GunshipDriver Posted March 28, 2014 Share Posted March 28, 2014 Greetings again. So I have a new to me WCM Ultralite. I've heard that I should run a softer compound than 200 tread wear. Has anyone run anything at 200 or harder with positive results? I am considering Michelin Pilot Super Sports or Bridgestone Potenza S04 Pole Position which are harder than 200 but available through Costco for me at a reasonable price. They both get good reviews but I do not know if they would work for a vehicle as light as a 7 clone. I plan on driving the car in sunny warm California weather only. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xcarguy Posted March 28, 2014 Share Posted March 28, 2014 Greetings again. So I have a new to me WCM Ultralite. I've heard that I should run a softer compound than 200 tread wear. Has anyone run anything at 200 or harder with positive results? I am considering Michelin Pilot Super Sports or Bridgestone Potenza S04 Pole Position which are harder than 200 but available through Costco for me at a reasonable price. They both get good reviews but I do not know if they would work for a vehicle as light as a 7 clone. I plan on driving the car in sunny warm California weather only. GunshipDriver, Below are two posts from forum members from one of your other threads with their recommendations regarding tire wear rating. And . . . :iagree: with both. So, I'll throw my two cents on the table and shoot from the hip. My personal opinion (FWIW) is that once you begin to drive and get used to the car's potential, you are going to want/need/desire/beg for/etc. a softer compound tire that can mirror the car's performance. Again, FWIW, I drive a relatively heavier Stalker with WMC Ultralite fenders. I run Nitto NT-01 17" (9.5" in the rear and 8" up front; tread wear rating of 100) on the street and have had excellent results with grip and wear. I've had the Nitto's on my car for almost two years now and they still look fairly new. Here's a link to a photo of my car that shows the tread pattern on the fronts . . . the rears look just as good. The photo was taken last month (Feb): http://www471.pair.com/stalkerv/gallery2/main.php?g2_itemId=24944 I'm not trying to talk you out of a 200 tread wear tire (well . . . maybe I am :jester:), it's just that in the long run, I don't think you will be happy with the performance of a substandard tire on a car that has the performance of your Ultralite. Your car is a very performance-oriented and is deserving of a tire that is complimentary. Don't cheat yourself simply because the price seems right. You can purchase excellent high performance tires from Tire Rack for very competitive prices. Do it nice or do it twice. Okay, that's my two cents. :cheers: Go waaay waaay softer than that. An R-compound has a treadwear of ~100 and you still more likely to heatcycle them out before you get to the wear bars. Also where in CA are you? Mondo is down in SoCal while there are 5 Ultralite owners in the Bay Area. I would run a little softer compound than a 200 wear personally. There are several threads here discussing the issue. Toyo RA1 or 888s seem to be a popular option. A street driven Ultralite will typically break lose the rear in the first three gears if you hit vtec. Streets are much dirtier and worn than a race track. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kitcat Posted March 28, 2014 Share Posted March 28, 2014 Only downside to super soft tires is they will pitch a lot of grit, stones, whatnot, into your car, and onto you. Also more likely to have road rash (sandblasting) on your rear fenders. Since whole point of the car (to me) is performance, that's a small price to pay to allow your car to reach its full potential and to do what it was designed to do. I understand reasonable minds may differ tho. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GunshipDriver Posted March 28, 2014 Author Share Posted March 28, 2014 I appreciate every ones patience with me. I will pony up the extra money and do it right as you all are helping me to do. I am thinking Toyo r1rs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rnr Posted March 28, 2014 Share Posted March 28, 2014 My car came with 235 Falken RT-615s (treadwear 200) on it and I used to get wheel spin in 3rd gear. After I switched to R-comps I can still spin the wheels in 2nd but it requires intentional effort. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
m wirth Posted March 28, 2014 Share Posted March 28, 2014 I run the Falken rt615k, 225 front and 245 rear, for the street, and have good luck with them since I don't push them to track speeds. On the track I use the same sizes but use the Nitto nt 01 which are far superior to the falkens on the track and still return reasonable wear. I doubt if my hpde skill level will surpass the stick these tires provide. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
powderbrake Posted March 28, 2014 Share Posted March 28, 2014 (edited) I running Falken 615k in 225/45/17 front, and 245/45/17 rear, and have done so for 3 sets of tires. They are 200 treadwear. I used them because I was tracking it in "Street" class, 200 treadwear and above at Run & Gun. There is no question that the softer compounds have more grip. They do heat cycle and become slippery before the tread is gone, so with this last set, I had them heat cycled by Tire Rack to see if thet would help the life. Well I haven't tracked the car with this last set of tires , so I don't know if it will help. On the first two sets, after about 4000 to 5000 miles the rears are getting low in tread, and thew were getting harder and slippery. I suspect the softer compounds will wear even faster..... as they say " your mileage may vary" Under hard acceleration, even if the tires aren't spinning, they are wearing rapidly. You WILL find yourself " under hard acceleration" frequently..... It's an addiction that comes with the Ultralite. Enjoy. Edited March 28, 2014 by powderbrake Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xcarguy Posted March 28, 2014 Share Posted March 28, 2014 On the track I use . . . . . the Nitto nt 01 . . . . I doubt if my hpde skill level will surpass the stick these tires provide Never say never. :jester: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AndyB Posted March 29, 2014 Share Posted March 29, 2014 When I bought my car it had 300 tread wear Dirrezas I replaced them with the 200 tread wear Dirrezas. Yes I could tell the difference but to be honest when I dropped the tire pressure by 5 lbs the difference was way more noticeable. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GunshipDriver Posted March 29, 2014 Author Share Posted March 29, 2014 Was doing some research on the matter and was reading online that the Caterham CSR uses: Tires: Avon CR500's, 195/45 R15 front, 245/40 R15 rear and that those tires are supposedly a tread wear rating of 20... Gonna pull the trigger on some wheels tonight and tires tomorrow... will post pics and info later. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
timax Posted March 29, 2014 Share Posted March 29, 2014 I run 200 in the Direzza Star Spec 2 in a skinny 185 size. Car weighs just over 600kg with me in it and only has about 160hp. I love it. Great tyres for the road. I can feel the car move around on them and they are very predictable. Prefer them to the Yoko AO48s i had. On track unless its very wet , forget it. I use Avon ACB10's for that. Sometimes more grip is not as much fun. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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