Tire suggestions?

Need some help here guys on tires.... It's time to replace the worn out tires on the 85 QV and need some suggestions on replacements.

 

Here's one vote for the TOYO RA-1.

 

I've been through 2 sets of Yokohamas.

 

I have Michelin Pilot Sport A/S Plus on mine and could not be happier.

 

What wheels have you got? If you have the originals that take the TRX tires then your options are limited to those or equivalent.

If you have changed them to wheels that take regular tires then I'd say you can't go far wrong with Goodyear Eagle F1 GSD3s. And I wouldn't bother upsizing either - 225x50x16 R & 205x55x16 F are more than enough tyre for the car if the geometry is right.

If you havn't changed the wheels then now is the obvious time to consider doing it. Superformance or QV in the UK have good OEM looking wheels for the job.

 

Suggestions? Use the SEARCH function, MANY threads on this.

 

The attached Car and Driver tire test is a good starting point. You might want to check out the Tire Rack surveys on max performance summer tires, (if that is the catagory of tire that is best suited to your driving). These surveys let you choose the tires by selecting the characteristics that matter most to you.

hth,
chris

Sorry, could not get the car and driver tire test, (in pdf format) to load.

 

Perelli Pzero Neros, great ride/handling tradeoff, tread pattern looks "right" on these classic cars. Many tires available in the relevant size are all season, which makes them good in the rain and end of drving season period for me up in Canada.

 

I´m about to do the same thing, original tires from -85 that are hard as a rock...
I was checking the Pirelli web page and selected Ferrari 308 from the list. Got a recommendation for Pirelli P7 (as the original ones on 16"). But as already mentioned, I guess it´s up to what suits your driving. It´s like bying a pair of shoes, and talking about shoes, just bought a pair or Puma/Ferrari shoes, great for driving!

 

Get TOYO Tires the "Proxes T1R" the rubber is soft enough that you can track with it, the ride is so smooth and soft, and they are cheap. Check the site: http://toyotires.com/tire/pattern/proxes-t1r
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I think the tires to get will probably depend on what you want out of them, and you will get as many opinions as there are replies. What specific driving conditions are you in. As an example (but I don't want to highjack the thread, so please put your specifics in here)

I am also looking to replace tires. Have switched the original wheels on my 84 Mondial QV Cabrio to use 348 wheels. Live in Southern California and do not take my car out in the rain, nor do I take it to the track...I use car as a daily driver and ease of steering is one of my main interests....etc, etc.

 

I have a set of Toyo T1-R's on my QV Mondial, used as a daily driver (no tracking, but occasional humid roads) They are very good value for money, loads of grip, precise tracking, smooth ride, good in the wet, and quiet.

 

Well, if you guys wanna keep this thread going. best tires for dry is are Hoosier slicks. Best grip ever

 

The first time I did this I asked Gary Bobileff for advise. "Put Dunlops on it - they will transform the car!" I've just had a new set put on. Dunlops made the car much easier to drive, steering less heavy and, as Gary put it "transformed" it to far better than the Goodyear Eagles it came to me with

 

The first time I did this I asked Gary Bobileff for advice. "Put Dunlops on it - they will transform the car!" I've just had a new set put on. Dunlops made the car much easier to drive, steering less heavy and, as Gary put it "transformed" it to far better than the Goodyear Eagles it came to me with.

 

Thanks for the info. I would be interested in the details

which Dunlops did you get? Signature, SP, SP Sport, SP 4000....etc?
Since I am also in SD, and where did you get them. Thanks

Just love all the info one can get on this forum...!

 

+1 they perform just like the $300 $400 tires I think they are way under rated.
The only down side is that they wear out sooner than most but it's not like we
drive our car as daily driver anyway.

 

Similar to Mike's Proxes are Goodyear Eagle F1 GS-D3s. I originally purchased them for the track but have been using them for routine driving as well. Nice tires!
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"Similar to Mike's Proxes are Goodyear Eagle F1 GS-D3s"

Yep, great tires and I love them on my 328. I bought the car, put a new set of those on and drove across country from NV so they saw 140+mph in the NV/AZ 110 degree desert as well as heavy rain in the Smokey Mts. When it's time, another set will be replacing them,

 

You need to determine the sizes you want first, as there are very few performance tires that come in some of the sizes people often use. For instance, the very popular combination of 225/50-16 front and 245/45-16 rear. If you search at Tirerack, you will find only one non competition tire available and it is a Fuzion (Bridgestones discount brand) which means no Goodyear, Bridgestone, Pirelli, Michelin, Kumho, Dunlop, Yokohama etc. come in those sizes.
Other brands that Tirerack does not carry, do come in those sizes, such as Nitto (good tires),
Toyo and a couple others. To me, this is very limiting as I do not want to go to the narrower stock sizes.

 

Thanks guys for the tire info.... I don't track my car, nor do I drive in the rain and I enjoy hard driving at times. So I will take every one's suggestion into consideration when I get the rubber for the 308

 

Rob, this is where I ordered my tires, I compared their price to others and they have the best price. http://www.treadepot.com/index.html

 

Another great tire! I've got those on my 944 turbo.

 

I got mine through Tirerack and had Symbolic mount and balance. Not sure what model. The whole deal was right around $500 including the mounting. Call Bill Pearson at Symbolic

 

I believe that earlier 308s ran tires with taller sidewalls. IMHO, many cars - including 308s - look better with some sidewall. Modern low profile tires don't look right - leaving too much empty space in the wheel wells - and, of course, the less sidewall height the more likely you are to bend a rim for cars run on potholed streets.

What size tires would you run on a 308 originally equipped with 205/55x16 and 225/50x16 tires if you wanted to go to a higher profile? A slightly larger diameter would be OK.