9 replies to this topic

[aguiloco]

Hi, I'm new driving a Mini and I don't think I got the hand of it already, but I,m starting to feel that this machine can go pretty fast on corners and is getting a bit dangerous.

The car came with Yokohama's A008 and I only got it to slide once during hard breaking while entering a corner, mostly it sticks to the road like being glued.

I love the look of the A032R on the Mini, but I imagine it will be grippier and invite me to go even faster to feel the rush.

I was wondering if going for a tire with less grip could be more fun for the street, lowering the speed and increasing safety.

Any thoughts about that?

Cheers.

[DeadSquare]

Try wide rims and new tyres on the front, with narrow rims and part worn tyres on the rear.

[aguiloco]

That could be great for a track day! I'm sure a couple of period tires from the 70s-80s will slip nicely, there are some for sale at second hand portals.

For everyday use I prefer an homogeneous set of tires.

[nicklouse]

This is where anti roll bars come in. 
 

if you have maxed out your mechanical grip you will find you need to lose some grip somewhere.

 

stiffening the rear loses grip at the rear. Stiffening the front loses grip at the front.

 

this is just it in simple terms.

 

what do you want more oversteer or more understeer?

[Bobbins]

Great for the track Nick but not entirely ideal for the compliance needed on our crap roads!

In general terms, the 145 will give a sweeter ride and handling than 165s but at the expense of grip, but it’s down to preference because there’s no ‘perfect’ combination, it’s all a compromise. Try different setups and see what you prefer.

My personal choice is 165s on sensible width rims, 4.5” or 5” absolute max, stretching a 165 onto a 6” rim (in my personal opinion) really messes up handling.

In complete naivety 40 years ago I did fit some Goodyear U-Grip rally specials to the front with 145 standard tyres on the rear … it’s a quick learning curve when you’ve spun 180 degrees and you’re heading backwards into the scenery!

Stu.

[absx2]

On public roads the car need to be safe which is why cars are made with understeer so WHEN and not if things go wrong you can turn the steering wheel a bit more to get around that bend you approached too quickly.

 

Now when a mini is set up for good road holding and things go wrong on a bend because you approached it too quickly or there`s a lorry in the middle of the road lifting off the throttle will put the car into oversteer ,the front tucks in and the rear will want to overtake the front and the only way to correct it is to get back on the gas pedal but you can`t as there`s a lorry in the way in which case you`re going to crash.

 

With this in mind you need as much grip on the rear as you can get for when you run out of "talent" or an unforeseen presents itself there`s a far better chance of getting around the bend or pulling up to a holt facing the same direction as you started from.

 

If you really want to go sideways get a rear wheel drive car and the best way to increase safety on the street is to try and save it for a track day but I know it`s hard :)

.

[DeadSquare]

 

 

 

Great for the track Nick but not entirely ideal for the compliance needed on our crap roads!

In general terms, the 145 will give a sweeter ride and handling than 165s but at the expense of grip, but it’s down to preference because there’s no ‘perfect’ combination, it’s all a compromise. Try different setups and see what you prefer.

My personal choice is 165s on sensible width rims, 4.5” or 5” absolute max, stretching a 165 onto a 6” rim (in my personal opinion) really messes up handling.

In complete naivety 40 years ago I did fit some Goodyear U-Grip rally specials to the front with 145 standard tyres on the rear … it’s a quick learning curve when you’ve spun 180 degrees and you’re heading backwards into the scenery!

Stu.

Speaking from experience, it is much better to encounter the scenery going backwards.  Most do it going forwards, so there are a lot more good back ends about, to weld on to your good front end.

Edited by DeadSquare, 14 September 2024 - 08:05 AM.

[Ethel]

A misconception, likely less prevalent on somewhere like TMF, is that wide tyres mean more grip. The amount of rubber in contact with the road is just a product of the weight on the wheel & the tyre pressure - 26psi of air will put a square inch of rubber on the tarmac for every 26 pounds of weight resting on that corner.

 

What  wider tyres do is change the shape of the contact patch so there's less rubber fore & aft that would allow you to tramp sideways under heavy cornering as the rubber is stretched. Your steering will be truer, but you'll get less warning when the grip/skill coefficient goes negative.  

[aguiloco]

Getting very technical here, I don't pretend to race in the street, I drive the car hard but with a safety margin, usually I feel under or over steer with previous cars, but this little thing just grips, very neutral in my little experience.

It has been widen a bit, 4'5x10" wheels, soft springs at the front and hard springs at the back. Is is pretty bouncy, I'm afraid one of those jumps at the back during cornering cold make the car to misbehave.

I have thought about a rear sway bar, but I don't want to alter the car too much and I want to keep it as light as possible.

Maybe I just need more practice, I was interested in knowing if you guys prefer a gripy tire or a normal one.

[SKIDDERWOLF]

I know mine will eventually understeer if driven into a corner too quickly, however for this to occur I need to be hustling it
165 x 10” blockley tyres