tyre advice please

I wouldnt trust user reviews as far as I could throw them. Most people are not qualified to accurately and impartially judge a tyre against rivals.
 
Well, performance is nearly always a trade off against wear.

More grip = softer compounds and faster wear.
Less grip = harder compounds and slower wear.

The intricate details are of course far more complicated than that. 18k miles on a set of front tyres is not bad at all though, IMO.
 
MikeHiow said:
Well, performance is nearly always a trade off against wear.

More grip = softer compounds and faster wear.
Less grip = harder compounds and slower wear.

The intricate details are of course far more complicated than that. 18k miles on a set of front tyres is not bad at all though, IMO.
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that was 18k for all four as the reviewer had them swapped over to spread the wear so your prob looking at 8-10k on the fronts which TBH ain't a lot really

is there nothing like NCAP where you can view tyre safety etc etc
 
Nothing like NCAP.

Some motoring press like Evo do yearly tyre reviews and they use one car, the top 8-10 leading tyres from a wide range of brands (including the P6000's which usually come out bottom of the pile) and on test tracks in the wet and dry.

Conti's nearly always come up very high up, obviously though they cannot test wear.
 
My mistake, I think you'd still see more than 10K out of the fronts.

18K is nearly two years for most people - I wouldn't want a set of tyres older than that on my car anyway. But like I say, there is always a trade-off between grip and wear.
 
Not sure if they come in your size, but on the 27th of November last year I had a set of 4 Dunlop Sport Fast Response tyres installed on my Focus in 195/60/15. At first I wasn't sure, but now I've bedded them in a bit, they're very nice. Excellent on the motorway, a definite improvement over the (albeit worn) Conti Ecocontacts previously on the car. They didn't fair too badly in the snow either. They were 63 quid a corner, fitted and balanced.
 
bigjimmyauk said:
what are BF goodrich tyres like (apparently made by michelin)
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I wish people wouldnt say 'Yea, they are apparently made by XXX' as some sort of qualifier. I hear it all the time and it gets a bit irritating.

The Smart Car is made by Mercedes, this doesnt make it as good as an E Class.
 
ghop said:
Not sure if they come in your size, but on the 27th of November last year I had a set of 4 Dunlop Sport Fast Response tyres installed on my Focus in 195/60/15. At first I wasn't sure, but now I've bedded them in a bit, they're very nice. Excellent on the motorway, a definite improvement over the (albeit worn) Conti Ecocontacts previously on the car. They didn't fair too badly in the snow either. They were 63 quid a corner, fitted and balanced.
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Unfortunately as Fox said earlier reviews like this don't mean a lot.

Almost any tyre will seem excellent on a motorway especially if you're coming it to a worn set. Truth be told you're more than likely not going to know if you've got a rubbish set of tyres until it is too late.
 
True, but a premium brand with majoritively good user reviews is generally a pretty safe bet.
 
I had a set of Conti PC2's all round on the Focus. Absolutly fantastic tyre, driven them hard a few times on a few various trips round Welsh B roads.

But I have to agree that they wore down much quicker than others ive used (Avon ZV3's, Pirelli P6000's)

About the same rate as the Toyo Proxies (T1R) that are coming to the end of their life now. Except the Proxies were much cheaper.
 
I'll put my money where my mouth is.

I've just ordered four Conti Premium Contacts for our runabout Focus. I was going to grab FK452s, but for the sake of a tenner a tyre I thought I'd give it a go.
 
a +1 for Kumho KU31, feel a lot better in the wet that my old bridgestone potenza.

great budget performance tyre. i had 2 x at £120 fitted.
 
MikeHiow said:
I'll put my money where my mouth is.

I've just ordered four Conti Premium Contacts for our runabout Focus. I was going to grab FK452s, but for the sake of a tenner a tyre I thought I'd give it a go.
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Well that's the thing, isn't it?
I mean for such a small difference, surely it's worth getting the better product?
Sure, they don't last as long, but then the compound will be softer.
 
Peerzy said:
Nothing like NCAP.

Some motoring press like Evo do yearly tyre reviews and they use one car, the top 8-10 leading tyres from a wide range of brands (including the P6000's which usually come out bottom of the pile) and on test tracks in the wet and dry.

Conti's nearly always come up very high up, obviously though they cannot test wear.
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So so true. I bought my SLK with Pirreli P6000 tyres on it and they were starting to get a little worn on the rear. Decided to change them as they get so little traction, even in the dry. Now have Continental Sport Contact 3 MO's on there and there is SO much more grip, even though the tyre is brand new. Hoping I get some good mileage on them as the conti's were pretty expensive (although I got a pretty good deal with Bathwick tires) - sucks that the fronts will probably need changing by the end of the year too (although will be glad to get the Pirellis off). Think it cost me around £290 for the 2 (wheel balancing and the usual included) - got screwed by the new VAT too. I nearly bought a budget tyre (Accelra) for £75 each or BJB something for £90 each, but decided against it!
 
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