Front tyres for Clio 2, why are Michelin's +£26 for mine?

molerat

catflea wrote: »

Firestorm - never heard of em

Firestone however are a good upper mid range tyre

Funnily enough I was in Halfords today and guess what brand of tyre was on their cheap far eastern import alloys

emmell

I have just bought a new Fiesta and was surprised to see it has nancook or hancook or nanking or something I've never heard of, yet the other new Fiesta's seemed to have Michelins on. To say I was disappointed was an understatement.
ML.

molerat

Is this a brand new car ? These would not be factory fit tyres. Hankook are a mid range far east tyre which is widely available and gets some good reports. Nankang are a budget tyre often found on aftermarket alloys.

emmell

molerat wrote: »

Is this a brand new car ? These would not be factory fit tyres. Hankook are a mid range far east tyre which is widely available and gets some good reports. Nankang are a budget tyre often found on aftermarket alloys.

Yes brand new, took delivery last Wednesday. I queried the tyres and the salesman didn't have a clue what I was talking about and my Husband thinks I'm being picky (as usual). I'm going to go round Ford dealers when they are closed and check all the tyres on new Fiestas, and If they are all Michelins, this picky customer is going back.
ML.

the182guy

I've had Conti's fitted today:) very happy with them. Cost was £132.08 using blackcircles. Special thanks to all that contributed to this thread, I have taken on board all of your knowledge and can't believe how much I've learnt about tyres in a couple of days.

HiQ said I need to get the tracking done. When I questioned this they didn't have any other reason other than 'because of new front tyres'. Sounds like they may just be trying to squeeze a few quid out of me, you think?

dannymccann

catflea wrote: »

What a silly post. It pays to be careful with your chouice of tyre - poor quality tyres can result in loss of grip in the wet and increased stopping distances. So a cheap tyre could become very expensive if you go up the back of someone or slide on a wet road.

Also, I suspect from the OPs username that its not just a normal clio.....

"Never Scrimp on anything that seperates you from the ground, be that shoes, tyres or parachutes......!"

Dont be silly, all tyres sold in the UK will meet a standard with regards to road safety, if they didnt I would get pulled over all the time for having illegal tyres. Grip isnt just about what rubber youve got, its about your driving attitude. I have cheap 'crap' tyres on my Astra, always have, always will, funny how I wasnt the one picking my car out of the ditch when we had the ice, and I dont lose control on roundabouts or corners, even at speed. Also, the fact you have 3 back up when/if you lose one corner means the risks are minimal.

On my motorbike however, is a completely different story. £180 a pair for them jobs :rotfl:

sebdangerfield

the182guy wrote: »

HiQ said I need to get the tracking done. When I questioned this they didn't have any other reason other than 'because of new front tyres'. Sounds like they may just be trying to squeeze a few quid out of me, you think?

Just take a look at how the old ones wore, if it was even there's probaby no need.

Only just seen this thread but on my old 182 I fitted Goodyear Eagle F1s all round. They don't last very long but they're great tyres. Similar price to your contis so maybe worth a try next time.

You've made me miss my 182 now. I've had much, much faster cars and for more expensive since but i'd go back to a 182 in a flash!


ETA; Sorry, lazy me! Just read the whole post, i'd not bother with the expensive stuff on anything with low power. As said before, average tyres will have a certain level of grip. The more expensive stuff just grips for further into the extreams.

catflea

dannymccann wrote: »

Dont be silly, all tyres sold in the UK will meet a standard with regards to road safety, if they didnt I would get pulled over all the time for having illegal tyres.

Yes they have to meet a MINIMUM standard - they will not always be the same. The budget tyres although deemed to meet minimum standards will not have the most up to date technology and the same levels of grip as the most up to date tyres.

(Remember, budget tyres tend to be the superceeded technology from the premium manufacturers)

To the average plod as long as you have tread on the tyres and they are in good nick then they are legal.

dannymccann wrote: »

Grip isnt just about what rubber youve got, its about your driving attitude.

Umm, grip is essentially the friction generated between your tyre and the road (mechanical grip) and even if your driving attitude is the best in the world and you dont need to call on the grip your tyre offers it cannot change the properties of the tyres you are using.

dannymccann wrote: »

I have cheap 'crap' tyres on my Astra, always have, always will, funny how I wasnt the one picking my car out of the ditch when we had the ice, and I dont lose control on roundabouts or corners, even at speed.

Not sure what relevance you not chucking your car in the ditch has to this discussion? Pretty much everyone had minimal grip and thats when good driving technique got people through rather than their tyres (snow/ice tyres being the exception)

dannymccann wrote: »

Also, the fact you have 3 back up when/if you lose one corner means the risks are minimal.

So you are happy to lose 25% of the stopping and steering power your car has to offer then? :eek:

dannymccann wrote: »

On my motorbike however, is a completely different story. £180 a pair for them jobs :rotfl:

Same principles apply. Only you are more likely to wind up being hurt when you lose traction - I guess thats why you choose to pay a bit more?

Practical Classics performed a test on tyres using a mini cooper and two different types of tyres. Buget (Camac) and a more upmarket brand (Toyo if memory serves) The Camacs gave a SIGNIFICANTLY longer stopping distance than the premium. Tyres do make a difference.

Edit: Tyre details for test
Classic tyre test using PCs Mini Cooper S 5 xmakers tyres tested (cover feature) Camac Cross Ply 520-10 vs -Dunlop D93J 165/70 HR10 vs Dunlop Aquajet 165/70/SR10 vs -Falken 165/70 R10 vs Yokohama 165/70 R10

Another edit: Found some figures that show the difference.... http://www.tyrereviews.co.uk/Article/Autocar-Tyre-Test-Budget-Tyre-Performance.htm

custardy

whilst im no label snob i would say people should consider the difference in tyres
different tyre makes/specs can make a noticable difference to a cars ride and performance so dont just treat them as all being the same

dannymccann

catflea wrote: »

Said a load of stuff and quoted some websites....

But is this not a money saving forum? Therefore budgets surely win?

If it was an argument based on which would give the best performance then fair enough, but we are talking about keeping it legal for the lowest price