Footman

iTrader: (2)

I'm at about 65000km. I have 2 sets of tires, summer and winters since 2007 December. So I'd say the split is somewhere around 35000km on summers, and 30000km on winters.

I put the summers back on recently (OEM Dunlop SP Sport 8090), they look like they have tread on them still okay, but driving it is another story. I'm losing traction very often on any moderately aggressive left or right turn, even when it's 18 degrees outside and the tires have warmed up.

Could the compound be getting old/hard? Is it time for new tires or am I experiencing some other problem? My traction control system kicks in all the time. Sometimes on a straight launch (not clutch dropping at 4k), but just a regular launch but going all the way to redline, I start to lose grip even in a straightline after 5500 rpm (right at the max torque).

boffam

iTrader: (1)

Did someone switch your 8 for a Mustang when you weren't looking?

Assuming even wear, grip shouldn't be compromised just because the tread is less deep. And the tires are not that old.

I would ask: is the treadwear even? How did you store the tires? How are your pressures?

Footman

iTrader: (2)

Tires are stored indoors away from sun, so it's pretty much kept at a constant 20 - 24 degree temp in storage bags.

Pressures are set at stock 32 psi.

Treadwear is even.

There is no way my car is more torque-ier than when it was new
It's like I have mustang torque now every corner!

boffam

iTrader: (1)

Maybe you are anticipating a quantum leap in grip from taking off the snows, and are hence driving more aggressively.

Interestingly, my snows (Hankook Icebears in 225/17R50) seem to have a lot more rubber on the road than did the original 225 section RE040 pieces of ****. So I didn't get back as much grip in the spring as I had hoped. Now I have 245 section Kumho SPT's and they are a lot grippier than the RE's (and the snows).

Neo

Footman,

Have you taken any pics of the rubber in question? Let us take a look.
There is a fine line where the rubber "looks" alright, and then you realize they might need changing.

What's the build date on them?

I know the Dunlops tend to lose their grip as they get closer to the wear bar. Even by nature, I rarely seen any Dunlop tires give the same amount of grip or longevity as the competition from Bridgestone or Michelin.

I know on the Miata the OEM RE050A's are starting to look really thin. Thankfully they still have a fair amount of grip left on them. You'll start to notice a big change when you first attempt to stop in the rain.
That was my obvious indication when I had the Mazda3 still. I ran the OEM rubber till about 58-60K. I attempted to stop in the rain from fairly high speed (about 110km/h on a 80km/h zone) and the car tended to skid a bit.
Thankfully the 3 was a GS version and the only thing it had was the ABS system. I quickly started to pay very close attention to my speed and how much pressure I can apply before it started to skid on me again.
I think 2 days later I was on new rubber.
When I took the tires off, it was obvious I needed new rubber. You could barely make out the rubber had tread. By no means was it bald. The wear bars have become a part of the actual tread of the tire. Kinda scary.

I watch my rubber like a hawk now. I'm keeping a very close eye on the rubber on the Miata. I think I can get away driving it for this season. But I'm sure near the end I might have to get new rubber.

Footman

iTrader: (2)

I will take some pics and post... though I have to admit that, I drive much more aggressive than when I was a manual noob.

nate340

not sure if this applies or not since i'm out in the country and we still have a lot of fine sand on the road and its pretty easy to light the tires up in 2nd gear, it’s kind of fun having the illusion of power.

eMpTy265

The roads in Toronto are also pretty bad, especially Hwy 7 and Steeles.

Do the tires slide just on just acceleration in a straight line / out of corners? Any under-steer at all during braking / corner approach?
(I've noticed that the crappy road condition / grip+sand is causing the rear to be really twitchy...)



oh BTW, here's the website for checking the DOT markings for quick reference:

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tirete....jsp?techid=11


BTW #2, isn't 65K already pretty good for the stock tires?

Footman

iTrader: (2)

I didn't drive 65k on those tires alone.. like I said, I have a set of summer and winters. I estimate the summers have about only 35000 km on them.

The car oversteers easily. On any left hand turn at an intersection, I can no longer go full throttle from rest position and finish the turn without breaking traction

Essentially, by the time I am about 75% completed on the turn, in 1st gear, I'd be about 6000 - 7000 rpm... traction is lost.. TOO MUCH POWER LOL!!

Chris_Bangle

iTrader: (2)

I drove 50k on my original tires (dunlop) with several track days on them. Neo is spot on with respect to how the Dunlops behave / look.
It really depends on what your goal is. You can probably have them on for another 20k (if tire pressures, alignment are ok) or you can go out and buy a nice set of Bridgestones or Michelin if you want more grip.

P.S.

Why keep the traction control on ?

REV-illusions

iTrader: (3)

Welp.. Even though you don't track, if you drive agressively enough, over the course of time the tires will build up a resistance and it takes a longer duration to get the grip you're looking for. After all my track days it takes a good 15min of tracking before I have grip again. So.. Could just be that. Besides, you should be able to get your *** to kick out in first through a corner sir. The car might not have gobs of power, but through a tight corner in first you can let it hang out.

01Racing

Tires get harder every year even if you dont drive on them, the rubber begins to "cure". Pro series dont use slicks that are more than 4 months old! A street tire that has a production date that is 4-5 years old will have about 30-40% less grip than a current production tire. You need to be real careful when buying "clearout" price tires, especially sticky one. I saw snow tires at Canadian Tire this winter that had production dates of 2004 - 2006...............they were cheap but........no grip!

Footman

iTrader: (2)

My stock OEM's have a 2006 build date.

2hit6

Interesting...I better start tracking the R1 I got off you last year then...lolz
________
Infant zoloft

RXeckless

iTrader: (5)

Here's something I found out yesterday while were on tires. When I went to order new tires, I was told
that Dunlop & Goodyear are not importing Extreme & Max Performance Summer Tires into Canada as there's not a large enough market.

As of note I was trying to get Dunlop Direzza Sport Z1 Star Spec and the dealer show me a fairly long list and this was one of them. And he said if that's what I want I'll have to drive to Buffalo or find someone with stock on hand and once there gone that's it.

Footman

iTrader: (2)

I'm looking at Hankook Ventus V12 Evo K110 (what a long name). Seems to be decent tires for a good price..

REV-illusions

iTrader: (3)

I had the ventus' on my tiburon back in the day... they really are a decent tire for the price. That being said... still recommending the KDW's if ya can afford them... might push back your condo by a bit though

Kafka

go check the evo forums and see if you can grab those OEM RE050A 245/40/18 with/without a nice set of rims .... :P

Your stock 18" rim can take 245/40/18 ... if you havent decided on what rim sto get yet.

Neo

Yes, build dates on tires are so important.
The other day while I was cleaning the rims on the FD, I noticed the build dates on the tires. The fronts are almost 5yrs old and the rears almost 4yrs old.
I think next season, if not the year after, I'll have to get them changed.
They've been on the car for about 3yrs now. Too bad the weather hasn't co-operated enough to drive the car more often.

I know for fact the tires on the Miata are going to need replacement by the end of this season.