Better Road Tyres for the S2 Exige

The Oily Bits S2 Specific Topics
1

I have an S2 Exige that I use on the road only and was wondering if there was a better tyre option.

The AO48s are great but I just seem to burn through them, not to mention the number of punctures I have had in under 500 miles because they just seem to pic up all the crap off the roads.

I still need them to be a good performance tyre because I Like driving the car on mountain roads with hairpins. So I need them to be almost as good, but able to get 10,000 miles out of a set of rears, instead of burning through them in just under two weeks.

2

I would recommand Yokohama Neova AD07.

3

My S2 is used only on the road and when I collected it in mid winter I distrusted the A048s on ‘slick’ surfaces, full wet was not too bad.Not much grip but progressive. I fitted a set of Toyo Proxes T1R and have been very pleased with grip in all conditions. The set cost �300, plus �40 to fit/balance locally, from www.mytyres.com who are based in Glasgow but the tyres were delivered in 48 hours from Hamburg(!)

4

07’s are to thin for exige wheels
and toyo’s are to soft on the side walls

Ao39 are the best but expensive �800

there is a gap in the market for exige road tyres :frowning:

5

I dont know if you can get them in Exige sizes but i have always rated the Yoko AVS Sport as a good all weather road tyre… They last about 8k on the Audi (4wd ,400 bhp) so you should easily get 10k out of them on the Lotus if you can get them in the right sizes.

6

if you can get them in the right sizes.

weight, or the lack of it in the case of the exige may well be more of a limiting factor

7

I’ve found Toyo T1-R’s to be great, especially in Winter. The sidewalls are not too soft for general road use. And in the dry they let go more progressively than AO48’s.

8

Does anyone have any experience with these P-Zeros pictured below?

[image]http://campbellbaker.homeip.net/stuff/Photos/zero1.jpg[/image]

[image]http://campbellbaker.homeip.net/stuff/Photos/zero2.jpg[/image]

David

9

I’ve had a set of T1-R’s on for 10k miles now and there is another 5k left in them. I’ll be honest, the first few hundred miles are scary as the side walls feel very soft and cornering hard is a big no no. I did 500 miles then did several laps at the ring in September and the feel is more progressive than the 48’s. I wouldn’t recommend track days with T1-R’s unless its wet. For road use they are very good value for money - my car felt planted in a rain storm last week on the M25 and at no point have I ever felt scared driving in very wet conditions.

I’m planning on switching back to 48’s mid March so that I can corner on rails again at track days.

10

Plans Motorsport have prepared a car for an international sports car race driver of considerable repute.

After trying different options on our track - back-to-back - we ended up with Goodyear F1’s on his car. A better “sensible” option to the 48’s for the winter and they last longer. If i could work out how to post pictures I would put them up! Call Plans for more details.

11

I’m been running the Goodyear F1’s as my road tyres, I save my 48’s for the track. They don’t grip like the 48’s but for ‘sensible’ road driving they have been fine so far…

12

i use Michelin sport, superb for normal road use! and very very good in the wet

[image]http://i64.photobucket.com/albums/h164/trance-raver/Image016.jpg[/image]

13

Trance

What size are the fronts, & which specific “model” are they, please?

14

i am very happy with my A048s. they are quite frankly unstickable in the dry (once run in ~250miles), in a drizzle I have learnt the limit, in the pouring rain (pooling water) i either slow right down <30mph or pull over!

it always brings a smile to my face when cornering at proper speed, on dry, smooth asphalt i.e. new roads - quite astounding how much grip they give.

rears have never lasted more than 6k which i’ll admit is a bit of a bummer, the fronts on my previous Exige were still going strong at 13k.

15

Trance

What size are the fronts, & which specific “model” are they, please?

sorry cant tell you pesky, the bloody car is still at lotus with the electrical problem! as for the front tyres i still have the advans on (yes i know not to mix and mach) but they are due to be changed in the next 3-4 weeks! when i get the car back i will post the exact model number

16

Trance

Would appreciate knowing the Michelin “model” - ta. Had assumed you had them on the front too, so wondered whether they made them in the the normal 195/50/16 size or not.

17

rob, i think Ollie at phoenix once tried to get some in the same size (195,50,16) and could not… but i am not sure? i will ring him tomorrow to find out

18

what are the Goodyear F1’s as you cannot get them 195/50/16

19

… i will ring him tomorrow to find out

No need to do that, thanks anyway Trance. I won’t need any new tyres for a good few months, & I was just thinking about alternatives for next winter!

20

For street tires I use Michelin Pilot Exalto PE2. Great all around tire, quiet, great in the wet, and rides really well. Preditable break away, and good when they are cold.