Vredestein knows that Grassroots Motorsports knows a thing or two about performance tires. And they know that our readers do, too. That’s why they came to us with a simple request: Find five readers worthy of a set of Vredestein’s latest performance tires, their Ultrac Vorti and Ultrac Vorti R. Over the next six months, you’ll be seeing feedback from these readers in the form of regular blog posts on our site.
Story and Photos by Kevin Abel
I love the smell of fresh tires in the morning!
First Impressions. I am quite pleased with the feel and performance of the tires this first week.
My 2016 Mazda MX-5 Miata is my daily driver; it’s mostly stock, but lowered on coil-overs. My commute is fifty spirited miles of some rural roads, expressway (on/off ramps ftw) and suburban roads. No snow or cold temps here in Florida, but we do have searing heat and wicked rain storms that can take a toll on just about anything–including tires.
I put about 150 miles on the new tires before really driving them like I normally would to ensure any factory mold release agent was completely scrubbed off. Even during those couple of days I pushed a little a few times and grip was good.
Now I’m in the routine of my daily drive. Grip seems just as good on these during my commute as my previous 140 treadwear tires were in that respect. Relatively quite as well, though I expect that from a new tire. I do feel what I think is a little sidewall flex. But It needs to be noted there was not a direct OEM size replacement for my car, so I am running a 225 width versus the OEM 205.
When I am driving, that’s what I am concentrating on. I don't listen to music, I don't make phone calls, I don't text. I am fully engaged in driving, and tuned into what the car is telling me. So I’m looking forward to the process of evaluating these tires over the course of several months.
I remember reading about Vredestein tires used in the early days of showroom stock racing back when I was a young man with no money and a love for cars and racing. Now that I am an old guy with no money and a love for cars and racing, I still need tires for what I drive so I am most curious about how these will compare with the brands that are more popular here in the US. Can't wait to see the rest of the story, with apologies to Andy Rooney. :)
I had a set of Vredestein's years ago and loved them, but for the life of me can't remember which car I had them on. It might have been the TR6, since it went through lots of tires and I couldn't keep my foot out of the "go" peddle. Anyway I remember being pleased with the way they stuck to the road and their reasonable price. That's a great combination.
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