Elise tyres

[ablevins]

I am looking for new tyres for my 06 Elise 111R - I have the standard fit 175/55/16's at the front, and was aiming to upgrade to semi-slicks (for a mix of spirited road and track driving - in South Africa).

However, I am now of the opinion (having done some research) that I am up sh*t creek as far as tyre availability/range in 175/55/16 go.

I assume new wheels are the way forward. What is the common/ideal solution for this?

I'm assuming there are many members here who are running different wheel/tyre combinations!

Thanks.

[tertius]

I run the 240R drop forged wheels which are 16x7 and 17x8. Think they will be a direct fit for a Toyota engined car.

For track days I use Toyo R888 in (iirc) 195 at the front and 225 at the rear.

As a cheaper alternative Elise-parts do a nice reasonably light wheel in 16x7 and 17x8 at a good price - I just bought a set to use as second wheels.

[The Bandit]

Are you running uprated suspension i.e Nitrons or Quantums,different geo,uprated toe links?
If not then why bother with semi slicks and the grief getting the right sizes,just stick to standard AD07s(or Advans on an S1) they're good at everything.

[RobM77]

Personally I would stick to Lotus recommended tyres; the S2 even has a bespoke tyre designed for it (the front is narrower but softer so the light front end cuts through water, but still grips in the dry). In a car with such low power and high grip as standard I wouldn't have thought giving it even more grip would improve the driving experience. If you want a softer gripper tyre though don't Lotus fit the road version of the Yoko 48 to the Exige? As someone says above though, the suspension may not thank you for the additional lateral grip, and no doubt Lotus fit these tyres based around the different spring rates and geo of the Exige.

[ablevins]

I think you're right on balance. The additional expense, and the fact that I am running a standard car doesn't necessarily make sense... especially given that I'd need to import everything into South Africa.

Will get a hard top instead, and maybe a louder exhaust!

[RobM77]

ablevins said:

I think you're right on balance. The additional expense, and the fact that I am running a standard car doesn't necessarily make sense... especially given that I'd need to import everything into South Africa.

Will get a hard top instead, and maybe a louder exhaust!

I really like my hard top. You can feel a slight increase in weight, but the NVH drops noticeably and I know it must be my imagination, but I swear the car feels a tiny big stiffer too. The only downside of the hard top is you'll need to adjust your windows to prevent tiny gaps at the top which can cause leaks in heavy rain.

[cjm]

Do the bridgestone RE040 front tyres only come with the CFE dot code or do I need to specify that when I order a set? I would switch all four to AD07 but the rears have loads of tread left!