Verde

I just took delivery of a low miles 1988 Turbo. White/Black. It appears to be in near-perfect condition, but I will keep taking a close look, swap the fluids, and take it to the local private Porsche shop for a small repair.
The tires, though they look to be new, seem to be flat-spotted. Lots of good rhythm driving down the road. I thought that after a week of short drives, rechecking the pressure, the flat spots would mend. But perhaps not.
So need some advice:
How likely are the tires to round back out. If it's likely, how long does it take?
If not, what to you recommend? Looking at TireRack, there isn't too much to choose from. The car currently has Yokahama's but those don't seem to be available. For it's likely occasional use/not in the rain, I am considered some R-spec tires.
But I'd like to ask the experts.
Thanks,
V

rusnak

I don't know if I'd use R spec on the street. Years ago I had some Yoko AVS Intermediates on the 914-6. They had awesome grip in the dry, but were damned scary in the rain. They also developed terrible flat spots that would come out if I drove the car in the heat for about 40-50 miles or so.

For now I have some strange tires from a company called Fuzion. Its their ZRi tire. Ugly as hell, but it'll have to do until Bridgestone comes back to their senses and releases a S-04 Pole Position tire.

Ed Hughes

Flat spots will not heal, you'll need to buy new tires to fix the issue.

I've run R's on the street, track, driveway, wherever for about 4 years now. I doubt I'll ever change on this car. Your Mileage May Vary. I've had my current Yoko R's in some wet, and they aren't horrible, but I was extra careful. My Michelin MPSC's were like skates in the rain.

It all depends on how you'll drive the car and your experience.

rusnak

I just had a flashback of the old Pirelli P-7 Cinturatos. Anyone remember them? Flats spots for at least the first 5 miles, every single time. Man, tire tech has sure grown. Anyone remember Michelin ZX tires?

Ed Hughes

I remember the P's...I can see them on a nice Italian GT car with Borani wires.

pete917

bridgestone s01 or s02. i love them.

Helios59

Verde,
I'm assuming your stock sizes are 205/55-16 front and 245/45-16 rear.

I have a Turbo Look with the same sizes. So far, I've found Fuzion ZRi and Toyo T1R in those sizes.
The Toyo has a good rep and is more expensive. The Fuzion is a Bridgestone product and more value priced...for me, it may not be a bad choice as I'll never track this car.
Poke around and you may find some other choices. That 245 rear size is tough to find.

Verde

Thanks for the advice and suggestions. Please keep them coming. I agree that the R-comp's are risky in the rain. But I have the good fortune of living in an area where rain is relatively predictable and, since this is not a DD, I don't plan to take it for a ride in the rain. I have an '05 Ford GT (with the worst tires in the world btw - the stock Goodyears are horrible) that has never seen the wet, and I plan the same for this one.
So far, I'm thinking about these:
http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires....omCompare1=yes
The Fuzion's don't much float my boat. Seem like a grade 'b' tire. Probably doesn't matter much in that I won't track this car either, but I like as much grip as I can get to compensate for my modest skills

May911-85

I'm from Chicago and for the past 5 years I've gone with R compounds for Summer and track days (more track than street) and anything i can find for colder weather... I'm not an expert, but heat cycling is a bigger deal than i thought originally with regard to R compounds. It effects grip and tire wear over time. If your going to daily drive i think your best of with "High Performance Summer" (ZR rated) tires and save the R compounds for track days.

Verde

Yes, I'd rather avoid R-comps, but TireRack (a very trustworthy supplier) has little to choose from. I did find a company on line called '1010tires' (a Canadian company - which may negatively affect shipping costs) that has a better selection. Any experience with these folks?
Like I said, I'm not planning to DD the car, so that's not an issue. Tires don't need a high 'wear rating' because I'm assuming this car to be a low-mileage car (it is an 1988 with 9K miles on it - so it's always been an infrequent driver).

May911-85

never heard of 1010 but that doesn't make them a bad choice... just be aware that the when an R tire is cold its slippery. it usually takes 2 laps around an average track a 80% to get them sticky. Not a big deal for daily driving just a caution.

theiceman

Hey didn't the Countach come with P-7s on it ? wow that was some time ago ..

Ed Hughes

1010 is a legit company, they've been around.

One thing of caution-if you run R's, you'll know the limitations of your stock suspension immediately, if it is stock. It dawned on me that I should've qualified my statement that I've run R's full time for years now, that that coincided with suspension upgrades.

Verde

Ah, thanks for the added note. I'm homing in on a set of Conti's (if they are reasonably fresh and still available) and if not perhaps a set of Toyo's. R's are the third choice if these plans fail. But thanks for the tip.

theiceman

alot of our guys get their tires from 1010 tires and are happy with them ..