Best tyres on a Caterham are??

[SpeedFreakDave]

Hi guys,

What are the tyres of choice? Currently on Yoko A048s. Car to be used on track and some weekend blats on the road. Cheers!

[Shaun_E]

Alternatives are Toyo R888 and Kumho Ecsta V70.
R888 is nicer on the road as the sidewalls are a bit softer than the other 2 therefore rides better. For track use not much between A048R/R888/V70

[h_____]

Or CR500s? I guess it depends how you define best. I find 0048s excellent value for money. But CR500s make a great road, trackday tyre, combining reasonable dry grip, with good wet grip. 48s, not so hot in the wet, for sure!

[rubystone]

Dave, I am getting good reports on 888s and may try some myself when I wear my Cr500s out. I personally swear by R500s on the road. Go the whole hog and buy a set of slicks for trackdays (note to self - get up off arse and try to sort a Brands trackday with Dave)

[jeremyc]

rubystone said:

(note to self - get up off arse and try to sort a Brands trackday with Dave)

And invite Jeremy.

ACB10s are pretty good if you are going to spend most of your time on track; don't go looking for much wet grip though. Given that they're cross ply construction (like a lot of slicks) then you can use the same geo settings on road and track if you end up running slicks for track days.

[casbar]

Or you could run Yoko's, Cr500's or any other radials, then use Michelin Radial slicks and wets for track use, then you don't have to bother changing the de-dion ears.

Personally I use CR500's for road and slicks for track work

[Grimston Barr]

jeremyc said:

rubystone said:

(note to self - get up off arse and try to sort a Brands trackday with Dave)

And invite Jeremy.

Next Brands Hatch trackday (with Goldtrack) is Wednesday 25th June - full GP circuit.

Go on, you know you want to...!

[Shaun_E]

CR500s are excellent and IMHO the best road tyre for a Caterham but they are not the best on a dry track. I use them on trackdays and road but they do overheat more quickly than A048R. They are also a lot more expensive than the Yoko/Toyo/Kumho alternatives. I ran Toyo R888 soft as sprint tyres and found them pretty good driving to events as well as nice and sticky for the event. I have now switched to the Kumho Ecsta V70 soft which are even stickier but the sidewalls are stiffer leading to a marginally worse ride.

[rubystone]

jeremyc said:

And invite Jeremy.

Excellent - will do. Your car sorted now?

[rubystone]

casbar said:

Or you could run Yoko's, Cr500's or any other radials, then use Michelin Radial slicks and wets for track use, then you don't have to bother changing the de-dion ears.

Personally I use CR500's for road and slicks for track work

Yes, I do the same and I don't bother changing the ears for the slicks

[rubystone]

Shaun_E said:

I have now switched to the Kumho Ecsta V70 soft which are even stickier but the sidewalls are stiffer leading to a marginally worse ride.

I think I've got some new sets of these knocking a bout - what sort of money do they fetch out of interest?

[jeremyc]

rubystone said:

jeremyc said:

And invite Jeremy.

Excellent - will do. Your car sorted now?

[Bafty_Crastard]

CR500....Nothing different to what Caterham recommend them

Bafty

[Shaun_E]

New prices for Kumho Ecsta are £70 for 175/60R13, £80 for 215/50R13 and £90 for 235/45R13. Tthey come in hard, medium or soft compounds. Soft is great for sprints/hillclimbs and medium is good for track/road. Not sure hard has any relevance on a Caterham.

[rubystone]

Thanks Shaun

[SpeedFreakDave]

jeremyc said:

rubystone said:

(note to self - get up off arse and try to sort a Brands trackday with Dave)

And invite Jeremy.

[quote]

hi guys...sorry was away for the rest of Friday hence no replies.....

Are we doing brands then?????

I am off to Lydden this sat for a little cheeky warmup first go in the Cat!

[SpeedFreakDave]

What tyre pressures are you using for road and track? Does this mean I have to buy a foot pump.....whatever happened to the plug into the cigarette lighter option.....not many gadgets on this car of mine!!!

[Blatter]

Yoko A048's were great on my old car. Especially after running the standard Avon ZV1's for a few years. The grip was astounding in the dry; not so good in the wet though..........

[rubystone]

SpeedFreakDave said:

What tyre pressures are you using for road and track? Does this mean I have to buy a foot pump.....whatever happened to the plug into the cigarette lighter option.....not many gadgets on this car of mine!!!

I fnd 18 front and rear is just fine for road tyres and 21 hot front and rear for slicks. Of course, I'm no sure how that boat anchor of a Duratec you have in your car affects things

You can have a cigarette lighter fitted Dave, but yes,I manage with a humble footpump!

[OJ]

h said:

Or CR500s? I guess it depends how you define best. I find 0048s excellent value for money. But CR500s make a great road, trackday tyre, combining reasonable dry grip, with good wet grip. 48s, not so hot in the wet, for sure!

How would you know!... Having you been sneaking over to Roadsports with your instructor?

Edited by OJ on Monday 16th June 15:57