[DeTomaso] Tire advice

[Pantdino]

I agree with you.  On a car like the Pantera with such a heavy rear weight bias there are many factors to consider beyond tire design and slight compound differences.  People are running tires with such vast differences in width the other factors would have to be extreme to override it.

Seems to me the least desirable combination would be new, sticky tires in the front and old, hard, truck tires in the rear unless you really love oversteer. :-)

Jim


-----Original Message-----
From: jderyke <jderyke at aol.com>
To: detomaso <detomaso at poca.com>
Sent: Sat, Feb 15, 2014 1:44 pm
Subject: Re: [DeTomaso] Tire advice


FWIW, I personally find what tires are mounted on either end of a car rather pointless agonizing over theoretical niceties, if one holds the steering wheel with both hands and the vehicle is well balanced & aligned. For a decade Judy, Rich and I all autocrossed a 500 bhp Pantera with Yokohama radials on the front and Hoosier belted-bias tires on the rear. The courses were 50 miles from our houses and the freeway trip to and from posed zero problems to any of us, nor did the courses. Our competition- Corvettes, Camaros and Lotuses, mostly did the same. Later, I mixed 'n matched tires on a modified '82 Z-28, also with zero problems either autocrossing, freeway driving or commuting in heavy traffic rain or shine. Judy's unmodified '97 Z-28 commuter car has run different brands front & rear since the OEMs wore out after a year. It also autocrossed well. Now has 80,000 miles & is unwrecked.

Indeed, almost all performance vehicles from dirt motorcycles, superbikes to sports cars and even interstate semis will run different compounds and tread designs on the front & rear. Some minor adjustments may be needed with certain combos, of course. That is called 'tuning'. And one should not mix tires across the vehicle; fronts should be the same size/type on both sides, and rears also- unless you are racing on dirt. 

Currently we run BFG fronts and Pirelli rears on our street Pantera.... since 1995, also with no trouble in handling or braking over 40,000 miles. And I could care less what tread design or rubber compound is on either end; it doesn't take long to learn how much grip or slip-angle a given tire will deliver. Although our Pantera has only been up to 150 mph with its current tires (3 times in successive years for a total of 10 minutes each holding that speed, to evaluate new radiators & shrouds 200 miles from home) and has been back & forth to 'Vegas on fast desert highways too many times to count, at only  'slightly' illegal speeds. Possibly at Le Mans, Nurbugring or Talledega's ultra-high-speed racetracks, there may be problems. So don't go there.  

Note to lawyers: the foregoing are all personal observations, not a blanket recommendation.  YMMV- J DeRyke (expecting flames)
 

 

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