back to the tyre fitters the next day as I was convinced they had up somewhere, the car was nigh on undriveable! They came good after about 500 miles and seemed as good as the SO2s, if not better :shrug:

Hang on in there mate , they should improve, only IMHO of course

Nick

[DuncanM]

Thanks Nick!

That's exactly what I was hoping someone might say .

I'll certainly hang on in there seeing as £440 has gone missing from my wallet for them .

Tatlow,

No worries mate, I know what you're trying to say and hopefully will be able to post the same soon (500milesfromnow).

Duncan

[j_s_g]

DuncanM said:

I have been quite literally loving my Cerbera so far (bought in May).

I'm not entirely sure that's legal. But that's another topic...

Would agree with the other post - it took my S03s on the Tuscan about 400 miles or so to "come good"... was quite scary until they improved. I'd suggest a long, leisurely drive down the motorway to see friends/family at the next available (dry) opportunity to run them in.

[whatever]

DuncanM said:

Checked them straight away! They were at 30/front 32/rear. Changed them straight away to 26 all round as recommended on here? Duncan

I'd have another look in your handbook, as I think 26 may still be a bit high. I'm sure mine says F22, R24 (though that is on the 17s)

[trooper1212]

I run Toyo Proxes all round at 26psi with Nitron supspension and have no problems during wet weather.

Had SO2s on the front and Eagle F1s on the back when I had Avo shocks and had a fair few moments during the wet...

[tannertime]

I'm with Tatlow & Trooper1212 - Nitrons have transformed the car's handling in the wet (as well as in the dry - oh)

I've also switched to Toyos (22psi fr & 24 rear) from Goodyear F1s - so far so good but only a few hundred miles in. By the by, my indie was saying that the SO3s are nowhere near as good at displacing water due to their tread pattern compared with the S02s/F1s/Toyos - no personal experience to back this up but thought it worth a mention.

>> Edited by tannertime on Friday 13th August 11:47

[njw 77]

tannertime said:

I'm with Tatlow & Trooper1212 - Nitrons have transformed the car's handling in the wet (as well as in the dry - oh) I've also switched to Toyos (22psi fr & 24 rear) from Goodyear F1s - so far so good but only a few hundred miles in. By the by, my indie was saying that the SO3s are nowhere near as good at displacing water due to their tread pattern compared with the S02s/F1s/Toyos - no personal experience to back this up but thought it worth a mention. >> Edited by tannertime on Friday 13th August 11:47

I have to confess that the Griff rarely went out in the wet, so my findings are really for dry weather driving, sorry for being such a girls blouse

[tannertime]

njw 77 said:

sorry for being such a girls blouse

Consider your blouse re-tailored into open-chested shirt due to your change in motor

[DuncanM]

Quick update .

I've set the shocks back to how I prefer them (stiff) and with that and the tyres slowly improving I think I'll be ok.

Bit concerned about the tyre pressure thing.

The only pressures being suggested on here were 26 all round when I searched :?.

Ah well, car feels nice at the moment .

Duncan

[pwig]

I still can't get over the fact you have a faster car than me!


Gutted