I have been trying to get some A048's
for the rear LTS LSS stock.
Sector 111 all out !

TheTireRack filled my order then recalled the fed ex truck,
to return the tires as per request from Lotus.
They are holding all stock for the dealers only...wtf

Does anyone know whats up with that ?

I had to settle for the med. hard comp which is 1-2 lbs. more weight. If you're willing to buy the whole set...

TheTireRack filled my order then recalled the fed ex truck, to return the tires as per request from Lotus..
I know that the A048s are outta stock and supposedly will be for a month or so.

But recalling a shipped order seems kinda extreme and possibly wrong to do.

I wonder if anything else is going on. Get the M compound anyway. The Lotus oem tires have a different construction and differ from the M compound tires. Supposedly stiffer sidewalls on the oem. I called Yoko 2 days ago to see if anything new was comming. They said run the oem tires(medium hard) even though the non oem ones are softer. I guess I got in under the wire. Just got my new rear tires delivered from Sector 111 yesterday. I had to provide a VIN# to get them! My tire / brake / trackday mechanic couldn't get them at all. Very strange.

Mike What are the best alternatives to the Yokos? I went with the A032 soft rears in 245's / A048 M fronts in 205's combo and I'm very happy with it. I guess I got in under the wire. Just got my new rear tires delivered from Sector 111 yesterday. I had to provide a VIN# to get them! My tire / brake / trackday mechanic couldn't get them at all. Very strange. Mike
One point I have heard is that Yokohama USA underestimated the demand for the tires. So they ran out and the pipeline needs to be refilled.

In any event it may be that the LTS A048s are the largest selling A048 tires. It is the only one that comes on new cars, and gets replaced pretty frequently due to their life cycle. I was told the opposite, that the lighter LTS version was more supple than the standard A048 because of the lighter weight of the car.
TheTireRack filled my order then recalled the fed ex truck,
to return the tires as per request from Lotus.
They are holding all stock for the dealers only...wtf
. If this turns out to be true we ( as Lotus owners) will need to hit Lotus where it hurts the most, rite in the pocket. I currently need rears for my LSS and have found that they aren't available anywhere but the 2 dealers in Miami and guess what. One dealer wanted $1800.00 for a set plus mounting and balancing the other one wanted $1490.00 total. So if it is true that Lotus "recalled" the tires for the dealers so they could pull this we need to do something about it. If I sound pissed you are dead on. It is a little tough to walk by a $50k car sitting in the garage that can't be driven. Does anyone know, and can list, all the A048 models available in the LSS sizes? It's a little confusing, and if anyone knows them and could flag which one is the OEM that would be great. Sticky tires, enough to damage the suspension, new rear suspension brace not factory fitted, Hmmm....Interesting. I wonder if a revised OEM tire is about to be introduced. If this turns out to be true we ( as Lotus owners) will need to hit Lotus where it hurts the most, rite in the pocket. I currently need rears for my LSS and have found that they aren't available anywhere but the 2 dealers in Miami and guess what. One dealer wanted $1800.00 for a set plus mounting and balancing the other one wanted $1490.00 total. So if it is true that Lotus "recalled" the tires for the dealers so they could pull this we need to do something about it. If I sound pissed you are dead on. It is a little tough to walk by a $50k car sitting in the garage that can't be driven.
Except, they don't want to hear the tire they hand selected only lasts
1000 miles (good miles) before performance falls off.

It is true Lotus pulled the tires so the dealers could make a little extra dough.
Those quotes are a rip off. Tirerack+shipping +mounting= 1100 max

Another classic move from Lotus ! Does anyone know, and can list, all the A048 models available in the LSS sizes? It's a little confusing, and if anyone knows them and could flag which one is the OEM that would be great.
I think it goes like this

LTS is the Lotus spec tire

MH is medium hard, this tire is heaver and heats up quicker.

M is medium, it is also heaver but heats up even quicker, so it might
be better for autox, but a shorter life perhaps. It is true Lotus pulled the tires so the dealers could make a little extra dough. What was your source for this information? John, imagine it's pure speculation.

So Lotus has the power to call up a large tire seller here and have them pull back a fedex shipment to get the tires back to reserve only for dealers? Stretching the bounds of believability I think.
Chris John, imagine it's pure speculation.

So Lotus has the power to call up a large tire seller here and have them pull back a fedex shipment to get the tires back to reserve only for dealers? Stretching the bounds of believability I think.
Chris
More likely, TireRack had issued a FedEx tracking number, and then when they went to pack the order, they realized they were out of stock because the dealerships have been ordering from TireRack since they can't get the A048's from anywhere else. It's even possible that one of the dealerships offered to pay a premium for as many A048 LTS tires that TireRack could provide, so TireRack canceled all the other pending orders. I'm just speculating of course, but these scenarios are a lot more likely than Lotus calling TireRack, then TireRack calling FedEx and telling them to bring back a truck because Lotus demanded that the tires be sent only to dealerships. TireRack always seemed to have an excellent idea of their current inventory to me. It seems difficult to imagine that they would have issued a tracking number before finding out that they don't have the tires. TireRack always seemed to have an excellent idea of their current inventory to me. It seems difficult to imagine that they would have issued a tracking number before finding out that they don't have the tires.
Well, then maybe they canceled all the orders (even after a FedEx tracking number was issued) to sell the tires to a specific dealer that offered to pay a premium for them due to the current lack of availability. I could certainly see HRM or one of the other large dealerships calling around to all the tire sellers and attempting to buy as many A048's as they can.