drive safely

grudas said:
the issue is majority of people do not understand the point of premium tyres.

which is why so many run on the cheapest available at the time.

I run midrange on the rear and even those are sketchy in 300bhp RWD car and are rated A in wet.

would not want to know what low end tyres are like.
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What do you class as a budget tyre, something that's cheap and no one has ever heard of?

I generally by Michelin's, which I guess are about £85-90 a tyre, I'm not one for getting winter tyres and summer tyres though.
 
Resident said:
So you should keep the tyres with least grip/water clearance on the wheels that need it the most in a FF config car?
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As you seem to have ignored my longer post:

Conscript said:
Because the rear wheels are the ones over which you have the least control (in most cases). Most people's justification for placing the newer tyres on the front is "because the front wheels do the driving, steering and the braking". But this is precisely the reason the newer tyres should on the rear - you have more control over what the front wheels are doing. You can modulate the brakes, steer, and (for FWD) adjust the the throttle in order to control traction.
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And it seems to be the universal opinion of most people in the tyre industry that new tyres should go on the rear, so don't just take my word for it:

To give the best possibilities of a vehicle handling safely when fitting new tyres to a vehicle in pairs, it is advisable to fit the new tyres to the rear axle.
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https://kumhotyre.co.uk/kumho-news/should-you-fit-new-tyres-to-the-front-or-rear/

Mixing different tread depths is generally permissible. The tyre industry recommends fitting the new tyres onto the rear axle. This will provide greater grip to the rear axle and mitigate any potential oversteer condition or loss of vehicle stability on slippery surfaces.
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https://www.continental-tyres.co.uk/car/all-about-tyres/tyre-change-fitting/mixing-tyres

https://www.tirebuyer.com/education/new-tires-front-or-back
https://www.tirerack.com/tires/tiretech/techpage.jsp?techid=52

There's a video that Fifth Gear made about this subject as well, explaining why it was advised that newer tyres should go on the rear. I'll update the post again if I can find it.
 
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Resident said:
So you should keep the tyres with least grip/water clearance on the wheels that need it the most in a FF config car?
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Yes, because iirc fundamentally understeer is easier to control than oversteer.

Also most cars have the weight over the front wheels and on braking the weight goes to the front and the back lightens. All of these are reasons why you should have the better grip on the rear, irrespective of front or rear wheel drive.

Can't do that on my Zed though since they are different widths :p
 
I think the AA advise new tyres on the back as well.

*Found it

New tyres to the front or back?
Check your handbook first but if it doesn’t give any specific advice then, whether your car’s front-wheel drive or rear-wheel drive the best/newest tyres should be on the back.

Making sure you have your best tyres on the back will favour ‘understeer’ rather than ‘oversteer’ when grip is limited such as in very wet or cold conditions.

  • Understeer – the car tends to go straight on even though you’re turning the wheel.
  • Oversteer – the back end breaks free and the car is likely to spin.
Tyres with deeper tread grooves are less likely to puncture too and it's more difficult to control a car with a damaged rear tyre than one with a damaged front tyre.
 
beachBOYken said:
I think the AA advise new tyres on the back as well.
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Yup. Pretty much everyone does. It's a little counter intuitive, as people think as above, "front wheels do all the work therefore should have the better tyres" - which is a completely reasonable assumption to make at face value, but it's not quite that simple.
 
Riding a motorcycle opens your eyes to how you should change your driving in adverse weather conditions. i.e. take everything slower and more gentle, leave bigger gaps and as already stated, ensure you have decent tyres.
 
Rossi~ said:
Riding a motorcycle opens your eyes to how you should change your driving in adverse weather conditions. i.e. take everything slower and more gentle, including braking and acceleration and leave bigger gaps.
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Yeah but you can reduce front tyre wear by pulling sick wheelies all the time, so swings and roundabouts.
 
beachBOYken said:
What do you class as a budget tyre, something that's cheap and no one has ever heard of?

I generally by Michelin's, which I guess are about £85-90 a tyre, I'm not one for getting winter tyres and summer tyres though.
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landsail, accelera, nankang(more expensive tyres from them are alright), goodride, viking etc all are budget brands with rubbish ratings and very hard rubber.

michelin is at the very list midrange and rarely makes a "bad" tyre.

I usually stick with;

goodyear
michelin
kumho(some are questionable but ones I've tried have been great)
yokohama(massive fan of ad08r and 105s)

etc
 
Conscript said:
Yup. Pretty much everyone does. It's a little counter intuitive, as people think as above, "front wheels do all the work therefore should have the better tyres" - which is a completely reasonable assumption to make at face value, but it's not quite that simple.
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I always figured in an understeer situation take feet off pedals and it will auto correct, much harder to compensate oversteer, try the kickplate at silverstone to really test you/the car.
 
Resident said:
So you should keep the tyres with least grip/water clearance on the wheels that need it the most in a FF config car?
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5th Gear (back when it was still on Channel 5) ran a test that showed very graphically the difference in running the worn tyres on the front and then the rear of a car. When placed on the wrong end, and the driver lifted off due to excessive entry speed to the corner, the car over steered rearwards off the road.
 
MissChief said:
I see it time and time again. Pouring rain, surface water and people still doing 70+ on the motorway and dual carriageways. Likely with the cheapest tyre they can get, if they're even legal.
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During recent downpours I've been to Ipswich and back and witnessed many hatchbacks and everyday family cars smashing it through speeds that even I'd take caution at, not because I wasn't confident in my car or the tyres I'm on, but more to do with just driving to the conditions. And I know full well that none of them are on any decent wet performance tyre so all it would take was a rogue object or car in front to slow down suddenly for things to go really bad really quick.
 
A car appeared in a ditch on my route to work today and it's not even winter yet :D

It always seems to be those narrow, boxy town cars on tiny wheels.
 
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Dabbled with michelin mx2/mx3 maybe 10years ago ... they wear well, but wet weather grip was uninspiring versus the Bridgestone/goodyear I've used ever since.

previous thread - 4mm tread left on your goodyear/michelin - they've now got the same aqua-planing/water-displacement perfromance as a new cheaper brand
so if you bought cheaper tyres at half the price that wore twice as fast, and replaced them at 4mm, could you average out with same overall safety ?
given the luck I've had with non-repairable punctures over past 3 years - 2 down, maybe that tactic pays dividends -
it's always been the nearsides that catch the punctures/road-debris too.

Good if you can synchronize the replacement with the bad weather too
 
Rossi~ said:
Riding a motorcycle opens your eyes to how you should change your driving in adverse weather conditions. i.e. take everything slower and more gentle, leave bigger gaps and as already stated, ensure you have decent tyres.
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Agree. The problem is some drivers act unpredictable as pedestrians when is raining. Panic. As if they would get wet inside the cars.

I always used good tyres. The only time I haven't got the chance to change on time, as I could feel the car loosing grip at roundabouts (not pushing hard), I ended up with my first and only accident. Tyre thread was about 4mm, sunny day, next to blackwall tunnel. I was at the first lane, 2nd lane was clear, 3rd lane busy and fast flowing. As I wasn't found to take the exit, no point being at 30mph at the first lane. When decide to move lanes, some tw@t from the 3rd lane moved to the 2nd lane to undertake the already fast 3rd lane drivers. To avoid being hit, went back to the first lane. Brake, at 30/40mph and the car just wen all the way to the back of a Hilux. No injuries, just the inner part of the Hilux bumper damaged, and slightly over 4k for my front bumper. Accelera tyres. After the repair fitted Michelin Pilot Super Sport and never, ever, had any issues. The grip was miles better, less noise, and better control. Only being a RCZ at the time, so not a 300hp car, just wonder what the damage such cheap tyres could cause.
 
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