miss my Z06

I own a 2016 Z51 M7. I understand your not supposed to even drive the car with these tires below 40 degrees.
Can someone explain why for me please ?
Is it that the sidewalls of the tires are too stiff ?
Is it that because these are supposed to be summer compound tires and there would be too little traction ?
If your not beating on the car can you drive with these tires below 40 degrees safely ?
Also are these tires decent in the rain ?
I live in Florida and there are not too many days below 40 degrees but, I would appreciate your input as I only own this car since Feb 2020 and I am curious.
Thank you in advance...

rfh928

Sure you can drive them...40 degrees here in Canada is balmy at this time of the year! I put my 2019 M7 away once real snow starts falling & they put salt on the roads, but I've driven it many times in the cold. You just have to be careful as they can slide a bit if you really boot it, but otherwise I've never had any issues or felt uncomfortable with them. In the rain they can also slide a bit if you step on the gas too hard, too quickly. Once they get worn down, I will do exactly as I did with my C5 M6...replace them with all season tires. At least on the C5 it totally got rid of the issues described earlier. Good luck!

VETJAZZ

I drove my car home from the museum in December - Kentucky to Arizona. It was 20* when I hit the road, drove through freezing weather in Dallas with rain, sleet and snow, and 50 mph winds in west Texas. No issues at all.

Dcasole

Michelin states do not drive on them below 20 degrees

I drive mine all the time when the temps are in the 30's in the Am here in Georgia
. now they get slippery when cold but as long as you are careful you will be fine

When its hot out there is no better tire
Dave

Vette2020

Curious what you did to protect the car for the first 500 miles.... I will be driving 13 hours from museum 850 miles...any recommendations? Thank you!

miss my Z06

To Vette 2020, I bought my car used with 5,000 miles so protecting the engine for the first 500 miles was not an issue. That being said I would try to vary the speed as much as possible "I know that is difficult with highway driving" but other than that dont put your foot into it too much. I know some people say its fine to drive the car hard within the first 500 miles but GM recommends this to break in the engine, drivetrain & brake pads properly.
PS - On C7 vettes with Z51 they wanted you to change oil after 500 miles. I am not sure that applies to the C8 your picking up though.
I am sure the museum staff will go over all the instructions on proper break in.
Have a safe trip and enjoy your new Corvette !!!

saleen556

It’s due to the rubber compound of the tires. They get really hard in cold weather. I switched to the AS3 PLUS tires and for the street they are tough to beat. You can drive them in cold temps but just need to be extra careful. Wasn’t worth the risk to me. I prefer to drive mine and enjoy it in the cooler dry months.

miss my Z06

Thanks for all the reply's on run flats. Makes me feel more confident if driving in semi cold weather.

VETJAZZ

I drove 500 miles the first day. I didn't use cruise and just tried to vary my speed a bit.

owc6

Assuming factory Michelin Super Sport tires.

I have driven them when stuck in a cold front. I knew it was coming in, and left a few hours before. Left the hotel at 23F gingerly, and it took 20+ minutes to warm up. Once the tires were warmed up it was ok, BUT, I absolutely was very careful to not do anything radical.

The lowest the temp got was 9 F. I stopped only for gas or to pee. never both, as I didn't want the tires to get cold. There was blowing snow once I got closer to home, but that wasn't a problem since the tires were "warm".

Is it doable? YES. Do I recommend it" No.

ersatz928

Nevermind the poor traction below 40F, below 20F, the tread and sidewalls can crack, damaging the tire, according to Michelin.

miss my Z06

Noted, I was wondering about that. Thank you

dvilin

Drove my 2019Z M7 the other day around 37 degrees on run flats. Takes about 15 minutes or so for tire temp to get to normal from cool. No problems other that road service is obviously cold so traction is an issue if you get a slight bit aggressive with that 650 lbs of torque and hp. But tire wise no issues.

Gixxerman

Driving in cold will also incur micro cracks in the sidewalls... these tires are terrible in mid 50 degree weather. If you must drive in winter get a different set of tires

Gucci Minh

All tire compounds are different - one of the major parameters in the classifying a tire, especially a performance tire is by how soft the tire is. All materials are impacted by heat from the atomic level, even more so if it is an amorphous material like rubber. The more heat you add, the faster atoms will vibrate -> the more they spread apart -> the more the properties change. (Vice Versa)

So if you have an "extreme performance summer tire" which is intended to provide maximum grip in warm temperatures, once you lower that design temperature range, the compound gets harder and no longer works the way it was designed to. All-Season tires are designed with a medium-hard compound which sacrifices some of that grip for a larger temperature range. Winter tires are harder compounds.

Dcasole

You really need to clarify your statement as its only below 20 degrees that one could experience micro cracking
[ right on Michelin's web site ]

You are going to have these guys all run out and buy heaters for their garages lol lol

I live in Georgia and its nothing to have a 30 degree AM temp and jump up to 50 or 60 degrees in the PM , this is my 3rd Vette that I drive to work every chance I get , all had or have MPSS run flats all around and never have I experienced micro cracking

Dave

ChiefBoats

Drive conservatively, you'll be OK.

Vetteman Jack

This. When I had the OEM runflats on my car, I drove it when the outside temps were in the high 20s/low 30s and did not have any problems. But I drove very carefully too. I made the switch to Michelin A/S 3+ ZPs so as to not worry about it again. And of course, in extreme cold weather it is always best to adjust your driving style to a more conservative one.

Bill Dearborn

The tread cracking issue relates to the Cup2 Tires that come on the Z07 optioned Z06s and GSs plus the ZR1. It doesn't apply to the tires you have. In NC I have driven with both the Cup2 ZPs and the PSS ZPs in mid 20 degree weather with no issues. Just like on dry warm pavement you can't drop the hammer without spinning the tires. Avoid doing sudden throttle applications and you can drive just about anywhere in any weather with the tires you have on your Z51. The issue with not being able to drive in cold weather with these tires is the driver and not the tires.

Bill

Gixxerman