Recommended tyres for a Vauxhall Astra?

Jamie_in_London

Hello everyone,

I need to get new tyres for my Vauxhall Astra but I need some advice as I've never had to buy tyres before.

I drive a late 98 model Vauxhall Astra 1.4 16V LS. It's currently running Nexen SB-702 175/70R 14 T rated. The rear left tyre came up under advisory at the MOT in November and I checked them all yesterday with the 20p trick and found that tyre and the front right were getting a bit close to the limit so I figured I should replace them all. The car was bought second hand almost exactly a year ago with about 58000 miles on the clock and with no knowledge of how long the current tyres have been on there or how they've been driven I thought it would be sensible to have a fresh set.

We use the car for our daily commute to work: 300 miles a week through South London to Kent; some 30mph roads, 40mph roads, bit of motorway and A roads. We also use the car a bit in London and for travelling to friends and family further afield on motorways. We're putting about 20,000 on the clock each year.

We always stick to the speed limit, try not to go over 60mph on main roads to save fuel consumption and engine wear, try and always brake gently, keep the tyres correctly inflated and don't overload the car.

With all of this information can anyone recommend what tyres we should get? I'm looking to get a mobile fitting service for the cost and convenience. We're thinking of spending around £250 for the full set going on the quotes I've had so far but I can't decide which brand and model tyres to get. This puts us around Michelin Energy Savers or Continental Eco Contact 3 but I'm open to anything really. I would like to get something that will help save energy if they actually work but I don't want to compromise on performance as I've heard this can be an issue. I'd also like to get a set which will last me some time if possible given our usage.

Any help would be much appreciated on this.

Thanks in advance.

Jamie in London

neilmcl

Have a look over at http://www.blackcircles.co.uk/

Jamie_in_London

Thanks for the link. I found this company before, gonna email them now for some advice but if anyone else has any advice about which brands to buy it would be useful. I'm not looking for a company to fit them, just information on specific tyres.

Mark_Hewitt

I've used http://www.etyres.co.uk before for fitting.

It's all quite simple really, you put in your details and they give you a list of your choices. You can choose to pay more for tyres which will likely last a bit longer or less for tyres which will last a bit less.

AdrianHi

Those Michelins perform well and last a long time. I'd go for those. My wife and I have Michelin Pilot Primacy HP fitted.
They turned out to be poor in the wet snow compared to Continental Premium Contacts but last a lot longer and are as good otherwise.