One of my tryes is approaching 9 years old and it is now splitting so it needs to be replaced, my spare is also quite useless so I was thinking of buying two new tyres and then putting one of the good ones as a spare.
I really don't want to spend more than £40 each as its just a communitor car, but I live in Manchester which means a lot of rain so the most important thing for me which tyre offers the best grip for £40? Road noise is second, life isn't important as the car si already old and I do very little milleage.
tinyurl.com/5roqe7 {link to www.etyres.co.uk shrunk to restore page width}
Thanks
155/70/13.
Edited by Dynamic Dave on 29/11/2008 at 18:16
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Having studied the ADAC test results (in German) and the Which? ones (Suscribers only - appear to be the same as ADAC), for this size recently, the Contintental Eco3 is the one to go for.
After a bit of ringing around, I got a pair for the little Lupo for £70 fitted, valves, balanced, VAT, disposal, etc included, a couple of weeks ago. (Nowhere near Manchester...)
Look at
www.adac.de/Tests/Reifentests/Sommerreifen/155_70_...e
ntID=173975&SourcePageID=173977
Trocken= Dry
Nass=Wet
Gerausc=Noise
Rollwiederstand reflects rolling resistance/economy
Verschleiss reflects wear
Ratings are from 0.6 Very good to 5.5 Unsatisfactory
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its just a communitor car
A what?????
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Thanks looks like the Pirelli P3000 Energy will be the best in terms of price/cost. It is a shame I can't seem to find any Kumho's at decent prices.
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>> its just a communitor car A what?????
Community car?
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Mean commuter car :). Very little high speed driving, but a lot of driving in wet conditions.
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comminute - v.t. "to reduce to powder, pulverize".
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Firstly, with tyres, a lot comes down to personal preference, so the tyres I prefer may not necessarily be the ones you prefer.
I once had some Dunlop SP30 tyres, and I can say that they are the worst tyres I have ever bought. All the budget tyres I have had have been far better. The Michelin Energy tyres are very hard wearing, but have poor grip especially in the wet.
I personally like Contiental tyres, but I don't think I've ever used the Eco 3. I have had some Pirelli P3000s, and they were some of the best tyres I have ever had. Lots of grip, even in the wet. The only thing I found with the Pirellis is that they didn't last quite as long as the Michelins.
I've got some Bridgestones on my company car at the moment. They are good, but are not the B250 type listed here. I think Toyos and Firestones are good, but have never tried them.
The Nexen tyres I've never heard of, and with the 'budget' and 'mid range' choices, its obviously whatever they happen to have in stock at the time.
So, for me, I would choose the Pirellis, but I'm sure that the Bridgestones and Contis would be good as well.
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Thanks another vote for the Pirelis, it is a 13 year old Fiesta so wear is not an issue especialy at my low milleage. But my long term plan is to buy a newer say 2000 Fiesta and transfer lots of parts including the tyres. Even on a brand new car with my milleage they will perish before thread goes anyway.
Also I am a bit skint now but I don't cut corners with safety things, should I get two, my other one is ok (not perished and has about 3-4mm of thread) but its a Tyral made in Yugoslavia so I have no idea how good it is. I was thinking of having at the spare and then just get two new tyres that way I know have a decent spare as well.
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I would go for two mid range tyres, rather than just replace one corner. I have always tried to keep pairs on the same axle, for matching performance. Stick the Tyral in the boot, like you say.I believe these days the recommendation is for the new ones to go on the back. I'm not convinced personally, but there you go.
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Yeah the IAM people always go on about sticking it the back. Maybe they have a point of your driving involves losts of twisty country lanes etc, but my biggest concern is purely stopping distances especialy in the wet where most cheap rubber seems to fail.
I will have a good look round as I believe one of my front tyres is better conditon than one at the back, but the tyre fitters will get a bit inpatient withj me won't they if I start asking them to swap wheels about?
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Hi Rattle
I had 4 new Continental ecocontact 3 tyres (they were a Which best buy IIRC) fitted to my 205 a few months ago. I have no complaints about noise or wet grip - grip in particular is a marked improvement on the previous tyres, all of which were getting on in age although they were legal with regard to tread. Etyres did the fitting, no problems there either. My driving is 90% motorway though, rather different to yours.
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While there are some very knowledgable people on here, you may be better seeking advice from a Ford Fiesta forum for your specific model.
What is a good tyre on one brand of car can be terrible on another.
Humph in another thread here had Pirelli P6000's recommended for his Signum which he finds a very good tyre.
I had these on a Peugeot 206 and again they were a good tyre.
This same tyre on a Volvo S60 is awful with tramlining frequently reported - check the VOC forum for evidence of this. Strange thing is Volvo chose to use these tyres as standard fit.
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There dosn't seem to be one, there is a Ka forum which I do visit sometimes for interesting Endura specific posts but the cars though similar are different. There is a Fiesta turbo but its not my thing.
Maybe I should start a new forum, though they are very difficult to start.
My dads got a P3000 on his Fiesta although his are low profile, his are 185/50/14 so its very different to 155/70/13. It was on when we got the car, 12k later still is fine.
Why is choosing tyres so hard? The problem is life is hard for people who are into cars bcause we know all tyres are not the same and we end up spending a long time researching it. I'm a self confessed car bore :(.
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The problem is life is hard for people who are into cars bcause we know all tyres are not the same and we end up spending a long time researching it. I'm a self confessed car bore :(.
This is it exactly. If you get 4 new tyres and after a week, they don't feel right, or too noisy, you can't just take them back and get 4 different ones. Secondly if you buy on recommendation they may be totally different on your car, then on your friend's car, as someone said above. So many factors...
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To be brutal in a 13 year old fiesta doing a few thousand miles a year you really will not be testing the tyres in any sense whatsoever, no matter what rain you drive in.
Simply buy the cheapest 'known' branded pair you can find.
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You should read some of the ADAC tests hxj.
You'd be amazed what the difference can be between branded tyres in the wet.
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I do and have.
But I'd like to see the differences tested in a 13 year old Fiesta over a low number of low speed commuter miles.
Not someone pelting a car down a airstrip and then hitting the anchors.
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This is an interesting point, but the P3000s are only slightly dearer than the cheapest ones. Why pay £32 for some unknown product when £40 will get you one that has done well in tests from a leading brand? If it was £80 for the leading brand I would agree 100% that it is too much.
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I see no problem with buying the P3000s, that wasn't the point I was really trying to make.
The advantage, real or psychological, is worth more than £1 year per tyre :)
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Some of Manchester still looks like Coronation Street, complete with wet cobbles.
Edited by gmac on 29/11/2008 at 19:04
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>>The problem is life is hard for people who are into cars bcause we know all tyres are not the same and we end up spending a long time researching it.
The thing is that yes, while there are tyres which perform better than others, it isn't too important.
The reason why ultimate performance isn't too important is that a good driver soon learns how the tyres behave, and as long as they don't suddenly change, and catch the driver out, there's no problem.
Seeking out the ultimate would mean anything less than a Lotus or other low, light car with amazing stopping and cornering power would be considered unsafe. So, while some become upset about people using tyres with less than the ultimate in grip, and go on about how small the contact patch is, at the same time, they're quite happy driving dynamically awful monsters of vehicles themselves.
Any reasonable tyre will behave in a predictable and stable way, and that is the truly vital thing.
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The P3000s are still budget, they are just a lot better than some cheap Yonkocumis (made up name). Fitting is around £10-£15 per wheel so that is most the cost gone, it makes sense to spend an extra £10 on decent tyres. If there was a massive price difference I would agree its over the top on a 13 year old runabout.
I should also add I am very inexperienced in terms of vehicle handeling so there may be times when the extra grip will help me out.
While the Fiesta MK4 is no ferrari and it only has 59bhp on my engine it was one of the better handeling superminis in its day and it is supposed to be highly predictable it was one of the reasons I bought it.
I don't think £40 a corner is unreasonable.
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>>I should also add I am very inexperienced in terms of vehicle handeling
Good for you for admitting it!
It's one thing having nerves of steel, and quite another to use them.
Or, in other words, as long as you drive well within the limits of the car's and the tyre's capabilities, you'll have no problems with whatever tyres you choose.
The only dangerous course of action is going out and buying the grippiest tyres, and then driving right on their limits as a matter of course. You would quickly find a ditch!
>>I don't think £40 a corner is unreasonable.
Not at all.
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Any of the tyres on your list will be fine. You simply don't need to spend top dollar on the most expensive brand there. I've driven hundreds of thousands of miles on all sorts of tyres, the only ones I really noticed that performed noticeably worse (noise and comfort) were a set of four absolute cheapies I fitted a few months before I sold a car worth peanuts.
I have a poor opinion of Dunlops after 2 of them developed bulges - no doubt an isolated case, and Pirellis which didn't last as long as I hoped, otherwise I can't tell the difference between mainstream makes.
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I had a Fester Pop Plus about 15 years ago, and it ran beautifully on Colway remoulds. I think it had 135/13 rubber which is easy to balance.
Slightly lower profiles I'd be a bit less confident with, but I'd look at putting a set of fresh rubber all round for £130-140 and not having to worry again for 5 yrs or more (unless you get a puncture and the tyre is ruined...).
Old tyres, even if not visibly cracking, start to harden and go 'off round' (jack up a wheel and spin it - be amazed how the tyre has highs and lows).
New boots will likely lighten the steering and significantly improve the handling if you have a bunch of different tyres at the moment.
Personally I buy my tyres at Costco where they only have Michelins (bargain prices tho), but any brand name will likely be better than half-worns.
If you do go for 2 tyres fit them both on the back - best to lose grip at the front than at the back in an emergency.
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Dreadful wimps the younger generation. When I were a lad....
;-)
We used to think ourselves lucky if we could scrape together enough cash for some remould Colways which if you cornered too hard would start to lose tread in blocks. Judicious application of strong glue would put that right for a while. Poor handling teaches you how to drive with circumspection and heightened awareness.
Buy the cheapest legal tyre you can find Rattle. The whole purpose of this car is to provide you with cheap transport. You have already stated that you don't drive fast. Pay little and drive with care. It'll be fine.
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Costco for me can't be beaten for price when they have super deal on.
Which they do every few month's, in fact I would put four on and pick best for spare.
Now if you want cheap option just go to back street scrap yard ten pound each and get free wheels as well ! but make sure you don't get remoulds crap for low miles and lot's of standing.
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With respect to the old days, the 6 point and you're out rule did not exist. Also the cops were more human back thek then. There are a lot of interesting opinions here from leave the 9 year old tyre as it is, to replace all four. If I was doing country driving I would replace all fourm but as I am doing 40-50mph max city driving it would be over the top. I will get twpo new P3000s and put them at the back, the I will then have two 5mm Toyos at the front.
My car is none power steering but it is already light enough, my only cocern is wet grip hence the reason for two new tyres.
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>>I will get twpo new P3000s and put them at the back, the I will then have two 5mm Toyos at the front.
That sounds OK for now. In the interim, be saving up to replace the Toyos when they get down to 3mm or so. Your wet grip will be compromised more than any inter-brand choice if you allow them to go down to the legal limit.
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Camskill.co.uk have Kumho 758 at £24.90, Hankook 715 at £27.80, I'd go for the Kumhos.
CBG
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Camskills also have the Vredestein Quatrac 2 at £30, all season tyres, give you that extra wet grip in the cold months.
Set of those on daughters 106 and she says they stick like the proverbial.
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