Tyre height and size concerns
 

I bought Autocar for the review while away for the last week on holiday. I found the article very biased twards the 350 z and unnecessarily sticking the knife in on the RX- 8 which has been discussed already on another thread.One question it did raise for me though is one which doesn't seem to go away since seeing initial pics and the pre prod. blue car which is ride height and tyre size. the Article says "it has bigger wheelarch gaps that an Audi allroad" now either the reviewer is overplaying this or someting is wrong here,looking further into it there seems to be a difference in tyre sizes in the article and that quoted on the mazda website. I'd like to think that the reason is a simple mistake but I'm not sure, i remember my first ever job with a company car - 1.8 Verctra:( the team I was in was 60 people so one day 60 vectra's were delivered to a hotel car park.Out of those cars there were 3 different types and makes of tyre.Again maybe this is the norm with mass produced cars and whilst arriving together the vectra's could have been manafactured at different times (although not by much as it was the 2nd week of the Vectra's launch).
Anyway the article states 255/55's which is nice and wide but with a sidewall like a tractor tyre, the mazda site states 225/45's. Am I worrying about nothing (still haunted of the memory of my Vectra which had Dunlop "Eco tyres"!) or could their be a varience?
Anyone that has seen the cars at mancester - did you notice the tyres.
Unrelated point but on the subject of tyres I will endevour to wear them down as soon as I can and get changed over to Michelin Pilots Sports, would be Yoki's but my company draw the line at me having them.

Ed

All the cars in Manchester were shod with Bridgestone Potenza RE040s 225/45 18.

DOH!

Everything else has said that they would be 225/45 R18 tyres. I've also asked twice and both times I was told they would be Potenza S03 's which are supposed to be a much better tyre than the RE040 's.:(

255?? Thats pretty hefty.....
Isn't this just a tad more than the UK public spec we're getting (225 isn't it?)

STU

Whoops! it should have said 225, (fat finger attack).:o

Hey copperband,

I presume in your disgust you forgot to type autocar and typed auto express instead.

Autocar - worst review I've read from the worst and most biased reviewer
Auto express - love the car and put it top in this weeks test vs 4 others inc 350Z

Correct, I hate bias when it is so obvious and a no. of inaccuracies to boot,case in point being the tyre sizes?

Ed

Ed,

any chance you could edit the text of the first main post then..... dont want auto express to look bad when autocar deserve everything you can dish out!

cheers

Si

done.
Now what about these tyre's?

Well, I agree that the blue car I saw @ henley had the Potenza RE040s 225/45 18"

http://www.rx8forum.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=6556

for a photo of the wheel/tyre

The car in manchester had the potenza S03's on.

I asked about the rubber, abut all the info they said said 'Bridgestone'. I'll be happy to see the back of the 40's if it comes with them.