Subj: Prelude to NH event
Date: 7/28/00

Please excuse the double posting. I usually post event stories to the NE list, but I have several "NSX Story" people not on this list.

Greetings and salutations:
Like other stories, this is not just about the NH event, but includes my trials and tribulations in getting to the event. I'm sure you've read other NH comments, now for the REAL story.

I did not want to go through another "Dog and Pony show" like the one getting to Summit Point Raceway, so I took leave on Friday to prepare for the trip. My only obstacle to overcome was getting new tires for my NSX. My rears having worn down to the wear bars in the middle of the tire, prompted me to order a new set. I have had good luck with my Toyo T1-Plus tires. I ordered two for the rear, plus I thought I would try Toyo's newest and greatest, T1-S. Being hot out of the tire mold, distribution was scarce and I must wait while they come from different parts of the country. The two that came from California, must have been delivered by some young lad rolling them (you know how hard it is to roll two tires side by side) as it took almost two weeks to arrive. The boy is scheduled to make his delivery at my tire shop at 1300 on Friday; the tire shop will notify me on his arrival. It is cutting it closer than I had hoped, but I should be able to get on the road to Peter's house by 1500. I have my car loaded for the trip, it's setting on the lift (wheels off), and the new rims are loaded in my Civic Wgn, just waiting for the "Bat Phone" to ring.
The tire shop I frequent is about a 40 minute drive from my house. Steve is a racer and I rely on his input for information about tire performance, and driving questions. The only thing he knows about the Toyo T1-S, is that it will replace the T1-Plus tires that I currently use (I am his test case).
At about 1400 the Bat Phone rings, reporting the boy has stumbled in, dehydrated with holes in his sneakers, but the tires are intact. The garage door goes up, the Civic launches out the driveway, and I streak as fast as traffic will permit. Looking at the clock, I am glad that I will miss the Harrisburg, PA traffic. A passing shower has slowed traffic to a 10 MPH pace, but in 5 minutes, it passes and I arrive on time. They are just getting ready to balance my tires and ask if I want paper or plastic...??? I mean stick-on or hammer on weights. I have never tried the stick on ones before so I opt for them. In 20 minutes I am out the door, headed for increasing traffic flow, but still should be home by 1540. As I pull in the yard, I see a package on the door step. I anticipate it is my recent order from RM. A look in the box reveals my new storage case that replaces the spare tire (some manufactures actually do ship when they say, isn't that something) I back up to the garage, open the Civic's Hatch, roll the NSX's new sneakers into the bay, and admire them for a minute. The aggressive tread design makes me smile. Yup, it will add at least another 10 MPH to it's apparent standing still speed. The only drawback I see is the possibility of trapping larger chunks of road kill (and riffraff cars) between the treads. Well, enough lollygagging and day dreaming, it's time to mount the wheels and head to Peter's. I have all four wheels, torqued the rears, and as I rotate the front ones....Tink! I look down to the floor and see the new stick on weights. I look at the clearance between the calipers and the 15" wheels. Seems like it should be enough?; so I rotate the tire to the next weight.......Tink!
I take a deep breath, sigh, look at my watch (which is now clicking off seconds twice as fast as before), growl in dissatisfaction, pull the wheels off, load them into the Civic, and head back to the tire store. My "plan ahead relaxing day" has just been shot out off the sky. It is now about 1600 and traffic is hitting it's peak. It take just under an hour to reach the tire store. After a discussion as to what happened, pros and cons between weight types, and to save time, I elect to have conventional weights in front and leave the stick-on ones in the rear. I drive home, redo the afore mentioned process (without the admiration), clean up, change clothes and head out. The first thing I notice is that rocks in my driveway are sticking between the treads. As I pull on to the highway, I keep it slow letting the rocks dislodge while keeping an eye in the rear view mirror to insure a semi isn't bearing down on me (looks like I brought half the drive way with me :-) When I reach the Interstate, I accelerate on to the "on ramp" playing Bachman Turner Overdrive and quickly approach an old fart (not you Peter) who obviously is playing Lawrence Welk. A quick check in my mirrors, I quick turn to the passing lane, finds my car body roll is LIKE MY ACCORD!!! Ahhhhhh. I get a safe distance in front of the cars and start making left and right turns. I should have brought Dramamine! This is not acceptable, or is it just different? I have a "try them for 500 miles" warranty but the trip to NY-NH-ME and return will put about 1300 miles on them. Now all these thoughts start racing in my mind. Do I keep them?; Do I pull them off?; My old rears are not suitable for heavy rain (and it's supposed to), I'm running late, and the exit is coming up fast so you better make a decision LARRY. I growl, make a quick turn to the exit ramp, and head home. I'm late, discouraged, and use the trip home to decide if I should even make the trip at all. I drive back into the garage, change clothes, grab a Mt. Dew, sit on the steps to think. It is way past my original departure time so I give Peter a call to let him know what is happening. I don't expect he will answer, as the family has been invited to a neighbors house for dinner/supper and Peter doesn't like to pass up a warm meal. I tell his answering my woes (who seems to be a very good listener), that it will be at least 2330 -2400 before I arrive, and if the door is locked, I'll just sleep on his deck with the cats.
Now, when people feel anxiety they may do several things: eat, exercise, buy a new toy.....Wait a minute.....I have a new toy! Out comes the RM box, the hood goes up, the spare tire comes out, and I now read the easy 3 step installation guide. Let's see; remove tire (done), remove spare support assembly (4 nuts and a bolt, not bad), trim excess length from battery hold down studs (doesn't apply), and install the Storage Box. When the spare support assembly is removed, there are 4 short studs remaining with the box resting on two of them. I am afraid the vibration will wear on the box and studs. So on each stud I put a washer, O-ring, washer, and invert the removed nut (that has an attached washer) so that there is a larger surface for the box to rest on. The installation looks good other than I wish there was an attachment point at the top of the box to reduce fore and aft movement. The old tires go on, take a test drive, the NSX is back to normal, clean up, change clothes, and head for "the Mills." As the rest of the day has gone, I have my own personal rain cloud following me all across PA. With the rain varying from light to moderate, hydroplaning does not seem to be a problem, and I arrive around 2330 Friday night. Peter has waited up for me. We talk for about an hour as I unwind, hit the sack, as we hope to depart for NH around 0630. Stay tuned for part 2.

(NOTE): I have talked with the Toyo Tech Dept. and they told me that they had received complaints about the T1-Plus giving to harsh a ride (I thought they were fine), so they developed the T1-S with weaker sidewalls for the weenies (non NSX people :-) who use their cars for show and not go. Although they said the skid pad numbers were about the same as the T1-Plus, it did loose it's crisp turn-in abilities. They realize they are loosing the performance niche, so another tire is being developed, but is not expected to arrive until two years. I ordered OEM Yokos on Wed at 1500, they arrived today, Fri at 1700 :-) ( Thanks to Bob @ Discount Tire Direct)
If any of you could locate at least one (preferably two) Toyo T1-Plus 225/50 ZR 16 tires, it would be greatly appreciated. They are discontinued, and I haven't found anyone who has them in stock within a 100 mile radius.
Larry G.