@aircooled posted:Marty........You just have a little bigger one now !.......Bruce
Ain’t that the truth? The motorcycle/go kart DNA is strong in a Spyder.
After posting the photo of Alfred I had the thought that many of the younger members of the group may not know who he is>
@dlearl476 posted:Sorry. Not buying it. How many VWs were made from the 50’s on? How many tales have you heard of people dying in their flaming wrecks because of “brake fade?”
And I know brake fade. Try driving an (over) loaded Penske rental full of sound gear down I-70 into Denver. The trick is to slow down or stop when you first feel it, not wait until it’s possibly fatal.
Try a full panic stop from 75 mph and let us know how it goes. I know what happens in a Beetle- at 35 mph or so the brakes are gone. I'm wondering if the slight weight difference will allow you to come to a complete stop. If you're thinking this scenario isn't realistic, imagine coming to the top of the hill on a highway and just over the crest there's a semi laying across the road and cars everywhere. Will you stop in time or end up in the pile?
Or, try a panic stop in a Vintage Speedster from 80 to 0 with disc fronts and drum rear. Ask Jack Crosby about it, he'll tell you almost crashed, and now has 4 wheel discs because of it.
Michael, I knew that was Alfred Hitchcock.
I feel a little bit bad for those who don't know Alfred and his work. He was one of a kind.
@DannyP posted:Sounds fishy to me. Also sounds like the same thing when we were talking about Sportrac5 tires and David was advocating SNOW tires year round on a sports car.
Huh?
Yeah. Because running tires with a softer compound and better anti-hydroplaning characteristics is such a dumb idea. What was I thinking?
You guys crack me up. You sound like a bunch of old women. It’s surprising you can work up the courage to drive a plastic car with zero crash protection at all. 
Hear, hear, David!
Drive whatever tires you want and don’t be intimidated.
Snow tires wouldn’t be my first choice, or my second, but I will defend to the death your right to drive them if that’s what you want.
Well OK, on second thought, probably not to the death, but I would definitely feign indignation and post some blustery stuff online under a screen name.
But I am curious about the snow tires. Is this something you’ve always done? You CAN find tires that are good in the rain, have soft compounds (my Conti’s are 280) are quieter and have better grip than snows for not too much bread. And all without joining the Sportrac cult (not that there’s anything wrong with that).
You wouldn’t be messin’ with us, would you?
@dlearl476 posted:Yeah. Because running tires with a softer compound and better anti-hydroplaning characteristics is such a dumb idea. What was I thinking?
You guys crack me up. You sound like a bunch of old women. It’s surprising you can work up the courage to drive a plastic car with zero crash protection at all.
I didn't realize you were a tire designer/engineer.
Hey David, "I like you. You make me laugh." The quote is from the movie "Gung Ho" starring Michael Keaton. It was said with a totally straight face by a Japanese auto exec to Mr. Keaton's character.
Well, this "old woman" likes to drive hard. And I HAVE crashed my clown car and made it to the other side. So, whatever floats your drum-braked snow tires, dude.
@Sacto Mitch posted:But I am curious about the snow tires. Is this something you’ve always done?
You wouldn’t be messin’ with us, would you?
Not something I’ve always done. I discovered it quite by accident when I procrastinated taking the winter Contis off my Smart. (They were pretty worn, and I knew they wouldn’t work for another winter) I was amazed at how well they handled on hot pavement.
That fall a fellow Smart owner was raving about Quadtracs so I replaced the Contis with them, and they’re head and shoulders better than both the summer and winter Contis.
Normally it would be dumb to run winter compounds in the summer because they’d wear too quickly, but I put so few miles on the Spyder it doesn’t really matter. They’ll dry crack before I ever wear them out.
And no, in the famous words of a former coach, “I wouldn’t sh*t you, you’re my favorite turds.”
And don’t get me wrong, if Sportracs were readily available I’d be rocking them in a heartbeat. But they’re not, so I don’t.
Those Quatracs are all season with a slight lean to snow.
I was considering them as my all season tire when my Sportracs are stacked in the corner.
I think they have a 400 tread wear. Sounds sticker than my 7 year old Pirellis at 740.
7-FREAKIN'-40!!! Are they made of concrete? 
@Carlos G posted:Those Quatracs are all season with a slight lean to snow.
I was considering them as my all season tire when my Sportracs are stacked in the corner.
I think they have a 400 tread wear. Sounds sticker than my 7 year old Pirellis at 740.
Yes, they are. Odds are low I’ll ever be canyon cruising in the winter, but they passed a law here a couple of years ago that required chains or “snowflake” designated tires in the canyons 11/1-3/31. Not a stand-alone tickets, but if you require any E service and you don’t have them it’s a $199 ticket.
I’ve been a Vredestein fan since before Sprints were “classic.” When my buddy told me about the Quatrac, I couldn’t wear my Coni winter Contacs out fast enough.
If they’re half the improvement on the Spyder they were on the Smart, I’ll be ecstatic. It’s a shame they aren’t as cheap as the Sportracs, oh well. Maybe when I wear my current tires out in a couple more seasons, they’ll have the Sportrac 6.
Yeah, I know how you feel. I have a track day scheduled in June with the Coupe and I'm a little nervous about wearing the SportTrac 5s I have. I hope some equivalent replacements are available before too long.
@Lane Anderson posted:Yeah, I know how you feel. I have a track day scheduled in June with the Coupe and I'm a little nervous about wearing the SportTrac 5s I have. I hope some equivalent replacements are available before too long.
I don’t know what size you’re running, but Tire Rack still lists 185/65-R15 Sportrac. Whether they have them in stock, who knows?
Then again, if I owned that hot rod, I’d probably have a spare set of wheels with Hoosier slicks on ‘em for track days.
I’m running 195s, which seem to be unobtainium.
@Lane Anderson posted:I’m running 195s, which seem to be unobtainium.
Yep. I keep waiting for a big announcement. I can’t believe Vredestein doesn’t have a replacement in the works. From what Paul’s guy in Florida told me, they are hugely popular tire for classic sports cars in Europe.
I’d also be down with an expanded Sprint Classic line.
@Lane Anderson posted:I’m running 195s, which seem to be unobtainium.
Well, well, well. Woulda lookie here:
dlear476........Hoosier's ! Ha ! maybe I'll install a Suby rear axle up front in my Spyder to make it total Suby 4 wheel drive and slam on 4 Hoosier's ! That would be a Hoot !! I wonder what Greg would say if I went down to see him and suggested that. He'd probably throw me out after the hoops he went thru trying to get me a now front suspension.......Bruce
@dlearl476 posted:Well, well, well. Woulda lookie here:
Veeeery interesting. I wonder if they have the cool Giugaro stuff on the sidewall. I'm sure that adds a lot of performance.
Got out for a nice drive today. Went over to Rick’s to see his new RSK and Spyder. Both very nice. He’s half-way through switching his 4 bolt discs to Wide 5 on the Spyder. Hit a snag because the wrong bearings came with his front discs.
Anyway, with his and his nephews help, we figured out what’s bottoming out. Its the KYBs. So I guess getting adjustable rear spring plates and a camber compensator just bumped up the list a couple of spots. I don’t really want to get in there to raise it, then do it again when I swap the plates.