Dunlop R Tyres

The Oily Bits S1 Specific Topics
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DudesI was lucky enough to get invited to a private track day at Goodwood today (no, I wasn’t serving sandwiches) Couple of serious lads there with 200 bhp race spec Elises.They have Dunlop R tyres - basically, semi slicks at almost half the price of A039R’s, and they come in the right size for Exiges.They’re road legal, sticky, yet last.They were also pretty good, although not ideal, in the wet.I wondered if anybody had come across them?

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quote:Originally posted by miketurn:They’re road legal, sticky, yet last.How long? Longer than A039s?Ian [image]http://www.exiges.com/ubb/NonCGI/images/icons/smile.gif[/image]

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Good point Ian.At 14500 miles, I’m now just on my third set of rears, & my fronts are still okay. [can you believe that, Mr Gravestock???] [image]http://www.exiges.com/ubb/NonCGI/images/icons/grin.gif[/image] At the end of the day, tyre wear all depends on your type of driving i.e road/track use. With regards to the latter, it appears that they will last a great deal less on an “airfield day”, compared to a “circuit day” - just ask Mr Admin [image]http://www.exiges.com/ubb/NonCGI/images/icons/wink.gif[/image]Taking all factors into account, I am very impressed with the A039s, but I am of course still trying to bring my own capabilities up to anything like those of the car. It’s damn good fun whilst I learning, though. [image]http://www.exiges.com/ubb/NonCGI/images/icons/wink.gif[/image]

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[QUOTE]Originally posted by Pesky:Good point Ian.At 14500 miles, I’m now just on my third set of rears, & my fronts are still okay. [can you believe that, Mr Gravestock???] [image]http://www.exiges.com/ubb/NonCGI/images/icons/grin.gif[/image] That was then!Your a very different Pesky now! me thinks.Bet you, your next 14500 miles wont render the same result.Trevor.

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Ian I’ve got a friend at Dunlop (I know is hard too believe) He’s trying to get my out on the type R,s. The good thing about them is they are road legal & you can drive to the circuit on them for a dry day (crap for a wet day) Do you know if they offer more grip than our Yoko’s?. I guess the Elise drivers you mentioned have now first hand experience of the 39’s. Can someone provide the answer?Trevor

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I am hopefully having these fitted at the moment for racing. There are several different compounds of Formula R, so you need to decide which ones you want, and up until this year they have not been available in the correct size.My advice would be to wait (if you can) for the new Yoko AO48, which have been signed off by Lotus, although I don’t think the order has yet been made. They are supposed to be rather ‘special’. (The non Lotus LMP cars in the Autobytel were running Formula Rs which was rather embarrasing for both Lotus,and Yokohama who co sponsored the series)I know one of the guys only managed to get through 2 sets of the Formula Rs in a full racing season including road use.

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Apparently, these Dunlop R’s last a good while - he’s done 6 races, driven there and back and they’ve still got good tread on.They do, however, pick up rubbish from the road and are probably prone to punctures.Full set costs �480 though.As you say, reckon the A048’s will be the ones to go for.

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quote:Originally posted by miketurn:Full set costs �480 though.Presumably by “full set” you mean something other than a full set??Ian [image]http://www.exiges.com/ubb/NonCGI/images/icons/confused.gif[/image][This message has been edited by IPJ (edited 01 March 2002).]

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Full set ie 2 x front and 2 x rear is �480 as opposed to the A039r’s at �700-780 per set.

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Full set ie 2 x front and 2 x rear is �480 as opposed to the A039r’s at �700-780 per set.Not a huge difference in price but I would like to know more about their road performance/longevity.

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Have had Yoko AO32R fitted in the right sizes - stick better than AO39, although i have not really had enough heat in them yet to get a lot of feedback from them. �550 + VAT, but I am sure you can get them cheaper elsewhere…Cheers

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I think the ‘designed by Lotus’ thing i sbull**** Mark - they are available for other cars before they are available for Lotus - they are not a Lotus only tyre. They may however have a Lotus only compound.

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Owen,The LTS bit tends to mean they use a different constuction, more than compound. This is due to the Lotus being much lighter than the more usual vehicles that use them…or this is the speil I’ve believed from Dave Minter!CheersChris

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Went to Nick Whale in B’ham on Saturday to have new 39R’s put on.�715-00 incl VAT and full fitting. If this isn’t the normal sort of price, I don’t want to know!They are, however, f friendly punters up there and even did a top job of cleaning the car!Reinstalled my faith after it was SMASHED against the ROCKS by those ‘people’ at B&C.Whatever goes around, comes around…My wife says I’m well sad and should chill out and relax…

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Blimey! The �700 deal I’m getting for a set of new tyres and wheels looks very good indeed then!

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ChrisJapparently (and I dont know for sure) but an example of ‘special Lotus’ tyres are the Bridgestones for the Elise S2. They have a different name, and are apparently a special Lotus compound. However somebody has had them analysed and found they are exactly the same compound as the ones from Bridgestone you can buy anywhere for one third of the price.Marketing bull to extract more from owners apparently. Again cant confirm this from first hand experience though.Owen

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Hi Mike,I’ve tried a set of Dunlop D01J’s (from the “R” range) on my Impreza and can report the following…They’re constructed like proper slicks but have a moulded tread pattern with enough groove area to pass as street-legal. They are much heavier than say Bridgestone S02s in the same size, carry more rubber around the tread area and seem “oversize” when brand new.They also have very square shoulders, and I had to crank up my LEDA adjustable kit to stop them touching the wheel arch liners when the car was on full lean on the track. Given the problems you folks seem to have with contact between tyres and arches, this might be something to think about.As road tyres they are uncompromisingly hard and so noisy that I wondered what the hell was wrong until I twigged that the massive grooves were making a thrumming noise against the tarmac. I haven’t driven very far on the road with them (just to and from the track) but I have it on good authority that they don’t last very long if you do.They have a soft compound compared to a road tyre and provide oodles of grip on a dry track – not as much as a full slick but heaps better than even the best normal road tyres. Looking at the tread pattern I wouldn’t fancy taking too many chances with them in the wet, but I haven’t tried. In the dry they last very well on the circuit, I can got three track days out of a set with a bit of swapping and changing, and could potentially get more if I got them re-cut. There seems to be sufficient thickness of rubber round the outsides of them, but I’m not sure whether they would then still be road legal. Anyway, it sounds about right that on a vehicle that weighs about half what my Scooby does you could get a good five or six days out of them.It’s an interesting anomaly that they’re soft yet last so well on the track. I think the reason is that there are only a few massive grooves, dividing very large tread blocks. Driving on the limit, most of the rubber loss occurs at the edges of the tread blocks, so even with the soft compound they stand up well to track abuse. However, day-to-day driving eats into them very quickly, and you won’t get much over 5000 miles out of them.In conclusion, I would say that these are worthwhile for track use but don’t be under any illusions, they’re a completely different kettle of fish to a normal road tyre. I have struggled to get a viable “compromise setup” for the Impreza that will control the extra unsprung weight and body-roll (due to the extra cornering grip) while remaining livable with the Bridgestones. I would basically choose different spring rates and lengths for the two tyre types, which isn’t practical for my purposes. My solution to all this is to persuade myself I need an Exige that I can just leave in trackday/Sunday-blat trim! Now where did I leave that chequebook…?Regards,-= mike =-

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The following site has an image that shows the D01J tread pattern: http://tyre.dunlop.co.jp/tyre/lineup/sport/

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Dudes!Rumour has it the A048R’s come out in June…Anyone know any more?

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MikeMy car is back at the dealers tomorrow, to have the aircon fixed. I’ll get them to give the factory a ring to see if there is any news on delivery of the A048s - & I might let you know the answer [image]http://www.exiges.com/ubb/NonCGI/images/icons/wink.gif[/image]