Trying a budget tyre

[petermansell]

Well .. I was always advised to go for "good" tyres because "they're the only thing that’s in contact with the ground etc" but after much thought I am going to try a budget brand.

My rear tyres only last 4000 or so miles. I haven't done a track day since last September and am not inclined to do another just yet.

I have never experienced a budget brand on my current car so it will be interesting to see what they perform like.

I've tried Dunlop SP Sport Max; Dunlop SP9000, many many Falken 452, Eagle F1 Aysemetircs.

So lets see how I get on with "Enduro" and its ilk. They are costing me £85 each for two rear 255/35/18s.

What are others experiences of cr#p - I mean budget - tyres?

 

[npuk]

I came across the below when looking for info on budget tyres.

Tip Top-Tyres - Who make which tyre?

They make an interesting point: "Do you believe that any of the major tyre companies would be associated with unsafe tyres?" The budget brands are made / owned by the major manufacturers.

 

[mickl]

4000 miles!! do you do burnouts all the time?

most of the budget tyres will provide a more than acceptable level of grip brand new, its their wear characteristics that is crucial. You don't want a tyre that becomes prone to snap oversteer characteristics after it has become half worn.

 

[BlackC55]

You will notice much less rear end grip with these tyres.

I am suprised at the Falkens though.

 

[BlackC55]

Try Avons.

 

[coupe deville]

.

My rear tyres only last 4000 or so miles. I haven't done a track day since last September and am not inclined to do another just yet.


are you related to nigel

 

[petermansell]

Try Avons.

You remineded me - I have had Avon ZZ3s as well.

 

[petermansell]

4000 miles!! do you do burnouts all the time?

most of the budget tyres will provide a more than acceptable level of grip brand new, its their wear characteristics that is crucial. You don't want a tyre that becomes prone to snap oversteer characteristics after it has become half worn.

No I don't. The car as a LSD fitted and some other tweaks that significantly increased the tyre wear (and enjoyment).

That's a good point about snape oversteer.

I'll see what happens...

 

[G-Force]

Interesting thread.....
I tried "budget tyres" when i had a 330m sport as i was getting about4-5k miles too.....if i am honest i would say that the tyres generally performed similair to the premium tyre...except when their was a few dry days in a row (rare in Scotland) and then a bit of rain..the grip was awfull! if the roads stayed wet for a day or so then they seemed fine.

I recently tried a cheap set on the back of my merc and felt as if the side walls where flexing too much when cornering..it made the back end feel very "squirmish" so i am back on descent tyres again!!!!
This is only my opinion....if the tyres are a lot lower in profile then i imagine this would negate the tyre wall flex.

 

[Colin_b]

There are budget tyres and budget tyres. The good ones are acceptable, the bad ones (often Chinese) are dire enough to be known as ditchfinders.

 

[davidjpowell]

The Espace used to chew the tyres on the front every 10k or so. Tried a budget tyre that was extra load, but it was horrible on bendy roads. You could feel the tyre squirning all over the road. Never repeated it.

 

[petermansell]

So I've gone and bought Accelera PHI tyres for £85 each including fitting. The write up about them on one site suggested my experience will not be good but lets see.

 

[Howard]

Are they any cheaper than 452's in the same size Peter ?

 

[moosehead]

I don't think you can go wrong with Falken 452's or Kumho KU31's. I find I get 10K from the 452's and 20K from the KU31's

 

[Will]

I appreciate that we all have different ownership priorities and requirements, but in the grand scheme of things - depreciation, petrol, servicing/repairs, insurance etc how big a percentage is being saved by using budget tyres compared to the more usual OE brands?

A full set of Michelins for my '55 were about £500 last year. Might have saved £100-200 by going for some cheap ones, but I reckon the Michelins will last a tiny bit longer, and I feel more confident in them than the tyres that were fitted before. They certainly grip far better in the wet and dry, and the previous tyres were nowhere near worn out.

The difference for me in % terms of running costs over a year was about 10%. Not enough for me to worry about

Will

 

[petermansell]

I appreciate that we all have different ownership priorities and requirements, but in the grand scheme of things - depreciation, petrol, servicing/repairs, insurance etc how big a percentage is being saved by using budget tyres compared to the more usual OE brands?

A full set of Michelins for my '55 were about £500 last year. Might have saved £100-200 by going for some cheap ones, but I reckon the Michelins will last a tiny bit longer, and I feel more confident in them than the tyres that were fitted before. They certainly grip far better in the wet and dry, and the previous tyres were nowhere near worn out.

The difference for me in % terms of running costs over a year was about 10%. Not enough for me to worry about

Will

That's just far too logical for me Will . I buy two sets of rears each year (roughly) and one set of fronts. But I retired last July and its focussed my mind on money so saving a bit from somthing thats only going to be on the car for 6 months or so appears feals right... but as I said earlier I have never tried budget tyres so it is a bit of an experienment.

 

[ray_hennig]

Hi Black,

Avons? What are your experiences of them? I've always been tempted but never tried them on any of my Mercs.

I think I was seduced by them on an Aston many years ago - not mine, sadly!

Let us know what Avons have to offer.

All the best.

RayH

 

[Will]

That's just far too logical for me Will . I buy two sets of rears each year (roughly) and one set of fronts. But I retired last July and its focussed my mind on money so saving a bit from somthing thats only going to be on the car for 6 months or so appears with it... but as I said earlier I have never tried budget tyres so it is a bit of an experienment.

Fair enough like I was saying, we all have different priorities/schools of thought etc. I must admit, I don't think I relate the 6 month thing to tyres - if you always use budget tyres, then they'll always be on there

A bit like any consumable - brake pads, fuel, etc.

Interestingly, a lot of the fleet companies often insist on premium tyres like Michelin. Bearing in mind that they're in the game to make money, and don't care how the cars perform as such (they usually refuse to change tyres until they're down to 2mm of tread!), there must be a reason. I do find Michelins tend to last considerably longer than most other tyres, so the extra cost can often be justified!

Food for thought though

Will

 

[petermansell]

Are they any cheaper than 452's in the same size Peter ?

Yes - I looked on "mytyres" and the Falken 452 are £132.90 plus fitting and I paid £85 including fitting for mine (which are on the mytyres site at £91.50. So we are talking about a saving of £48 per tyre...

But its also that I have never had a budget tyre on this car so it'll be interesting.

The only tyres I really didn't like at all were the Dunlop SP9000s - it felt like driving with wooden tyres on - no feal at all.

 

[petermansell]

Interestingly, a lot of the fleet companies often insist on premium tyres like Michelin. Bearing in mind that they're in the game to make money, and don't care how the cars perform as such (they usually refuse to change tyres until they're down to 2mm of tread!), there must be a reason. I do find Michelins tend to last considerably longer than most other tyres, so the extra cost can often be justified!

Food for thought though

Will

Good point. I'm half expecting that the experience will be a false economy and I will be back on Falkens or similar but it will be interesting to try this.