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Are "stock width" tyres better in the wet?

Started by _devilsadvocate_ , Oct 16 2006 08:45 PM

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7 replies to this topic

#1 _devilsadvocate_

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Posted 16 October 2006 - 08:45 PM

After reading all the trouble about getting the 260/50or60/14s it got me thinking about when my torry has the 205/60/13 eagers on it. It felt like it was on rails compared to the regular tyres in the dry but were very slippery compared to a stock tyre in the wet. It aquaplaned all too easy at speed and especially so if the tyre was more than half worn.....but still well above the tread/wear bars. Decided that they were not really a sensible choice for all season driving and have gone with stock width tyres since. I dont know if what I observed is typical or extends to other cars and tyres.
Are the tyres that are currently on the bread and butter commodores/falcons the width that will work best for the wet conditions and is wet grip compromised by going to wider tyres on these cars?

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#2 TerrA LX

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Posted 16 October 2006 - 09:09 PM

too wide and too deep water is not a good combination.
a wider tyre with good tread in reasonable conditions should out perform a stocker.
having said that, i had the same problems with eager, were real good tyres, then oneday i let rip and after that they were about what you described DA.

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#3 _curlys torana_

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Posted 16 October 2006 - 09:33 PM

i dont no if this helps or not but on my speedway car i run 205's on it all round cause they gripp better than wide wheels because they sink in the water and mud and sorta touch the dry dirt underneath were wide tyres sit on top.

but saying that if you have high horsepower than wider the better

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#4 _JBM_

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Posted 16 October 2006 - 10:06 PM

If you compare the wide sand tires used on 4WDs to the skinny light truck tyres that are usally standard the wide tyres spread the vehicle weight over a larger area and therefore dont sink in the sand.

But for driving on muddy roads the skinny tyres offer better traction.

And then theres different compounds of rubber.

If you get a Bridgestone catologue it shows about 10 different tyres and compares their grip, longevity, ride and a few other things.

A best tyre for you will always be a compromise between a few characteristics.

James

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#5 _Rob 5000_

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Posted 16 October 2006 - 10:18 PM

doesnt it really depend on the quality of the tyre being used? You dont see to many porsches or lambos etc having trouble in the wet coz they are running wide rubber. A high performance tyre should grip just fine in the wet in comparrision to some sort of stock tyre. Of course there would come a point where the width would become riduculous but 10" etc should be fine. A true performance tyre will expunge (good word eh) the water and bite into the road. Don't forget that in the wet higher than normal tyre pressure reduces aquaplaning.

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#6 _munro_

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Posted 17 October 2006 - 12:23 AM

the oldskool stuff ie: yoki's eagers and bf's are crap in the wet.
when your looking at wide ( well any tyres) a better choise is to spend a couple extra dollars and get a decent tyre than ask for the cheapest tyre the shop has.
in the tyre shop that i work 98% of the tyres we sell are cheapies and thats not just on bunkies.