The weak link of any car with sporting intentions, generally speaking, is the tires that it’s saddled with from the factory. When you think like an automaker, this makes sense – adding stickier rubber costs significantly more that cheaper tires purchased in the thousands, and then there’s the issue of customer satisfaction to deal with.
Early Acura NSX buyers filed suit against Honda when they realized that the stock high-performance tries on the NSX only delivered around 10,000 miles of tread life. Since then, manufacturers have shied away from giving us the good stuff, unless its sold in an add-on “summer tire” package.
According to Autoblog, Hyundai will soon offer up a summer tire package for its sporty Veloster. The word comes from none other than John Krafcik, Hyundai Motor America’s President and CEO, who insists that stickier rubber has been in the planning stages for Veloster since the car was released.
For an additional $1,200, Hyundai will sell you a set of Michelin Pilot Super Sport tires (as long as you have the 18-inch wheels), which are capable of 0.94 gs of lateral acceleration, compared to 0.82 gs from the base Kumho Solus tires. Stopping distance on dry pavement is cut from 135 feet at 60 mph to 121 feet, which is probably the best way to sell your significant other on the idea. If you need more justification, consider this: Michelin Pilot Super Sport tires are what we run on our own cars at Automotive Addicts.
Kurt Ernst has been passionate about automobiles and driving nearly his entire life. His early years were shaped working in the family service station, though his real passion was auto racing. After graduating from the University of Colorado, Kurt spent a year club racing with the Sports Car Club of America, before focusing on a business career in marketing and project management. Later, his passion for writing and the automotive hobby found him freelancing for a variety of automotive news sites, including Automotive Addicts and Motor Authority, where his work was syndicated and appeared in several national publications. Recognized as an expert in the automotive field, Kurt joined Hemmings Motor News as an Associate Editor in 2013, and in the years since has progressed to Editor, Hemmings Daily; Managing Editor for Hemmings Motor News, Hemmings Classic Car, Hemmings Muscle Machines, and the Hemmings Daily; and now, Managing Editor, Hemmings Auctions. Kurt was instrumental in organizing the Hemmings Motor News Concours d’Elegance from 2013-2019, and has served as a judge at this event and The Vintage Racing Stable Concours d’Elegance. A Skip Barber Racing School graduate and prolific writer, Ernst is also skilled in copyediting, project management, brand development, and public relations.
