Had these tyres fitted a couple of weeks ago, so figured it was time to let everyone know how they were going.

First of all, OEM size is 225/45R18, as anyone who's tried to find replacements in that size in Aus will know, it's hard to find anything in that size and generally pretty expensive. I ended up going for 245/40R18s as these are 1.01% different (smaller) in rolling distance, which is not too big a problem. BTW, 245 is the widest tyre you can fit in the stock 18 x 8" wide rims the RX-8 ships with.

I've driven these tyres around for about 1500kms in the past few weeks, around town and up the freeway to Sydney and back. I've had them in the wet, the dry, gentle driving and "spirited" driving too... so a fairly wide range of conditions and driving styles.

Grip : These things grip like there's no tomorrow! Probably partially due to the tyre being wider and to my old RE040s being nearly bald, but I don't ever remember the car having this much grip. You can throw these tyres into corners and they just hang on and on and on. A definite improvement over the RE040s IMHO.

Wet weather handling : We've had a couple of wet and wetish days here in Canberra lately, had the car out on a couple of them, including the day I got them fitted (great way to get used to new tyres - Not!) So far, has only slipped once (ie, traction control kicked in) and that was on a section of bricks at the end of my street when I gave it a bit too much juice... Haven't had them in torential rain yet, but certainly in the rain we've had, again, they grip much better than the RE040s.

Noise : These tyres aren't silent. It really depends on the road surface, on smooth surfaces, they are nearly silent, on rough surfaces, they have varying levels of noise. I'd say overall, they are certainly no worse and in many cases, better than the RE040s. If you buy 'em, don't blame me if the noise annoys you! The noise is certainly different from the RE040s, but you get used to it pretty quick.

Price : Well, at $395 fitted and balanced, it was a decent price. Cheaper than the RE040s and these tyres have a better treadware rating so hopefully should last longer. For some of the tyres in the OEM size, you'll pay more than this.

Looks : They look great! Nice and wide, IMHO, it makes the car look a bit lower, certainly looking at it from behind. The tyres look nice and aggressive. They fit the rim well and sit pretty flush with the edge of the rim. They won't stop you scraping your rims though, as I found out on Friday night, but that was my own stupid fault, not that of the tyre.

Now, here's some pics of them...

 

Thanks Pepe...! Great photo's. I see they are highly directional, that would account for the better than average wet weather performance.....

Post of the day .

Regards, Gomez.

 

Great info Pepe. A lot of us pre-order guys are up for new tyres soon if we haven't done it already. I for one know nothing about comparing one brand to another, so I am watching these threads with much interest.

 

My Toyos were $300ish fitted and balanced, which is a $400 saving over the Yokohamas for the entire set. That is also worth considering.

Check out (edited URL):
http://www.1010tires.com/tire.asp?ti...odel=AVS+ES100

(ie. Great handling, bad noise and treadwear)

and

http://www.1010tires.com/tire.asp?ti...=Proxes+T1%2DS

(for the Proxes, the previous version of the Trampios. The main difference between the two tyres I believe is the treadwear). Again, great handling at the penalty of noise.)

and the OEM bridgestone

http://www.1010tires.com/tire.asp?ti...=Potenza+RE040

which every one thinks is crap ;-)

 

dbb

The only diff is that you went for 235/40R18s, which are common as, well, HSVs... in fact, HSVs use them as stock tyres for some models. They are a LOT cheaper, I've heard of 235/40R18s for as low as $200 a tyre.

But, the big issue with a 235/40R18 vs a 245/40R18 is that the 235/40R18 is 2.02% smaller (ie, speedo reading 100km/h means you're doing 98 km/h)... given that there's already roughly a 3% diff from the speedo + 2% from the tyres, you're looking at a 5% difference. That means your odometer will also be racking up Kms 5% faster than you're actually doing them too. Having said that, could be worthwhile for the savings. But make sure you check with your insurance company too.

As for the reviews of the ES100s, I could not find a single tyre that had only positive or only negative reviews, every single tyre has people who swear by them and those who swear they'd never touch them. Those reviews are done on all kinds of cars too, there's not a single review on those sites that has an RX-8 owner... so they're worth as much as the paper they're written on.

The treadware rating on the Yokos and the Toyos are exactly the same by the way. Should last exactly the same, Km for Km or Km for .98Km as the case may be

 

Pepe, (JOE)

I notice that the Yoko's don't have a rim protection edge on them. Is this correct???

I know they don't protect on a decent nudge but on those fanny hair scrapes they at least do something.

Joe

 

Joe

I thought about that too, but to be honest, I suspect that the extra width in the tread perhaps makes up for it a bit. I haven't had any probs (except friday night and it wouldn't have helped) yet with scraping...

 

Pepe

How does the steering feel lighter/heavier ???

cheers
michael

 

Pepe

How does the steering feel lighter/heavier ???

cheers
michael

 

No noticable diff other than it just feels a lot grippier.

 

Just had mine fitted today, so am giving my immediate reactions after driving in with the 040's , and out with the EVS100s. Good to capture these now as I will forget in a few weeks.

First, they feel softer! Strange -- had 36psi in both and was expecting the worst from the 40 profile over the 45s -- but less 'harsh' over the standard bumps and lane reflectors on my route from office to home.

Secondly, they are possibly a bit noisier, but not much from what I can tell so far.

Thirdly, the car feels a little more solid on the road -- just a bit more sure-footed.

More info as I get some K's on them.

BTW, also had a front and rear alignment and was told that the car had been within spec -- just a few mms adjustment

Tim

 

Yeah Timbo, I've noticed the car does hold it's alignment pretty well. At the 10K service the dealer didn't bother to rotate the tyres, the fronts were hardly scrubbed at all....Nearly 14000k's now, I may do it soon as they are just starting to feather now.

Regards, Gomez.

 

Was just out in the car when the rain came down; familiar l/h corner addressed at normal (deserted road) spirited but wet speed -- bugger me if the tail doesn't hang out like a bastard. Maybe there was some oil, or maybe these tyres take a while to scrub off the hard shiny 'new tyre' surface. Will keep taking notes.

Still think the ride is a tad softer, and am beginning to think they might be quieter

 

Weird timbo... I find mine are great in the wet, were from day one (was raining and I went down the Cotter)... mine are a little scrubbed now, and seem to be fine. Slipped them once or twice, but whenever I do that, they seem to grip again straight away, they don't keep sliding... friend with the STi reported exactly the same thing..

 

As for noise, I'm not sure either... best described so far as no louder/quieter, but a different, less annoying noise IMHO

 

Wow - I can't believe I missed this whole thread. I guess that is what happens when you are busy doing exports!

Early last week I began investigating the options for tyres from a tyre place that specialised in Motorsport, TyreTech. Was quoted about $430 per tyre for the OEM's, and about $340 a tyre if I went to Yoko (AVS V102) 235/40x18's (and some others) as these are a more common size. My problem was the rolling diameter was too small for my liking, and so did some investigations, then got the price of the 245/40x18 in the AVS V102. They were about another $100, and it was explained this was becuase they were a "tighter tolerance" tyre. It looks like I paid a bit too much , and I will express my displeasure to the guy who I obviously put too much trust in.

If I had of read this thread, I would have saved $200. Ah-well.

So I had them fitted last friday. The car did feel different.

The next day I scrubbed them in properly. I think you know what I mean. I think they felt a little slippery when green and cold out there, on the curly black dyno. I did 2 stints on one "road" and 2 stints on another version of the road. The first two stints I did not make an improvement over a previous time, and I felt a little wierd about the tyres. I'm not sure how to explain it. They felt a little soft, but at the same time, they reminded me of when I tried slicks on my SS. On the 2n'd turn on the second bit of road, I made a 1 second improvement (over the first tuen), so I suppose they were starting to get in the groove.

On reflection, I think they are an improvement, it is just taking some getting used to.

You can see some pics of the tread in my next thread I'll start later this evening, about my "no black exhaust" condition!!!

Cheers,
Hymee.

 

Ok, just bringing this thread up to date. Now have about 1,500k on the new tyres, and have to say I am happy with them. Obviously the first couple of experiences reflected the effect of these tyres when they're green.

Am finding them giving perceptibly more grip in both wet and dry, with no sense of squirm which going oversize might bring. They are quieter that the Bridgestones (although the dealer says the noise will increase as they wear), and they feel a tad softer, even though I run 36psi.

Overall, I'm happy with this tyre

 

I've got about 3000kms on mine so far... fantastic tyres! These tyres make you realise just how bad the Bridgestones were...