Avon Tyres Alternatives

[Mitch Foden-Clarke]

Hi all

    My Avon ZZS’ are going to need replacing soon and I am aware that NOVA Motorsport have taken over production of AVON tyres but I have tried my best to get in contact with them to no avail. 
 
 I have messaged them on their website and now they are on instagram I have also messaged them on there and I’ve even left comments on some of their instagram posts asking about ZZR/ZZS tyres for Caterham but I haven’t heard anything back. 

 Even if they just said we’re not going to be making them for a year or two at least I would know. Any response from them would be nice. 
 
 Does anyone else have any info or know if/when NOVA will start making tyres for Caterhams? 

 By the looks of their Instagram they are currently making slicks for single seater hillclimb cars. 

 As an alternative both Nankang AR1 and Toyo R888 come in an 185x60x13 for the front which is ideal but only 205x60x13 for the rear which is 10mm narrower on the width and both are 5mm higher in the side wall. 
 
 I should add that my current tyres are 185x55x13 front and 215x55x13 rear on a 620r
 
 I mainly drive on track hence looking toward the AR1 or R888 and I put some AR1’s on a Lotus Exige that I had and used to track a couple of years ago and they were very good. 

 Do you think 10mm narrower on the rear width will be okay? I’m not too concerned about the extra 5mm height on the side walls because it’s a minimal amount and the same on all these tyre options. 

 If I can’t get in touch with NOVA and they’re not producing ZZR/ZZS’ yet I like many other Caterham owners will have to find an alternative. 

 Any updates/news/info on NOVA would also be much appreciated. Ideally I’d love a fresh set of ZZR’s

 Thank you in advance for any replies 

Cheers Mitch 

[MattB]

185/60 means that the sidewall is 60% of the width, ie 111mm. A 185/55 tyre technically has a 102mm sidewall, so the difference between the Toyo and the Avon is nearer 9mm.

I appreciate that actual dimensions are often different to labelled dimensions (especially for track/race tyres), so that 9mm could actually be smaller or larger.

MattB

 

[Jonathan Kay]

1 hour ago, Mitch Foden-Clarke said:

Any updates/news/info on NOVA would also be much appreciated.

There's a bit of information in previous discussions but unfortunately it's scattered across multiple threads.

Jonathan

[Jonathan Kay]

1 hour ago, Mitch Foden-Clarke said:

 If I can’t get in touch with NOVA and they’re not producing ZZR/ZZS’ yet I like many other Caterham owners will have to find an alternative. 

All discussions of ZZR in the past year.

And of ZZS.

Jonathan

PS: It would be great if someone could write a summary of the alternatives, their specifications and Member's experiences.

[Mitch Foden-Clarke]

30 minutes ago, MattB said:

185/60 means that the sidewall is 60% of the width, ie 111mm. A 185/55 tyre technically has a 102mm sidewall, so the difference between the Toyo and the Avon is nearer 9mm.

I appreciate that actual dimensions are often different to labelled dimensions (especially for track/race tyres), so that 9mm could actually be smaller or larger.

MattB

 

Thanks Matt that is very interesting and I didn’t actually know that I just assumed it was the height in millimetres so I’ve learned something new today 👍 

That being said it means the AVONS side walls are as follows;

185x55 = 102 side wall

215x55 = 118 side wall 

 and both the AR1’s and the R888’s being the same are;

185x60 = 111 side wall (9mm more)

205x55 = 123 side wall (5mm more) 

 Hopefully I’ve gotten that correct but I’m certainly no tyre expert which I’m sure is obvious but the difference doesn’t seem too bad I’m just no 100% confident that they would be okay? 

[TomB]

I bought a pair of ZZS 185/55/13 from Caterham yesterday.  Call them, don't rely on the webshop they have a small stash.   

[Mitch Foden-Clarke]

35 minutes ago, Jonathan Kay said:

There's a bit of information in previous discussions but unfortunately it's scattered across multiple threads.

Jonathan

Thank you Jonathan I will have a read through. I assume many owners are in a similar predicament….  

[Jonathan Kay]

I think so. Looks like a great opportunity for climbing the learning curve together..

Jonathan

[Mitch Foden-Clarke]

28 minutes ago, TomB said:

I bought a pair of ZZS 185/55/13 from Caterham yesterday.  Call them, don't rely on the webshop they have a small stash.   

Thanks for the advice Tom I will give them a call 😁

[MattB]

5 hours ago, Mitch Foden-Clarke said:

Hopefully I’ve gotten that correct but I’m certainly no tyre expert which I’m sure is obvious but the difference doesn’t seem too bad I’m just no 100% confident that they would be okay? 

If the dimensions really matter (eg if you’re worried about a 185/60 tyre fitting under the wheel arch) the best thing to do is check the details on the manufacturer’s website.

I had 3 sets of wheels/tyres for my last car (road/winter/track), all supposedly 215/45/17s. They differed significantly in width and diameter.

MattB

[Mitch Foden-Clarke]

17 hours ago, MattB said:

If the dimensions really matter (eg if you’re worried about a 185/60 tyre fitting under the wheel arch) the best thing to do is check the details on the manufacturer’s website.

I had 3 sets of wheels/tyres for my last car (road/winter/track), all supposedly 215/45/17s. They differed significantly in width and diameter.

MattB

Thanks mate. The 13’s have miles of room around them in the rear arches but the fronts as you mentioned could be getting close with these other tyre options and become an issue….. It’ll probably get to the point where I have to just go for it and see what happens? Think I’d go with the AR1’s when that day comes so fingers crossed it works. 

 It’s so frustrating though I wish either NOVA or Caterham would take on production of these tyres. You’d think there would be enough demand to make it worth while but obviously not……. 

[ScottR400D]

8 minutes ago, Mitch Foden-Clarke said:

Thanks mate. The 13’s have miles of room around them in the rear arches but the fronts as you mentioned could be getting close with these other tyre options and become an issue….. It’ll probably get to the point where I have to just go for it and see what happens? Think I’d go with the AR1’s when that day comes so fingers crossed it works. 

 It’s so frustrating though I wish either NOVA or Caterham would take on production of these tyres. You’d think there would be enough demand to make it worth while but obviously not……. 

Not sure I’d want Caterham to be making tyres!! 
 

 

[Stu Smith]

This might help in comparing tyre sizes 

https://tiresize.com/comparison/

[Mitch Foden-Clarke]

On 08/06/2024 at 12:15, Stu Smith said:

This might help in comparing tyre sizes 

https://tiresize.com/comparison/

Thanks Stu it very very helpful inputting different options into the tyre size comparison calculator 👍