Tyres

Wig

iluvmylexus wrote: »

there is a big difference between a taxi that rarely goes over 50mph and a ford focus. i have had many remoulds delaminate over the years and even do damage to the bodywork. i also have experience with remoulds on taxis, they do not grip as well do not last as long and pound for pound are a false economy, i would rather fit a cheap tyre from eastern europe than a remould on a carcass with a dubious history. same goes for partworns , why pay 20 quid for a partworn when a budget tyre (dependant on size )for a focus can be had for 25 quid upwards

Rarely over 50mph? In this city they regularly go on out of town fast trips (the faster the better so they get back quicker). I wouldn't pay the prices charged for partworns, but remoulds give you a new tread. Even in the unlikely event you had a delamination (I've never had one), they will give you a free replacement.

"do not grip well do not last as llong" << Not my experience at all.

I have bought tyres on wheels from scrap yards (it was the scrap yard known to me to being expensive) He said 15 quid, I said 10, he stuck to 15, I said 10, he said ok we'll ask this guy (one of his colleagues was approaching) "How much" we asked him, he said 10, I bought the tyre.

Mind you in today's world the steel wheel might be worth more to the scrappy than the tyre.

Wig

beastman wrote: »

does anyone know if buying michelins is really worth the extra dollar than cheapo tyres?

Talk to your nearest ATS dealer they have a BOGOF on Riken tyres at the moment. Riken tyres are made by a company in partnership with Michelin. I just noticed a way to save a bit more money on the deal aswell, ask for a price for 2 Riken tyres, to include everything, Then ask if you can have them fitted without changing the valves, you should find they quote you £5.97 less (the price for 2 valves :eek:).

I just had two Rikens from ATS and only realised this might have been possible after having them fitted and paid for. I always thought the valves and balancing came free, Now I realise (at least for ATS) that they are itemised "extras" which you should have theoretically the option to reject.

Is it a good idea to reject new valves? Well I would think that if they are original equipment valves on the car since new they are likely to be better quality than the ones they will be replaced with. I also would say that if you do high miles you will be changing your tyres more frequently, whilst someone who does low miles would change them every 3 - 4 years or so. So a valve is likely to last at least 3 - 4 and up to 5 - 6 years. If your valve and tyre is only 18 months old at time of changing, you might aswell keep the valve and save your money.

From ATS
165/70/R14 - Riken tyres (2 of)
appx £26 tyre, £6 - 2x valves, £12 - 2x ballancing, £2.50 - 2x tyre disposal.
Total £46.60


I will also point out that I got a quote for two Falken (made in partnership with Goodyear) tyres from a local dealer near me £62 (for 2) all inc. I just looked on blackcircles and noticed they use that dealer as an accredited fitter, the price for 2 Falkens from Blackcircles £81

The same tyres from mytyres £ 53.20 + fitting, fitting varies but most are between 10 - 12 per tyre (the particular garage is £12.40ea) giving a total of £78 for two fitted. If I was fortunate to live next to garage charging £6 per tyre (there is one 20 miles away) that would bring the cost down to £65

So from my recent experience, online tyre sales like black circles and mytyres, are not as cheap as doing your own legwork - phoning around for the best price is still the best way to get a good deal.

before_hollywood

i have a focus sized car (so chances are i run the same sized tyres as you), i bought pirelli p6000's 3 and a bit years ago, full set of 16'', fitted, balanced, the lot was £240 i think. don't even think about going to kwik fit or anywhere like that, they will rob you absolutely blind. car before this one was smaller and i fitted 2 kumho tyres to the front of that, nice perfectly presentable tyres and very very good for the money, when i inevitably need to start replacing the p6000's i will seriously consider another set of kumho's, and falken are meant to be alright as well.

when i bought my car i bought it off a dealer who is a lifelong friend of the family (and got the tyres through a garage he deals with- a local independent in lancs) so will give him a quick call and ask what he recommends

jimbo_the_jetset

Since this thread has come back I have a little more to add.......

Get a few quotes and get the garage you want to beat the other quotes, they usually will even to make a small profit.

e.g. Ford Rapidfit quoted me £75 for Pirelli P6000's. Thought that was too much and didn't consider it again. Few weeks later arranged a quote for £61.68 for Mitchelin Energy's. Had to go back to Rapidfit as our alloy wheel locking key had gone missing (yes, rapidfit had it). Anyhoo, he did me P6000's for £60 a pop all in. And I got nectar points!!

Got a good deal on discs and pads too. Moral of the story, always get at least 3 quotes (check everything is included in that price). And that probably goes for most things in life not just cars

gilbert_and_sullivan

I'm reading some of these replies and can scarcely believe my eyes.

Some people are prepared to pay thousands of pounds for a vehicle which presumably they take their loved ones with them in said vehicle.

Now roughly speaking the ONLY contact between youselves and the road is an area about the size of a dinner plate (all 4 tyre footprints).

And some are prepared to risk all in the wet and ice cold streets and open roads by saving ten or twenty quid per tyre between carefully puchased quality tyres and Chinese ditchfinders ...........amazes the hell out of me.

FannyHill

Yes I am as I believe some of the cheaper tyres do just as good a job. It's like buying a £600 DVD recorder when a £300 will do just as good a job.It's all hype from the tyre companies to get as much money off you as they can, try and make you feel guilty if you don't spend a fortune on tyres.
I buy a lot of clothes from charity shops you can get some good buys if you look,same thing.I shop at Lidl for the same reason good value.If you want to throw money away fine, but not everyone does.

anewman

I guess sometimes you get what you pay for too. If you pay £20 for a tyre, compared with say £35. If the £35 tyre lasts twice as long as the £20 one, you have got better value. Unfortunately you can't tell what will last longer as it's something you replace then forget about until they get near the legal tread depth, and manufacturers will make all sorts of claims to try get you to buy theirs. I suppose the only one's that are made distinctly different to all other tyres are the energy saving one's made of some sort of silicone compound as opposed to rubber. http://www.energysavingtrust.org.uk/aboutest/news/dailynews/index.cfm?articleid=17361181&mode=view claims tyres made using these materials last 25% longer, but I think the claims of fuel savings are outrageous and probably more like pennies than pounds. You might also benefit from improved ride comfort and reduced sound spending more. Using the DVD recorder analogy, buying a crap brand like Alba would be a bad idea because it's guaranteed to work for the 1 year guarantee then fail (Alba things seem to have self-destruct mechanisms inbuilt), so it's worth buying something better that is likely to last and is cheap.

I personally don't really agree with this 4 things touching the road and area size of a dinner plate argument. Most cars weigh over a tonne, this keeps those 4 things on the road unless you're doing seriously spirited cornering. Okay, stopping distances may not be as great, but unless you're running sports/upgraded brakes pretty much locking the wheels, chances are you'll never notice in all but the wettest of conditions. If you read the tyre review sites you'll find even some branded performance tyres are considered very poor in wet conditions. Blow outs should be unlikely to happen with any good condition tyre if you keep the pressures correct and assuming you do not get a puncture (possible with even expensive tyres, all it takes is being in the wrong place, wrong time).

gilbert_and_sullivan

I agree about the dvd recorder if you believe the cheapest brand is ok for your needs.

Comparison ends there the dvd player wont kill you if it packs up.

I do agree that some of the new Korean tyres have gained good reviews, mainly from user reviews not always from professional reviews.

I'll give you an instance, not hearsay, relation has very nice rwd German car with traction control, has been using Federals for some time, no probs car sticks like stuff to blanket. Her tyre man sticks two Chinese ditchfinders on the back, car instantly transformed into four wheel steering model!
All good now though, cos they both developed punctures in no time and have been replaced with proper tyres again.

So please if your going to buy purely on price don't think that everything from the far east is rosy.

Your life may depend on it.

goldspanners

determined_2_b_debt_free wrote: »

Thanks for your response. My tyres are 205/55W16 but thanks anyway.

thats what i have im guessing its the focus edge model?
i got federals for £50 each replacing all four,but if you get federal get a higher speed rating than required as the low speed rating is pure and utter !!!!!!.

goldspanners

jimbo_the_jetset wrote: »

Since this thread has come back I have a little more to add.......



Few weeks later arranged a quote for £61.68 for Mitchelin Energy's. Had to go back to Rapidfit as our alloy wheel locking key had gone missing (yes, rapidfit had it). Anyhoo, he did me P6000's for £60 a pop all in. And I got nectar points!!

these are great prices for a great tyre,i doubt you could beat these for quality,reliability and longevity.