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RE: P6's in the wet

>From: ZEITLIN.D.B-@domain.elided (ZEITLIN.D.B-)
>Date: Mon, 12 Aug 1996 08:50:29 -0400
>Subject: P6's in the Wet
>
>     I agree with Richard Cartledge's observations about P6's in wet
weather.  
>     When I got my new E-30 325e in 1986 I managed to do a 360 at about 50
MPH 
>     on a wet road the first week.  The tires were brand new.  It scared
the 
>     hell out of me.  I corrected the pilot error, but remained slow and 
>     uncomfortable becuse of the poor wet weather behaviour of the tires. 
I 
>     hung in there for two months until I finally had enough.  I switched
to 
>     Yoko 378's (different tires back then) and began driving faster in
the wet 
>     again without problems.  Sorry I didn't make the change on day one. 
P6 - 
>     great dry, scary wet.
>     DanZ
>     Annapolis, MD
>     <zeitlin.d.b@domain.elided>

	I have an '87 325is with P6's. I *HATE* them. They have pretty good tread
(you couldn't tell by driving) and I don't want to replace the tires
without upgrading wheels. I had a very similar experience in the rain. I
was driving down a hill in a CA rainstorm and there was a bend in the road.
I was going slow (about 45mph) when suddenly my steering wheel felt like it
wasn't attached to the wheels. About three seconds later the tire started
to "bite" again. I almost carrened into the median. I have a couple other
gripes with the tires too. What *really* annoys me is making a right turn.
Even a modest start causes the inside rear tire to sqeal a little bit. It
is particularly annoying with the windows down. I think part of has to do
with the limited slip diff. though. Another thing that annoys me in the
rain is starting off from a stoplight. I let the clutch out really slow and
I can still feel the wheels slip under me. Fortunately, the limited slip
unit keeps me from going sideways. The biggest gripe of all is how easy
they squeal under normal cornering manuevers. The worst part is that the
car can be pushed even harder while the tires start to squeal. It's very
hard to judge when they let go entirely. I don't push them really hard
anywhere that I don't have room if they slip. These tires are the exact
opposite of the Comp T/A ZR's on my 735i. They don't squeal until the limit
(A good way to tell how close you are to the limit). I can take corners
quick with a chirp and they are 100x better in the rain.