Just recently i have noticed that my Cup seems very "on edge". I seems to understeer a lot on sharp bends (particuarly right hand) even on dry roads. I chaecked the tyre pressures first which were fine. The tyres have had 4.5k off heavy abuse but i would say by looking at them that they have a bit of wear lewft in them yet. Just wondering if this kind of handling drop off could be down to the contis or could it be something more sinister???
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Just recently i have noticed that my Cup seems very "on edge". I seems to understeer a lot on sharp bends (particuarly right hand) even on dry roads. I chaecked the tyre pressures first which were fine. The tyres have had 4.5k off heavy abuse but i would say by looking at them that they have a bit of wear lewft in them yet. Just wondering if this kind of handling drop off could be down to the contis or could it be something more sinister???
When i checked the pressures a week ago they were 31 at the front and 30 at the back which i would think is about right. Matt i too have found the back end come loose while trying to correct the understeer, makes for fun driving buts it not really ideal, i might condier some new front tyres?
maybe the suspension has settled in a little bit!
or prehaps ure just gettin used to it and you are now pushing it to its limits with relitive ease!!
i drive a company car all day and when i get in the cup it feels like a race car!
Hmmmmmm..... Ive noticed the same, but put it down to familiarisation with the car. After 4.5k of driving Im now just over the white-nuckle phase and am more used to the torque-steer and tramlining, and rather than fighting the car like I did at the start, driving the Cup quickly is now a more relaxed affair. Im now finding understeer where before there was none, but then Im carrying speed better through the corners, braking less and being a bit more adventurous with the throttle. My tyres now seem to behave better with some of the tread block scrubbed off. I recon youre just pushing the car harder and finding the limit of adhesion more frequently...
Was a Clio 1.8 16v
That should give front extra grip over rear, supposingly increasing likelyhood of oversteer which is deffinetly better than understeer in a FWD car.
Maybe those pressures will make a difference Enid. I use 35psi front and rear to get a more responsive steer but it has a tendency to slide when cornering in the wet, but in the dry its amazing round bends.
When it slides it does knock ur confidence in the cars road grip though (especially when you wrote your old (shi*y) clio off cornering in the wet!), but the tyres wont wear as quickly with slightly higher psi.
I run at 36 front and 32 rear, 3.4k miles now and still handles like it is on rails. I think the manual quotes 38 or 39 in the front for motorway driving and and extra 3psi for towing. You all seem to be a bit low in the fronts.
It is a bit hairy in the wet, but I see that as a good thing being that we have no ABS in the Cup. It makes me drive a little slower, but still quick enough to supprise me from time to time.
Audi TT Stronic
Quote: Originally posted by Mikey16vClio on 14 March 2003
That should give front extra grip over rear, supposingly increasing likelyhood of oversteer which is deffinetly better than understeer in a FWD car.
Maybe those pressures will make a difference Enid. I use 35psi front and rear to get a more responsive steer but it has a tendency to slide when cornering in the wet, but in the dry its amazing round bends.
When it slides it does knock ur confidence in the cars road grip though (especially when you wrote your old (shi*y) clio off cornering in the wet!), but the tyres wont wear as quickly with slightly higher psi.
I must disagree, understeer is IMO much safer for the average driver than oversteer.
I would rather have the front tyres slide a bit as im going round a corner than the back end catching up on me...
Guys, run the quoted PSI. I think the manual states it in Bar, but its around 31f/30r from memory. Whoever is running over 36 is nuts, unless you are doing a trackday in the bone-dry!!
Sports car set ups are set to be as neutral as possible to cater for all types of driver and tyre pressures, even a change of 1-2 psi can make a profound difference. My Lotus and Impreza both have big handling changes if the pressures are not correct.
However, I have now done 8115 miles in the CUP and, whilst there is still tread on the tyres (to the uninitiated, they look perfect), they are scrubbing and understeering a lot more under load/pushing on. I have stated on this board many times that I do not like these tyres and whatever Renault stated that they were specially designed for the Clio etc etc, thats b*****ks as they probably went for the cheapest deal with a manufacturer. Same a Subaru. They have Bridgestone Protenzas and they are pretty basic to really be a performance tyre. So I agree that the CUP set up is really affected by tyre wear.
Sooooo, for my white 17" Speedlines, I have chosen Bridgestone SO3s as I have had 6 sets of them on the Impreza and Elise and swear by them as an overall tyre. I will report back in a few weeks as to whether they improve the CUP or not. I can not say today if they will improve things, as I do not know and one good tyre for one car is not necessarily the best for another. I am just going to try what I am happy with on my other cars.
Cheers,
172CUP
I wore my Contis out in 5k miles. I now have Goodyear F1s on the fronts. They are different. Better on road, a smoother ride, less tramlining. Slightly less lateral grip in the dry makes it understeer slightly more, but very good in the wet. Not tried them on track yet.
My impression of the Contis were that they were very good. Especially on track, and particularly in the wet. In the dry, they tend to lose a little grip when they get hot after a few laps, but on the whole the car gripped like a limpet, and handled like a thai prostitute on a good day.
Interesting how some of us seem to have differing opinions on the same tyres. My guess is that it comes down to driving style. It is an expensive affair to find the right rubber for your particular style. After reading several threads on how bad the Contis supposedly are, I tried hard to agree, but couldnt. I thought they were good.
