+2 13" Tyres

[Gopherit]

The rebuild of my +2 is finally getting to the point where a set of tyres are going to be needed for getting on the road. The steel 13" wheels I have are shod with the E-Marked Yokohama A021rs that have been absolutely superb in the dry and the wet. However they are now at least 10 years old and I suspect an MOT might fail them so I have been looking for replacements in 185 70 R13 H size.

The H rating eliminates a lot of tyres and at the moment I have only 2 contenders, Blockley 185/70 VR13 and Yokohama Advan HF Type-D A008. Has anyone experience of either of these on a +2?

My usage is road with a few trackdays, it's the UK so wet performance matters and the Yokos are only D rated for the wet, no rating for the Blockleys although I found a German test review of 4 "classic" tyres where they did not do well. When I spoke to Blockley they explained the test had been done without following their instructions to bed the tyres in, removing the traces of release agent.
Users on other forums like the MX5 crowd seem to like the performance of the Yokos in all conditions.

[IainP]

I have Blockleys on my Ex works Tr3. On continental road rally’s they have been excellent. Track days at Goodwood and Castle Combe showed them to be very sticky. I’ve not had any issues with them in the wet and support Blockleys view that those test tyres were not scrubbed in. I’ve no association with Blockley, just a satisfied customer.
Iain

[Gopherit]

Iain -
Thanks, that's very helpful and in line with some other comments on the net re Blockleys.
Paul

[Baggy2]

Hi
I had been running on 13 year old tyres for a while and was quite nervous particularly when they seemed to kock up more easily than they should.
I ummed and ahhed for a for a long time about replacements visiting this forum many times and re-reading all the opinions.
Eliminating the very expensive Michelins it seemed to come down to Falken Sincera SN832 , Blockleys or Pirelli CN36.

Falkens got good reports , had an A wet braking rating but did they look too modern?

I have Blockleys on another car and they've been fine, I've had very good customer service and their boss has 'skin in the game' but there was that German test niggling in the back of my mind

I finally decided on the Pirellis but when I went to order them they were not in stock so it was back to deciding.

Looking round I found Demon Tweeks had the Falken Sincera at a very reasonable price. I ordered them and although I've only had a few weeks use they seem good to me . They may not look like a period tyre but they look fine to me and they have that A wet weather rating. I was also encouraged at the recent Club Lotus Goodwood track day there were other +2's with the same tyres so I wasnt alone in my decision.

Just my two penneth

[Gopherit]

Thank you Baggy, again helpful but as far as I can see the 185/70 Falken is only available in R14 - is that the diameter you are using?

[Baggy2]

No , I went for 165/80 x 13 as per original. Here's a link-

https://www.demon-tweeks.com/uk/falken- ... e-2003284/

Not sure of their stock status?

A set of 4 tyres came out slightly lower cost than 1 Michelin from Longstone ! I bought them based on good reports on this forum rather than cost but the low cost meant it wasn't too much of a gamble.

Cheers

Baggy

[Hawksfield]

Hi
I chose cincera as I had used them before and iam pleased with the decision.
I appreciate what Michelin will do for a plus2 but rhe cost is over the top for a car so little used. And the fact that I have had to remove tyres that are little more than halve used 3 times.
Just my view on it
John

[mbell]

I also went for the CN36, at the time they were around +50% more to buy than other the shopping trolley tires available to me. I'd say my use case is mostly fast road driving thou.

If I was using it a lot on track days I might have gone for a different tire. I have done a "parade" lap at COTA on the CN36 which performed well, I was right up the back and the parade car was probably all ready off the track by the time I got on, so was able to push pretty hard. Decent grip and predictable. Probably noticeably less grip than something like a A008 and not sure how they'd hold up over multiple laps.

If doing a more than odd track day I might consider separate wheels +tires to avoid having the compromise.

[Gopherit]

Thanks everybody, quite interesting but I think I am likely to go the Yoko A008 route which will suit dry trackdays and with a profile that is not dissimilar to the A021Rs in 185/70. See following for wet days.

I have a set of 14" wheels shod with Uniroyal Rainexperts and I have used similar Uniroyals on 2 other cars with success, particularly in the wet. The changes in suspension (the usual stuff, coil overs, adjustable all round, harder springs etc) mean an older carcass design like the Pirellis and Michelins does not suit. This was where the A021Rs shone - extremely good in the wet and adequate in the dry unless doing a lot of laps. Occasionally catching Elises is satisfying.

Paul

[rcourtney]

I just fitted a set of 165/13 Blockleys - I’m really pleased with them. They came in at about 80GBp per tyre .. I highly recommend!

[didit]

Hello --

I fitted a set of 165R13 CN36 last spring to my +2/S130 for roughly CDN$130 per, before balancing and installation. Perhaps just a few hundred miles of driving last summer. Entirely happy with the fit and performance, however only pressed to work in casual semi-spirited back road touring. I would definitely look to Yokohama or another supplier of modern "track" tyres for serious performance application.

Best .. Ian

[Richard J]

Just to add more complexity to your decision making process, I’m running Yoko Y350 GT Classics in the original 165/80 13 H rated size.

Been great on the track and got them at the Godalming ATS for a around £120 each if I remember correctly.

Richard