[Inspector 17]

Originally Posted by hawk02

I personally think the cracking issue is a little over hyped. I'm sure doing burn outs or hard launches and stops when outside temps are below 20 degrees greatly increases the chances of cracking the rubber. However, the risk goes down exponentially under normal driving. You figure these cars sit on dealer lots in all sorts of weather and are moved around the lot on a regular basis. With that said, I won't drive my car when the outside temps are below 35. Roads also have to be clean (aka no salt) and preferably dry. I have driven my car on damp roads with temps in the upper 30s and the back end will slide out from you if you get a bit aggressive with the throttle.

"Over hyped"??? I guess you can take your chances, but there is plenty of evidence of these type of tire compounds cracking at low temps. Roll at your own risk...

http://gmauthority.com/blog/2015/03/...cracked-tires/

https://www.svtperformance.com/forum...eather.814268/

http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/n...king/index.htm

[hawk02]

Originally Posted by camaropete

"Over hyped"??? I guess you can take your chances, but there is plenty of evidence of these type of tire compounds cracking at low temps. Roll at your own risk...

http://gmauthority.com/blog/2015/03/...cracked-tires/

https://www.svtperformance.com/forum...eather.814268/

http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/n...king/index.htm

I never said the rubber won't crack. However, the way it's being portrayed by some is that in cold temperatures these tires will automatically shatter into millions of pieces.

I'm on my second ZL1 and thus my second set of Goodyear F1 Supercar tires. I've been on the Camaro 5 & 6 forums for six years. I've seen few, if any, complaints of these tires cracking in cold temps. And I'm going to make an educated guess that some cars have even been driven in temps below 20 degrees.

All I'm saying is the rubber isn't as brittle in the cold as the reports would have you believe. Can the rubber crack? Sure it can. But if you use some common sense, the likelihood of cracking is pretty low.

BTW, the PBS bulletin from the second link in your post was updated in Feb 2015. It removed the "Do not drive below 40 degrees recommendation".

[thompstl1]

I flew from East Texas to Oklahoma City March 3rd 2014 to pick up my new 2 S/S 1LE. Conditions required this day to make the purchase, and I drove the car back in one of the coldest days on record (4-6 degrees F).

The trip was fraught with ice and snow and the drive was "white knuckle" all the way to a 100 miles south of Dallas.

I had no subsequent problems with the tires and changed them to Michelin's at about 15K miles. While completely anecdotal, it does point out that driving in cold temperatures doesn't positively equate to tire damage.

[Inspector 17]

I'm not going to argue over this. The OP asked if it was a concern. Yes. Is it guaranteed that it will cause your tires to crack? No. However, it must be enough of a concern that GM felt it necessary to write it directly into the Owner's Manual:

"High Performance Summer Tires
See the HP Supplement.
This vehicle may come with 245/ 40ZR20 and 275/35ZR20 high
performance summer tires. These tires have a special tread and compound that are optimized for
maximum dry and wet road performance. This special tread and compound will have decreased performance in cold climates, and
on ice and snow. It is recommended that winter tires be installed on the vehicle if frequent driving at temperatures below approximately
5°C (40°F) or on ice or snow covered roads is expected. See Winter Tires 0 293."

Specifically in the HP supplement it states: "...may develop surface cracks in the tread area at temperatures below -7 C (20 F)".

So again, if you want to take the risk by all means. But don't complain if you have to eat the cost of a new set of tires.

[BOWTIEBOB]

I own a Gen5 ZL1, C7 Z06/ w/Z07 Ult. Performance Pkg., 427 Corvette Conv, Collector Ed. and have a GEN6 ZL1 ordered w/ TPW next week. All of these vehicles were clearly sold with track formula compound tires and sold as "summer tires only" as part of a track package or performance vehicle. If I wanted a car for errands or commuting I guess I would buy cars that are more appropriate for that. That' why I own a '17 Buick Enclave and an '09 Avalanche. They are the commuters and kid haulers. I have no personal interest in Michelin or GM but the disclaimers are there in the sales and advertising literature. The warnings are there not only to protect the OEM's but to warn the end owner-operators of such use. Those who ignore or disavow the warnings have no right to bitch in the event of a tire failure. Just my opinion as an owner. I have a sets of "street wheels & tires" for a couple of my cars but that is mainly to save wear and tear on the $450- $630 ea. track tires. Track compound tires are not effective or safe in cold,wet weather or with a single crack in the tire. Those who operate in these forums who have never heard or know of a single case of such cracked tire events are choosing to ignore the hundreds (maybe more) well documented cases. Many cases have occurred when the C7's were sent to Ohio rail yards to ship west. Just moving and sitting on the rail transports resulted in numerous claims and tire shortages. My questions to the naysayers are: "Why do you need summer only track tires to drive a car on the public roads? If you need them because you are driving to the track it is doubtful one would do so in adverse wet or cold conditions? Performance tires are to be used in the manner for which they are intended. They are manufactured and sold as warm weather track tires. Nothing else.

[RedCamaroZL1]

Thanks everyone for info. I did consult the manual but what made me question it was the fact that these were a new tire specific to ZL1. I know they're summer rated and have zero intentions of performance driving. I was on the fence whether to drive it to work and back while it's dry outside.

[Sven59]

Originally Posted by RedCamaroZL1

Thanks everyone for info. I did consult the manual but what made me question it was the fact that these were a new tire specific to ZL1. I know they're summer rated and have zero intentions of performance driving. I was on the fence whether to drive it to work and back while it's dry outside.

Dry and 30 degrees with these tires is still an issue, you don't just need traction to go but also stop. The reason they say don't drive under 40 is that, the tires are like hockey pucks when cold. I haven't seen anyone with cracking problems but those cold tires are the issue.

[hawk02]

Originally Posted by Sven59

Dry and 30 degrees with these tires is still an issue, you don't just need traction to go but also stop. The reason they say don't drive under 40 is that, the tires are like hockey pucks when cold. I haven't seen anyone with cracking problems but those cold tires are the issue.

The gen 5 F1s definitely felt like hockey pucks below 50 degrees until you got some heat in the tires. So far I haven't noticed this with the gen 6 F1s. And I have driven them multiple times in 30 and low 40 degree temps. I also haven't had any issues with traction or stopping on dry roads. But I also use common sense and avoid any form of spirited driving in cold temps.

[Sven59]

Originally Posted by hawk02

The gen 5 F1s definitely felt like hockey pucks below 50 degrees until you got some heat in the tires. So far I haven't noticed this with the gen 6 F1s. And I have driven them multiple times in 30 and low 40 degree temps. I also haven't had any issues with traction or stopping on dry roads. But I also use common sense and avoid any form of spirited driving in cold temps.

That's good news, hopefully they don't have the same issue. Just don't want anyone getting hurt.

[MoreSpeed]

Originally Posted by camaropete

I'm not going to argue over this. The OP asked if it was a concern. Yes. Is it guaranteed that it will cause your tires to crack? No. However, it must be enough of a concern that GM felt it necessary to write it directly into the Owner's Manual:

"High Performance Summer Tires
See the HP Supplement.
This vehicle may come with 245/ 40ZR20 and 275/35ZR20 high
performance summer tires. These tires have a special tread and compound that are optimized for
maximum dry and wet road performance. This special tread and compound will have decreased performance in cold climates, and
on ice and snow. It is recommended that winter tires be installed on the vehicle if frequent driving at temperatures below approximately
5°C (40°F) or on ice or snow covered roads is expected. See Winter Tires 0 293."

Specifically in the HP supplement it states: "...may develop surface cracks in the tread area at temperatures below -7 C (20 F)".

So again, if you want to take the risk by all means. But don't complain if you have to eat the cost of a new set of tires.

I get it. I have driven my summer only tires on a different car a few times in cold temps in the North East and they are like bowling balls... entirely different feel and road handling capability when cold.

Question is, what do you do for "winter tires" if you want to still drive our ZL1's in lower than 40°F? Tire Rack for example shows no winter options for the car yet. There are quite a few times in Fall and Spring up here where it can still be fun to drive when the roads are clear. 28°F today.

[Inspector 17]

Originally Posted by MoreSpeed

I get it. I have driven my summer only tires on a different car a few times in cold temps in the North East and they are like bowling balls... entirely different feel and road handling capability when cold.

Question is, what do you do for "winter tires" if you want to still drive our ZL1's in lower than 40°F? Tire Rack for example shows no winter options for the car yet. There are quite a few times in Fall and Spring up here where it can still be fun to drive when the roads are clear. 28°F today.

You're right. As of now, Tirerack is limited to summer tires for the ZL1. If I had to pick from what they're showing, I'd probably go with the Pirelli or similar. The compound isn't as soft and not as susceptible to cracking. If I wanted true winter tires, I'd drop down to a different size to get more options. If I remember correctly, all the CTF cars run a pure winter tire. We might be able to dig up some pictures on here to see what they're running.

[hawk02]

Originally Posted by camaropete

You're right. As of now, Tirerack is limited to summer tires for the ZL1. If I had to pick from what they're showing, I'd probably go with the Pirelli or similar. The compound isn't as soft and not as susceptible to cracking. If I wanted true winter tires, I'd drop down to a different size to get more options. If I remember correctly, all the CTF cars run a pure winter tire. We might be able to dig up some pictures on here to see what they're running.

The CTF cars run Pirelli Sottozeros in the winter. These are what the Camaro suspension engineer recommended for winter use on the 5th gen ZL1.

[Can'tHave2MuchHP]

The Gen5 ZL1 guys have had AMAZING luck and reviews for the BFG Comp-2 A/S tires that fit OEM wheels perfectly. They supposedly stick better than the OEM F1s (5th gen ones) in all conditions unless tracking and even then the Comp-2 are great. (Once the old F1s had heat in them at the track then they were amazing but until then, no). They're also an extremely affordable option, something like less than 200$ a tire I want to say. This is a tire you can drive rain, snow, ice, or shine. You can save your Eagles for track days too.

[thompstl1]

Originally Posted by Can'tHave2MuchHP

The Gen5 ZL1 guys have had AMAZING luck and reviews for the BFG Comp-2 A/S tires that fit OEM wheels perfectly. They supposedly stick better than the OEM F1s (5th gen ones) in all conditions unless tracking and even then the Comp-2 are great. (Once the old F1s had heat in them at the track then they were amazing but until then, no). They're also an extremely affordable option, something like less than 200$ a tire I want to say. This is a tire you can drive rain, snow, ice, or shine. You can save your Eagles for track days too.

My car will be a daily driver, so I'm certainly looking for some all season tires (and gladly forgo the performance of summer only tires). That being said, I don't see where the BFG's have a replacement size for the new Gen ZL1. I'm hoping one of the manufacturer's come out with an all season that are direct replacement (size & speed rating) for our cars.