Anyone ever run budget tyres on a performance car before?
Discussion
Afternoon guys, so I'm looking to buy 2 new rear tyres for my C63 AMG in 255/30/19 size. I should caveat this by saying that I'm going to go for the Continental Sport Contact 5p mainly as that's what's on the fronts (which still have decent tread left) and the ocd part of me doesn't want to mix tyre manufacturers 
So I know the normal line is that tyres are the only thing keeping me on the road, why skimp on them, if you can't afford to run a performance car properly then don't buy it etc etc... But I was just looking at the tyreleader site and out of curiosity I thought I'd search by price and was amazed to see that there are tyres you can buy in this size for £55 each from the likes of Tristar(?), Minerva(?), Gremax(?) (as opposed to £170 each for the Contis).
It just got me wondering what these tyres would be like on a 400bhp+ car and just out of pure curiosity I was wondering if anyone had any first hand experience of running tyres like this on a fast car? i.e. what the traction is like, differences in handling, braking distances etc?. Are they the stereotypical 'ditchfinders' or are they actually better than most people generally think?
So I know the normal line is that tyres are the only thing keeping me on the road, why skimp on them, if you can't afford to run a performance car properly then don't buy it etc etc... But I was just looking at the tyreleader site and out of curiosity I thought I'd search by price and was amazed to see that there are tyres you can buy in this size for £55 each from the likes of Tristar(?), Minerva(?), Gremax(?) (as opposed to £170 each for the Contis).
It just got me wondering what these tyres would be like on a 400bhp+ car and just out of pure curiosity I was wondering if anyone had any first hand experience of running tyres like this on a fast car? i.e. what the traction is like, differences in handling, braking distances etc?. Are they the stereotypical 'ditchfinders' or are they actually better than most people generally think?
Have driven an M3 on rubbish tyres for a while. Pretty good as a tool for contriving to bring the envelope of grip in considerably so you can have a play/learn the car's behaviour on the limit without going ridiculous speeds. Very frustrating otherwise and a big nuisance when you want to be able to do a long boring drive in the rain without worrying too much about braking performance.
I bought a set of nice alloys but they had autogrip tyrs on them for my old clk320, not a performance car by any stretch of the imagination but even if it was slightly damp the esp light would kick in on a regular basis, and it felt unhappy.
A set of pirellis on it and it was transformed, noticably quiter, less crashy over poor surfaces and stuck like s
te to an electric blanket.
A set of pirellis on it and it was transformed, noticably quiter, less crashy over poor surfaces and stuck like s
te to an electric blanket.There is a video of some guys testing tyres on a c55 amg.
The cheaper tyres handled surprising well at first, but after the same amount of abuse were falling apart after a while. Will see if I can find the video.
I think their conclusion was ultimately the compounds didn’t hold up as well and would fail sooner.
The cheaper tyres handled surprising well at first, but after the same amount of abuse were falling apart after a while. Will see if I can find the video.
I think their conclusion was ultimately the compounds didn’t hold up as well and would fail sooner.
You have some ok mid range ones where the cheapness is more in the fact they will wear quicker. At half the price but lasting half the mileage they effectively aren't cheaper if you see what I mean, just smooth out cashflow/make a non repairable puncture easier to swallow, or on a low mile per year car means they are used before being too old.
But obviously it requires research to find out the half decent ones. I remember a few years back a specialist breaker for Mkiv Supra's had 'x' cars in and something like 50% were on 'Fullrun' tyres, some are genuinely shocking for a performance car.
It was 10 out of 23!
https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...
But obviously it requires research to find out the half decent ones. I remember a few years back a specialist breaker for Mkiv Supra's had 'x' cars in and something like 50% were on 'Fullrun' tyres, some are genuinely shocking for a performance car.
It was 10 out of 23!
https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...
RedAndy said:
i always found that cheapo ones were 90% as good in the dry compared with fancy ones, but abysmal in even the sllghtest dampness - let alone actual rain. Totally dangerous lack of grip.
never again.
My experience too. My V6 Spider came with some horribly cheap Chinese tyres on the front. First thing I did was Google the brand to find some of the worse reviews imaginable. I was going to change them but i discovered their performance in the dry was adequate. It was only in the wet when you felt like the front wheels were on tea trays.never again.
As the car is a fair weather garage queen the wet performance is rarely tested and now after a couple of years they are just about shot so will be replaced with something more reassuring but not necessarily full on premium.
I remember years ago swapping from some worn out Michelin Pilot SX-GT to some Falken ZE502 and thinking the car was broken, the Falkens being night and day inferior to the Michelin’s.
With that said, I bought a 330D which had Falkens on it when I bought which would I say were no worse than the Pirelli PZero’s I replaced them with, in real world driving conditions.
All though not a performance car per se, it was a circa 300hp heavyish saloon with a decent amount of torque, so not exactly king to it’s tyres.
With that said, I bought a 330D which had Falkens on it when I bought which would I say were no worse than the Pirelli PZero’s I replaced them with, in real world driving conditions.
All though not a performance car per se, it was a circa 300hp heavyish saloon with a decent amount of torque, so not exactly king to it’s tyres.
f1nn said:
I remember years ago swapping from some worn out Michelin Pilot SX-GT to some Falken ZE502 and thinking the car was broken, the Falkens being night and day inferior to the Michelin’s.
With that said, I bought a 330D which had Falkens on it when I bought which would I say were no worse than the Pirelli PZero’s I replaced them with, in real world driving conditions.
All though not a performance car per se, it was a circa 300hp heavyish saloon with a decent amount of torque, so not exactly king to it’s tyres.
My C63 came with Falkens on it, and that's got 460bhp. When I had to change the rears, I went up-market (so I thought), and notice no difference at all.With that said, I bought a 330D which had Falkens on it when I bought which would I say were no worse than the Pirelli PZero’s I replaced them with, in real world driving conditions.
All though not a performance car per se, it was a circa 300hp heavyish saloon with a decent amount of torque, so not exactly king to it’s tyres.
I have Kumko KU39 on my e92 M3. Admittedly they were on it when I bought it, but they were brand new and I'd have been daft to replace them just for the sake of it.
They've seen me through 5k miles and although they're a prone to understeer in the wet before a more capable tyre would, they feel safe enough if not confidence inspiring in wet conditions, and perform more than adequately in the dry.
When you said about C63 and budget tyres, this springs to mind immediately
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HPh90yNX-mY
They've seen me through 5k miles and although they're a prone to understeer in the wet before a more capable tyre would, they feel safe enough if not confidence inspiring in wet conditions, and perform more than adequately in the dry.
When you said about C63 and budget tyres, this springs to mind immediately
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HPh90yNX-mY
I bought a Saab with LingLong tyres on it. A few mods & I took it to Mallory Park for a play.
The tyres were great- they started squealing the moment I turned the wheel, the car was going sideways at the slightest provocation & the Caterham owner in the passenger seat was grinning his head off despite us doing half the speed his car could do.
For serious use they're godawful but for silliness & fun they can be fantastic.
The tyres were great- they started squealing the moment I turned the wheel, the car was going sideways at the slightest provocation & the Caterham owner in the passenger seat was grinning his head off despite us doing half the speed his car could do.
For serious use they're godawful but for silliness & fun they can be fantastic.
When I bought my leggy Alfa GT diesel (yes, I know, not a performance car, but bear with me) - it came fitted with four different "ultra-budget" tyres, of which the BEST was a Nexen...
I ran it on those tyres for three or four weeks, wondering what all the bad press was about. Sure, they squealed a bit on some corners if I got a bit enthusiastic, but they were acceptable.
Then it rained....
I might as well have been on trackday tyres in the snow - it was horrific. Four wheel drifts at ridiculously low speed, exacerbated by the fact that the four different tyres seemed to let go at different times. It was bad enough trying to keep it in straight line, never mind cornering. God knows what would have happened if I'd needed to stop in an emergency
They were removed within 24 hours
I work part-time at a garage and to my utter amazement, I see high-end and high-performance cars coming in with low-end tyres. I guess some of the owners may not have been enthusiastic drivers, but I can't see that as an excuse - some budget tyres are borderline dangerous.
I cannot begin to think what a driver must feel like if they've just hit a pedestrian because their budget tyres didn't stop them in time, whereas "proper" tyres would have pulled them up short.
I ran it on those tyres for three or four weeks, wondering what all the bad press was about. Sure, they squealed a bit on some corners if I got a bit enthusiastic, but they were acceptable.
Then it rained....
I might as well have been on trackday tyres in the snow - it was horrific. Four wheel drifts at ridiculously low speed, exacerbated by the fact that the four different tyres seemed to let go at different times. It was bad enough trying to keep it in straight line, never mind cornering. God knows what would have happened if I'd needed to stop in an emergency
They were removed within 24 hours
I work part-time at a garage and to my utter amazement, I see high-end and high-performance cars coming in with low-end tyres. I guess some of the owners may not have been enthusiastic drivers, but I can't see that as an excuse - some budget tyres are borderline dangerous.
I cannot begin to think what a driver must feel like if they've just hit a pedestrian because their budget tyres didn't stop them in time, whereas "proper" tyres would have pulled them up short.
Flumpo said:
There is a video of some guys testing tyres on a c55 amg.
The cheaper tyres handled surprising well at first, but after the same amount of abuse were falling apart after a while. Will see if I can find the video.
I think their conclusion was ultimately the compounds didn’t hold up as well and would fail sooner.
You mean this one?The cheaper tyres handled surprising well at first, but after the same amount of abuse were falling apart after a while. Will see if I can find the video.
I think their conclusion was ultimately the compounds didn’t hold up as well and would fail sooner.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xTcxNw3raNE
Answers the OP question, and they were really good budget tyres. I've tried much much worse.
My M6 came with Accelera Phi2 on the back. It’d twitch sideways when changing lanes on the white paint if it was even slightly damp. Fullbore acceleration in 3rd above 6k rpm was downright scary, even with TC on.
Mind you, the previous owner had managed to average 24.2mpg in it long term, so probably wasn’t driving it in the same way I am...
I’ve still got them though - If I ever get the urge to go on a deserted airfield & fk about, it’s much cheaper than another set of MPS4S’s. 
Mind you, the previous owner had managed to average 24.2mpg in it long term, so probably wasn’t driving it in the same way I am...
I’ve still got them though - If I ever get the urge to go on a deserted airfield & f
k about, it’s much cheaper than another set of MPS4S’s. joeshaw123 said:
I have Kumko KU39 on my e92 M3. Admittedly they were on it when I bought it, but they were brand new and I'd have been daft to replace them just for the sake of it.
They've seen me through 5k miles and although they're a prone to understeer in the wet before a more capable tyre would, they feel safe enough if not confidence inspiring in wet conditions, and perform more than adequately in the dry.
The Kumho isn't really in the same league as the other ditchfinders mentioned though. Taking my car, and looking on blackcircles, the Eagle F1's currently on it are £122 ea, RainSport3's £103, Kumho's are £90... unknown ditchfinders are £56! They've seen me through 5k miles and although they're a prone to understeer in the wet before a more capable tyre would, they feel safe enough if not confidence inspiring in wet conditions, and perform more than adequately in the dry.
They're mid-range and certainly from my experience of using them on slower stuff they're perfectly acceptable. While they wouldn't be my *first* choice for an M3 I wouldn't worry about them.
If you think cheap tyres are cheap at retail, you should see the wholesale prices. The margins are so much bigger as a percentage than they are on premium tyres. It's quite surprising how cheaply they can stick these together and ship them to the other side of the world.
Cheap tyres are what the consumer wants. Tyre fitters duly oblige. The actual amount of profit to the tyre fitter is probably within a whisker whether it's a £45 tyre or a £100 tyre. Hence so many cars are rolling around on budgets.
Cheap tyres are what the consumer wants. Tyre fitters duly oblige. The actual amount of profit to the tyre fitter is probably within a whisker whether it's a £45 tyre or a £100 tyre. Hence so many cars are rolling around on budgets.
Unless the OP is planning to go drifting I would say it's a false economy. The difference in grip and (more crucially) wet weather performance between a premium tyre and your average "far eastern ditch finder" is a lot.
More to the point if you're wealthy enough to resource and AMG Mercedes, why are you now nickle & diming on the tyres?
More to the point if you're wealthy enough to resource and AMG Mercedes, why are you now nickle & diming on the tyres?
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