Re: Ur-Q wheels/Tyres

[Steve Adams <adamsfam@batelco.com.bh>]

Dave Eaton wrote:
> 
> i've ranted on about this before, but bigger is *not* necessarily better.

well...Ive always been an extremist..:) I like the adage " there's no
substitue for cubic inches" too..

> running 9" rims on your ur-q with suitable tyres would, in my opinion
> seriously diminish what this car can do for you

All depends what you want it to do for you...:)
> 
> for example,
> 1) very poor wet weather handling

I live in the Middle East....you have to draw pictures of rain here to
help people understand!....and I hail from Oz not the USA or New Zealand
(too many sheep on the roads there anyway..;)...Personally Ive only ever
seen snow on TV..:).
.But regardless..we are only talking a one inch increase in potential
rim and tread width not ten inches and Im not convinced thats going to
change wet weather handling from 'very good' to 'very poor'.

 Wet weather handling is less important to me than dry in any case.. I
own sports cars for balmy summers day blasts along twisty roads and
local club racing not for daily driving.

> 2) increased tramlining
> 3) messes with your suspension geometry/setup

What?..we are going to increase the track by maybe an inch at the most?
Increased diameter may be a problem...but increased width isn't going to
alter the suspension geometry much...especially only an inch! And if
the  castor and camber settings are right I doubt tramlining would
suddenly become a much bigger problem.

> 4) compromises ride

In my experience more a function of too stiff shocks/springs and low
tire profiles...Besides if i want a nice ride I take my BMW 750..:)

> 5) takes longer to heat the tyres in the dry meaning adhesion/braking can suffer

how long a tire takes to heat up is more dependant on compound...and
once a tire reaches optimum temperature a wider tire in the dry will
usually mean IMPROVED adhesion/braking all other factors being equal
......and if you drive hard before your tires heat up well you pay for
your impatience.

 Not sure but didn't the Sport ur-q come with 9 inch rims? Isn,t the
first thing most tuning companies and race car builders do is to find
the biggest rubber that will fit?....... You'd probably get a much nicer
ride and better wet weather handling on 6 inch rims with 70 profile
tires but that's hardly the point is it? I want to go round corners as
fast as possible..wider rubber generally helps do that..:)

Having said all that I think Jeffrey might be right..A nine inch
rim/tyre probably wont fit at the front without flaring the fenders more
so I,ll probably stick with 8 inches..:)

Cya
Steve Adams