The car comes with Potenza S-02 which are summer tires. They work fine int he rain as long as the rears are not bald. Just make sure to check your rears and if they are worn replace them immediately. As far as snow goes, you should change to winter tires Blizzak's are a good choice and used by many on this board for snow. S-02 begin losing grip below 60 degrees I believe. So living in Va, I would change to Winters by November. Just my 2 cents. Hope this helps. Rob

 

Whoops, this may be my mistake... I was pretty positive that the new model years came with the current versions tires. I can't remember where I got that info. But, I do know that the S02s you get with the S are made especially for the car. And one should be careful on replacing them to make sure they are getting the same tire.

 

I agree with most posters. The S is okay in the wet. I short-shift more (not specifically to keep out of VTEC, just to avoid peak power) and accelerate less in turns. I've auto-x'd in the rain a few times and our LSD makes the rear end do funny things near peak power. Otherwise it drove fine.

Our stock S02 tires are best on warm dry pavement. You'd do better with different tires (deeper tread, more open area, your basic all-season type) but I wouldn't call it a death trap until the S02's are worn way down.

 

My 3-week old S has s02's.

 

Hey Jim, I'm over here in Hampton - I have done a lot of wet weather driving now (27000 miles), everything from torrential downpours to gentle rains. I have never once had an issue with my S or the S02s. You just have to drive like you have some sense, and not drive like it is dry and warm.

You need to do some meets with us and meet some of the other local owners - or if you want me to take you to some nice local roads, let me know...

 

Got mine in Colorado, drove it in every type of condition. Everyone's right, it's the driving, not the car, though I think the car does have something to do with it.

I lost my rear on a highway in light rain and 180'd, thank god i didn't get hit nor hit anybody, someone was looking out for me. Anyways, I checked my rears, and they were quite bald. These tires are good for around 10,000, but check them REGULARLY.

I think that this car's lightness make it hydroplane much easier. In bad rain, I keep it around 50 tops, kinda humbling getting passed by all the chumps in civics, but I'm not willing to risk pushing it any more, I've seen the light.

Just slow down, take turns easy, and drive carefully, and you'll be fine in the rain, and WATCH YOUR TREAD.

 

I have driven mine through two winters, so far and many many rainstorms. Keep a close eye on your tire's tread depth and you will be fine in the rain. DO NOT use the OEM S02s in the snow. This car is one of the best cars that I have driven in the snow, but I'm using Dunlop Winter Sports M2 snow tires. Tires are the key in bad weather.

Enjoy your car, I enjoy mine,
Bob

 

personally, I am more worried about the car next to me than my car. Some people drive like jerks down here in the rain. I also have found that this car is more predictable than most fwd cars i have driven. Once you drive it around for a while you will learn its limits, and will have no trouble in the rain.

-Ryan

 

I hear your concern about the car's driving characteristics in the rain. I live in San Diego and had a class in Riverside on Saturday a few months back (February, i think) and we had our biggest storm of the winter barreling through. That morning i drove fast 80+ to my class in light to moderate rain on highway 15 through the mountains and inland valleys. That evening, when i returned it was dark and raining hard. The highways had alot of standing water on them, as it had been raining all day. I still drove pretty fast most of the way -- 70+ in stretches -- but i clenched the steering wheel with both hands and was very careful not to do any quick steering.

When i got close to home, i saw a Silver s2000 spun out on the #4 lane right before an exit ramp and shook my head sadly. They obviously had a bit of bad luck.

Drive very cautiously in the rain. Run the engine conservatively. Steer in the direction of the skid. I think the rear end will hydroplane before the front end, since the rear is lighter and the tires wider and usually with less tread (compared to the fronts). Keep this in mind and you should be fine. I also am very careful with throttle inputs. Keep the revs down (the gear high) so you minimize the torq/engine compression effects that can exceed the rear tire adhesion levels for degraded environmental conditions.

This car doesn't have anti-skid systems and won't save you if you start to lose it. The s2000 is kinda old style in that sense. I have not yet had a problem in wet or dry conditions with the car spinning out. But i know, because of what i've read and seen, that oversteer does appear in certain conditions and can be hard to catch. Being aware of this is the first step to avoiding it.

Good luck!

 

I've lost the back end on the Nurburgring in the rain on Dunlop SP9000s.

It was at the end of a long right hand sweeper, and I was driving a lot slower than my dry laps, but still a hidden puddle caught the car and spun it into the wall.

Regardless of the tyres, and especially with the dry-friendly S-02s, you need to be careful of what can happen. Apply controls slowly and smoothly, and watch that tread wear.

On the 'Ring, you can enter a corner in the dry and exit it in torrential rain... it gets that bad. Plus there are plenty of corners that stay wet longer than the others.....

///Robin