New boots, no kinks
TYRES MAY NOT be the most interesting topic, but they’re vitally important to the way a car feels on the road. I’ve always been obsessive when it comes to making sure my cars have the most suitable rubber, because it’s surprising how sensitive some can be to changes in sidewall stiffness, for example. The Integra came with OE-spec Bridgestone Potenzas, which work perfectly with the standard chassis set-up. They were getting on for eight years old, though, and wearing low at the front, which meant I needed to start weighing up options for a new full set.
A new set of Potenzas then? Sadly, it wasn’t quite that simple. This tyre has long since been discontinued in the correct size and superseded by an ‘eco’ tyre. A perfectly good option for a Honda Jazz, I’m sure, but not at all suited to the needs of the Type R…
It was pretty much the same story with other manufacturers, which offer little in the way of performanceoriented tyres in the 195/55 R15 size. I find it irksome, especially as this was quite a popular hot-hatch fitment! Two options stood out, though, both of them from Yokohama. I’ve always been a fan of Yokohamas since running them on my old Alfa Romeo 156, and it seemed appropriate at least to stick to a Japanese tyre for the Honda.
After a couple of email conversations with Ben Field at Vintage Tyres – who’s always been helpful and very knowledgeable when it comes to the needs of younger classics – in the end I opted for a set of the Advan Fleva V701s, a road-biased performance tyre. Yokohama also produces the track-focused AD08R tyre in the correct size, which I might source in the future for some track-day fun, but I’ve opted for a more sensible all-rounder for now.
They were fitted at Vintage Tyres’ excellent (and convenient) satellite workshop at Bicester Heritage (vintagetyres.com) late last year, and the difference was immediately clear. After a few thousand miles I’m happy to report that they’ve bedded in nicely. There’s definitely a little more compliance in the sidewall than before, which has improved the ride quality at the cost of a little bit of turn-in agility, but I’m happy with the compromise. Much more importantly, the car feels spectacular in the wet!
Not that the Honda has been out much in 2021. It had a full service last December and I’ve spent the majority of this year getting very well acquainted with its underside in my workshop. It’s actually been nice to have the time to clean out the wheelarches and properly check and protect all of the well-known DC2 rust spots.
Oh, and I’ve completed the thankless task of machine polishing and protecting the Championship White paint. Now the salt is off the roads and the car has a decent set of boots, it’s time to start thinking about that road trip I’ve been planning for what feels like an eternity.