Tyres.....Toyo Proxes

General General Lotus Talk
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Browsing through my copy of the Lotus Life mag, and there is a page at the back about Tim Stevens and his Exige where he won 21 of the 23 CCC races (B5 class)What caught my eye was that Tim was racing with Toyo Proxes which “served him extremely well in both wet and dry conditions” and "he could really push the Exige that extra bit further to take the edge"So has anyone tried these tyres yet ? or heard any reports on them ?CheersPhil

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PhilThis won’t really help, but you may find it of interest. Tim’s car was featured in Car & Car Conversions earlier this year (June or July i think). Whilst Toyos make the same size rears, the standard Exige Yoko fronts are peculiar to Yoko only. IIRC, Tim was running 205/16 Toyos on the front, compared to the Yoko 195/16.In the past I have replaced Bridgestones with the Toyos on my previous cars - Evo 6 & an Impreza. There was a noticable improvement in wet grip. However, I appreciate that this will have little or no relevance when thinking about fitting them to an Exige.An obvious advantage of the Toyos would be the increased tread depth, thus prolonging usage, but I’d be surprised if they weren’t made of a harder compound to the Yokos, therfore perhaps not being as grippy in the dry!

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Thanks Pesky, Checking on the site, i see they are now available in 195/50 profile, as i spend most of time on the road and traveling on straight line, i’m looking for something that is cheaper and will last longer !!..Track days ?..well i’ll just nick the wheels off the missus !! [image]http://www.exiges.com/ubb/NonCGI/images/icons/wink.gif[/image]

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Cheers Phil.So, when do you expect to try the Toyos? I due to change all 4 tyres in next month or so & would be interested to hear how you get on [image]http://www.exiges.com/ubb/NonCGI/images/icons/grin.gif[/image]PS Next Christmas, each of your kids could buy a tyre, so both you & missus have a new set [image]http://www.exiges.com/ubb/NonCGI/images/icons/wink.gif[/image]Toyo’s link http://www.toyo.co.uk/index2.html

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hmmm, not to sure when i’ll change them, pretty soon i think, the rears are being to slide around a bit and the fronts also dont seem to be that grippy anymore, it could be due to the shape of the tyres, as i said, driving mainly on straight roads and no throwing it around corners…shame [image]http://www.exiges.com/ubb/NonCGI/images/icons/frown.gif[/image]I’ll ring around next year, and get some prices…

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Yes I also read the Lotus Life article re: Toyos & was set to thinking, why should he prefer them for competion use?. A possible conclusion could be the Sprint & Hillclimb events he’s doing, don’t get the Yoko’s hot early enough to get them in the sweet spot.Maybe the Toyo’s give a better cold grip, very important for a good time at this type of event.Only a thought, hope he gives us the answer I’m sure most of us would like the info.

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quote:Originally posted by trevor:Yes I also read the Lotus Life article re: Toyos & was set to thinking, why should he prefer them for competion use?It is probable that due to the class he wanted to enter A039s were not on the approved list.BTW if anyone is after cheap tyres Jonny at Bookatrack.com has some part worn A039s available. I overheard him chatting to John Cunningham at Anglesey today. ;-)John C - I’ll be uploading footage of your Exige later today - keep an eye on Jimbocam.com

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Hi. I race on many brands of tyres, including the Toyos. Are you referring to the Proxes RA1 motorsports tyres? If so, I have tons of opinions about them if you would care to hear them.

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quote:Originally posted by randychase:Hi. I race on many brands of tyres, including the Toyos. Are you referring to the Proxes RA1 motorsports tyres? If so, I have tons of opinions about them if you would care to hear them.I think its the Proxes T1-S we’re talking about? As per the website above.Is the RA1 UK road legal rubber?Opinions always welcome (its why we’re here), even if it’s just about the brand (eg. I’ve never had a good set of Dunlops…no, really I haven’t!)Ian [image]http://www.exiges.com/ubb/NonCGI/images/icons/smile.gif[/image]ps. If I get a chance I’ll call Micheldever tomorrow…er, make that later today…and see how much they sell the T1-Ss for in our sizes.

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I have just noticed their speed rating is not as high as the Yoko’s!No going over 149.1mph on the Toyos!!! Well, on the fronts. The rears are good for 167.8mph which should allow for a little top end wheel spin!So watch out for a trailing wind or if somebody accidentally drops a supercharger in your engine bay! [which reminds me, got any performance stats yet on your blown beast Mr Admin?]You will however be pleased to know the loading should be okay. You can carry two 700kg people with the T1-Ss fitted - phew!Right, time to pass the baby watch baton over to Mrs G - good nightIan [image]http://www.exiges.com/ubb/NonCGI/images/icons/smile.gif[/image][This message has been edited by IDG (edited 31 December 2001).]

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I’ve met Tim a few times, and confirm the reason he uses Toyos is that the AO39s are not included in the permitted tyres lists for the class that he enters.Cheers

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Thanks Jimbo I think I will take some of the tyres from Johny but I dont think they will be any use for the road only track (not enough tread)JohnCAnybody managed to source another set of wheels for the ExigeJohnC

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quote:Originally posted by JohnC:Anybody managed to source another set of wheels for the ExigeJohnCMr Admin has a lovely set of black mag Speedline Corses. I’m saving up for a set! Half the weight and the exact dimensions.Checkout this link. You can see them in the second pic and there’s a pic (in white) of one further down. http://www.exiges.com/ubb/NonCGI/Forum1/HTML/000447.html Ian [image]http://www.exiges.com/ubb/NonCGI/images/icons/grin.gif[/image]

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I’ve had Toyos on for 6 months+ and I cannot wait for them to wear down so I can go back to Yokos. They might be half the price but they are dangerous!Tim

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quote:Originally posted by B7SHY:I’ve had Toyos on for 6 months+ and I cannot wait for them to wear down so I can go back to Yokos. They might be half the price but they are dangerous!TimHmm, interesting!Be careful Tim, as Logic will tell you it’s not worth dying over!

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quote:Originally posted by B7SHY:…Toyos…dangerous!Wet or dry?

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It looks like Yokos are offering a new option for Exige tire sizesThe new 048R tire is going to be Lotus only for part of the year. Then later this year will become generally available in the difficult to find size 195/50x16, as well as 225/45x17. I am not sure when this is due to happen, but was advised by Yoko to keep in touch.The tire has again been developed with Lotus (for the 190 S2 Elise), and looks a little like the 038R on the 340R.I think my next set will be 039R, but I will check out the 048R option after that. This is the info I found out from the Yoko/Lotus stand this Saturday. Just hope it comes true. Chris.

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In the dry… dangerous (if you drive like you are on Yokos)In the wet… Its like driving on the Rims! Fun though… but spun it on a very popular island in Leamington without even trying… F**** Dangerous and F***** embarrassing.

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Right, that’s cooked the Toyos for me! Anybody tried the Goodyears F1s yet? Otherwise I’m holding out for cheaper 39s.

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Just remembered - I seem to remember Tim got a very good deal for tyres from Toyo - hence him praising the only tyres that he was allowed to run in his class [image]http://www.exiges.com/ubb/NonCGI/images/icons/grin.gif[/image]