Quiet tyres?

I have rainsports on my silver Eunos, couldn't hear anything except the dreadfull cobalt exhaust

things will be different & probably worse next time it's driven (but the exhaust will be homemade & quieter )

Rich.

Look at Longstone tyres - they are stocking a load of 'vintage' sizes not available elsewhere, from what I can see.

They have Pilot Exalto 2 in 185/60/14, for example, which are unobtanium otherwise.


EDIT: Can't find anything in 225/45/15 but they have 215/50/15s (Audi Quattro size) which are, er, quite expensive... LOL

www.longstonetyres.co.uk/tyres/215-50-15.html


They have 225/45/13?

www.longstonetyres.co.uk/tyres/225-45-13.html


Actually, a lot of stuff on there is weird old supercar size and priced accordingly... lol

Dunlops are properly quiet, I run Sportmax II's on the Subaru and Bluresponse on the Roadster, don't expect R888 grip though, they are "good" for a road tyre though, were not too horrible on track but I was on 185/60s 14x6J so bulging sidewall with a lot of sidewall roll so the transition from grip to slip, whilst plenty of squeal to warn me, was not smooth like smaller sidewall with a slight curve would offer (ie 225/45 on a 9J or 195/50 on a 8J).

205 is not too narrow for an 8J (205mm is 8.07 inches), depending on the sidewall profile running a 195 or a 205 has less sidewall curve (not stance stretch) than an OEM Mclaren P1 GTR tyre, even more so in an R compound as they come up a size larger. The R888s hav always been loud but that extra width of a 225 street compound might add to the noise due to more flex/roll under cornering, you'll certainly get more squeal. To be honest, I'd argue that a 205/50 is "too big" for an 8J because of the taller sidewalls but doesn't cause most people issues.

Rainsports I don't get, mainly because I don't drive in the wet but another reason is  they look very big so the sidewalls look like ballons. I used to run 215/45 AD08R on an 8J and it wasn't noisy (the car was though) and they have firm sidewalls, even then I wanted to go down to a 205 or a 195 to provide better steering feel and better transition from grip to slip angle, either that or go up to a 225 on a 9J. I think the EU cucked the Advan AD08R as they are not available, however they have released an AD08RS which is more of a street compound so might be worth a look, I would think they still have the stiff sidewalls too.

195/50/15 is the sweet spot for a 15x8 imo, not stretched, most people don't even understand what "stretch" means as the sidewall profile size makes a big difference to this, a 195/45 on an 8J would be one level of "stretch", going up to a 50 increases the overall width of a tyre, for example a 195/50 Direzza DZ03g is 202mm, a 185/55 is 197mm wide but a 215/45 is 212mm wide. All tyre brands come up different in size, even more so on R compounds, falkens used to come up a lot smaller than stated width too, tyres are a faff.

They say images are worth a thousand words so heres what I mean in pics, same brand tyre and all R compound so as close as you can get. This is how different width and profiles look, the 205/50 and 225/45 look almost the same and the 195/50 not far off either... Nankang NS2Rs are also worth a look, sticky and around £60 in 195/50R15 (these are what I'm swaying towards for the wheels I've ordered).

Nankang NS2R 195/50 R15x8J - Notice how the lip is still protected by the sidewall (ie. Not stretched).



Nankang CR-1 205/50 R15x8J 



Nankang NS2R 225/45 R15x8J

I had a look at 205/50 195/55 and either the selection or the price goes out of spec. (cheap AND lots please)

www.blackcircles.com/order/tyres/search?width=205&profile=50&rim=15&delivery=1&id=10034
www.blackcircles.com/order/tyres/search?width=195&profile=55&rim=15&delivery=1&id=10034

Interestingly there's an advan with 67 db rating (really low)

www.blackcircles.com/catalogue/yokohama/advan-fleva-v701/205/50/R15/V/86/m?tyre=38122606

Looks more expensive than it ought to be but it'd be super quiet if the rating is to be believed.

I actually need to buy another set of tyres for some wheels I have laying about.. cough.. hmmmmmmmmmmmm

Just to back Alex's comments and add some more on the brands mentioned:

- The loudest road tyre I've driven on was a Bridgestone Potenza S001 which drowned out a stock Subaru STI exhaust... they were however runflats (not my choice) which didn't help. I've had Potenza RE50's years back and don't remember them being that loud though.
- I had a set of Kumho Ps31s which were actually decent grip, in the wet too, and quiet in general (motorway speeds), however they were 195/55s on a 5.5J rim so too much roll/flex so would squeal round most roundabouts even at "modest" cornering speeds.
- Federal 595 RSR were really good grip in the dry and wet, but I preferred the AD08R (old compound) in the dry (it was weaker in the wet) both were barely different in noise, Federals maybe a touch louder.
- Goodyear Eagle F! (OG spec) were great in the wet but would roll/flex too much in the dry leaving a vauge feeling to the steering.
- Hankook RS3's and V12's - RS3s were brilliant for a few laps on track but I cooked them very quick and they didn't really come back, V12s were nothing of note really, not good or bad and didn't really notice them being loud.
- R888 OG tread patteren - I don't need to say anything on these, proper sticky but proper loud.
- Pirelli P-Zero's circa 2009, absolute dogsh1t, put me off for life lol.
- AD08R (old compound) - Amazing dry performance, even on the road in cold conditions and very good on track (but behind an R888) but a 215/45 R16x8J would aquaplane like crazy in standing water. Consistent wear across the tyre was excellent on these

atlex where you finding Parada spec2's in 195/50/15? I can't find them anywhere, it was a good OG tyre in the dry (same experience in the wet) and I loved the tread pattern and sizing so for the right money I'd be tempted with a set again.


Too bigger diameter for me, not really an issue for you but the minimal effect on gearing would hurt a 1.6, especially if you have a 4.1 ratio

Sorry if things are going off on a tangent but good tyres seem to be an issue now we have such a Nanny approach, everything is going towards wet weather performance but really who drives flat out in the wet to the point they would give up lots of dry  performance (not me)?

Ahh, yeah that was the case for me too. Also been taking a look at these....

www.tegiwaimports.com/wheels-tyres/zestino/zestino-gredge-07r-medium-compound-tw240-semi-slick-tyre.html

Zestino Gredge 07R, it looks a similar tread pattern to the tyre we wish we could have (Dunlop Direzza Z3 SS) but I have no doubt it will not have the same performance sadly. Might we worth a punt as they are not too pricey and 240TW isn't too aggressive either, people on facebook would probably say something silly about them being drift tyres but again, a lot of people don't understand tyres properly and assume they would have you sliding around on the road. Drift tyres need lots of grip due to the high speeds but more importantly the transition from grip to slip needs to be smooth, consistent and predictable and also the coping with heat cycles and wear needs to be decent too (you don't want tyres lasting a couple of laps until they are going in the bin).

They also provide a handy spec sheet of the actual dimensions, wow I wish other manufacturers would do this...