RL7 Tyre sizes

[jamieduff1981]

Hi folks,

I haven't taken delivery yet so apologies for asking a dim question. The answer isn't in the owner's manual I downloaded either as it's for the 16" wheels.

Can someone please tell me the tyre sizes to suit RL7s, front and back, the best load ratings and what pressures you run them at for road use?

The tyres on the one I'm getting will want replaced (fronts especially) so I'm trying to shop around prior to taking delivery.

Thanks in advance for your help (and patience!),

Jamie

[scotty_d]

I run 235/40/17 fronts and 245/40/17 rears good year f1's at 24psi all round

[gerradiuk]

Mine is on RL7's.

F 235/40 ZR17 22 psi

R 255/40 ZR17 24psi
Did have the 18" Spiders found them a bit heavy & not a great ride .

[jamieduff1981]

Thanks for that. It's got Goodyears on at the moment. I'm struggling to find 255s at the moment though. Everyone online seems to only have Goodyear Efficient Grip or something like that. Who cares about fuel economy? I want to stick to the sodding road! I'll have to consider alternatives. Mismatched tyre makes/models is a bit of a pet hate of mine unless it's an engineered system of directionals and assymetrics or similar. Trouble is there aren't many brands I rate in general and most of my favourites work well on heavy cars and I'm guessing a Cerbera will prefer a softer compound than the tanks I'm used to!

[Keithyboy]

Have you considered Falken 452's? I drove on several sets over several 000's of miles and found them excellent overall There's many threads on here discussing tyre options.

[jamieduff1981]

I hadn't - not for any particular reason other than that I've never used them before and normally stick to what I know. Thank you for the suggestion though and I'll research them now.

I'm not especially interested in wear rates or noise, but I do like a tyre that's good in the wet, offers a progressive breakout at the limits of traction and is generally predictable and consistent throughout most of it's tread depth.

If I just fork out for a set of SP12s it would seem my options are virtually endless. I guess there's not much demand for performance tyres for 17" wheels these days as the only cars using 17" wheels these days are euroboxes and MaxPower superminis with a tailpipe for all four cylinders poking out from under the ill-fitting bodykit.

[jamieduff1981]

I've been reading a real mixed bag of opinions on the Falkens. Some say "good tyre for the price" whereas others say the damp/wet performance tapers off rapidly as the tyre ages and wears.

Has anyone used Toyo R-1Rs? I don't think I want T-1Rs as I keep reading conflicting opinions about those too. As I said I'm not so much interested in price or wear rate for that matter and just want something that works well.

I won't be taking the car out in the pouring rain, but I may get caught in the rain. Damp roads however are as common as dry ones here so damp performance must be good.

Has anyone used Michelin PS2s on a Cerb?

[TA14]

jamieduff1981 said:

Has anyone used Toyo R-1Rs?

GT6k said:

I have Toyo R1R 235/40 front and 255/40 rear.

TVdinneR said:

According to the handbook, the original tyre size on the 4.2 rears were 245/45/16.
245/45/16 - diameter 626mm, rolling circ 1967mm - speedo reads 70 actual speed 70
245/35/18 - diameter 628mm, rolling circ 1973mm - speedo reads 70 actual speed 70.22
255/35/18 - diameter 636mm, rolling circ 1998mm - speedo reads 70 actual speed 71.11

245/40/17 is 628

How about the Goodyear F1 GS-D3? That's good in the wet.

[jamieduff1981]

Ah, and available in 245/40R17 as well on Mytyres.co.uk. Discontinued apparently though, but I can get Goodyear Eagle Assymetrics in 235/40R17 and 245/40R17 sizes.

Edited by jamieduff1981 on Thursday 3rd January 11:26

[scotty_d]

jamieduff1981 said:

Ah, and available in 245/40R17 as well on Mytyres.co.uk. Discontinued apparently though, but I can get Goodyear Eagle Assymetrics in 235/40R17 and 245/40R17 sizes.

Edited by jamieduff1981 on Thursday 3rd January 11:26

Exactly what i have on my 17's i have asymmetric 1 on mine in those sizes.

I run Asymmetric 2's on my spiders.

Try Tyre shopper as thats where i got mine from.

[jamieduff1981]

Thanks Scotty. That's probably me sold on those then. Do you find the balance ok with the 10mm difference front-to-rear? I can't see it changing anything drastically but if someone's running the exact same set up then no harm in asking!

[scotty_d]

I found the balance fine Jamie. I ran them on the road for a year but now use the spiders and keep the RL7's for the track. The do tram line a little with the 235's up front but not any worse than a standard cooper s on run flats lol.

[Bigadz]

Ahhh run flats, the devils tyre! Mate of mine had one go Christmas Eve on his Beemer, cost him about £280 on a 17 inch rim!

[grahamn]

Second vote for the Faulken 452s, never had a problem with them in either dry or wet roads on new or old tyres.

[GT6k]

Yes I have R1Rs they seem pretty good, worth a couple of seconds a lap against my old t1R) and don't seem to have any significant wear after 3000miles and a few sprints. 235s on the front seem to adequately protects the rims whereas the 225s I had on the R18 spiders didn't cover the rims and they seemed to get scratched about once a month.

If you buy R1Rs (or R888s) then make sure you get the discount code from the TVRCC its worth 20% plus free delivery at Camskill (or about 2x the TVRCC annual subscription to put it another way).

[jamieduff1981]

Thanks for that. I was subscribed to TVRCC by my wife and daughters for Christmas. 20% off will be a big saving! Are you using 255s or the rear?

[jamieduff1981]

Thanks for that. I was subscribed to TVRCC by my wife and daughters for Christmas. 20% off will be a big saving! Are you using 255s or the rear?

[GT6k]

Yes 255 rears.

[Mr Cerbera]

I highly rate the Toyo T-1Rs but, from the way you describe your intended usage, would recommend 888s (from other people's reports, not my own experience)

(BUT, I am a complete puff when it comes to tyre wear)

[grovest]

Hi, I run 255/40 17 and 235/40 17 on RL7s and had used T1Rs until recently. I read a review on Nokian Z G2s which looked pretty damn good so I decided to give them a try. I had always thought Nokian were a cheap far-eastern outfit but they are Finnish and my tyres say manufactured in Japan on the side wall.

Anyway, I fitted these to the rear and they are the best tyres I've had on any car and very reasonably priced. They are noticeably better than the Toyos which I had always rated as good for road tyres. I've found it hard to loose traction in the dry in 2nd whereas the T1Rs would relatively easily let go. I'm now thinking of putting ZG2s on the front too even though the Toyos still have a lot of tread left as like you, I'm cautious of mixing brands.

Have a read of these if you need some convincing...
http://www.tyrereviews.co.uk/Tyre/Nokian/Z-G2.htm
http://www.tyrereviews.co.uk/Article/2012-Autobild...
http://www.tyrereviews.co.uk/Article/2012-Auto-Bil...

What is even better they are £108 for rears and £82 for fronts from mytyres. My local tyre place fits them for £12/wheel so £428 for a full set is budget price for top rated tyres.