KaiPL
Enthusiast
Runflat Tires (aren\'t so bad)
Folks on this board seem to universally hate the stock PS runflat tires.
I have to say that I don't find them to be all that bad. They may not be good for drag racing, because you can't really underinflate them for more traction, but for daily driving and track days on road courses, they work pretty well. Although they aren't as progressive at the limit as full competition tires, they handle track days with ease, and once you learn to "read" them, they give you quite a bit of warning before they let go.
Not only that, they last a really long time. They have exceptional durability, and I put over 15k miles on my first set, which included more than 20 hard-driven track days. Even when they were replaced, I still could have easily had a couple thousand more miles out of my rear tires. I don't think that there are many ultra high performance tires that will give you that sort of wear.
As for the dreaded wheel-hop and lack of traction, I don't see it much. Do they have less traction than my Sport Cups? Yes, but the runflats are street tires. They have pretty good wet traction for an ultra high performance tire too, and I drive them in wet weather without concern. To this day, Motor Trend has never tested any car with a faster time in their figure 8 course. That is a test which really pushes a car (and tire) to the limit when it comes to usable grip. If the stock runflats really **** as bad as everyone says, there is no way that the Viper does so well in the figure 8 and on the skid pad.
I like the added safety of runflats, and when I go to an open road race, I use the stock runflats instead of my Sport Cup competition tires because the beefy runflat construction gives me peace of mind in a sport where high-speed blow-outs are the major cause of serious accidents.
Things I don't really like about the runflats are their extra weight, and the fact that their ultra-stiff construction also mandates the use of heavier/sturdier wheels to accomodate them. I'm sure that there are other tires out there that are better (don't know why Michelin won't make the PS2 in stock Viper sizes) but I really don't find the stock runflats to be all that bad. In fact, I find that they area pretty good combination of performance, durability and safety. When it was time to replace my stock tires, I bought PS runflats as the replacement. I just didn't see any real reason to change to something else for daily driving.
Folks on this board seem to universally hate the stock PS runflat tires.
I have to say that I don't find them to be all that bad. They may not be good for drag racing, because you can't really underinflate them for more traction, but for daily driving and track days on road courses, they work pretty well. Although they aren't as progressive at the limit as full competition tires, they handle track days with ease, and once you learn to "read" them, they give you quite a bit of warning before they let go.
Not only that, they last a really long time. They have exceptional durability, and I put over 15k miles on my first set, which included more than 20 hard-driven track days. Even when they were replaced, I still could have easily had a couple thousand more miles out of my rear tires. I don't think that there are many ultra high performance tires that will give you that sort of wear.
As for the dreaded wheel-hop and lack of traction, I don't see it much. Do they have less traction than my Sport Cups? Yes, but the runflats are street tires. They have pretty good wet traction for an ultra high performance tire too, and I drive them in wet weather without concern. To this day, Motor Trend has never tested any car with a faster time in their figure 8 course. That is a test which really pushes a car (and tire) to the limit when it comes to usable grip. If the stock runflats really **** as bad as everyone says, there is no way that the Viper does so well in the figure 8 and on the skid pad.
I like the added safety of runflats, and when I go to an open road race, I use the stock runflats instead of my Sport Cup competition tires because the beefy runflat construction gives me peace of mind in a sport where high-speed blow-outs are the major cause of serious accidents.
Things I don't really like about the runflats are their extra weight, and the fact that their ultra-stiff construction also mandates the use of heavier/sturdier wheels to accomodate them. I'm sure that there are other tires out there that are better (don't know why Michelin won't make the PS2 in stock Viper sizes) but I really don't find the stock runflats to be all that bad. In fact, I find that they area pretty good combination of performance, durability and safety. When it was time to replace my stock tires, I bought PS runflats as the replacement. I just didn't see any real reason to change to something else for daily driving.
