R888's

[MadUsa1]

I had some R888's fitted to my 200 today. Official excuse is that the stiffer sidewalls will mean the Toyos won't get chewed up quite so badly on the track (getting through the OE contis at an alarming rate on track at the moment).

Went for a quick drive on some local mountain passes. Everyone should fit these tyres to their 200's - in fact, they should be standard, they trully transform the car. It feels like it has an extra 20 BHP, the brakes are sharper, the turn-in is crisper and on the road there's more grip and traction than you'll ever need.

Ok, in the rain they will kill you, they're pretty loud and they won't last five minutes. BUT on a warm summer's day, a set of these tyres will turn the 200 into the junior touring car it always wanted to be.

Can't wait to try them on the track this friday...

 

[Fred@BTM]

they're atually pretty good in the rain!

 

[Mr R.]

they're atually pretty good in the rain!

We use them on the Aston racer in the wet or dry with no problems and are just as good if not better than the Hoosier slicks we used to use.

In the dry against the Hoosier.

 

[Martin_172]

i couldnt beleive the grip i got on a set in the rain, was shitting myself untill i realised they are actually ok!

 

[Ja5on]

great tyre. not a cheap one though. The yoko ad08s are pretty good aswell

 

[Si]

they're atually pretty good in the rain!

thank f**k someone with a bit of influence on here has actually said that. I said that once and got ripped to shreds by the usual know it all c***s.

 

[Si]

on a lighter note... i loved them on mine when i had them. Im selling a partially worn set currently as it's not really convenient swapping tyres on one set of wheels. when i have a spare set of wheels i'll be sticking 888s or a048s or similar on. it's nice just to be able to have something to switch to easily.

 

[f0xy]

I thought they were going to be w*nk in the rain, as everyone always moans about them being...

I did a trackday in the pissing rain at Rockingham, which everyone moans about having standing water, and they were perfectly fine - just dropped the pressures a bit. All the comments have to be just people expecting to drive them like its dry in the wet, which they wont, but if you adjust your driving to the conditions they are fine tbh.

 

[TimR26]

I've got a set of part worns so looking forward to trying them out.

 

[Andyrg@ ClioTurbo]

me too Set too be fitted ofr nationals

 

[Steve]

I did Donington GP in monsoon conditions, wipers full on & still no visability.
No probs at all, is a vid on here somewhere.

 

[MadUsa1]

I've had them a week or so now, absolutely stunning tyres, really transform the 200 into the car it always wanted to be.

I've driven a few of my local road test routes and am able to take many of the corners a gear higher while staying well within the power band. Braking is vastly improved, it feels like there's more power on tap (because you're generally slightly higher in the rev range and there's no forward thrust lost to momentum). Steering feel is also vastly better, you really can feel exactly how much grip there is so you know how far you can push it without falling off the road.

I also tried them on a damp track evening on friday. Like the previous comments, they are surprisingly good in the wet, must better than the conti's in fact.

I also found the front / rear balance has shifted quite a bit - seems like there's relatively more front end bite and the rear is happier to step out on lifting. This makes sense because with the front end more keyed into the turn, the whole car is able to load up much more so that there's more momentun to swing the tail out and adjust the line when you lift the throttle or agitate the steering. Got some pretty lurid slides going on friday but didn't (quite) spin it and found the whole process more expolitable than on road tyres.

I'm starting to wonder how much of the R26R's impressive grip and headline track times was really just down to the sticky tyres.

They are pretty loud though!

 

[Steve]

Soon though you will get bored, i did.
I found outright lap times became boring & moved onto less grippy tyres to have more FUN!
Controlling slides & drifts, getting the basics correct was a lot more enjoyable & taught more car control.
Also sooner rather than later you may experience the grip, grip, grip oh s**t they let go & when it happens the speeds involved can be scary
Also as the weather cools down beware they may catch you out as the don't like very cold temps.

 

[Greeny.]

I would love a set of these but the price is just insane over spec 2's

 

[Jonny1*2]

they're atually pretty good in the rain!

Agreed. Awersome tyres.