New tyres

The1nonly1 · 17 May 2020 at 10:16

Two question on this. Firstly, has anyone used blackcircles.com or asdatyres.co.uk to have them fitted?

Secondly, I need two new front tyres (both are at the legal depth) but the rear tyres have plenty on tread left. I have Michelin currently but can I replace the front two with Bridgestone and keep the back two Michelin? This is due to the Bridgestones being better on fuel and in the rain. I can't afford to replace all four tyres.

Heisenberg · 17 May 2020 at 10:21

The1nonly1 said:
Two question on this. Firstly, has anyone used blackcircles.com or asdatyres.co.uk to have them fitted?

Secondly, I need two new front tyres (both are at the legal depth) but the rear tyres have plenty on tread left. I have Michelin currently but can I replace the front two with Bridgestone and keep the back two Michelin? This is due to the Bridgestones being better on fuel and in the rain. I can't afford to replace all four tyres.

As long as it's not a 4 wheel drive you'll be fine mixing tyres on different axles.

The1nonly1 · 17 May 2020 at 10:39

Heisenberg said:
As long as it's not a 4 wheel drive you'll be fine mixing tyres on different axles.

Thanks, it's not 4 wheel drive.

Invertigo · 17 May 2020 at 11:12

Also, new tyres should always go on the rear, so assuming the wheels are the same size you'll want to get them rotated so the current rears go on the front and new tyres on rear.

Dis86 · 17 May 2020 at 11:18

Invertigo said:
Also, new tyres should always go on the rear, so assuming the wheels are the same size you'll want to get them rotated so the current rears go on the front and new tyres on rear.

Why?

Edinho · 17 May 2020 at 11:24

Dis86 said:
Why?

If you blow out the rear chances are you'll crash. Blow out the front chances are you won't crash.

To be fair most cars these day don't crash on any tyre failure so its more of a 'its the correct procedure' approach. It harks back to when front wheel drive became popular in the early 80's.

Dis86 · 17 May 2020 at 11:25

Edinho said:
If you blow out the rear chances are you'll crash. Blow out the front chances are you won't crash.

Surely that depends upon the driven axle?

Invertigo · 17 May 2020 at 11:28

Not about blowouts specifically, but loss of grip at the rear is much more likely to result in a crash than loss of grip at the front, i.e. snap oversteer vs some understeer

2004typer · 17 May 2020 at 11:48

The1nonly1 said:
Two question on this. Firstly, has anyone used blackcircles.com or asdatyres.co.uk to have them fitted?

Yup - used Black Circles a few times, usually get the tyres delivered to my local Hi Q for fitting (you can specify an appointment while ordering). No issues whatsoever so would recommend.

If you are an NHS worker I think Black Circles are still offering a 15% discount as well.

IAmATeaf · 17 May 2020 at 12:06

Costco currently have their Michelin offer, save some money and get the tyres filled with snake skin air. My local Costco, the fitters are all really good and take care of the car and alloys.

Kenai · 17 May 2020 at 12:14

Edinho said:
If you blow out the rear chances are you'll crash. Blow out the front chances are you won't crash.

It's more to do with tread depth, water clearing ability and the preference/ease of dealing with understeer in a low grip situation rather than oversteer is how I've come to understand it, rather than specifically blowout risk.

Some manufacturers also suggest doing it on wear vs age basis, if you get very low rear wear it stops the tyre staying on the car past its ideal age.

Michelin:

Another way to keep your tyre wear more even is to fit new tyres to the rear axle and move the older tyres to the front axle positions. This provides the best grip at the rear of the car where it’s needed, and you can get more from your tyres as they are worn more evenly, reducing the chance of replacement due to age alone.

Kumho have a whole article on it https://kumhotyre.co.uk/kumho-news/should-you-fit-new-tyres-to-the-front-or-rear/

CONCLUSION
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.

Uniroyal:

Regardless of the drive type, we recommend not fitting the better tyres at the front, but always fitting them at the back. The reason is simple: The rear axle ensures the tracking stability of a vehicle.

Continental:

Mixing tyres with different tread depths
If you are replacing only two tyres on your vehicle, the new tyres will probably have a deeper tread depth than the older tyres.

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.

There can be exceptions, however. Some car manufacturers will recommend fitting the new tyres to the front axle, for example, if the car is a front-wheel drive. Consult your vehicle manufacturer’s handbook or a tyre specialist for further information.

Goodyear actually do reference risk of blowout

If you choose to fit 2 new tyres put the new ones on the rear axle.

Fitting new tyres to the rear axle will improve vehicle handing, stability and reduce the risk of potentially dangerous rear tyre deflation. This has the chance of a server over-steer effect which is much more difficult to control than under-steer produced by front tyre deflation. It is worth bearing in mind that tyres removed from the rear can be refitted to the front axle as they should have a larger amount of remaining tread depth than the old front tyres.

A similar but more extreme comparison is fitting a pair of winters to a FWD car and leaving summers on the rear - https://youtu.be/A5aMnmekA38

The1nonly1 · 17 May 2020 at 12:58

Invertigo said:
Also, new tyres should always go on the rear, so assuming the wheels are the same size you'll want to get them rotated so the current rears go on the front and new tyres on rear.

Thanks. I've read what @Kenai has said too. A question on this then, can I simply move the whole wheel, alloy and tyre, to the front so I go from this:

Front of car
Front Left-------Front Right

Rear Left--------Rear Right

to this:

Front of car
Rear Left--------Rear Right

Front Left-------Front Right

Then get the two 'back tyres' changed?

Edit: I found the answer here and the above doesn't apply unless they are directional tyes but do I have to remove the tyre from the alloy or do I move it all?

ezekial · 17 May 2020 at 13:47

Blackcircles works very well, i use the mall the time

ShiWarrior · 17 May 2020 at 14:11

Which Michelin Tyres do you have currently ?

i would use Black Circles (fitted)
keep the same tyres myself
ive tied all sorts of makes, Michelin are and always have been best for me

Rroff · 17 May 2020 at 14:14

My brother uses Blackcircles quite a bit and has had no problems but my experience with them wasn't as great - they emailed me just before saying the tyres hadn't arrived and they'd need to rebook and gave me another date but then right after I got a call from fitter (good thing they did) to confirm the appointment with them later that day and they had the tyres and were all ready to go so that caused some confusion. Then though they claimed to have balanced them I had a really bad pull to the left and took it to my dealer (who I'd normally get to do the tyres) and they said they'd done a pretty bad job (and that wasn't to get future trade their way

)

I also wouldn't mix tyres if the Bridgestones are the Turanza model (extra wet grip) - IIRC they recommend against it.

Liquidfox · 17 May 2020 at 14:14

Dis86 said:
Why?

Most people can generally react to understeer far better than they can oversteer.

rodenal · 17 May 2020 at 14:16

As above have a look at Costco if you've already got a membership. I think I'm going to go from PS4 to eagle F1 supersport so Costco doesn't quite work out for me but it is currently the cheapest place I can find PS4 fitted after the money off

ShiWarrior · 17 May 2020 at 14:18

new tyres go on the back on front-wheeled drive cars

dont go to MeriTyre, they insisted to me for safety reasons , new tyres go on the front as thats where all the steering and power is

The1nonly1 · 17 May 2020 at 14:33

ShiWarrior said:
new tyres go on the back on front-wheeled drive cars

dont go to MeriTyre, they insisted to me for safety reasons , new tyres go on the front as thats where all the steering and power is

Thanks, I can rotate them myself but just need to know if I need to take the tyre off or do I move the whole wheel, including alloy?

rodenal said:
As above have a look at Costco if you've already got a membership. I think I'm going to go from PS4 to eagle F1 supersport so Costco doesn't quite work out for me but it is currently the cheapest place I can find PS4 fitted after the money off

Sadly no costco near me.

The1nonly1 · 17 May 2020 at 14:35

ShiWarrior said:
Which Michelin Tyres do you have currently ?

i would use Black Circles (fitted)
keep the same tyres myself
ive tied all sorts of makes, Michelin are and always have been best for me

Rroff said:
I also wouldn't mix tyres if the Bridgestones are the Turanza model (extra wet grip) - IIRC they recommend against it.

It was them yes. I'll stick to Michelin brand tyres then.