Tyres. Do you go premium?
Discussion
A degree of truth in both the last two posts.
The last one seems a bit smug at first glance, but I think I agree with the sentiment on reflection.
I won't claim to have not spun the wheels or locked up in the last couple of years, but certainly, you should have some degree of sense of what the tyres are doing and respond accordingly.
If you barrel into a shady bend on a cold morning at the same speed as you do on a warm summer's afternoon, no tyre is going to behave the same.
Personally, I usually go 'premium', although rarely as extremely as on the RX8, which I treated to Bridgestones all round and really feel rewards the extra cost. I'm not sure it's SAFER than on Falkens (which were pretty good), but it is more enjoyable.
The stereotypical 'ditchfinders' though, do exist and are often found on less powerful machines that have got through their factory fitted new tyres (usually a reputable brand). My wife's Citroen C4 had some Wang-keen (or similar) cheapos on when we got it - They were 'ok' in the summer, but are lethal in the cold... The fronts have been replaced and the rears will be too, soon!
M.
The last one seems a bit smug at first glance, but I think I agree with the sentiment on reflection.
I won't claim to have not spun the wheels or locked up in the last couple of years, but certainly, you should have some degree of sense of what the tyres are doing and respond accordingly.
If you barrel into a shady bend on a cold morning at the same speed as you do on a warm summer's afternoon, no tyre is going to behave the same.
Personally, I usually go 'premium', although rarely as extremely as on the RX8, which I treated to Bridgestones all round and really feel rewards the extra cost. I'm not sure it's SAFER than on Falkens (which were pretty good), but it is more enjoyable.
The stereotypical 'ditchfinders' though, do exist and are often found on less powerful machines that have got through their factory fitted new tyres (usually a reputable brand). My wife's Citroen C4 had some Wang-keen (or similar) cheapos on when we got it - They were 'ok' in the summer, but are lethal in the cold... The fronts have been replaced and the rears will be too, soon!
M.
Edited by marcosgt on Tuesday 6th November 12:47
I bought a little 2+2 auto front drive 100BHP convertible for my daughter to drive after an injury meant she could not drive her manual. A sports car it was not, so I considered the aging middle quality tyres, different brand pairs back & front with plenty of tread, were adequate.
A few weeks later I was driving it very gently around an unfamiliar roundabout in a distant village, when I discovered they weren't. It had a high centre island, so you could not actually see the road, & the island was acting as a damn. A little water was ozing out of the island, keeping a few feet of road damp.
I was surprised when this little front drive naturally under-steering car kicked it's tail out. I corrected it automatically, which is just as well, as I was laughing so hard at the little thing thinking it was a sports car, I had lost my concentration completely.
This was not a characteristic of the car, so it must have been the tyres. My daughter is not all that experienced, so I fitted new, better quality tyres all round before I gave it back to her.
A few weeks later I was driving it very gently around an unfamiliar roundabout in a distant village, when I discovered they weren't. It had a high centre island, so you could not actually see the road, & the island was acting as a damn. A little water was ozing out of the island, keeping a few feet of road damp.
I was surprised when this little front drive naturally under-steering car kicked it's tail out. I corrected it automatically, which is just as well, as I was laughing so hard at the little thing thinking it was a sports car, I had lost my concentration completely.
This was not a characteristic of the car, so it must have been the tyres. My daughter is not all that experienced, so I fitted new, better quality tyres all round before I gave it back to her.
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