My handling really sucks!!

T

thorpyuk

Member
 Tamworth
Hi All,

I've been pondering the handling on my fairly recently-aquired 2.5si.

Now i was warned by reading the forums that these things tramline with run-flat tyres, and boy were they right!

But i'm just overall a bit dissapointed by the handling. The rear tyres are what, 255 profile? But they dont hold the road!! And i'm not talking about racing it around, i'm talking normal use.

Do they need carefull attention to the setup? Is there any easyish checks i can do to see if the alignment is reasonable, or do i need an alignment check?

I'm certainly going to swap it to normal tyres when i get the chance, but it cant be soley the fault of the tyres can it?

Thanks!
 
Yep, and wong alignment settings will also give this
If thew settings are OK, you can give it a lil bit more of negative camber on the back (just as sport suspension has) AFAIR -2,5 degrees on the back is acceptable, but you should check it before you decide to set it like this :)
 
I would start with ditching the runflats & buying quality rubber .
i was similarly unimpressed with the twitchiness & tramiling when i first got the Z
Now I,m on vredesteins & have to say even in the rain its sticks like glue .
Well worth the effort of switching :thumbsup:
 
If they are Bridgestone run flats thy can ice driving on ice in the wet sometimes and tramlining is terrible.

Fallen 452 are forum favourites and you'll get four for the price of two run flats.

I have Dunlop run flats on my 1 series and they are ok, in fact I'm on my second set. Only £800 all round :o
 
Agree with all the above. I switched to Hankook evo's and the car really settled down. Of course with the sport suspension camber setting. Even when running non-RFT's you might get a bit of tramlining as the tyres wear down or your alignment goes off.
 
srhutch said:
If they are Bridgestone run flats thy can ice driving on ice in the wet sometimes and tramlining is terrible.

Fallen 452 are forum favourites and you'll get four for the price of two run flats.

I have Dunlop run flats on my 1 series and they are ok, in fact I'm on my second set. Only £800 all round :o
Click to expand...
:o :thumbsdown:
 
thorpyuk said:
Hi All,

I've been pondering the handling on my fairly recently-aquired 2.5si.

Now i was warned by reading the forums that these things tramline with run-flat tyres, and boy were they right!

But i'm just overall a bit dissapointed by the handling. The rear tyres are what, 255 profile? But they dont hold the road!! And i'm not talking about racing it around, i'm talking normal use.

Do they need carefull attention to the setup? Is there any easyish checks i can do to see if the alignment is reasonable, or do i need an alignment check?

I'm certainly going to swap it to normal tyres when i get the chance, but it cant be soley the fault of the tyres can it?

Thanks!
Click to expand...

Hi,
have you checked your rear springs...I had a similar problem, changed tyres It helped a little, then about a year later noticed both rear springs were broken,replaced them... It's like a different car now !
 
andysat said:
srhutch said:
If they are Bridgestone run flats thy can ice driving on ice in the wet sometimes and tramlining is terrible.

Fallen 452 are forum favourites and you'll get four for the price of two run flats.

I have Dunlop run flats on my 1 series and they are ok, in fact I'm on my second set. Only £800 all round :o
Click to expand...
:o :thumbsdown:
Click to expand...

Don't worry Andy I don't pay for anything on thar car except tax ad fuel :wink:
 
My experience of the RFT Bridgestones were a significant drop off in grip and confidence in temps of <7C. Coupled with the open diff on the non M Z4 it was often easy to spin up a wheel and cause a traction control intervention.

They really are horrible hard things akin to the tyres found of Lego toys - newer generations of RFT tyres were supposed to come out to address the hard ride and improve performance but unsure if they were released in the uk. Michelin PS2 ZP run flats were regarded as being a lot better, non run flats cheaper and far more choice including sporty offerings from michelin (pilot super sport) and the continental (contisport 5/5p). Vredsteins also get good user feedback.
 
Hi all, thanks for your replies. I've checked all round, and they are all Bridgestone Potenza RFT's:

Front: 225/40/R18

Rear: 255/35/R18


They are all virtually new tread-wise, so i'm reluctant to swap them out until they're worn...
 
Goodyear Eagle F1 Asymmetric II's: Your brain will move around in your skull when you hit curves at insane speeds :thumbsup:
 
Just to reiterate - are your pressures ok? I'm on the same tires and stick pretty religiously to the factory recommended PSIs. Even slightly low pressure on the fronts seems to have a big impact on the handling.
 
Zeds very sensitive to alignment and tyre pressures. Get those sorted first. Once done the car is a world apart. Alignmycar.co.uk for a discount and supplier.

Of course ditch the rft's they are horrible. However, in terms of absolute grip that you complain if they are good. It's the team lining and harshness, so replace when you can afford to.

Final is to check all the suspension bushes and wishbones at the front . They benefit from a refresh and it's a cheapish easy job
 
as far as I remember
225/40/18 fronts are 2,3 bar
and 255/35/18 rears are 2,6bar

but you can check it on the sticker which is located on drivers door frame :) :thumbsup:
 
Hmm, i did find the sticker after all - it says 2.1 / 2.4 which when converted appears to be 30/34 PSI?

I'll check them tonight & let you know!
 
That sounds low, but I wonder if the recommended pressures are different for non-Sport suspension vs. Sport. Anybody know for sure?
 
A lot of debate on tyre pressures

I use 30 / 32 and find this gives me the best ride

I was on 32 / 34 recently and it felt I had gone back to run flats. I went back to 30 / 32 and all is good again
 
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