Frying Pan Posted February 19, 2010 Share Posted February 19, 2010 MOT tomorrow, so a quick check round the car this afternoon. Front tyres (15" CR500s) are a bit marginal, but should pass with n advisory comment. Rears are not too far behind, so I'm looking at £500 bill to replace them all like for like. Not a huge choice for 15" wheels - R888s are only available in a 50 profile and thus don't fit under the wingstays. Has anyone used T1-Rs on a Caterham? - can get 4 fitted for £237 though Blackcirles. Did trawl the archives and they've been discussed before but couldn't really find any actual Caterham experience of them. I tend to do mainly dry / damp road miles. I don't want to go with a cheap option if they aren't going to work for me Cheers Guy See some pictures of the build here. 17000 miles completed! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paul abrahams Posted February 19, 2010 Share Posted February 19, 2010 Have experience of using them on an MX5 and they are all round fine, no experience of them at the limit though or on a 7. I would say go for it Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
6speedmanual Posted February 19, 2010 Share Posted February 19, 2010 Hi Guy I think you'll struggle to get as good a tyre as a CR500 although they come at a price. If possible, I'd stay with the CR500s. If the T-1R is not satisfactory and they are long wearing, you could be with them for a very long time - or end up changing them before you've had money's worth from them. You'll be reminded of them not being like CR500s every time you drive the car due to the intimacy of the 7's feel to the contact patch. Not that I'm against trying different tyres on a 7 as you know from my winter tyres, just that for operating with only one set of wheels I'd keep to a tyre developed with the 7 in mind. Cheers Peter BRAWNGP green SUPERLIGHT FCITW 2009 😬 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alan c Posted February 19, 2010 Share Posted February 19, 2010 I have T1-R's on mine and so far they have been fine. I got the car with them on the rear and some very old yokos on the front and changed late last year to T1-Rs all round and so far they have been great. A friend put them on his a while ago and was really happy so I decided to follow. I have 15in wheels and need 15/50/205 on the front and 15/50/225 on the rear so I don't have a huge list of options to choose from. I have no direct comparison with CR 500's but for me T1-Rs offer enough grip in all conditions, for all round use, ie mainly road use in all weathers.. Not sure how long they will last but the rears are definately wearing so they are nowhere near as hard as some other options but probably not as soft as CR 500's or the Yoko A 21's I had on my old crossflow. Alan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kevsta Posted February 19, 2010 Share Posted February 19, 2010 I don;t have them on my caterham but I fitted them to my last car (rover 620Ti) and was very happy with them and have now changed to them on my Golf V6 4motion. I find they grip well and are really good in standing water. They are quote progressive too and wear quicker than the previous tyres on both cars (Falken and Dunlop Sport). I expect to get 10-12k out of them on the Golf - but it is A LOT heavier than the caterham. I'd guess you'd get at least 20k miles from them (depending on driving style of course 😬). A nice tyre especially if you are not interested in track driving, well priced too. Kev Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frying Pan Posted February 19, 2010 Author Share Posted February 19, 2010 Thanks for the feedback all Keep it coming... Peter - I'm expecting the would be a downgrade from the CR500s but they are significantly cheaper! Paul - I did find your earlier posting about the MX5 which sounded good Alan - Good feedback - the first from actual Caterham experience Kev - Remember borrowing my then boss' 620Ti when I worked for Rover - incredibly progressive power delivery (you'd never guess it was turbcharged but a frightening habit of running out of brakes. I remember (vividly ) driving down the B4525 between Banbury and Syresham - it joined the old single carriageway A43 at a T-junction, and was the scene of several nasty accidents. As I approached the junction, I realised the brakes were shot, and couldn't stop until I was half way across the A43. Thankfully, there was nothing coming Wasn't as much fun as the development hack for the Tomcat Turbo (Rover 200 Coupe) though - now that was quick See some pictures of the build here. 17000 miles completed! Edited by - 7heavensoon on 19 Feb 2010 20:15:36 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kevsta Posted February 19, 2010 Share Posted February 19, 2010 Yep, a fantastic engine, just needed to be built by someone who knew how to build engines that didn't leak (and matted to a better gearbox) and with pistons that could take more power (they were very much at their limit at the 197bhp...no tuning unless you upgraded). I persuaded my Dad to buy one as a company car when I was 15, when I bought my house and had to sell my 944 I needed cheap wheels but still wanted something comfortable and quick....it cost me £850 and I sold it 18months later for £800 (did spend a little on it but still cheap for 200bhp). You could have fun with the Torsen diff too. Surprised and annoyed many cars (what's this old grandad doing in his S reg rover....hang on...where's he gone 😬) I know what you mean about the brakes, I never ran out but was close a couple of times, when I changed the discs and bearings I put 1144s on and it was sooooo much better, just made the wheels dirty after use and 100 miles! Worth it! I never had a go in the tomcat ☹️ Good cheap motoring, as long as you drive around it's shortcomings (and fitted good tyres 😬) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
prs Posted February 19, 2010 Share Posted February 19, 2010 You could also consider the new Toyo R1R or Yokohama Parada spec 2. I ran T1r's for a while and found them perfectly ok with 200BHP good grip in the dry and no probs in the wet, road use only though Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harbinger Posted February 20, 2010 Share Posted February 20, 2010 I do and I like them. A big improvement on the Pilots that came with my current 7, more like the 21Rs on the last one. They felt a bit squirmy initially due, I think, to the very deep tread blocks. Either I've got used to it or they have improved with wear. I don't have much experience with stickier tyres and I don't imagine they really compare to CR500s and the like but for my road and autosolo use (no list 1b's this year) they seem ideal. £29 a corner from Camskill David Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paul abrahams Posted February 20, 2010 Share Posted February 20, 2010 Guy, the T1-Rs have also performed really well in the recent very cold weather, so for a budget tyre ( relatively speaking ) I think they're fantastic all round value for money, so much so I bought some spares, oh and I like the tread pattern Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
craigyb Posted February 20, 2010 Share Posted February 20, 2010 Used them on my porsche 964 before I sold it, for the last 4 years or so, and found them to be excellent. Currently have the avon cr322s, and the t1-rs are a fair bit softer, though not as soft as a yoko A21 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Area Representative Nick Chan Posted February 20, 2010 Area Representative Share Posted February 20, 2010 I had T1-R's on my S1 Elises and S2 Exige and found them to perfectly acceptable for all round road use esp. at the price. They had excellent wet weather performance and the cars never felt nervous even in standing water conditions Nick ----- Back in a BEC! - but done alright in Class 1... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frying Pan Posted February 20, 2010 Author Share Posted February 20, 2010 I think I'll go for them then. Time is of the essence, as I failed the MOT this morning with both front tyres. Thanks all for your thoughts See some pictures of the build here. 17000 miles completed! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mavic82 Posted February 20, 2010 Share Posted February 20, 2010 Guy, I use them on the HPC and think they are great, not so sticky as the 500's but certainly wont tell the difference on the road. Good in the wet to. Cheers Guy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sjmmarsh Posted February 20, 2010 Share Posted February 20, 2010 - just to get all the GTKY:CSR posts together..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Area Representative Golf Juliet Tango Posted February 21, 2010 Area Representative Share Posted February 21, 2010 I use T1-Rs on my 21 (as does at least one other owner) and, apart from an incident in the snow, they have done pretty well. I selected them when I swapped from the original spec 16" wheels to 15" wheels, deliberatly to gain some sidewall height (depth?). At the same time I also reduced the width of the front tyres to 195 from 205 which improved the feel and directionality of the steering. Democratic dissent is not disloyalty, it is a positive civic duty. Edited by - Golf Juliet Tango on 21 Feb 2010 12:19:50 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frying Pan Posted February 21, 2010 Author Share Posted February 21, 2010 Our local (to work) tyre place wanted £310 for four fitted. Ordering through Blackcirles with club discount (£8) they come in at £237 fitted at the very same place See some pictures of the build here. 17000 miles completed! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frying Pan Posted February 22, 2010 Author Share Posted February 22, 2010 Going to get two fitted on Wednesday (the rear CR500s still have a bit of life in them) at a local place via Blackcircles. Two fitted for less than the price of one CR500 un-fitted / un-delivered... What pressure should I run the T1-Rs at? I've used 18psi for the CR500s -----See some pictures of the build here. 17000 miles completed! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frying Pan Posted February 25, 2010 Author Share Posted February 25, 2010 Got the new tyres fitted yesterday, but had no chance to look at them - still in the boot of the Freelander. Will fit them tomorrow PM so can go and get re-tested on MoT. Any thoughts on pressures? -----See some pictures of the build here. 17000 miles completed! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harbinger Posted February 25, 2010 Share Posted February 25, 2010 I would go and get the other two fitted first, then try 18psi and see how it goes/stops. David Edited by - Shoestring on 26 Feb 2010 02:09:34 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alan c Posted February 26, 2010 Share Posted February 26, 2010 I run mine at 18psi and it seems Ok to me. Alan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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