Best Tyres

[Ed Doe]

Personally, if you've got the money, Michelin PE2s (or PS2s I think they're sold as now) are going to be the best tyre for all round. Tyre reviews rave about them, great dry grip, sharp on change of direction/turn-in, good in the wet and they last a long time. You'll find few people buy them as they're expensive (well for a 195 55 R15 they are at the top end of the price range), but IMO you'll see the benefits and they'll last longer than cheaper stuff so you'll only be saving in the long run.

Another tyre with very good reviews is the Goodyear Eagle F1 Assymetric 2. These received very slightly better reviews than the PS2/3s, and are similarly priced.

IF you're looking for a good summer tyre for fast road and track, Michelin Pilot Supersports have very good reviews (it's what I'll be putting on the Meg later in the year when I've chomped up the rest of the Contisports it's currently on!). These are generally accepted as right on the border between fast road and track-day semi-slicks.

If you want something another step up, which will be great for track and fast road, but IIRC wont wear as well as the Mich Supersport, Yokohama Advan Neovas are prettymuch trackday semi-slicks...

Then obviously you have the different compounds of Toyo R888s, or Yoko AD08s. These will offer a considerable increase in grip over any of the aforementioned tyres, but will wear more quickly, and as the sidewalls are very strong will make the ride harsher.




My personal opinion on tyres is basically you get what you pay for. People moan on here about tyres being expensive, and the best ones to go for being stuff like Parada Spec2s or Toyo T1R's.

These aren't bad tyres, but having driven on other things I certainly wouldn't buy them again. They do offer great grip in the dry, but they wear a lot more quickly, and the wet grip is terrible. They also have very soft sidewalls, which translates into wooly turn-in/sharpness on change of direction, and doesn't give you good feedback when driving hard. Personally, I'd trade outright grip for great feedback on the limit every day of the week; having a car where you know exactly what is going on at all times makes the driving experience much more enjoyable.

So its horses for courses. If you're on a budget, for the best dry grip get spec2s or T1Rs. For a good all-rounder at a slightly increased cost, something like the Dunlop SP Fast Responses which Ruan raves about would be a good shout. If you have the budget though, I'd highly recommend making the step up to the Michelin PS/PE2s, or the Goodyear Assy2s.
and if you're tracking the car, then get the Michelin Pilot Supersports or the Yoko Advan Neovas.

One final note; you may have to get a bit creative with the tyre dimensions with the Supersports or the Advan Neovas; they will probably come in 205/55 R15 or similar just due to the demand for tyre sizes and the 195 55 r15 size not being a hugely popular one..!!


Hope that helps mate