Anybody DRIVE on The Coker XWX's?

I am also curious to know if somebody has them on a 308GTB, as I need some new tires.

 

Do you mean Michellin XWX.

 

I have a set of the brand new XWX on my 75 Dino- Took off the Sumitomos and went old school. Car is noticeably less grippy- very easy to break the tail loose. As with all old school michelin designs noisier on the road. Really nothing to recommend them other than they LOOK exactly correct. IN fact I was really shocked at how loose the car feels in quick turns- almost spun it a fun times.

Tire technology has come a LONG way in 40 years.

If you want to drive stick with the Sumitomos.

 

Yep... the Sumitomo 205/70HR14 are mini van tires!

Urban legend has it that the newly minted "old-school" XWX use new tech rubber compounds.

Jay are you selling your old Sumitomo's or something?

 

Yes, Michelin XWX. In the United States, Coker is a manufacturer and supplier of vintage tires. I'm not sure if they actually produce XWX from old Michelin molds or if they are redistributing tires that are still manufactured in specialty runs by Michelin.

Strictly Ferrari recently offered five sets of XWX with current date codes. I'm sure Al can fill you in on the specifics about this OEM tire.

 

Coker is the distributor of the XWX tire, not the manufacturer if I am not mistaken. They are still produced in small batches by Michelin in France. I purchased a set for my former 308 and really enjoyed them. I will say that the compound is very soft, so a good alignment will be key to ensure that the tires wear evenly. Performance wise, they can more than handle the performance level of the 308 and they look correct/original as well.

 

How come no one ever says anything about Vredesteins? I put them (right size and speed rating) on my gt4 and it is great. Before buying my car I had the opportunity to drive two other gt4s one with Coker/Michelin XWXs which seemed fine and the other was on a modern set of 205/70HR-14 - sorry don't know the brand - which was bouncy/drifty and generally not nailed down. I had old Pirellis on the car when I bought it and after a few hundred miles swapped them out for the Vredesteins. I am very happy with Vredesteins and they were significantly cheaper than the Coker/Michelins XWXs. The Vredesteins were not hard to get and the dealer where they were sent was a regular tire retailer. For $1,000.00 I was able to buy four Vredesteins and a 205/70-14 BCT for a spare mounted and balanced out the door.

 

No... they got used on something else.

The Michelins do have two advantages over modern tires- They do ride very nice- the car has a nice early 911 feel, and they track down the road nice- so you get a nice neutral feel going in a straight line. Around corners? Definitely a trip in the time machine.

 

just put a fresh set on my 308
soon as the weather breaks Ill let you know

 

I also have Vreds on mine, and agree they are a good tire. Going from memory (which is probably not the smartest idea at my age), these drive very much like my old GT4 with XWX tires. And they are 25% cheaper than the XWX counterparts.

That said, I really like the distinctive old-school look of XWX's. I'll probably spend the extra and go for them when this set is used up.

 

The XWX's are fantastic when new but they are also of an old design, of course 16" or larger will make the car stick better but you could also put 20" wheels on a model t! The cool thing about the 16" cromodora or repros is the later euro GT4's and other 308 had them as an option up to the QV, so they may be technically incorrect but visually and stylistically correct.

 

I have put a fresh set of XWX's on my 208GT4, I came from Michelin Energy tires up front (with good profile) and Fulda Y2000 at ther rear (with hardly 2mm profile), this was like driving on a skid road all the time. The XWX's give very good grip (though I have less power than most....)
Since I live in the Netherlands the Vredesteins would have been a good option because they ar produced here and the XWX was hard to get for a good price. I still opted for them just because of the looks, they look so right on a GT4, just look at the stance of the car.
Originally a 208GT4 came with Michelin XDX (195/70/14) tires though but I could not find these.
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I have used XWXs for the last 4 years.
They seem perfectly fine to me. And you can't get anything more original, so why not enjoy it?

 

Tyres that give my ferrari an early 911 feel? Sounds horrible

 

I have a set on my boxer and I like them. Correct look and I dont expect mind blowing handling so im happy. Ive driven 120mph on them and the road wasn't arrow straight.

The tires are made in Serbia now because Michelin moved the plant.

The new tires look them same but are completely different in construction. Read the ply info on the sidewall and note that the bead width is half as thick as a france made tire, its also about 7lbs less in weight if you compare a 15" serbia to a 15" france XWX.

 

Their dynamics may not be of current standards but what else about the car is?
One of the best things about an old car is how its different. After running modern Bridgestones on sixteens I find that the grip is so strong that all of the traditional characteristics are gone.
If I want grip I'll drive my BMW but handling is much more than just grip.

 

some great info here...

thank you!

 

pics
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The best plan is have several sets of wheels and tires! HA

Chas those look great! I have a tip for everyone. The pristine clean made by leatherique is THE best tire cleaner and rubber conditioner ever. It is fantastic on new or old tires and makes them look great but not shiny. I am a big fan of the original wheels and tire, did not want to give the impression I wasn't. Actually I like the early tire as you can slide around a bit more. I found that even with the 16" wheels though I am using the QV sizes with the Bridgestone S02s which were designed for the Honda 2000 (a small car) and can slide the car much more than on what others are putting on like 225 on the front... Lets face it even 16" tires are old fashioned now! HAAA
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I live in NC - that will become important in a moment. In Sept 23 I went looking for a set of XWX for my 308 GT4. Coker site said not available until maybe Dec 23.In Nov I saw an ad for another distributor. Looked at their site. XWX 205/70x14 VR were immediately available, Coker still said December. On Turkey Day I ordered them from Longstone Tyres in UK. The all in price was $500 cheaper (after conversion from pounds sterling to USD) than Coker, and Longstone did not charge freight, Coker does/did. I received them the Monday after Turkey Day * UK to NC. Impressive!

 

My 1978 GTB came with XWX tires. I used up 2 sets and went with some other brands starting in the late 1980s. Ten years ago I returned to XWXs from Coker Tires and remembered how wonderful it was to drive my car when it was new. It's as though the car was made for XWX tires and vice versa.