Are Cheao Tyres still "ditchfinders" or just marketing?

grahamcol

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What don’t you rate on the Contis?
Well i don't actually think they're that bad but they certainly don't wear particularly well for me. Also, and this is going to sound rather silly, I don't like the sidewall pattern on the Conti's I've had. That's because I use tyre shine and I'm afraid the very coarse surface doesn't shine as well as most other tyres. Told you it was silly. Wear wise I find the Kumho's at least the equal of Conti's, if not better ! And Khumo are cheaper of course.
 

Capra

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I worked for many, many years in Vehicle Contract Hire industry and the company I worked for always insisted that any new car purchased would be shod with Michelin for that very reason ! :)
The amount of times I was sat at a kwik-fit waiting room while the technician would have a debate with the leasing company on what they were allowed to fit vs what was in stock. Don't miss those days!!
 

Mr Filipov

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Well i don't actually think they're that bad but they certainly don't wear particularly well for me. Also, and this is going to sound rather silly, I don't like the sidewall pattern on the Conti's I've had. That's because I use tyre shine and I'm afraid the very coarse surface doesn't shine as well as most other tyres. Told you it was silly. Wear wise I find the Kumho's at least the equal of Conti's, if not better ! And Khumo are cheaper of course.

The fast wear is completely normal for Contis. The new 6s are rumoured to wear better now. Anything older is very soft compound, hence the wear, but the grip phenomenal on them.

Have had a set of a VW Golf 5 which laster around 10k, but the front was glued to the road wet or dry. And also had a set on the rear of a E350 CDI, and must admit unless you are giving it the boot big time mid corner, it will not slip at all.
 

John Laidlaw

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There’s more to tyres than service life. Grip and noise come into it quite a lot too!!
Indeed!
In the US all they care about seemingly is wear life. The biggest thing they are interested in is the tread wear rating, which barely gets mentioned in Europe. You will see it on tyres if you look closely and what we have could be 180 or so....in the US if it’s not 400 they are not interested.
However the obvious point is we need cars to go around corners as HANDLING matters to us!:D
And noise? Guess who cares if you run on concrete anyway any tyre is noisy so who cares
 

GlosRichCLK

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That 'Landsail' brand always makes me laugh when I see it. Wonder if the cars handling is like a sailing boat on those tyres?

Never surprises me what rubbish tyres people fit, and what condition some peoples tyres are in, gambling with their safety and others....

I think you can get good quality tyres at a reasonable price if you go for the mid brands, Firestone, Nexen, Falken, Fulda, Barum etc. still good quality but often half the price of Pirelli, Conti, Michelin etc,
 

Frontstep

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Landsail get some good reviews and test results on one I read they beat a few well known names.

The world of tyres is changing I will be more open minded on my next ones.
 

Ricardo_e220

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There’s more to tyres than service life. Grip and noise come into it quite a lot too!!
Yes agree however no diffeeence noise levels on these, I’ve briefly driven cars with ditchfinders on...you drive to the reduced grip unless you’re a buffoon and an e class estate was a big old bus.. so hardly used sportily...I’ve 2 sportier cars for that kind of thing, and with that I’ll state that the grippiest tyres aren’t necessarily quiet either..
 

Craiglxviii

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Yes agree however no diffeeence noise levels on these, I’ve briefly driven cars with ditchfinders on...you drive to the reduced grip unless you’re a buffoon and an e class estate was a big old bus.. so hardly used sportily...I’ve 2 sportier cars for that kind of thing, and with that I’ll state that the grippiest tyres aren’t necessarily quiet either..
Everything is a compromise and tyres are no exception. Generally:

Increased grip increases noise and reduces life.
Reduced noise increases life and reduces grip.

I go by the maxim that safety trumps everything else where my family is concerned, so fit the safest tyres I can find. That they have sharks on them is no hardship.
 

C350Carl

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The two most important bits on your car are the brakes and the tyres. They are what will keep you on the road when you find your actual talent is world's away from your perceived talent.

So in short, it is always better to have more brakes/grip than you need than need more brakes/grip than you have.
 
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d215yq

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Everything is a compromise and tyres are no exception. Generally:

Increased grip increases noise and reduces life.
Reduced noise increases life and reduces grip.

I go by the maxim that safety trumps everything else where my family is concerned, so fit the safest tyres I can find. That they have sharks on them is no hardship.

Been an interesting thread,

Not aimed at you in particular but I do find it hilarious where my mates will say safety trumps everything, etc, fit the best tyres money can buy and then drive at a constant 95 with lots of rain/spray on the motorway. I'd like to see their stopping distances compared to my non-ABS W124 on "cheap" tyres doing 60 in the same conditions!

Same with the 5* NCAP brigade who go on about how safe their cars are and then find "empty roads" to thrash about at "100+". I'd rather hit a tree at 40 (or more likely not hit a tree at all because any car is very unlikely to skid unpredictably at that speed even on really tight mountain roads) in a non NCAP car than hit a tree at 100 in a 5* one.

The most safety critical thing in a car is not brakes/tyres but the driver, and by quite a huge factor. In fact I'd be far more worried about sudden suspension/steering failure than tyres/brakes because it's the one thing you can't really allow for/compensate by being sensible.
 

Mr Filipov

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Been an interesting thread,

Not aimed at you in particular but I do find it hilarious where my mates will say safety trumps everything, etc, fit the best tyres money can buy and then drive at a constant 95 with lots of rain/spray on the motorway. I'd like to see their stopping distances compared to my non-ABS W124 on "cheap" tyres doing 60 in the same conditions!

Same with the 5* NCAP brigade who go on about how safe their cars are and then find "empty roads" to thrash about at "100+". I'd rather hit a tree at 40 (or more likely not hit a tree at all because any car is very unlikely to skid unpredictably at that speed even on really tight mountain roads) in a non NCAP car than hit a tree at 100 in a 5* one.

The most safety critical thing in a car is not brakes/tyres but the driver, and by quite a huge factor. In fact I'd be far more worried about sudden suspension/steering failure than tyres/brakes because it's the one thing you can't really allow for/compensate by being sensible.

This is completely different to what people are referring to. What most people refer to is the same scenario, same driving conditions, but different brakes and tyres at both ends of the spectrum. If the scenario is identical it will make a hell of a difference.

If someone chooses to spank the hell out of their car and drive at speeds not suitable for the situation, there are no brakes and tyres that will save them should something go wrong at that point.
 
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d215yq

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This is completely different to what people are referring to. What most people refer to is the same scenario, same driving conditions, but different brakes and tyres at both ends of the spectrum. If the scenario is identical it will make a hell of a difference.

If someone chooses to spank the hell out of their car and drive at speeds not suitable for the situation, there are no brakes and tyres that will save them should something go wrong at that point.

I wasn't referring to any comment/person in particular just that the double standard does exist. In the end I got the Nexens and hopefully will never get to find out if they are any good or not.

One thing I find interesting is the garage did tell me not to fit some cheaper budget ones citing safety etc but they have put these new better make tyres on the front axle (where the puncture was) and left the 3mm ditchfinders on the back. Unless somethigns changed I thought the advice was that you always want the better grip on the back and even moreso on a RWD. The only time I skidded my car (hitting diesel) it was the rear of the car that slipped not the front (when all tyres were equal brand/mm).

Should I change them all round or is it not really that important any more?
 

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Ok let’s take a control scenario. Two identical cars, one with ditchfinders and one with premium wet weather boots. Now drive then on a dry road in various traffic conditions. “Normal” use say. The two cars will behave so similar as statistically to make no difference. Now make them perform an emergency stop. The premium tyres will stop the car in a significantly shorter distance.

Repeat that on a wet road. The premium tyres will stop the car in around 2/3rds of the ditchfinders.

None of that is opinion, that’s straight from fact and data.
 

MalcQV

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The two most important bits on your car are the brakes and the tyres. They are what will keep you on the road when you find your actual talent is world's away from your perceived talent.

So in short, it is always better to have more brakes/grip than you need than need more brakes/grip than you have.

The two most important bits on your car are the brakes and the tyres. They are what will keep you on the road when you find your actual talent is world's away from your perceived talent.

So in short, it is always better to have more brakes/grip than you need than need more brakes/grip than you have.
Don't forget about shock absorbers. Your brakes and tyres are useless in air.
 

Yugguy

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I have found a brand called Davanti. 60 quid a corner for 205/55/16 94V

grip in wet and dry is very good but I dont think they will last as long as a premium make.
 

John Laidlaw

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I have found a brand called Davanti. 60 quid a corner for 205/55/16 94V

grip in wet and dry is very good but I dont think they will last as long as a premium make.
Probably not as much progressive grip level as the premium brands and won’t wear as well but get decent reviews and seem a decent tyre by all accounts
 

Jimbo1959

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Some of the so called "ditch finders" are, as someone else has already mentioned, actually better specced than premium brand tyres.

I've had to stoop to that level due to poverty and choosing shoes for the children over boots for the car. I was surprised by how good some of them were when fitted as a full set.

I think highly of Nexens, Three A, 909's and I think it was Jinling's. All performed well in the dry and as long as you drove to the conditions they were adequate in the wet. They got me through some tough times the Jinlings were the worst in the wet tbh, almost scarily so, the Three A 909's were adequate and I found the Nexens to as good as some better known premium brands and at least on par with some who were thought more highly of, than mere "ditch finders".

I've always been of the opinion that the guy behind the wheel had more to do with progress and stopping than any tyres, but will concede that buying the best you can afford is a good way to go.

Hey I'd love to be rich and buy the market leaders all the time but the internet is a marvellous way to research suitable tyres.
 

flowrider

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Just bought a pair of Uniroyal Rainsports for my wifes car, the existing rears have plenty of tread but have cracks between the tread blocks and on the sidewalls. Should the new tyres go on the back or front of the car? The other pair of tyres are Continental PremiumContact 2's.
 

Jimbo1959

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Just bought a pair of Uniroyal Rainsports for my wifes car, the existing rears have plenty of tread but have cracks between the tread blocks and on the sidewalls. Should the new tyres go on the back or front of the car? The other pair of tyres are Continental PremiumContact 2's.

It's recommended that the new tyres go on the back by most tyre fitters/fitting companies, however, most folk like to put their new ones on the front, unless they're staggered of course.

Then they're fitted where they were removed.
 

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