Need Tyres!

[digisatman]

Hi all,
Took the e270 211 for mot, and given advisory notice that rear tyres are near the legal limit. So on the lookout for a couple of new tyres. I have currently got, Michelin 225/55/ 16R V-rated.

Anyone got any reccomendations?, also, my wheels are in very good nick, and would like to keep it that way, I have heard horror stories of alloy wheels being gubbed when taking the tyre off. Any place I can get it done in Glasgow without any damage whatsoever?

Thanks!

 

[Koi]

Tyretraders.com

 

[television]

Re damage on wheels, some make of tyre removing machines do not damage the wheels, those that use a plastic rim protector I give the guy a £5 to fit a new one before he starts on mine

 

[Rory]

I think they all damage the wheel on purpose

If you want Michelin again, try Costco if you have (or can get) membership. They're usually about the cheapest there is for Michelin.

 

[David Nock]

This was debated about a couple of months ago and I was (am) interested because I do like to have a change of tread pattern from time to time. Anyway a lot of the posts were coming up Michelin pilot Premacy, which is what's on my car now. At 22000 miles and still plenty left and really faultless performance, for once I'm going boring and getting the same again.
etyresdotcodotuk were rated by some members as being very careful - they send a (franchised?) specialist to fit them at your house. I would think that gives you more contol.
I've enquired but I'm not ready yet. etyres do fit in my area.

 

[carabind]

I'd echo the above about Michelins. I got 33K out of mine, and changed them just last week -not because they were worn out, but more so the time of year

Same size 225/55/ 16R V-rated at £456 from blackcircles.com. (This included a 5% discount off their normal price) . Fitters (local Central tyres) were great, they even took the trouble to put the balance weights inside the wheels, to make them less noticeable

Costco are a couple of £ cheaper I believe, but then you need to pay a subscription to join, unless you know someone with a card

 

[philharve]

I very recently purchased 4 new tyres and on the advice of my local Tyre & Battery supplier I switched from Proxes T1-R to Proxes CF-1. This is a slight downgrade in terms of high speed performance but more importantly a move from symmetric to an asymmetric tread pattern.

The difference between the CF-1, compared with the TR-1, in terms of 'feel' behind the wheel is quite dramatic. Furthermore, the recent heavy rainfall has convinced me their wet weather performance is at least good. The handling feels sharper, tighter and, as ever, very quiet.

I am surprised that the change from a symmetric to an asymmetric tread would make quite such a difference. It will be interesting to see how well they wear.

Best of all, the CF-1 is cheaper than the TR-1.

REGARDS

Phil

 

[jberks]

All depends on what you want to spend. By all means, buy Michelin, Continental etc but also be fully aware that a big chunk of your bill is going to pay for the name. I'm not knocking them, Michelin etc are excellent, but I've simply found that so are mid range brands.

I'm running Federals (£60 ea for 245/45/17) and, after 18,000 miles I can state categorically that they match my previous £140 ea Continentals in every way.
I don't see the kind of mileage you guys seem to get from Michelin, but from anecdotal evidence on here, and my own experience, I suspect a large chunk of that is down to the tyre size. I used to get far better mileage from the 215 tyres on my E240.
Not sure why but taller, thinner tyres seem to last longer than the lower profile stuff. Probably a harder compound whereas the wider, lower profile ones are designed to be more 'sporty' with a softer compound, plus you can get away with a harder compound if the sidewalls are larger and can take more of the vibration I guess.

 

[Rory]

Probably a harder compound whereas the wider, lower profile ones are designed to be more 'sporty' with a softer compound, plus you can get away with a harder compound if the sidewalls are larger and can take more of the vibration I guess.

Not all tyres are marked with it, but some have a Treadwear rating number marked on them - it's an American standard and nobody seems to quite understand how it works!
The best I can gather is that the base number is 100, and that relates to 15,000 miles. Therefore a 200 rated tyre should last 30,000 miles etc. However manufacturers do their own test, so the results are strictly only comparable for the same manufacturer.

The BridgeStone Turanza ER30 my car came with are 140 (that's the lowest on any car I've had) and I could almost watch them wearing out. The Michelin primacy HP's are 240 and are wearing much slower.

When I had company lease cars the lease company always tried to fit cheaper tyres and they invariably had ratings of 400. Made them quiet though!

I noticed 600 rated tyres advertised when I was in the US earlier this year - with 80,000 mile guarantees!!

 

[philharve]

Hi Rory

But this American rating seems to ignore how the vehicle to which they are attached is driven and over what type of road surface they are run. I tend to think underpinning this rating there must be a number of assumptions else I cannot see this rating being workable.

REGARDS

Phil

 

[Rory]

But this American rating seems to ignore how the vehicle to which they are attached is driven and over what type of road surface they are run. I tend to think underpinning this rating there must be a number of assumptions else I cannot see this rating being workable.

It's a comparative, not an absolute, rating.

So it assumes that all things - car, road surface, type of driving etc are the same. There is a standarised road test that the tyres undergo. However, as I pointed out, the comparison is considered dubious between different manufacturers as they carry out their own testing - it's not done by an independant lab.