French Flame Thrower Posted August 25, 2004 Share Posted August 25, 2004 I know this is frequently but what are the best tyres in your opinion for road use both wet and dry and their life expectancy ? French Flame Thrower Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sue Dinnim Posted August 25, 2004 Share Posted August 25, 2004 You will get a more experienced answer in a minute no doubt but I have Yoko 032's on my 7. It is a 1.6KSS and they are great in the dry whilst you have to be a bit careful in the wet. I have not driven on 21's and some people like them. It will come down to how you want to drive in the wet, how often and your own personal preference. A slowly increasing number of photos here plus a shameless link to my company as I cannot do it from Blatchat Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
charlie_pank Posted August 25, 2004 Share Posted August 25, 2004 I love my 21s, might be tempted to try some 48s at some point though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alan L Posted August 25, 2004 Share Posted August 25, 2004 021's have been popular for many years but the 048's are gaining popularity. Personally I use A539's as my road tyre. Very cost effective at £40 each and fine for road use. Not much cop for the track where I use a set of 032's. It all depends on what you use your car for and what your road driving style is like. Alan and his Yellow and Green BDR. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robmar Posted August 25, 2004 Share Posted August 25, 2004 just to add another one to the debate cr500's not as good as the 32's in the dry but much better in the wet, more expensive than 32's but last longer (*2 in my expereince) they are much lighter than the yoko's however don't come in as many sizes rob Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frying Pan Posted August 25, 2004 Share Posted August 25, 2004 Rob slight hijack, but what sort of mileage are you getting from the CR500s? I've done almost 4000 road-only miles and they're lasting far better than I thought Well impressed with them - SO much grip 😬 Guy See some pictures of the build here. First 3000 miles completed! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eric Posted August 25, 2004 Share Posted August 25, 2004 Hi For road bridgestone RE720 very good same with yoko A539 Yoko 032 not a road tyre as dangerous when cold or in the wet O21 much more safer CR500 good for track and road but expensive and life shorter than bridgestone and yoko A539 just my opinion eric Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robmar Posted August 25, 2004 Share Posted August 25, 2004 I only seemed to get around 3-4K for yoko 32's with the cr500's I have done at least 6K with a couple of wet trackdays and sprints to boot eric - confused by your yoko 32 statements, is that personal experience or based on something else rob Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Support Team Shaun_E Posted August 25, 2004 Support Team Share Posted August 25, 2004 Eric's assessment is not bad although perhaps a little extreme regarding A032R as plenty of people do use them - you just need to be a bit more careful in the wet. You also now have the A048R - I switched to these from A021R (a good all round choice) and am very pleased as they are better than the A021R in the dry and almost as good in the wet. You will only get a few thousand road miles from the sticky Yokohama tyres (A0xxR) as they are pretty soft (some more so than others) but they do offer great grip and are good value compared with Avon CR500's. Caterham recommend the CR500 and they are much lighter than the Yokohamas. Seems that Bridgestone RE720 and Yokohama A539 will last well over 10,000 miles and possibly more, so they are good value but don't offer the extreme levels of grip that you get from the track tyres. Yellow SL #32 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frying Pan Posted August 25, 2004 Share Posted August 25, 2004 Angus (of Angus and Tessa fame) has a lot oof good stuff on his site about tyres - here Guy See some pictures of the build here. First 3000 miles completed! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sheds Moderator Posted August 25, 2004 Share Posted August 25, 2004 My vote is Bridge RE720, last well though have less grip than 032Rs. They are good in the wet and in the dry they start squealing a long time before they let go, so you get plenty of warning that you may be being a bit foolish. 032s are great in the dry but wear out visibly as you are driving along (I lost 1-2mm in a 600mile weekend, most of it on the A1) and they are very skaty in cold damp conditions. RE720 are c. £35each in 13". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bat flattery Posted August 25, 2004 Share Posted August 25, 2004 Anyone out there care to comment on or compare performance of Caterham standard issue Avon ZV1 with above tyres for road use? Had these tyres on since build (3500 miles ago) and wondering if it is worth changing to Bridgestone/Yoko before the ZV1's wear out - which looks like being many miles away at the moment! Peter Red Roadsport SV FP53FHB Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dino ferrana Posted August 25, 2004 Share Posted August 25, 2004 ZV1s are one of the hardest tyres you can get on a seven. I think the tyre itself is largely made of stone which takes decades to erode! Seriously they are a really hard CR500s or similar are MUCH grippier but will last a shorter time. You really can't experience the legendary grip of the Caterham particularly well with ZV1s Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bat flattery Posted August 25, 2004 Share Posted August 25, 2004 So do you reckon that the Avon ZV1's are even harder / less grippy than Bridgestone RE720's and Yoko A539's ?? If so, then sounds like it's time to get the check book out Peter Red Roadsport SV FP53FHB Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sue Dinnim Posted August 25, 2004 Share Posted August 25, 2004 I think the general concensus of opinion is that ZV1's will last longer than the 7. A slowly increasing number of photos here plus a shameless link to my company as I cannot do it from Blatchat Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Badger Bill Posted August 25, 2004 Share Posted August 25, 2004 A539's are grim, unless you have some weight to push them onto the road with. Had 'em on for about 10,000miles and they are nowhere near worn. I would not recommend them for my weight/power of car (425/130). Try the 21's or 48's, but not 539's. It is a waste of money. If the 48's are good enough for A&T after their road/track "testing" they are good enough for me. BB Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
French Flame Thrower Posted August 26, 2004 Author Share Posted August 26, 2004 Many thanks to you all for the inputs. I have tried 2 local suppliers here in france and they can only get me easily the 539's or the 21's. As it is really only road use on French D roads which do you think is the best. French Flame Thrower Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Graham Perry Posted August 26, 2004 Share Posted August 26, 2004 21's no doubt about it, unless you do lots of km's. The 21's might last 9-10,000km's in France, the 539's at least double that Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Badger Bill Posted August 26, 2004 Share Posted August 26, 2004 21's . The 539's are less a tyre, more an insurance claim in waiting BB Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eric Posted August 26, 2004 Share Posted August 26, 2004 To answer more precisely I have both RE 720 Bridgestone and 032 Yoko I keep the 032 for trackday which is a tyre suited to this use and the bridgestone for the road I do more than 5000 miles a year so the tyre wear factor is important and I prefer a less sticky tyre for the road as it is more fun 032 do not stick unless it is hot , so the problem is you can be trap by that on the road. 021 or CR500 are a good choice (friends point of view because I didn't try them) Tyre wear is twice the RE 720 I live in France and I have ordered the Bridgestone at Point S Comfort side : Bridgestone are softer Efficiency on the track : 032 is at home If it can help, but just my opinion eric Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
doclip Posted August 27, 2004 Share Posted August 27, 2004 Ive got new Goodyear F1 Eagles 15s on prisoners and they are a bag of pooh in the dry ,but amazing in the wet . 89 HPC BDR 170 bhp yellow / black cycle C6 BJL Blatting around Angus and Perthshire with a permanent grin # 27272 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TomB Posted August 27, 2004 Share Posted August 27, 2004 BB, I diagree with your assessment of the A539s. Ive had 2 sets which as road tyres I think are fine, although I dont have a very powerful 7 & a big wallet, which may explain my choice. Its a personal thing, I cant afford to replace my tyres every 5k miles (the milage I got out of my 21Rs) & I only do 1 track day a year in the novices group. I also do relatively high milage in my 7 (approx 10k/year) For me the A539s are a good compromise between grip & longevity. For the majority of road driving I am happy with them & would recomend them. We've probably confused poor Hugh now with a multitude of recomendations!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
david nelson Posted August 27, 2004 Share Posted August 27, 2004 I think it all depends on if you what a grippy tyre or a less grippy tyre. I would think about the roads you use, you say they are the D roads but not what area you are in. If the roads are not that twisty and more of the long sweeping type then a harder compond tyre should be fine, if your in the hills and have mega bends then go for the grippy ones. I have used cr500, 32r, 21s and some michelan (spelling)energy tyres. The cr500 are a good alrounder but if I was doing high milage then I would go for some Bridgestone 720. As a thought have anyone tried a soft compond winter tyre. good luck David Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jason Plato Posted August 27, 2004 Share Posted August 27, 2004 We generally use our cars for shortish trips and low milegae per annum - I'm talking less than 7500miles per year ? So why on earth would you want to comprimise the handling and grip of your caterham by fitting hard , gripless tyres such as Yoko 539 or bridgestones RE71's ? . Yes the softer tyres will cost your more , but dont we have these cars to enjoy them or are they an economical means of transport in some households ?? A grippy tyre such as a CR500 , 32R , 48R will add so much more to the enjoyment of your car . Also they will add dramatically to the safety as you will stop in about half the distance of the hard tyres - this is a major factor to consider !!. If you are concerned by the wet performance then dont be , try soem 21R's first , then when your confidence builds fit soem 48 or 32 R's , they are fine in the wet as long as you are sensible . Dave Lotus 7 Club Speed Champion 2003 South Wales Area Organiser C7 TOPhere Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve-B Posted August 27, 2004 Share Posted August 27, 2004 Hugh, you may want to take a look here at a very useful thread Steve B Big Black Beast^3 USA 2005: How the West Was Driven Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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