Tyre recommendation 205/45 ZR16s....

[LukeBird]

Right, tyres are pretty much bang on wear limiters and as my off days are weds-thru-fri I want to get them sorted.
Any recommendations?
I currently have Goodyear Eagle F1s on the back, I don't want them again, they're not my bag. They're fantastic in the dry, but I don't really like them in the wet/cold/ice etc.
What are the Conti PremiumContact2s like?

[bluetone]

I recently changed from F1s to Toyo T1Rs and I prefer the Toyos; less hard work in low-speed manouvering (my Mk1 does not have power steering) and they tramline less. I think the contact patch is a bit narrower than the F1s which may account for this.

Can't comment on the Contis.

[LukeBird]

Thanks.
I may just see what local places have in stock.

[bluetone]

No worries.

You might compare their prices with the mobile fitting outfits; etyres.com blackcircles.com etc

[LukeBird]

Yeah, will do.
I had the tracking done at the place I was thinking of, a few weeks back and I had a quote for a couple of rears then. I have a feeling they were quite competitive, just wondered if there were any tyres I should look out for or avoid.

I did have a think about the Toyos...

[treadstone]

Hankook K110 (V12 Evo)
Federal 595

I've had full sets of the above on my 2.5 sport in the last 12 months. Can happily recommend either.

[MonkeyRacing]

I'm looking at 195/45 16's on my Mk.1 and was about to go for Toyo T1R's. Have read a few reviews saying they're great in the dry but not so good in the wet.... and they wear quite quickly. Hankook V12's seem to come out very well & Pirelli P Zeros we're no.1 in the same review (the T1's came 16th of 16 due to the wet weather grip.)

[bluetone]

MonkeyRacing said:

(the T1's came 16th of 16 due to the wet weather grip.)

Interesting; I have no complaints personally - what's the source/date of the review?

[MonkeyRacing]

Was having a look yesterday and guess what, can't find the damn link now. Did a search on Toyo here and a few with rear wheel drive cars mentioned the lack of wet road grip. MX5 may be less of a problem than most due to lower power than the likes of TVR's! T1's seem very good value and i may go for them anyway...... i fear not the oversteer ;-)

[Bonefish Blues]

After much umming and aahing I've just put Uniroyal Rainsport 2s on the rear axle - a little early to make a fully-informed judgement, but early indications in the dry are good, and I know they will be excellent in the rain. About £70 each, BTW.

They get fantastic user reviews on tyrereviews.co.uk which is what eventually swayed me.

[LukeBird]

Thanks for the comments chaps.

Getting P Zero Neros fitted in the morning. Was tempted by the T-1Rs but a few comments regarding wet-weather performance put me off. The Pirellis were a touch cheaper as well.

[Bonefish Blues]

LukeBird said:

Thanks for the comments chaps.

Getting P Zero Neros fitted in the morning. Was tempted by the T-1Rs but a few comments regarding wet-weather performance put me off. The Pirellis were a touch cheaper as well.

Are you sure, if wet performance is important? See here http://www.tyrereviews.co.uk/Tyre/Pirelli/PZero-Ne...

[LukeBird]

I read another review (can't remember where now!) that suggested they weren't that bad in the wet!
Oh well, I guess I'll find out soon enough!

ETA On closer inspection earlier today it appears the tyres on mine are quite hard and look like they are quite old, so that could well be an additional reason for my dislike of them....

Edited by LukeBird on Wednesday 17th March 23:17

[GravelBen]

I always found Eagle F1 and T1R to be very good in the wet, its only really in cold temperatures they're not so good. That was on a heavier car though, haven't tried decent tyres on an MX5 yet

Edited by GravelBen on Wednesday 17th March 23:46

[LukeBird]

^^ I have a feeling my views on the Eagles may have been skewed by them appearing to be quite old.
They looked shot when they came off the car (a given! ) but had started to crumble at the edges... May well give them a 2nd chance now.

Anyhow, the Pirellis aren't bad at all, they feel a bit bizarre on such deep treads compared to the 'on their last-legs Eagles' and as such tramline quite a lot. Plenty of grip in the wet though, although I haven't started sliding it again yet.