BlackCircles tyres... fitted service

Ciprico

Thanks for all the comments, have booked 4 new tyres with "Etyres"....

Biggus_Dickus

123mat123 said:

Thanks for all the comments, have booked 4 new tyres with "Etyres"....

Please post an update when you've had them fitted;...always worthwhile to hear how these outfits perform.

Takmon

Biggus_Dickus said:

32Battalion said:

It got to the stage I would price check online, then phone my local fitters and they in the end would say "What do you want to pay?"   I would ask them to match the cheapest and if necessary add a bit for fitting (somewhere around £7-£10 per tyre).

I asked that question of a local fitter but unfortunately he couldn’t get anywhere near ‘Etyres’ prices.

He specialized in ‘Landsail’ tyres and reckoned his prices were unbeatable on those;...I didn’t take him up on his kind offer though .

I always put Landsail tyres on my car because they are great value for the price with a decent grip and a good wear rate. They aren't some generic Chinese brand they have their own manufacturing facility producing just Landsail tyres.

AdrianC

Takmon said:
They aren't some generic Chinese brand.

Yes, they are. They are precisely that.

http://www.tanvic.co.uk/tyre-brands/landsail-tyres.php
http://www.senturytire.com/about.php
https://www.alibaba.com/trade/search?fsb=y&IndexArea=product_en&CatId=&SearchText=landsail

They're almost certainly no more than a few quid cheaper than decent tyres off companies like Uniroyal, Avon or Vredestein.

Takmon

AdrianC said:

Takmon said:
They aren't some generic Chinese brand.

Yes, they are. They are precisely that.

http://www.tanvic.co.uk/tyre-brands/landsail-tyres.php
http://www.senturytire.com/about.php
https://www.alibaba.com/trade/search?fsb=y&IndexArea=product_en&CatId=&SearchText=landsail

They're almost certainly no more than a few quid cheaper than decent tyres off companies like Uniroyal, Avon or Vredestein.

Well from what I have seen they are better and from what I have experienced they are decent tyres that handle well (I have really pushed the limits of grip on several occasions) and last a long time.

The tyre brands you have mentioned would be atleast £55 more per tyre (which is almost double) for what i pay for Landsail fitted. Considering this is a money saving site why would I want to pay more when Landsail are decent enough?.

Biggus_Dickus

Takmon said:

AdrianC said:

Takmon said:
They aren't some generic Chinese brand.

Yes, they are. They are precisely that.

http://www.tanvic.co.uk/tyre-brands/landsail-tyres.php
http://www.senturytire.com/about.php
https://www.alibaba.com/trade/search?fsb=y&IndexArea=product_en&CatId=&SearchText=landsail

They're almost certainly no more than a few quid cheaper than decent tyres off companies like Uniroyal, Avon or Vredestein.

Well from what I have seen they are better and from what I have experienced they are decent tyres that handle well (I have really pushed the limits of grip on several occasions) and last a long time.

The tyre brands you have mentioned would be atleast £55 more per tyre (which is almost double) for what i pay for Landsail fitted. Considering this is a money saving site why would I want to pay more when Landsail are decent enough?.

Tyres are always an emotive subject.

Personally I’ve always avoided budget tyres and stuck with long-established and well known brands, albeit more expensive.

Years ago the budget brands tended to be Eastern European and many were absolutely appalling. Perhaps my deep-seated  aversion to ‘budget’ tyres stems from those days.

Good tyres are obviously fundamental to a cars ‘safe’ handling etc and I just can’t bring  myself to fitting anything other than branded quality tyres;...maybe I’m just too ‘old school’.

 

facade

Biggus_Dickus said:

<snip>

Years ago the budget brands tended to be Eastern European and many were absolutely appalling. Perhaps my deep-seated  aversion to ‘budget’ tyres stems from those days.

Good tyres are obviously fundamental to a cars ‘safe’ handling etc and I just can’t bring  myself to fitting anything other than branded quality tyres;...maybe I’m just too ‘old school’.

Next time you are checking the tread and pressures, have a look on the sidewall at where your quality branded tyres were made

AdrianC

Takmon said:

AdrianC said:

Takmon said:
They aren't some generic Chinese brand.

Yes, they are. They are precisely that.

http://www.tanvic.co.uk/tyre-brands/landsail-tyres.php
http://www.senturytire.com/about.php
https://www.alibaba.com/trade/search?fsb=y&IndexArea=product_en&CatId=&SearchText=landsail

They're almost certainly no more than a few quid cheaper than decent tyres off companies like Uniroyal, Avon or Vredestein.

...The tyre brands you have mentioned would be atleast £55 more per tyre (which is almost double) for what i pay for Landsail fitted.

That I very much doubt. Show your working!

Let's take a fairly typical size, which is in Landsail's seemingly limited range.
205/55 16, LS388

Halfords charge £42 fitted.
https://www.halfords.com/tyres/landsail/ls388-ls388.html
...or £46 for Avons.
https://www.halfords.com/tyres/avon/zt5-zt5.html

Camskill charge £41 plus delivery plus fitting.
https://www.camskill.co.uk/m62b0s291p182135/

A random local tyre place want £84 each...
https://www.hartlepooltyres.co.uk/TyreSearch/Details/32033/Landsail+LS388+20555R16
...while another want £45 each...
https://www.hlrtyres.co.uk/tyres/176962/tyre-landsail-ls388-20555r16-91-w

Oponeo are out of stock, but suggest £38 "Imperial" as a similar alternative.
https://www.oponeo.co.uk/tyre/landsail-ls388-205-55-r16-91-v
...or £46 for Avons.
https://www.oponeo.co.uk/tyre/avon-zv7-205-55-r16-91-v#311961522

https://www.blackcircles.com/order/tyres/search?width=205&profile=55&rim=16
Blackcircles don't sell Landsail.
But Avons are £54 each.
The cheapest, nastiest, no-names are £43. Rotalla are £50. Taurus are £52.
Even Michelin are only £73...

eTyres have Royal at £39, Autogrip at £41, Comforser at £42, Kormoran at £49, Duroturn at £50... and Avon at £57. 
https://www.etyres.co.uk/205-55-16

That's a size where Vrede and Uniroyal are actually fairly expensive - they're normally down there at the Avon price point, not much above the off-brand teflon-concrete-cheese mixes - including Landsail.

AdrianC

Biggus_Dickus said:

Tyres are always an emotive subject.

"I don't drive fast, and I've never had a problem"
Right up until somebody else does something stupid, and the difference in braking distance is the difference between a near miss and an insurance claim. Or worse.

Personally I’ve always avoided budget tyres and stuck with long-established and well known brands, albeit more expensive.

The irony is that decent tyres are usually barely any more expensive. And that's just the headline purchase price...

Let's assume there's a tenner difference between 4 x £45 and 4 x £55, and that they all last 20k miles - and that they have identical rolling resistance.
So that's £180 vs £220... or 0.9p/mile and 1.1p/mile. One fifth of a penny per mile... £1 over 500 miles. What proportion of the total running cost of the car is that?

Of course, if the cheap rubbish is higher rolling resistance (it usually is), then more fuel will be used. And if the cheap rubbish wears out more quickly (it usually does), then the cost has to be amortised over fewer miles. Either of those leave the cheap rubbish costing more per mile.

And that's before the intangibles. I've currently got a pair of Sunny ditchfinders (a brand from Ghuangzhou South China Tyre & Rubber, the people behind Wanli) and a pair of Nexen mid-range on a recent acquisition. They're awful. They're harsh, they just don't feel like they've got much grip at all, the ABS kicks in easily, and they have some truly awful road-noise resonances on certain stretches of road. It'll be getting a full set of Mich CrossClimates in the very near future. £70 each. Cheap.

Years ago the budget brands tended to be Eastern European and many were absolutely appalling. Perhaps my deep-seated  aversion to ‘budget’ tyres stems from those days.

Back when "Eastern European" meant "behind the iron curtain"...
Most of those manufacturers have been bought up by the big names, and their factories are used to manufacture the normal ranges - with the old brand used for the old-tech cheaper ranges.

Good tyres are obviously fundamental to a cars ‘safe’ handling etc and I just can’t bring  myself to fitting anything other than branded quality tyres;...maybe I’m just too ‘old school’.

Or sensible. It's all about knowing the price of everything and the value of nothing.

Biggus_Dickus

facade said:

Biggus_Dickus said:

<snip>

Years ago the budget brands tended to be Eastern European and many were absolutely appalling. Perhaps my deep-seated  aversion to ‘budget’ tyres stems from those days.

Good tyres are obviously fundamental to a cars ‘safe’ handling etc and I just can’t bring  myself to fitting anything other than branded quality tyres;...maybe I’m just too ‘old school’.

Next time you are checking the tread and pressures, have a look on the sidewall at where your quality branded tyres were made

It may surprise you but I already know that information : Goodyear tyres, made in Germany.
Goodyear's British manufacturing plant closed about 10 years ago I think.