Tires for 2001 MR2 Spyder

Stick with the factory size. The OEM tires from Yokohama are pretty good. How did you end up with Bridgestones?

I'd use Yokohama ADVAN A043

Why would you question the dealer's judgment? They are professionals in the automotive sales and service, and make their living selling and servicing Toyotas. People find it hard to believe that a Toyota dealer may know more about Toyotas than they do, or their uncle, brother-in-law, or the local oil change shop might know. I've visited a lot of Toyota dealers, and in every single case, they they more about Toyotas than 99.999% of the people on the street, including people who read car magazines.

You can visit sites like tirerack.com and use the calculator to find alternate tire and wheel combinations. You probably can find a tire and wheel combination that will physically fit but it may rub when turning and the car will handle differently. The whole purpose of making a mid-engined car is to improve balance and handling. Tires, wheels, and suspensions are set up to take advantage of the ideal weight distribution. Changing tires can change the handling so much that it becomes prone to spinouts in the rain and snow, especially in the hands of a driver not experienced in handling a vehicle with neutral or oversteer characteristics.

Forgot to mention....Toyo has a performance tire (the T1R) that comes in your size(s). They are quite common in the UK but you may have to shop around to find them in the states. They do have a good treadwear rating (280), about twice that of the Bridgestones (140) and the Yoko (160). Don't have a clue how they handle.

Here's one source:

Toyo Proxes comes in your size (T1S and T1-R). I imagine a few other would also ....

Ray, you are usually pretty much on target, but in this case, I have a "cavet." Dealers do have access to more specific information on there cars. No dispute. But, nothing beats a savvy mechanic, and it is hit and miss if your local Toyota dealer has good mechanics or not. Same to be said for your local independent garage.

Locally, our Toyota is just so-so. They lose their best mechanics (maybe it's the local management) and have a crop of not-so-seasoned guys who try, but tend to miss the mark an awful lot.

A few years ago, I took in my 84 Tercel for repair, they had a devil of a time with it and finally gave up. One of the comments was that it was tough to diagnose "because it doesn't have a computer."

A local indy shop had it in and out in a couple of hours. So, I do think it may depend on the actual dealership. Also, if the dealer stocks Bridgestones and Yokos, he may be trying to sell those, rather than a brand he does not stock.

When you visit a Toyota dealership for service, look for the President's Award or Service Excellence Award prominently displayed somewhere in the dealership. In order to receive this designation, the dealership must have at least one master diagnostic tech employed. An MDT will have taken every course Toyota offers for technicians, have at least 5 years experience working at a Toyota dealership, and have a current ASE Master tech status. Better yet, look to see if the dealership has won the awards multiple years. That shows a commitment to good service.

Since Toyota technical courses are only offered to technicians at franchised Toyota dealerships, the only way an independent shop can have a Toyota MDT is one who recently left the dealership. That status expires and gets old without constantly taking new courses.

As far as the tires on the MR2, it has different size tires on the front and rear. A mid engine vehicle has good handling characteristics because of a good front/rear weight balance. Upset that balance, and the car could become like a child's top in the hands of an inexperienced driver.

The Bridgestone Potenzas are the stock tires here in the US. They received awful reviews and I didn't like how they held up after only

26,000 miles. The Yokohama ADVAN A043 got good reviews but I don't know much about them. I'll look into the Yokohamas and Toyos, thanks for the input.

I didn't intend this to be a discussion about the quality and competence of Toyota dealers. I do know that they will not recommend you doing anything out of the ordinary to a vehicle because they could be liable if their advice was not entirely correct or was mininterpreted. I asked Toyota service if the front could handle a P195 and all I got was a quick "No". They didn't say if it was physically too wide or describe how it could upset the balance of the car. At this point I gave up on their opinion and decided to make a post here to see what other MR2 owners have done. Ray O and timb both have good arguments and I happen to agree more with timb based upon my experience with dealer service personnel and independent shops.

thanks, norm

FWIW, 26K miles out of a tire with a tread rating of 140 is very good.

You'll be happier with the Toyos I think.

My husband's TL is shod with 18" Yoko's and they still look good with

20k on them. I wondered how they would wear and have been pleasantly surprised. Rotate every other oil change, or between 5 and 7.5k.

20k!!!!

My 1980 Corolla SR-5 came with Bridgestone tires, OEM. I finally replaced them at 125K! They still had tread, but the tread was just beginning to separate from the casing.

Surprise! I couldn't buy the same model. Even the guy at Bridgestone said, they can't sell something if it never wears out!

Yeah. A lot of low profile performance tires wear out before 30K. I just did a visual check of the TL's tires yesterday, and they are like new (blew me away at how well they've worn!). Yokohama tires deliver for the price. So do Kumho.

Only the Hachi could get 125K out of a Bridgestone!

I had Bridgestone's on my RX300. I liked the tire's ride and looks, but I had to replace them at 32K.