Traction Please!!

[Peuty]

Originally Posted by HLC

i had yoko's and they were crap.


can't beat Fulda's for traction IMO.

I run Yokohama A539's at the moment, and I have not had any problems with them at all.

[sbeaugs]

Originally Posted by HLC

i had yoko's and they were crap.


can't beat Fulda's for traction IMO.

what were crap about the yoko's????

thats all i will put on my cars
though fulda are good as well but cant beat the yoko v102/v103 best tyre on the market hands down
their whole range is very good
have the v102s on my xr8 ute at the moment they are just about gone (need new ones very soon) but can still take off and coner with confidence beat many other cars off the lights in the wet while they sit there spinning

[sbeaugs]

Originally Posted by Peuty

I run Yokohama A539's at the moment, and I have not had any problems with them at all.

if you like them try the c-drives next better yet again

[Abacus]

Originally Posted by sbeaugs

if you like them try the c-drives next better yet again

Yeah, C-drives are a great tyre.

I had them when I was runnning 16's. Grippy, comfortable and quite.

My 17's came with the original SP3000As. When they're worn out C-drives are going back on.

I've had 2 or 3 sets of 539s over the past 5 years. These are also a good, grippy tyre, but somewhat noisier than the C-drives. That being said, they are still a quieter tyre than the Dunlops.

Neither the C-drives nor the 539s come in 18". The 539 17" is also an odd size - 235/40 rather than 235/45.

V102 is available up to 20". V103 is available up to 22"

[GK]

Originally Posted by Abacus

You can take whatever a Bob Jane sales rep says with a grain of salt. They just want to move whatever they have most of in stock or whatever they have the highest margin on.

Often true!

I did however get many good bits of advice from guys who have run Maxxis, so at least I had some real world data to make a decision on.

Turbo Nick is a tyre champion, he gives very detailed feedback and runs a BA turbo! Many others gave much welcome advice and comments as well.

I love the forum!

GK

[Abacus]

Apart from a few trips to BJs because I was in a hurry, for the last 25 years I've bought most of my tyres from one place - Curtis Bros Tyres at Camperdown, Sydney. No nonsense, no BS. Peter Curtis runs a very nice XR8 ute.

Unfortunately Peter retired at the end of last month, which is a real bugger. I don't know where I'll be looking next time

[TUF514]

have you ever driven a manual? let the cluth out earlier without as many revs......

[FS5]

i run the old nankangs on mine ,so far the best tyre i have had on it .i've tried khumo ecsta ,sava intensa (crap),good year eagle ga and maxis.
the roads have been real greasy up here with the rain this week. like others have said just try and nurse it around a bit when its raining.

[FTE217]

All comes down to tyre quality !
Someone mentioned Yoko's are crapp, that would have to be their cheappy end of the market....Once upon a time I could never afford them but many in the industry know they are top end tyre,soft compounds superb in all conditions but like all top end stuff wear obviously is limited.
All brands now have to have entry level tyres to maintain volume and sales due to the cheapys being included in 18 19 20 + wheel packages.
Nankangs phhhht ! crap in the wet, I know friends with them fitted can't wait to be rid of them.
My XR8 in the wet would hardly get out of shape with the Dunlop sp's, all comes down to what you can afford obviously.

[ratter]

you get what you pay for.

[FS5]

the old ,get what you pay for is so true .i'd love to try some decent rubber on mine but $150 a corner is all i'm able to spend.
back on topic though,as a driver you should know what you car is capable of or incapable of in both wet and dry and ajust you driving style to suit.

[ratter]

Originally Posted by FS5

,as a driver you should know what you car is capable of or incapable of in both wet and dry and ajust you driving style to suit.

Very well spoken

[foxtrot]

Very embarrassing but my car is now most likely a write off thanks to

Admittedly my driving

and i also blame the no name 215's on the rear the stupid dealers put on... which didn't have ALLL that much tread but they were legal.

Going up a hill 3rd gear, shifted to 4th and the *** kicked straight out sideways.. lost control

now being looked at by AAMI insurance.

:(

[nat_daly]

holy crap!, thats rediculous, those tyres shuold be banned for public use if a stock falcon is having that much problems with them. Sorry abuot the car mate..

[foxtrot]

yeah :( No one got hurt... I shouldn't of been accelerating up the hill as hard as i was.. i.e maybe should of stayed in 3rd gear and cruised up but seriously i was driving damn normal and i can't beleive it slipped out in a 3rd to 4th gear change.. i mean you chirp 1st to 2nd easily enough but thats ford power.. 2nd to 3rd gear i'd say you would really have to try and maybe have just one person in the car

but 3rd to 4th gear with 4 heavy people in the car GEESE

Poor baby car :'(

edit: forgot to mention in the above post the roads were wet.. Mum told me to becareful as there were 9 accidents last Friday.. I crashed around 1-2am saturday morning so that was crash number 10 for the weekend most likely.. and i'd say there would of been more.

[Peuty]

Originally Posted by foxtrot

but 3rd to 4th gear with 4 heavy people in the car GEESE

Poor baby car :'(

No offense, but I find that VERY hard to believe. I drive almost the exact same car as yourself, and I have never had it step out going from 3rd to 4th, let alone with 3 passengers. Something must have been on the road, like oil or petrol or something for that to have happened.

[Abacus]

Originally Posted by Peuty

No offense, but I find that VERY hard to believe. I drive almost the exact same car as yourself, and I have never had it step out going from 3rd to 4th, let alone with 3 passengers. Something must have been on the road, like oil or petrol or something for that to have happened.

Yes, I followed this thread with some interest.

Miraculously, I been driving Falcons for about 28 years, and I'm still alive.

Even more miraculously, every day of every week, hundreds of thousands, perhaps millions, of trips are made by mums and dads, taxi drivers, experienced and inexperienced drivers of all ages, in all kinds of weather, in Falcons.

And they don't kill themselves any more than people in other cars.

Miraculously, their Falcons don't just "step out" and go sideways down the road at the slightest whiff of moisture on the roads.

I have never found that in the wet my Falcon wants to "slide all over the freekin road" (post #1). Nor have I ever found that it "just wants to break loose once the revs go over about 2200" (post #2).

Driving uphill on a gravel can get a bit slippery, but this is not what we are talking about here.

Casper's first post "Your tyres must be shockers. Even with my setup I dont have anywhere near that sort of problem", (post #3) was pretty much in accordance with my initial mental response. Silverxr's observation that when his car "was standard it had the original tires (bloody expensive) and it got good drive in the wet, and that's a ute. so yeah it's not the car it's the tire's" (post #5) is also in accordance with my experience.

I agree that if it has recently rained "oil and other rubbish on the road surface will be a factor" (post #4), but not to the extent this guy was talking about. And not on very trip. This guy seemed to have an issue every time he went on the road.

Indeed, it takes a certain amount of provocation for a Falcon, and particularly a stock one, to display "this sideways crazy stuff" (post #7) that foxtrot refers to.

And how does foxtrot propose fixing this problem, after saying "im sure its the cheapo rear tyres" (post #31)?. By fitting a set of Silverstones. I mean....well what can you say.

No mention of, perhaps, adjusting his driving style apart from saying "I'll just have to drive like a granny next time its that wet although it really isnt that safe". Probably not a bad idea foxtrot. I'm sure lots of grannys have driven Falcons, and lived to tell the tale.

Adjusting your driving style to suit the prevailing conditions is not wimping out, foxtrot. It's being sensible. Pretty much everybody does it. That's how we stay alive.

We have all experienced a momentary loss of traction in the wet. This happens. But to be driving in a manner that makes it keep happening so that it feels like you are on a "skateboard that was speed wobbling for a while" (post #21) takes a particular driving style that I would not endorse on a public road.

Arguably, a bog standard AU Falcon 6 does provide a "fairly decent power...on skinny 16's" (post #26). But most people don't seem to have problems staying in control. They find that they can take a corner in second gear without finding that "yeah it slid out" (post #36).

Then we reach the calamitous event of post #73, with the first concession to foxtrot's driving style "Very embarrassing but my car is now most likely a write off thanks to...Admittedly my driving"

Gee. Who would have thought that could happen?

Now maybe I really am a callous bastard. But I do feel for foxtrot, losing a car that way within a month of buying it.

That being said, and expensive though it may be, I suspect it is a valuable lesson that foxtrot had to learn. It may well have saved his life.

And while foxtrot is catching buses, I know that my wife and kids are, for a while, just that little bit safer.

[SirHenry]

I'm sure if we all think back a few years none of our driving styles would be the same as they are now. None of us were born V8 supercar drivers and rally superstars, and this incident will hopefully be a learning experience for Foxtrot albeit a very painful and costly one.

I have a stock AU1 classic auto and yes she gets very slippery in the wet at times but you drive according to your conditions and your vehicle. Good/and or fresh rubber certainly helps since I replaced my crap Yokohamas on the rear with some nice new Firestones I haven't had any issues except for those standard with any vehicle in wet.

Cheers

[Peuty]

Originally Posted by Abacus

Yes, I followed this thread with some interest.

Miraculously, I been driving Falcons for about 28 years, and I'm still alive.

Even more miraculously, every day of every week, hundreds of thousands, perhaps millions, of trips are made by mums and dads, taxi drivers, experienced and inexperienced drivers of all ages, in all kinds of weather, in Falcons.

And they don't kill themselves any more than people in other cars.

Miraculously, their Falcons don't just "step out" and go sideways down the road at the slightest whiff of moisture on the roads.

I have never found that in the wet my Falcon wants to "slide all over the freekin road" (post #1). Nor have I ever found that it "just wants to break loose once the revs go over about 2200" (post #2).

Driving uphill on a gravel can get a bit slippery, but this is not what we are talking about here.

Casper's first post "Your tyres must be shockers. Even with my setup I dont have anywhere near that sort of problem", (post #3) was pretty much in accordance with my initial mental response. Silverxr's observation that when his car "was standard it had the original tires (bloody expensive) and it got good drive in the wet, and that's a ute. so yeah it's not the car it's the tire's" (post #5) is also in accordance with my experience.

I agree that if it has recently rained "oil and other rubbish on the road surface will be a factor" (post #4), but not to the extent this guy was talking about. And not on very trip. This guy seemed to have an issue every time he went on the road.

Indeed, it takes a certain amount of provocation for a Falcon, and particularly a stock one, to display "this sideways crazy stuff" (post #7) that foxtrot refers to.

And how does foxtrot propose fixing this problem, after saying "im sure its the cheapo rear tyres" (post #31)?. By fitting a set of Silverstones. I mean....well what can you say.

No mention of, perhaps, adjusting his driving style apart from saying "I'll just have to drive like a granny next time its that wet although it really isnt that safe". Probably not a bad idea foxtrot. I'm sure lots of grannys have driven Falcons, and lived to tell the tale.

Adjusting your driving style to suit the prevailing conditions is not wimping out, foxtrot. It's being sensible. Pretty much everybody does it. That's how we stay alive.

We have all experienced a momentary loss of traction in the wet. This happens. But to be driving in a manner that makes it keep happening so that it feels like you are on a "skateboard that was speed wobbling for a while" (post #21) takes a particular driving style that I would not endorse on a public road.

Arguably, a bog standard AU Falcon 6 does provide a "fairly decent power...on skinny 16's" (post #26). But most people don't seem to have problems staying in control. They find that they can take a corner in second gear without finding that "yeah it slid out" (post #36).

Then we reach the calamitous event of post #73, with the first concession to foxtrot's driving style "Very embarrassing but my car is now most likely a write off thanks to...Admittedly my driving"

Gee. Who would have thought that could happen?

Now maybe I really am a callous bastard. But I do feel for foxtrot, losing a car that way within a month of buying it.

That being said, and expensive though it may be, I suspect it is a valuable lesson that foxtrot had to learn. It may well have saved his life.

And while foxtrot is catching buses, I know that my wife and kids are, for a while, just that little bit safer.

Very good post, I agree with everything said.