Assuming you leave the electronics on, do you feel nervous in the rain at all?

I drove my car home in a massive rain storm when I picked it up. it was fine, then again i didn't romp on it.

I think the car is one of the better handlers of rain, stock or no stock. I've gone through some thick stuff at decent speeds on the stock tires without even a hiccup.

I think they'll be great in the spring/summer when it rains... but they were lousy at cold, wet roads (temp in the 30's).

never had a problem in the rain, and it was pouring when I picked the car up from the dealer.

They are a heck of a lot better in the rain than they are in the snow (where they are lousy). I've had no trouble in the rain with them. I will also agree that their grip does fade as temps dip below the 30's F. At 15F or below, they skate around pretty easily on dry pavement until they get warmed up a bit. They are definitely warm weather performance tires.

Yep...When picking my car up from the dealer at night, in the pouring rain, I had no problems...other than the tires were filled to 45 PSI each (but that is another story).

Yes...warm is good with these tires.

Reminds me of the tune "Slip Slidin' Away" when it gets cold.

I think they're great in the rain - much better than the stock tires on the Prelude I used to have.

Seems to be a trend here, when I bought mine, it was pouring rain :D

We just went through a week of torrential rains here in central Texas. I never had any problems (only time I even saw the DSC idiot light was on my own unpaved driveway) at all even at 70 MPH.

I did take it easy off the line just to avoid any wheel slip.

My first long highway drive was in pouring rain. I was going between 70 and 80mph most of the time. The car felt completely stable, no indication of loss of traction or steering control.

BUT...

Remember, this was on new tires. I'd image that the RE040's would get much less wet weather traction as they wear. So, although an RX-8 on new stock tires seems to be good in the rain, I wouldn't count on that as your tires wear. Apologies if this is obvious!

Mine's a base -- no electronics at all. I've TRIED to break it loose in the wet (under controlled conditions) and have only succeeded in getting a one-foot hop when cornering fast WITH a slight clutch pop. This car is glued to the road, wet or dry.

Caveat: have not tested wet conditions below 30 deg. F.

I believe that the RX8 has the exact same tires as the Z, (Bridgestone Potenza RE040) and they're designated as summer tires. This is why they do not do well in snow/ice/rain.

Also, I've always wondered if the back tires of the 8 are wider than the front like the Z. Anyone know the sizes?

This year I had the stock tires siped at Discount Tire - since then much better in rain / on ice - still not like all seasons or winter - but better.

Next winter planning on 245/40-18 All Seasons - should be OK for central Indiana.

John

mine does great and it rains here all the time. i had mine siped just in case and have had no trouble. but i would not drive it if i knew we were going to have snow or frezzing rain or if it was if it was going to stay below freezing for the day.

it rained on the way home from the dealership for me too, weird!

Originally posted by Q121825
Seems to be a trend here, when I bought mine, it was pouring rain :D

We just went through a week of torrential rains here in central Texas. I never had any problems (only time I even saw the DSC idiot light was on my own unpaved driveway) at all even at 70 MPH.

I did take it easy off the line just to avoid any wheel slip.

The dsc light is not an idiot light. It is a very smart light light IMHO.

Originally posted by RX8_GT
This year I had the stock tires siped at Discount Tire - since then much better in rain / on ice - still not like all seasons or winter - but better.

Next winter planning on 245/40-18 All Seasons - should be OK for central Indiana.

John

What's considered a good High Performance All-Season in that size?

Here in germany itz normal and soon needed by law to put on wintertires, and all I can say bout it is that I really love my winter tires.
They saved my a*s a couple of times I was quiet to fast for the slippery road cond´s.
On rain I had a real nice ride with my 8 it got me home with out some sweat on my forehead:)
Besides now I got the winterrubber installed to the mazdarims so I got some nice winterrims and orderd some 18" chromerims for the summer cause I still got the mazdarubbers left.

I'm lookindg at the Sumitomo - at Tirerack for only $115. Has good rating all round. John

No problems in the rain but got them siped at Discout for better traction as they wear.

I got my stock tires siped - helped some - still big problems with any snow. John

Performance tires aren't meant for snow or low temps. The rubber gets too hard and rigid to react well in low temps and the grooves aren't cut properly to handle snow.

Rain is a different animal entirely. I'm not sure what kind of tires the stock RX8 is shod with but the Michelin Pilot Sports on my TT are amazing in the rain. Quattro doesn't hurt it either. But, when the temps drop or the snow falls, just forget about it. Nothing will ever make a great performance tire a great snow/cold tire. AND, there's nothing great about an all-season tire in any extreme. When you try to be the jack of all trades you have to sacrifice somewhere. Best bet with tires is to go with the appropriate tire for your driving habits, region of the country, and season.

In the northeast, a good performance tire for spring through fall and a snow (dunlop wintersport M2s) for the winter is my choice.

-Eric

WAS A BRIGHT SUNNY DAY WHEN I PICKED MINE UP! (July 21) Potenza RE-040s are same size front and rear. (225-45R-18 91W) Fine in rain.

Originally posted by zthang
I believe that the RX8 has the exact same tires as the Z, (Bridgestone Potenza RE040) and they're designated as summer tires. This is why they do not do well in snow/ice/rain.

Also, I've always wondered if the back tires of the 8 are wider than the front like the Z. Anyone know the sizes?

No, the RX-8 has the same size tires front and rear - 225/45-18 RE040s.

Also, just because a tire is classified as a summer performance tire doesn't mean it won't handle well in the wet. All it really means is that the tire won't perform well in the cold. Quite often, summer performance tires offer excellent performance in the rain, as long as the temps don't dip below 40 degrees or so. The only real concern is hydroplaning, and most summer performance tires have sufficient tread depth & pattern to keep this from being an issue.

For more thoughts on the RX-8 in the rain, go here:

http://www.rx8club.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=20889

George

I brought mine home in the rain as well, weird. You guys are starting to creep me out a little... I know my summer tires work well in the rain but when I wear mine out I think I will be replacing them with the Yokohama AVS Sports. Z rated of course. Next year I think I will go with the Dunlop M2's as well. I have the Dunlop Graspix on now and they did well but I would like to try the others out.

Originally posted by GeorgeH
No, the RX-8 has the same size tires front and rear - 225/45-18 RE040s.

Also, just because a tire is classified as a summer performance tire doesn't mean it won't handle well in the wet. All it really means is that the tire won't perform well in the cold. Quite often, summer performance tires offer excellent performance in the rain, as long as the temps don't dip below 40 degrees or so. The only real concern is hydroplaning, and most summer performance tires have sufficient tread depth & pattern to keep this from being an issue.

For more thoughts on the RX-8 in the rain, go here:

http://www.rx8club.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=20889

George

Thanks for the info...i agree you should be ok with these tires in the rain as long as you don't push it too much. However, I have taken my car into a LARGE empty parking lot right after it rained, and I got the tail to come out VERY easily that it surprised me. It was probably because of the torque, but it still surprised me. So be careful out there guys.

Yup - lots of torque + RWD + rain = power oversteer. Tire choice just isn't going to change this much - electronics is pretty much all you can do. The forced induction Miata crowd is well aquainted with this particular equation.

Well, I drove mine home from the dealership in that wet stuff too. Maybe it was the same rainstorm? Aug 6th? Hehe.

Mine usually stays in the garage since then, when its wet outside. In the times that I've let mother nature get it wet, it behaved well above average indeed. It was probably because of the very real 50/50 weight distribution and low polar moment of inertia dynamics at work. :p You can't fool mother nature (phisics).

Hydroplaning always has my attention maxed-out in the wet however. Until I can buy an optional rudder for my 8, I always modulate my speed in direct proportion to the potential for large areas of standing water up ahead. It's amazing around here anyway how many people drive faster and stupider during those times. I guess maybe they know it's the only time they have a chance to pass me. Ha!

Funny that people feel so sure-footed in rain on the OEM tires. The Top Gear review was glowing in every way, except the car's grip on wet roads...

Top Gear Review (http://homepage.ntlworld.com/andy.wray/topgear.wmv)

I've gone around 80mph on rain in the factory tires all the time. I'm very impressed with them. Its made me to confident. If temp starts droping its time to stay home.

Originally posted by ByeByeSaturn
What's considered a good High Performance All-Season in that size?

i asked one local dealer for the best performance tire with the best wet weather traction in the appropriate size and he said the

SO3's from bridgestone (http://http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires.jsp?tireMake=Bridgestone&tireModel=Potenza+S-03+Pole+Position&vehicleSearch=true&partnum=245YR8S03PP&fromCompare1=yes)