Time for new tires

Might be time to find a better tire guy!

I wouldn't trust many of those chain type tire shops that just hire subpar employees...just like most of the quick lube places :doh:

Luckily I have a local custom shop that does lazer alignments and balancing with the Hunter GSP9700 which does an amazing job!


I roll CD30s on all 3 Xs (2 repros & 1 on original mags) and only have the slight rub at full wheel lock backing out of a parking spot if I forget cutting the wheel too sharp :rolleyes:

While the Sumis don't compare to Yoko or Toyos I don't have any wheel vibrations with Sumis on CD30s.

Maybe give Nexens a try...they run about $50/tire.

John who is doing your balancing and on what machine???

CD30 is the wheel for the X :sun:


roadbox said:
Now for the bad news.


Thus, unless you can find honest-to-goodness tires for the CD-30s, I can't recommend them anymore. It's shameful, truly breaks my heart, because I've always thought this wheel was THE wheel for the X ...for want of a tire.

John O.
Click to expand...
 
I have completely given up on 13" performance street tires. The only "Performance" tires in 13" are R compound or real race tires.

My current fav on the X is Toyo T1R, 195/45/14 These are smaller than stock, but not by much and I'm very concerned that this tire and size will go away too.

Had Sumi 185/60/13 on the X before, they are OK but do not have the stick/feel/response/ride quality of the Toyo T1R. I suspect anything less than this Sumi is going to be a far worst.

We need to get a set of 45 compound Hoosier slicks for Ulix, good for those days at the "ring" :thumbsup:


Bernice


Ulix said:
I have them on my car and they are not that great.

There are no more good tires in our size, neither in the US nor in Europe.
My view: if you do SERIOUS driving, you need R-compound.
For everything else, just buy what you can get while you still can.

Larger wheels are not really the answer, if you want to keep the overall diameter as stock or smaller.
You are basically stuck with

185/55-14 (stock diamter)
195/45-14 (very small diameter, great for very low cars)
195/45-15 (stock diameter)

That's it.
Click to expand...
 
Great advice everyone

I am so proud of scoring these CD30s and was waiting for my tires to wear out so I guess it's a blessing in disguise one tire was junk. Another blessing is while we were checking out the suspension, the mechanic noticed a fuel line was seeping so I'm working on replacing it. My CD30s are at a shop right now getting prettied up and I'll start looking for a suitable set of 185/60/13s for them.
 
Greg (in Conn) said:
John who is doing your balancing and on what machine???
Click to expand...

Greg,

I have had these and other sets of Sumis balanced any number of places. I've tried two different fresh sets. I've tried alignments, replacing bushings, etc., etc. I've tried different tire pressures. The last mounting and balancing was done by a guy who I consider to be THE Washington DC area's vintage Fiat expert, Gildo Torchia, who understood that I was trying to solve a steering shake.

The next thing I'm going to do is basically to NUKE the front end. I'm replacing every bushing (AGAIN!), tie rod ends, control arms, hubs and bearings, and rotors. Absolutely nothing is getting left out.

But this doesn't address that these wheel and tires have done this on two different Exxes. Balancing tires just isn't rocket science. I've spend ass loads of money and time chasing this problem so I could keep these wheels on my X (Exxes) and I'm about burned out on it.

John O.
 
roadbox said:
Just to be clear, CD-31s not CD-30s, correct?

John O.
Click to expand...

That is correct, CD-31s
fswf.gif
 
Hi Bernice,

have you actually used the Toyos in 195/45-14?
I had considered trying that size at one point, but wasn't sure of tire quality.

I have 185/60-13 Hankook Z211 R-compounds and bought a set of
175/50-13 Yoko A048 R-compounds, not used yet.
They look stupid, way to short, but make for a short gear ratio.
 
Yes, used them on the Yellow 88' X, then recently moved to the 74' X (which has a very knackered steering rack as delivered) The tires are Toyo T1R, 196/45/14 on Maserati Bi-Turbo 6x14 wheels, like them well. Significant improvement over the Sumi's, better grip and most every other aspect. They are smaller than stock which lowers the car a tiny bit. As mentioned previously, I'm concerned that Toyo will discontinue this tire and size which will cause another round of tire searching.

These are the same type of tire used on the LeMons racer, but different size. 215/45/15 rear, 195/45/15 front. These last most of the race weekend and the drivers like them.

175/50/13 is way too small for the X, that is a tire for the original Mini which used 10" wheels. For a short time, Yokohama made the A048 R-compound in 10" or 12" for the original Mini. Got to wonder about why they did that.

Recently got a set of Yokohama S drive 205/50/15 for the SAAB, good tires, but none in the size for the X..

Bernice

Ulix said:
Hi Bernice,

have you actually used the Toyos in 195/45-14?
I had considered trying that size at one point, but wasn't sure of tire quality.

I have 185/60-13 Hankook Z211 R-compounds and bought a set of
175/50-13 Yoko A048 R-compounds, not used yet.
They look stupid, way to short, but make for a short gear ratio.
Click to expand...
 
I hear your frustration!

Some maniacs (ME) have been known to go after the good stuff from the UK or Germany as well.

Falken ZE912 out of the UK from Demon Tweeks (I'm sure there are other sources) or Yoko A539 from Germany.

Conversion rate for the US $ certainly far from the best time but looking quickly you can get a set shipped for around $550US.

I woulda folded long ago on those Sumis and looked overseas!

Of course I am used to spending $200+/tire on my other vehicles so $600shipped to my door (for a set/4) is not that outrageous when I use this logic :drink:


roadbox said:
But this doesn't address that these wheel and tires have done this on two different Exxes. Balancing tires just isn't rocket science. I've spend ass loads of money and time chasing this problem so I could keep these wheels on my X (Exxes) and I'm about burned out on it.
John O.
Click to expand...
 
Hard to make an argument... huh!

Hope they work out well for you... I dunno if you live a CHARMED life Like me... but mine have served me extremely well over the years.
 
Original or repro CD30?

Hi,

the original old ones corrode at the hub centric hole on the back. The material gets eaten away, so that the wheel is no longer centered by the hub.
This causes symptoms like you describe.

Fixes range from wrapping the hub with tape to machining the wheel on a lathe and pressing in a sleeve, or (simpler) machining and using plastic centering rings.
 
sadly arent good 13 inch tyres a dead horse?

It is dismaying at the lack of good rubber in 13.. In Australia you cant import a tyre that doesnt meet Aust standards... its all in a number and you can get pinged on insurance etc.. correct me if I am wrong.
I am going to go the 15 inch rim route and If I have to get coil overs then so be it.. I cant see how a car like the xee whos tour de force is handling will benefit from mediocre tyres.. At least in 15s You can get some good tyres. My car has 175/70/13 for now and i have used a tyre size calculator to compare overall diameters.. the only thing is width.
I think i have to figure how to fit 195 15 tyres
 
Greg (in Conn) said:
Some maniacs (ME) have been known to go after the good stuff from the UK or Germany as well.

Falken ZE912 out of the UK from Demon Tweeks (I'm sure there are other sources) or Yoko A539 from Germany.
Click to expand...

I got a set of Falken 912s from Demon Tweeks. Much better than the Sumos,but I still long for the A509s. I just ordered 15X6 rims and 195/45-15 Toyo T1R. This will come to about $240 a wheel/tire. Sounds very expensive until I thought about buying used iron cross 13 inch rims and powder coating them ($100. per wheel) and Falken tires ($120. per tire).

I will let you know in a couple of weeks how they work out.
 
The Sumitomos (which I run on my Spider and Beta) certainly aren't as good as the Yoko AVSs I used to buy, but I would argue they are superior to what was available back in the day when our cars were new.
 
Last edited:
GOOD versus BAD...

Not picking on you Nick... but I guess I'm a bit ornery this morning...

GOOD, in what way?

Price, wear, acceleration, side grip, availability, where and when used?

Todd in Maryland says he prefers a Falken 912 with a UTOG rating of 480 and 65,000 mile wear capability with relatively stiff sidewalls in a generally cold climate... but I'm not sure if he just SHOWS the car, DRIVES it daily, or RACES it in Autocross, Track or Drag events. I believe they are about $80 apiece.

Me... in California, I personally use Sumitumo's and purchased mine for half that amount. They have a UTOG rating of 380, I've probably gotten 20,000 miles out of them due to an "aggressive alignment", DRIVE the car now a few times a week, year round in generally a hot climate, enjoy the softer sidewalls for ride comfort, and they grip very well for my "style of assertive" driving. I've also been known to replace them "just because" and they were readily available.

Another factor of how good a tire is... is how well a person DRIVES on them given their inherent capabilities and construction!

I guess what I'm saying is that GOOD TIRES can be in the "eye of the beholder" also.

As far as the availability and the laws and the like... I hear ya. And you can always move!

HA!
 
Something to worry about

Whether or not you like the Sumis, the Tire Rack just stopped carrying the 185/60-13. Officially discontinued as an available size. We just lost an option. Time to worry yet?
 
It worries me a bit that the 185/60/13 size is dissappearing. The only decent tire left is the Toyo RA1 or R888. I don't think it will dissapear completely. I read somewhere that the 185/60/13 is a popular size in some divisions of racing.
There is always the 175/70/13 which has quite a few options.
 
Well... I heard the same about Tire Rack...

Sumis appear to be available elsewhere but I dunno if its the manufacturer or the distributor that is the problem. There are a few other makes out there (Nexen, for one...) but I have no idea of their quality.

I'm "good" for a few years at the rate I'm driving... but I don't like not having options or ease of availability.

As for 175/70x13s... I ran those ions ago and hated the front end grip... plus they rubbed terribly backing up and turning. I believe the 60 series was a great contributor to both my increased cornering and braking capabilities. I never wanna go back to a 70 series.
 
Ulix said:
the original old ones corrode at the hub centric hole on the back. The material gets eaten away, so that the wheel is no longer centered by the hub. This causes symptoms like you describe.

Fixes range from wrapping the hub with tape to machining the wheel on a lathe and pressing in a sleeve, or (simpler) machining and using plastic centering rings.
Click to expand...

Hey Ulix,

I've had both. I still have my old magnesium CD30s in my garage loft. You are absolutely right about the corrosion problem; it was a sad day when I knew I had to retire them.

The ones I am running now are the aluminum repros. I find that on the X hubs, the new CD30s are not perfectly hub-centric. I've put the micrometer to both wheels and hubs, and there is approximately a measurable millimeter of play. I've looked for centering rings, but have found nothing that small. Do you have a source you can recommend?

Thanks

John O.
 
Hi John,

for that small a difference, I really recommend one layer of the correct thickness tape wrapped around the hub.
I know people who have had good success with this.

I just remembered that Mac, way back in the 90s, used some pliable sheet platic of the right thickness, cut a strip of this and stuck this between hub and centering hole from the front, with the wheel fitted. This seemed to work well also.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top