Cheap v expensive tyres
Discussion
briang9 said:
Cupramax said:
What are you basing that list on? Bearing in mind Audi are now fitting Hankook Ventus as OEM tyres on things like the new S5, I'm sure they'd be impressed you rate them as mid range.
Indeed... that list appears to be random made up nonsense 
http://www.tyrereviews.co.uk/Article/2016-AutoBild...
Nokian are highly rated on the Continent for their winter tyres too.
Currently run Toyo Snowprox on the Lexus and for a reasonably cheap tyre they seem fine, In fact they are barely any louder than my summers. The Uniroyal summers that have only covered 2000 miles have been out of shape since day 1 (bought new) and cause excessive vibration despite being balanced 3-4 times.
Motorhome runs Nexan winters all year round and they seem absolutely fine for the price (60 quid each) Also got us out of a sticky situation when we got bogged on an italian campsite.
Bridgestone in my opinion have gone downhill hugely since they moved european production to Poland.
Motorhome runs Nexan winters all year round and they seem absolutely fine for the price (60 quid each) Also got us out of a sticky situation when we got bogged on an italian campsite.
Bridgestone in my opinion have gone downhill hugely since they moved european production to Poland.
Hmm Audi Q7 owners recommending cheap budgets? Some people don't have Thier priorities straight..
Always gone for well reviewed mid range I don't get penny pinching for the sake of a pound sometimes my last set of rain sports on my last puma cost me a pound more a corner than the tyre fitters cheapest brand!
Always gone for well reviewed mid range I don't get penny pinching for the sake of a pound sometimes my last set of rain sports on my last puma cost me a pound more a corner than the tyre fitters cheapest brand!
years ago when I had a cheap runabout ford escort I used to ring round the local tyre dealers, give them the tyre size and ask what was the cheapest tyre they could supply,
due to the tyre size being small the actual saving between the really cheap budget range and any half decent tyre was only actually about £20 and the cheap tyres only seemed to last about 12000 miles which meant I was buying cheap tyres roughly every 18 months compared to a decent tyre which would have probably lasted 3 or 4 years years,
there's also no doubt the grip afforded by the cheap tyres was much worse and the breaking distance much greater.
so not only was I putting myself and my family at more risk by going cheap, in reality due to the tyres not lasting anything like as long it was almost certainly costing me more money
I now never buy cheap tyres and wouldn't ever even on a cheap car.
kambites said:
I think part of the problem is that people are so obsessed with the badge which isn't enough, on its own, to tell you a great deal about the tyre. For example the Nankang NS-2R is a very good tyre and the Pirelli P6000 is woeful.
True, but how does the NS-2R compare to the Trofeo R? Or the P6000 to the mighty Nexen RX-615 Remex?Anecdotal but I remember having Yoko Parada Spec 2s on the front of my E36 318is (regret selling that) and Wanli 1008s or something on rears and I could induce a non-power slide just by yanking the steering wheel going around a sweeping corner, the fronts had so much bite and rears were so dangerously plastic that the back end would just start sliding out at the first hint of pushing the limits. Fun but a scary prospect if anything had gone wrong or I needed actual grip at any point.
Conversely I bought a little N reg Micra and it had non date stamped Dunlops on it; at least 20 year old tyres that resembled the ones on the DeLorean at the beginning of BTTF3, before I replaced them I could not unstick them, amazing levels of grip!
I'll be putting Toyo T1Rs on my newly acquired Rover 216 GTI in the next few weeks, not a well received tyre but I absolutely love them, £141 from Camskill for 4 is amazing value too I think!
Conversely I bought a little N reg Micra and it had non date stamped Dunlops on it; at least 20 year old tyres that resembled the ones on the DeLorean at the beginning of BTTF3, before I replaced them I could not unstick them, amazing levels of grip!
I'll be putting Toyo T1Rs on my newly acquired Rover 216 GTI in the next few weeks, not a well received tyre but I absolutely love them, £141 from Camskill for 4 is amazing value too I think!
It blows my mind!
Until somebody tests all the tyres listed on the same car, same conditions and same driver styles then a lot will remain a bit of a mystery. As usual it's classic internet reviews, what works for one man may not work for another and whilst yes, there are some appalling tyres out there on the other hand some 'budget' tyres may actually be as good as a premium brand under certain circumstances. There's just far too many variables when it comes to arguing the case for tyres on your average Joe's car that trundles to work and back. Not everybody runs a GTR RS and whilst XXX tyre is fabulous for it, one of China's finest may be perform as well as more reputable brand in their world.
However, had a few cars with budget tyres and agree that most were fine in the dry but wet / cold conditions were where the issues started... had Sunny's on an Astra Turbo that were comical, it's flash the TC light in 4th on the motorway and then had Nankangs on my T5 which was just frightening. The Sunny's were replaced with Continentals and the Nankangs with Vredestein Quatracs and it was like night and day and not night and day in the sense that replacing something old and ruined with a new part will always be better because they tyres had barely been worn in when they were replaced.
As an aside, I do read some tyre reviews and my head explodes... just too many varying opinions and variables to try and make informed choices so really, the best option seems to be to chose what works best for your own situation and budget though scarily, these days where more and more are running bling cars on a shoestrings, I suspect we'll see more and more Golf R's and 130i's running Happy Joyride tyres...
A tyre's a tyre innit...?
Until somebody tests all the tyres listed on the same car, same conditions and same driver styles then a lot will remain a bit of a mystery. As usual it's classic internet reviews, what works for one man may not work for another and whilst yes, there are some appalling tyres out there on the other hand some 'budget' tyres may actually be as good as a premium brand under certain circumstances. There's just far too many variables when it comes to arguing the case for tyres on your average Joe's car that trundles to work and back. Not everybody runs a GTR RS and whilst XXX tyre is fabulous for it, one of China's finest may be perform as well as more reputable brand in their world.
However, had a few cars with budget tyres and agree that most were fine in the dry but wet / cold conditions were where the issues started... had Sunny's on an Astra Turbo that were comical, it's flash the TC light in 4th on the motorway and then had Nankangs on my T5 which was just frightening. The Sunny's were replaced with Continentals and the Nankangs with Vredestein Quatracs and it was like night and day and not night and day in the sense that replacing something old and ruined with a new part will always be better because they tyres had barely been worn in when they were replaced.
As an aside, I do read some tyre reviews and my head explodes... just too many varying opinions and variables to try and make informed choices so really, the best option seems to be to chose what works best for your own situation and budget though scarily, these days where more and more are running bling cars on a shoestrings, I suspect we'll see more and more Golf R's and 130i's running Happy Joyride tyres...
A tyre's a tyre innit...?
amgmcqueen said:
Cheap tyres usually wear extremely quickly and are dreadful in the wet.
I bought a 306 years ago that the previous owner had put some cheap ditchfinders on. They were actually surprisingly good in the dry but awful in the wet, however the bloody things just wouldn't wear down regardless of how much effort I put in to trashing them. Ended up having to replace them with loads of tread still left as I just didn't fancy driving through the winter on them 
fido said:
RizzoTheRat said:
They were actually surprisingly good in the dry but awful in the wet, however the bloody things just wouldn't wear down regardless of how much effort I put in to trashing them.
Perfect for a track day then ...Cheap tyres = false economy.
Faster wear rate and (generally) dreadful in the wet, which is when you need the grip.
However for 95% of the motoring public, ‘a tyre’s a tyre, innit’. Remember hardly anyone even checks their tyre pressures between services, let alone checks the brand their garage fits (not people on PH, obviously!)
Faster wear rate and (generally) dreadful in the wet, which is when you need the grip.
However for 95% of the motoring public, ‘a tyre’s a tyre, innit’. Remember hardly anyone even checks their tyre pressures between services, let alone checks the brand their garage fits (not people on PH, obviously!)
When I bought my S2000 it had Triangle tyres on the front. I took this as an indication that the car hadn't been thrashed.
Having put a couple of hundred (winter) miles on them, I realised that my logic was faultless. A brace of the correct Bridgestones later, and the grip, turn-in and handling were markedly transformed.
Back in my Mark 1 Golf GTI days I was a regular at BR Motorsport, and often spoke to Brian Ricketts about tyres. There was nothing that Brian didn't know about tuning and running fast GTI's, and he recommended Uniroyals - in his words, they may not be a "fashion" tyre, but in UK conditions they did the job better than anything else. He was right.
I bought my current GTI back in August, and it had a new pair of Kumhos on the front, with a half-worn pair of Michelins on the rear. The Kumhos were ok, but no better than ok - they were black, round, and did a job. A couple of months later, with the benefit of some research, I bought a set of Michelin PS4's and had the alignment checked by somebody who knows what they're doing, and the difference in feel isn't quite the "night and day" improvement that I was hoping for, but is more consistent and confidence-inspiring.
Over the years I have come to put a great deal of faith in Michelin. Leonard Setright was something of a tyre aficionado, and his view was that you should put your trust (and life) in the tyre companies who spend the most money on research and development.
Having put a couple of hundred (winter) miles on them, I realised that my logic was faultless. A brace of the correct Bridgestones later, and the grip, turn-in and handling were markedly transformed.
Back in my Mark 1 Golf GTI days I was a regular at BR Motorsport, and often spoke to Brian Ricketts about tyres. There was nothing that Brian didn't know about tuning and running fast GTI's, and he recommended Uniroyals - in his words, they may not be a "fashion" tyre, but in UK conditions they did the job better than anything else. He was right.
I bought my current GTI back in August, and it had a new pair of Kumhos on the front, with a half-worn pair of Michelins on the rear. The Kumhos were ok, but no better than ok - they were black, round, and did a job. A couple of months later, with the benefit of some research, I bought a set of Michelin PS4's and had the alignment checked by somebody who knows what they're doing, and the difference in feel isn't quite the "night and day" improvement that I was hoping for, but is more consistent and confidence-inspiring.
Over the years I have come to put a great deal of faith in Michelin. Leonard Setright was something of a tyre aficionado, and his view was that you should put your trust (and life) in the tyre companies who spend the most money on research and development.
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