quick tire question?
 

hi, i was just wondering if you guys are running tires of equal width in the front and back of your 2000 boxsters? i saw a guy with the same car as me with equal tire widths and said his car handles awsome. Mine (bought used) has rather small tires in the front and MASSIVE ones in the back, and i thought this would maybe contribut to my cars MASSIVE understeer.... thanks

Hi,

Putting wider rubber on the Fronts will tend to neutralize the steering some, but at the expense of Turn-in and possible Tramlining and vibration at higher speeds.

Understeer is inherent in most Production Cars, but it's not really excessive on the Boxster.

If your's is, I would look to an Alignment before deciding to fatten the Rubber. Also, try going up a few PSI in the Rears, this too will mitigate some of the effect. Hope this helps...

Happy Motoring!... Jim'99

thanks jim, i added air in the rear and it seemed to help the car rotate better in the corners...i am still considering putting wider rubber up front, but im gonna expirament with different tire pressures first.

-kyle

so Jim, your boxster has wider rear tires than the fronts? or equal? thanks, your a big help.

Well after a little searching i found that the previous owner of my car put 911 wheels and tires on it, it looks cool, but obviously the boxster just cant handle the extra rubber.

Hi,

I'm running stock rubber for the 18" Turbo wheels on my Car - Pirelli P-Zero Rossos 225/40ZR 18 Fronts and 265/35ZR 18 Rear, so yes, I'm running fatter rears...

Happy Motoring!... Jim'99

Aren't we all Jim. Aren't we all.....

Only base model 986s came with equal width rubber. Many, including mine, were optioned out with Boxster S rims and tires, which are 255 in back 205 in front. And obviously all S models came with those rims and tires as well.

The Box can definitely "handle" the extra rubber.

What size rims and tires are on your car now?

i've got the same setup sizes as you jim. and you say yours doesnt have much understeer...hmmm, any other suggestions? ok, well thanks alot guys.

Hi,

Understeer, when going by feel is somewhat subjective. If you feel it's excessive, it sounds as if you may have an alignment issue. It wouldn't surprise me if it was possibly more with the Rear than the Front. Good Luck!...

Happy Motoring!... Jim'99

Running 19x8.5 Front 19x10 rear.

All is good on my end.

KRZ

How Do I Minimize the Oversteer?
 

OK, I need to hijack this thread a little! Sorry!

How do I minimize the oversteer with my car? I definetely don't have understeer. I notice the oversteer even more in the "Sport" mode with sport chrono (as expected).

I am running 32 psi front and 36 psi (down from 37) in the rears on 19" Michellin PS2's. The tires are run-in with about 2,100 miles.

Thanks for the advice!

Try dropping a pound or two out of the rears...

Hi,

The 19's tend to magnify it as well...

Happy Motoring!... Jim'99

I dropped another 1 psi today, and I feel the car is more "sticky". I think the warmer temps are helping too...road surfaces are warmer...and I get a little more bite!

THANKS for the advice.

As a side note, it is amazing how little 1 psi is in the 19" wheels! One little blip of the air gage (digital) and a 1/2 pounds comes out of the tire.