DeTomaso Mailing List: June 99, Message #240

Samantha wrote:

>I was told that the front ZR rated tires have a much stiffer side wall than 
the rear HR tires and will throw the car out of balance, and make it feel 
like it is "wagging".  It was suggested that both tires be the same HR Euro 
T/A type in the size I requested.  I thought that I would go with the higher 
rated ZR tires on the front since they are available, and also reduce 
understeer even more.  Please tell me what is true, and what size and type I 
should order. 

>>>Well, the combo you requested is exactly the same that I'm running on MY 
car, and lots of others are as well.  They raise an interesting point about 
the relative stiffness of the front versus rear sidewalls.  Could be true, 
maybe not.

I think the Tire Rack guy was well-intentioned and his advice would normally 
be correct for a typical car, but for a mid-engined supercar with a vast 
front/rear tire size differential, (and one for which no QUALITY rear tires 
are available), I think he's out to lunch.  Sure, you could put Euros on the 
front, but they don't stick nearly as well as the Comp T/A's you were hoping 
for.  The sticky compound Comp T/A will help offset the wider-than-stock tire 
in the rear.  

They're both 50-series, and while the front will have a slightly stiffer 
sidewall, I think you could largely compensate with tire pressure?

You're right on the money with respect to the sizes you're ordering--just 
make sure your front fenderwells are rolled to clear the 245 tire, otherwise 
you'll run into clearance problems when entering driveways, etc.  If that's 
the case, then a 225/50 would be a better bet.

Suggest you go ahead and insist they send you what you want.  If you found 
dramatic problems (which I doubt), you could always get a set of Euro fronts 
later--they're cheep (less than $100 if I recall) and then off the Z-rated 
tires on a late-model Mustang guy or something.

Good luck, and let us know how things turn out!

Mike