Corsas in cool weather

[Blue T/A 2.0]

What is temperature that you should not be driving with the Corsas? I know on my ACR, the manual said it needs to be 60F with the Michelin Pilot Sport Cups.

[Voice of Reason]

45* is my limit, and at that point I pretend like I'm driving on ice and don't even think about twitching my foot.

Storage though they can go WELL below freezing. My first winter with my 13 my garage saw below zero (Fahrenheit) on a few occasions and they didn't crack.

[Blue T/A 2.0]

45* is my limit, and at that point I pretend like I'm driving on ice and don't even think about twitching my foot.

Storage though they can go WELL below freezing. My first winter with my 13 my garage saw below zero (Fahrenheit) on a few occasions and they didn't crack.

I can live with that. Thanks for the info.

[AZTVR]

This was discussed on another forum last year with reported input from someone at Pirelli.

From Tire Rack's site:

And like all Streetable Track & Competition tires, P Zero Corsa System radials are not intended to be driven in near-freezing temperatures, through snow or on ice. It's also essential these tires be stored indoors at temperatures maintained above 32 degrees F.

and Storing Track & Competition DOT Tires in Cold Temperatures

[Voice of Reason]

This was discussed on another forum last year with reported input from someone at Pirelli.

From Tire Rack's site:

and Storing Track & Competition DOT Tires in Cold Temperatures

While that's the company line, that first winter I mentioned above was THE WORST winter in the past 10-15 years here in Illinois. The Corvette guys have numerous reports of cracked tires at/near freezing temps. But I haven't seen a *single* report of a Corsa cracking and I've been looking.

To be clear on driving temps, yesterday I left at 7:00am for an Auto X and temps were at 45. While driving there I saw them dip to 43 temporarily and everything was fine. During the event temps warmed to mid 60s and the tires were ok (but another 10* in the pavement would have been nice). I know I'm going to have the same thing when I leave for a road course day tomorrow morning at 6:00am with temps hovering near 45 but feel confident they're ok considering I'm leaving my garage where the car/tires will be closer to 55/60.

[fuggles]

The ACR manual says Pilot Sport Cups "have diminished capability" below 50F and should not be operated in "these conditions." I would guess this is a conservative number. Of course driving cautiously is prudent at or near these temperatures.

[Bruce H.]

The Pirelli rep told me 10C/50F is the minimum temp but that he had personally seen them go 5C/41F and survive. The Corsas are definitely known to crack in cold weather and Pirelli does quite a business selling replacement tires to those that learn that the hard way. He mentioned that the Porsche 911 GT3 is equipped with the and those cars are delivered by heated transport in cold weather for that reason. I had also heard years ago that the R-Compound tire's rubber becomes permanently harder after being subjected to cold temps, so it's damaged whether it shows cracks or not. Too expensive a tire to take chances with.

[Dman]

My 1st gen5 track day there was still snow in the run off areas, about 48 degrees, and they warmed up great, got melty and performed well although it took a few laps, but I did go easy for sure, only day I've ever done a point by in any car, I pointed by a GT-R that spit flames out when he went by, I didn't want to hold him up with his awd, come to find out, he never pulled away, so we were actually on pace with each other, but I didn't want to be "that guy" in case I was holding him up. I'm in MD and I don't leave my tires on my cars when the temps start dipping, I yank them and put them in my house storage area, for my viper and GT500, as others say, it's not worth the risk for me & not a big deal to yank them for the 2-3 really cold months here.

Goodyear F1s would split in a heartbeat on the GT500's when temps got low, I still have my orig wheel & tire setup in my basement to keep them protected, not that they're really worth anything by comparison.

[swexlin]

Mine sat in my unheated garage all last BRUTAL winter here with no ill effects. I even drove it, VERY slowly and carefully, about 7 miles there and back to C&C on a Saturday - temp was about 30, warmed up to about 35. Tire pressure was about 28. Didn't have any traction issues, but of course, I was being careful, and no hard accelerations or braking. But I didn't do it again....!

[TrackAire]

I think the big danger is when the vehicle is parked outside overnight or in a freezing cold parking garage. The issue is the tires get so cold it changes the molecular structure and makes them brittle. You try to drive away and they crack. I don't think that freezing a stationary tire will make it crack (hey, I could be wrong)....driving it and causing it to flex will induce the cracks, especially if the rubber is still frozen.

I don't know if it takes one night or multiple days of the tire being stationary at those temps to create an issue. And there will probably be some variation between the Corsas, Michelins, Goodyears, etc due to the different rubber compounds and composition.

Lots of C7 Corvettes were delivered with cracked tires this last spring.....after they were built, they were stored outside the factory in blizzard conditions for many days.

[ACR Steve]

This is what I have been told for years with race tires and/or R compounds- R compounds should never be in below 32 deg . It changes the rubber and makes the compound much hard for the life span of the tire. The way the molecular compounds line up change permanently in the rubber .Even new un mounted tires that have been subject to freezing temps have a much less life span with heat cycles and are harder then tires always kept above freezing

[yellowmz3]

Sorry to revisit this guys, but what tires would you recommend for (snow-less) winter driving?