GR Yaris What tyres are the best.

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Grant zoo

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Good evening zoo members.
I have found that the PS 4 are good tyres.
BUT you my fellow members have tried other tyres etc.
i would like to compile a list of info on all tyres that members have tried etc.
so please give us your feed back so we can all benefit from your experience etc.

Give us your feed back etc.
Grant
 
Tyre performance is somewhat subjective as much of it is perceived unless you are examining data in a controlled environment.

Before that, the term "best" is conditional to what you want the tyre to do? Do you care about tyre wear? Are you after a road tire only that can handle all four seasons? What do those four seasons look like on the road surface? What does the road temperature do in those seasons? OR are you after a tyre that will do both road and track? This will then limit what you can do in poor weather conditions, which in the more severe instances will require two sets of tyres, one for summer and track and one for rain/snow if it gets that cold (we don't have that problem in Aus).

So if we are only talking about a UHP (ultra-high performance) type tyre then your PS4S (PS5's coming out soon) is going to be the best for UK conditions. If you take away half the rain and replace it with sun and increase the ambient temp by 15 degrees then you have Australian conditions (unless you live in Victoria or Tasmania, sorry lads my condolences ;)) then you can get away with a more focused tyre than a PS4S such as Yokohama AD08R's or even A052's, but they will suffer in the rain and not wear as well, especially the A052. Any more than this and you are then looking at track-focused tyres that will be horrible in UK conditions (no heat in the carcass).

This is a really basic look at tyres but in my opinion the most essential modification.
 
Goodyear Eagle F1 Supersport
One of the best „Allround“ tires i‘ve ever driven. It‘s definitely on the same level as the PS4S.

Uniroyal Rainsport 3/4/5
These are absolutely brilliant in the wet.
Used them as „intermediates“ on the racetrack when i didn‘t want to drive the extremely expensive wets or it was too dry for wets but too wet for slicks.
They suck when it‘s dry. At least performance wise.
 
Good post @GRWTF .

I'll add somewhat unpopular opinion as it goes against the deeply seated grain of standard performance thinking, where tyres that score higher grip in tyre tests always equates to better.

The 'other' opinion is that this car becomes more 'performance' with lower peak grip but with more consistent grip, so one is more able to improve your near or on limit driving, and enjoy the cars handling as there are more opportunities to feel it move about. If this idea is even on the table also very much depends on what kind of driver you are and what expectations you have. It is in similar spirit that a Caterham on skinny tyres might actually be the 'best version' on the road, or that a base 911 might actually be the most enjoyable real world because you can use more of it.

Ollie from Top Gear, a journalist not immediately recognised by all as a proper driver but who on occasion has outdriven Chris Harris, wrote this in his long term report nr. 6:
"As it stands the GR Yaris has a great balance of speed and grip. Maybe too much grip, but no-one’s solution to that equation is ever to remove grip. Well, not since the GT86 arrived wearing Prius tyres. I wish people would see that as a performance upgrade. Instead the answer is always to add speed."

So my take is as follows. I don't look for highest grip tyres, but for less performance oriented tyres that get good points for handling and that are progressive when skidding. This isn't easy as almost never do tests look for this. For winter tyres, I look for tyres that have high snow and ice grip as you'll slide anyway but with not too high wet grip, so the difference/contrast between wet and slippery surfaces isn't too huge, here Nordic winter tyres fit my bill but I live in Sweden. Difference I would use them a larger part of the season.
For summer, I want a medium segment tyre with not so good dry grip but good progressive wet grip, again lowering the difference/contrast as one e.g. drives a road part wet part dry. For me currently all seasons tyres fit this bill best.

I know some members love their convenience pack Dunlops exactly because they aren't the highest grip and are apparently progressive in the wet (haven't tried).

While tyre choice like this maybe won't give the sense of endless grip or win laptimes, cornering speeds go from from very high to still high on this very capable car, but there are still more safe opportunities to come even close to limit handling where one can learn and feel the car better. It would be a mistake to think one would always drive slower, especially if conditions are less then ideal, i.e. real world. As I say, I rather drive a tyre with 80% grip at 100% ability, then a tyre with 100% grip at 80% of it's ability, equally fast. Of course the one on 80% has more grip reserve. On the other hand the former knows better where the limit goes, why the latter is driving more blind and is waiting to get caught out when the endless capability/grip finally runs out. So what actually happens, the higher grip tyre might actually drive faster but isn't a better driver because of that. So what is more fun and what is safer?
Actually this is a complex matter and safe driving is much more than tyre grip, but trying to illustrate that higher grip isn't necessarily always better.

Anyhow, this isn't necessarily 'advice' for the OP, more a musing and opening up of what constitutes 'best' on the inherintly very capable, borderline boring(?!?), chassi of this little rally car for the road. So to not derail this thread, if interested in exploring this avenue of thought, I made a new thread https://www.gr-zoo.com/threads/lower-grip-tyres-discussion.596/
 
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I would suggest the main purpose of a tyre is to keep you on the road or track so my thought process is the opposite to OneHP.

Remember the majority of tyre reviews are for people who aren’t necessarily enthusiasts but want to carry their family as safely as possible so grip is what they will look for.
 
Ecsrobin said:
I would suggest the main purpose of a tyre is to keep you on the road or track so my thought process is the opposite to OneHP.

Remember the majority of tyre reviews are for people who aren’t necessarily enthusiasts but want to carry their family as safely as possible so grip is what they will look for.
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High grip sport tyres when cold can be lower grip then run of the mill tyres too, that usually focus on good cold braking, not handling or performance driving.

And don't buy a GRY then, it's a fast small car that will give you too high confidence with its awd, but doesn't brake much better than anything else (cold, on road).

It's complicated, I gave my answer for indeed enthusiast and fun but it's not for all for sure.
 
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Thank you for your comments so far. Keep them coming as it interesting to hear peoples views etc.
 
I ran the PS4S tyres for 10700 miles, before I was asked to review the Goodyear Eagle F1 Super Sport tyre for the last 10000 miles.

I've still got the F1 Super Sport tyres on and they still have life in them, which is quite impressive as they did a full season of sprinting and a half track day at Blyton last year. I did find that the centre part of the tread wore away when I overheated them in a sprint at Anglesey. Angers is a bugger for being really abrasive, but I fed back to Goodyear technical and they told me it was not an issue. I've found the Super Sport to be a really good tyre and actually better than the PS4S in monsoon conditions. I would say where they don't feature as strongly is in cold temperatures where the roads are greasy, very much how it is at this time of year.

I live in Manchester where winter tyres are basically pointless. Yes, I've tried them before I came to that conclusion and whilst I understand that neither the PS4S or F1 is optimal at temperatures around the freezing mark, I do like the winter for it's less grippy and more fun conditions, allowing the chassis to come into play at much lower speeds. The PS4S from my recollection going through winter last year, simply astonished me with how they gripped in temperatures around the three degree mark. It may be that I was pushing not so hard in my early days with the car, which could be a factor, but with my F1's getting towards the end of their serviceable life with 4.5mm still showing, I do feel that I can easily light up the traction control when making sharp exits from junctions or roundabouts. I don't recall the PS4S having this issue.

For dry grip when temperatures get into high single and double figures, I found the F1's to be really good. Nice and predictable with good progression and allowing you to really balance the car at whatever angle I chose on the track. A lot like the PS4S I would say. Also given their low price in comparison, pretty much costing two thirds of the price, makes them a great alternative. I've been really happy with them and when they do wear out, I'll stick the old PS4S tyres on to see how they compare.

I may also get lucky and get to review the Super Sport R, we shall have to see.

Summarising; PS4S tyres are the better tyre. But not by that much. I think the F1 Super Sport gives 95% in the dry, is better in very wet conditions and is similar in the wet. In cold winter temperatures I think the PS4S does better than the Super Sport, though I should add the caveat in that I'm comparing fresh PS4S tyres with worn Super Sports, which likely exacerbates that issue. Overall the Super Sport is great value in comparison with the PS4S which is the benchmark.
 
Grant zoo said:
Good evening zoo members.
I have found that the PS 4 are good tyres.
BUT you my fellow members have tried other tyres etc.
i would like to compile a list of info on all tyres that members have tried etc.
so please give us your feed back so we can all benefit from your experience etc.

Give us your feed back etc.
Grant
Click to expand...

I’ve been using Michelin PS4 tires as my daily drive tire for several years already. I’ve done trackdays with it and I’m totally surprised with the level of grip it offers. It is outright superior in the wet even if you push driving your car. I definitely recommend this tire and for me it is the gold standard for any street setup car. I’ve compared it to Bridgestone Potenza RE003 which is also a good tire but Michelins just really last longer.

Now I’ve used the PS4S tires in both the GRY & the Type R. Pushing the car is like trying to find the limits of grip. TBH, I haven’t really seen the superiority of the PS4S over the PS4. Probably it is evident only on trackdays, but on street not that much. Also, PS4S costs twice as much as the PS4 for the same spec in my country which is prohibitive since all PS4S comes in the US while the PS4 comes in Thailand.
 
I really struggle with the fact that Toyota put the Dunlops on this car. The test drive car had these tyres and within the first 10km of spirited driving I had decided to change them on mine before I put any km on them. Sometimes I wear out the factory tyres before going for something else but these were in my view dangerous. A chassis and suspension with the grip the GR offers and it came with a tyre that could get to perhaps 60-70% of that. Might be different elsewhere in the world but here where the roads get hot (I test drove in Nov on a 30+C day) there was no progression from sticking to sliding.

I accept some people like the idea of a looser tyre but I cannot. I had aftermarket wheels and AD08Rs sitting waiting when the car was delivered. I did maybe 8km before changing the wheels/tyres. The Dunlops were stripped and went on a VW of some sort. Owner was very happy. Good.

I had PS4S's on my M2 and they were brilliant on the road but not so good on sprints, even the short track runs exposed their limitations when under heavy acceleration / heavy braking. I put Kumho V720s on our Mazda 2 and if they or the V730s were available I would have gone for those as the daily drive tyre. Yes the AD08R is not a great wet weather tyre but I don't drive that close to the limit on the road. The first two weeks of my ownership were while we had some dirty weather and I was not at all concerned about grip. I have since come unstuck once and that was a bit of unexpected understeer through an intersection turn and I was driving too fast. No biggie. On a sodden and waterlogged track the AD08R were superb. Same conditions on the R888R was not so sure footed but lots of fun in Sport mode...

Interesting about Lauren's F1s. I have read some tests here and fared as very average. Depends so much on local conditions. RE-11S and RE-71RS likewise not so good. I know someone with the RE-71RS and they cannot wait to replace them. Quite a few of us sprinting road legal cars have a set of track only semis so you see a lot of options.

In 14 months I have about 10,000km on the AD08Rs. Another almost 4,000km on the R888Rs. And hopefully they will both get me to the end of the year. The R888R will need to change due to expected availability, maybe Nankang AR 1 SPORTNEX and for the road????? Maybe the V730 or more of the Yokos. A couple to choose from.
 
Humptydumptyhadabigone said:
I really struggle with the fact that Toyota put the Dunlops on this car. The test drive car had these tyres and within the first 10km of spirited driving I had decided to change them on mine before I put any km on them. Sometimes I wear out the factory tyres before going for something else but these were in my view dangerous. A chassis and suspension with the grip the GR offers and it came with a tyre that could get to perhaps 60-70% of that. Might be different elsewhere in the world but here where the roads get hot (I test drove in Nov on a 30+C day) there was no progression from sticking to sliding.

I accept some people like the idea of a looser tyre but I cannot. I had aftermarket wheels and AD08Rs sitting waiting when the car was delivered. I did maybe 8km before changing the wheels/tyres. The Dunlops were stripped and went on a VW of some sort. Owner was very happy. Good.

I had PS4S's on my M2 and they were brilliant on the road but not so good on sprints, even the short track runs exposed their limitations when under heavy acceleration / heavy braking. I put Kumho V720s on our Mazda 2 and if they or the V730s were available I would have gone for those as the daily drive tyre. Yes the AD08R is not a great wet weather tyre but I don't drive that close to the limit on the road. The first two weeks of my ownership were while we had some dirty weather and I was not at all concerned about grip. I have since come unstuck once and that was a bit of unexpected understeer through an intersection turn and I was driving too fast. No biggie. On a sodden and waterlogged track the AD08R were superb. Same conditions on the R888R was not so sure footed but lots of fun in Sport mode...

Interesting about Lauren's F1s. I have read some tests here and fared as very average. Depends so much on local conditions. RE-11S and RE-71RS likewise not so good. I know someone with the RE-71RS and they cannot wait to replace them. Quite a few of us sprinting road legal cars have a set of track only semis so you see a lot of options.

In 14 months I have about 10,000km on the AD08Rs. Another almost 4,000km on the R888Rs. And hopefully they will both get me to the end of the year. The R888R will need to change due to expected availability, maybe Nankang AR 1 SPORTNEX and for the road????? Maybe the V730 or more of the Yokos. A couple to choose from.
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Try the new AD09, should be available by then.
 
My Aus Rallye version came on P4S and as I wanted a track day tire I found a set of Enkei wheels with Dunlop Sportmax which although they have been bagged unmercifully by the muttering rotters are both black and round and being an old steerer they are not all bad ! I acquired a set of Dunlop Direzza 3 for track days and have left them on for 6 k km and apart from harsher ride and noise were a revelation and even in wet were very good until heavy ( Aus) type rain or standing water when they became interesting. With a very quick lap with a Supercar quality steerer quite amazing to the point I quite let told him I like my car and would he not bend it ! He was gobsmacked by how good the standard GR was with 3 degrees front camber only . ( the bible according to Lauren! )
 
Who had the chance to test the Bridgestone Potenza Race on their Yaris? I was reading it is as good as the Michelin Cup 2 in the wet but much better in the dry. Would be grateful about some experiences.
 
Phil1291 said:
Uniroyal Rainsport 3/4/5
These are absolutely brilliant in the wet.
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I think these are underrated, whilst not the best they offer consistency, like you say they aren't fantastic in the dry but are very good in the wet, this bridges the gap between wet and dry grip levels which is ideal for drivers who don't pay particular attention to the road surface like we would.
 
ZN8 said:
I think these are underrated, whilst not the best they offer consistency, like you say they aren't fantastic in the dry but are very good in the wet, this bridges the gap between wet and dry grip levels which is ideal for drivers who don't pay particular attention to the road surface like we would.
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This if often overlooked indeed and gives great consistency in mixed conditions.
 
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