Got Torque?

When I bought Emily, she still had her original tires: Goodyear Eagle F1 GS EMTs. These are "runflats"; in the event of a puncture one may drive-on safely for approximately 50 miles. Chevrolet selected them to obviate the need to accomodate a spare. However, I've always hated the way they affect the steering. The car is continually deflected by every minor imperfection in the road surface, pulling the steering wheel this way and that every few seconds. This is the inevitable result of the extremely rigid sidewall that a runflat tire needs in order to run when flat.

Recently I damaged a tire badly on one of Massachusetts' elephant-trap-sized potholes (where do our taxes go?!) necessitating replacement. Since the original tires are being phased-out, it was going to be something of an ordeal to find one identical to my other three, so I decided to take advantage of the opportunity to replace the entire set with something less inimical to controlled handling. I did some reading around and settled on the Dunlop SP Sport Maxx, which seemed very popular with other 'vette owners. The difference is astonishing! Emily now handles with control and precision that I knew were possible all along, but which were hitherto foiled by the runflats.

Driving Emily has always been a thrill, but now it's even better. Without the need continuously to wrestle with the wheel, one has much greater control and confidence. She glides along at 90 as though on silk, but always with just enough feedback to tell you what's happening at the tarmac/rubber interface. She sticks to the road like a gecko and takes corners "as though on rails", to coin a phrase. These improvements naturally inspire the driver to greater playfulness!

I'm easy to spot on the road: I'm the guy with the ear-to-ear grin, making Porsche drivers sick with envy :-)