Tyre question?

[mwhitaker]

Dougal

Thanks for the reply-sorry I'm a bit late what with hellish work schedule keeping me put of trouble for a few days. I definitely plan trying to get the XAS tires fitted once I am comfortable with my suspension height/settings and making sure there is adequate clearance. I will refit my spare with a 155/80-13 as a test and plan on getting Sue Miller sourced original type steel rims- like the look of them anyway. Think that should do the trick. Looking forward to a proper tire on this Elan. Might work on doing the exhaust first and letting the credit card recover. Nice Elite by the way-the wire wheels are so period.


Thanks, Mark

[dougal cawley]

I believe the size was 165/70R13.

Did anybody see new Elans (not +2's) with these tyres in period?

Id love some period photographs of cars that show the tyres off clearly.

[Mazzini]

I've got heaps of period photos and all of the then current road tests and I think the 'low profile' option from Lotus was guff, it was just them trying to cashing in on a then new technology or buzzword. I think they sold the 155 x 13 as a 'low profile' - I doubt if trading standards even existed back then.

Back in the late 60's Lotus was a dynamic company producing many different road and track car designs. I don't think they gave the Elan much more development thought after the 'coupe' design, other than to get the it into foreign (read US) markets and of course the flared wheel arches on the S4 ('68) were for the 155's.

[Grizzly]

Just been chatting to longstonetyres and it seems Dunlop have started making 155/80/13 Aquajet's again..... not cheap but spot on if you want the origanal look.

I have to admit i'm tempted to get a set.

[alan.barker]

When i bought some aquajets 155/80 for my Sprint many years ago it was at "Vintage Tyres" and they had been made with Moulds from New Zealand.
Alan

[Grizzly]

I atually tried to get some Aquajet's in 155r13 last year and was told they hadn't been in production for years (don't know exactly how long) but they did make the correct size for the +2 which doesn't fit the 2 seater thanks to the rear spring platform.

I have just seen the price of the new Dunlop Aquajets and they are oviously direct rival's for the XAS (about ?200 each).

For me i may well get a set just because it's the tyre mine had from new and the new look tread patern i have currently do set of my purist streak a bit. I also like they are not new old stock Aquajets as there were a few about at the time that i was activly trying to avoid.

[LI-599]

Hi all,
Some time back I posted that my S4 running Michelin M1 tires( tyres) handled worse than a wheelbarrow full of water. At 9500 miles I ditched them as they were at the wear indicators and my white knuckles needed fixing, and fitted Yokohama BluEarth 165-70-13 tires and even though they have the same soft walls, the handling improved dramatically and they are half the price. Some months later I had the rear A arms modified to allow a minor adjustment to give the rear some toe in and neg camber so I can now say that my Elan is a very different car. One day I will modify the front torsion bar to improve the body roll but not urgent.
Cheers
Ian ( Australia)

[LI-599]

OOps tires were Michelin XM1.
Ian

[Mazzini]

Just been chatting to longstonetyres and it seems Dunlop have started making 155/80/13 Aquajet's again..... not cheap but spot on if you want the origanal look.

I have to admit i'm tempted to get a set.

Any news on the Aquajets?

[Evante]

https://www.longstonetyres.co.uk/classi ... uajet.html

Jay S.

[Mazzini]

Thanks Jay. I think the 165's have been available for awhile, but I was more interested in 155's.

[miked]

Please look back on here about Dunlop SP aqua jets. Sorry to pour cold water on the discussion.
I got a set about 11 years ago (maybe more) from the mentioned Vintage company. Took them off after 60 or so miles. Looked great, no side wall strength. Squealing at 15 mph on a B road bend. Horrible to drive on. Flexing over at shopping trolley speeds. These were brand new and not old stock. They gave me my money back after writing a letter about how poor they were. You could give the car a push in the corner and it would wobble like a jelly. What a massive disappointment.
So, unless something has changed with the manufacturing process i would be wary. Are they not just nylon braced. When I took them off I was quited disgusted with how weak the side walls were. As I recall somebody else via Mr Matty had the same experience.
Had these been a bad batch I am sure I would have been offered another set. I was not which led me to believe they were a representative sample.
I then ran some SP10's (no longer available, as a current tyre). They were very good for a low cost tyre.
Even went to XAS FF after that but wore them out in 5.5k miles. Very good to drive on but too short a life on a standard Stromberg SE Elan. How they would go on with a more powerful engine would be interesting. Such a light car too. They were ?120 each back when I bought them.
Mike

[661]

Jay,

I'm sorry if this has been asked and for the bare cheek of it, but, for your good friends of the forum, do you have a discount code we code apply at checkout...??..

[Keith Scarfe]

So Mike what did you end up getting after all that? What are you running on now?

I am currently trying to decide what to get for my new Miller wheels. Do I go for the Longstone Pirelli's at ?400 a set? or re use my current Vedrestrain's (a bit old now) or get some modern shopping car tyres?

Are the Cinturato really better than modern tyres? Can anyone on here give an real world unbiased view? What difference would I notice?

[miked]

Keith,

I am not up to date with current 80 profile tryes. My Stromberg Elan is long gone but after the XAS i fitted Bridgestone EVO B330. This was over 8 years ago. They were very good and about ?50 a piece. Probably superseded now.
After that I ran a plus 2 (14 inch) and S4FHC with lower profile Yoko A539. I liked these but they became unavailable with folk selling aged old stock.
Now I run a Zetec S4 with 14 inch wheels so a lot more choice. I just went for a Falken low profile, good in the wet type tyre. I am laid up at the moment and can't recall the type. This is a very subjective topic with the profile business with strong views. Has been debated many times. Personally, for road use I don't buy into all the 80 profile thing. Wet grip and tyre quality have been my thing. I am not precious about dropping profile. On a decent set up Elan lower profile tyres far out weigh my driving capabilty.
As I understand there was a discusion on here last year about what was currently available in 80 profile with decent speed rating. Can any one chime in?
Maybe wrong but didn't vredsteins come out well.
Sorry I can't be any real up-to-date help. I only chipped in as the Aqua jet lark p*ssed me off with all the hype and bull crap at the time. I hope the new batch is better?
Cheers Mike