My New Fulda Assuros are ......Challenging!

ddustan · 07-11-2002, 08:07 PM

My 914 is stock including rims. I bought some 205/60/15 Fulda Assuro tires. Today I made a quick lane change and found myself with my hands full, basically correcting, and correcting, and correcting.... The car handles a bit more rubbery than my ancient Yokos and they were full profile 186/60/15s! The Fuldas also leap from rut to rut in lanes on the freeway.

I contacted my dealer (Big O) and they pointed out that the 205s may be to wide and causing this problem which I can understand. They can fit me with 195/65/15 tires tomorrow.... Also, thay can fit me with Kumho 711s which would be exciting but I'm not sure I want the 50 profile. What would be my speedo correction? I know I'd enjoy the tires......

The 711 tires would be traded straight across or I'd be just as happy trading down to the 195s IF it would take care of my "Buick driving experience."

I'd like input since I'll be stopping at the shop tomorrow afternoon and then heading down to the California coast very early Saturday! One thing I do know.... I cannot drive the car as it is presently!

Thanks for any help!!!

David

jurhip · 07-11-2002, 08:19 PM

When you say 50 series do you mean 195/50. I run 195/60 pirellis and they run about 10 mi/hr slower than what the speedometer says.

Justin

Bleyseng · Bleyseng's Garage

You are not enjoying the rubbery side walls? Then jump down to the 50 series tires to have the car more stable or pick a better tire with stiffer side walls.....Kumho's, Yoko's, Dunlops
Geoff
Whoops! I didn't even see that you are in Shoreline. You could meet me so you could drive my car and test drive a 914 with 205x50's Dunlop SP8000's.

ddustan · 07-11-2002, 08:30 PM

OK... your tempting me! I had the hard ride before.. now its kind of wallowy, if that's a word!

The tires stick... so that's the good thing. They are NOT sporting. Maybe more like stomping on the gas in a 63 Belair....

The Kumho tires, I believe come in 195-50s.

Kevin Powers · 07-12-2002, 05:26 AM

just a couple of thoughts. do you think you may need to have your alignment reset? you might want to check your air pressure too. i bet big-o set the pressure at 32 or 36 on all four corners. when the tires are cold try 23 front 26 rear. those big old ruts on i-5 seem to be just the right size to grab a 914.find some better pavement. those problems might be the price you have to pay to run those big tires,i would'nt be trying to pull big g's in the corners til you figure it out.

rfoulds · rfoulds's Garage

That sounds more symptomatic of a misalignment. New tires, balanced, equal presure, then get a good alignment and corner balance.

I would just hate to see you swap out tires again and still have the problem.

maf 914 · 07-13-2002, 05:29 AM

205/60 tires should not produce extereme handling characteristics. I have 205/60-15 Yokohamas on my car and the handling and braking are very stable. I changed from 185/70s and except for a little higher steering effort there were no negative characteristics. I did get an alignment. At least a front end alignment, as the shop I went to didn't have the required shims for the rear, but did claim that they measured the rear on their machine and that it was within spec (I hope!). I have put quite a few miles on these tires and the wear is even all around.

Mike

tod914 · 07-13-2002, 07:40 AM

I went onto the tirerack website, comptemplating on which tires/sizes to go with.

Has any1 tried the Bridgeston S-03 Pole Postion?
They seem to have one of the highest ratings in handeling, dry and wet tracktion?

Was possibly considering the Dunlop SP8000 and the the Yoko AUS ES100

Is there any advantage to a 205 v a 195?
Isnt the 205 just a little wide for a 5 1/2 rim?

also recommendations on height/aspect 50 or 60?
Pros and cons any1?

I went through all the posts under 914 tires - opinions vary greatly.

Dave at Pelican Parts · Dave at Pelican Parts's Garage

I have the SP8000s. I like 'em a lot! When they get near the end of their life the traction really goes away, though. In the wet they're only fair, which is fine by me! I love throttle-on oversteer, and that's the only time I can get that in my 914!

The SO-3s are supposed to be really, really good hard-compound tires. But quite expensive. I thought they were not available in 15" sizes? I could be wrong on that...

I keep hearing good things about the Kumho 712 and the Falken Azenis tires. They are also supposed to be exceedingly good hard-compound tires. The Honda CRX folks in particular rave about the Azenis. They're cheap, too, at about $50 each.

Never heard of the Yoko ES 100, no data on them.

As for sizes: 205 is a little wide for a 5.5" rim. I have even heard of a couple of tire shops that did not want to put 205s on such a narrow rim. But it still seems to work. From talking to a bunch of people, 205s are just a little tiny bit better than 195s for grip.

The 195s have an advantage if you are looking for low gearing. For a given aspect ratio (say, 50 series) the 195 tire is shorter than the 205 tire. That shortens your gearing, giving you a little better acceleration out of the corners. It also means you have to run higher revs on the freeway to keep up with traffic, and your speedometer and odometer will read even higher than they normally do.

Most street tires have relatively soft sidewalls. A shorter sidewall will usually be a stiffer sidewall. Stiff sidewalls contribute to grip. The upshot is that there is very little if any difference between the grip of a 195/50-15 tire and a 205/50-15 tire. The 195 gives up some width, but has stiffer sidewalls. It is probably marginally less grippy, but if you include the gearing advantages it seems to come out a little bit ahead to my eye. (I did very well autoXing on 195/50 street tires; there were only one or two occasions in two years where the tires seemed to be a liability instead of an asset.)

I have 195/50-15 street tires on my 914. I have moved into a class which allows me to use "sticky" tires, and now I have extra wheels for those tires. I will be buying 205/50-15 (the class limits in all three numbers) for my race tires, as they generally have stiffer sidewalls than street tires and you lose one of the advantages of the narrower tire. My street tires will probably be 195/65-15s.

I hope this gives you some ideas of the tradeoffs involved.

--DD

Joe Ricard · Joe Ricard's Garage

When replcing tires on my 928 shortly after purchase I realized not all are created equal. The car falken on the front and Fulda on the rear. Really crap. Switched to BFG comp t/a and was much better. got lots of miles off them. When it came time to replace I got new S4 rims and Kumho ecsta 712. Much better grip both wet and dry. way stiffer side wall much quieter. All for less money.
Next set of tires will be on 17" cup rims. unless someone beats the performance nd price of the Kumhos. I think I will be a fan for a long time.

914 has General 2000 H or something like than. Really crap. Still keeping my Eye out for 15 x7 FUCHS

ddustan · 07-18-2002, 04:29 PM

Just back from our visit to the Northern California coast. On the day I left I went back to the dealer and actually stayed with the same tire but 195s instead. I could not believe the improvement! The car is predictable again and after almost a couple of thousand miles I love 'em. The tires are a bit less stiff but are much stickier than my old tires... and on those roads out in the Cape Mendocino area, a blast! I think I'll keep these!!

Something amusing, the 205s were right out to the right rear fender... maybe with a n eigth of an inch clearance. The left side left me a half an inch. I've talked to a few people that said they have never seen a square 914 (chassis wise) but what do you suppose they drive??

David

Arlen · 07-18-2002, 06:47 PM

Bleyseng,

Do you drive a maroon late body 914 with Dunlops, 205/55/15? I passed by a maroon 914 on 35th around 100th the other day, very near where a friend of mine lives.

We popped out and checked out the car, I took note of the tires, and almost bought the same Dunlops jyst today!

Is this car yours?

dman · dman's Garage

Here's a tire question for any snow & ice drivers. I have an Audi A4 quattro that I need to get tires for at the end of this summer. I want a performance tire but I frequently take the car skiing. I Like the Dunlop SP8000 but they don't have a M&S rating. Any suggestions?

Thanks.

jurhip · 07-19-2002, 08:40 AM

I have Dunlop Sp 5000 on my VW GTI-VR6 and they work very well in all conditions. In the snow they are great and really, really good in the rain which most people actuallt drive on in the winter. They are 205/50-15 and sometimes seem to outhandle my 205/45-16 Pirelli p7000 I run in the summer.