Performance tyre discussion

[TehStranger]

From my own experience I can rate the following very highly:

Hankook Ventus V12 Evo - Have these on the S2000 and the perform exceptionally well, wouldn't hesitate to buy another set.

Good Year Eagle F1 Asymmetrical - Tried these and the Pilot Sport 3s on my Accord, preferred the Eagle F1s. Nice and grippy, quiet for highway cruising and beyond exceptional wet weather performance.

Regarding the 235 vs 245 - I'd probably go with the one that is more readily available, the extra contact of the 245s might give more grip and higher fuel consumption, but it would be so marginal I wouldn't trust myself to feel the difference. I guess 245s would win, because more is more.

 

[Colin62]

The question now is if I should go for 245 in the rear and 235 in the front, 245 all round, 235 all round... Wheels are 235/40/R18.

What is your reason for wanting 245s on the rear? It's a front wheel drive car, and the braking, steering and acceleration are all done by the front wheels. I had wider rears on my C class, and eventually changed them for the same as the fronts, because it made life so much simpler. Allows you to rotate the tyres if you need, you aren't hassling for stock (often the tyre places will have different tyres in the different sizes, but not the same tyre in the two sizes).

The general principle is that wider tyres are softer, and you'll get slightly less life out of them. Personally, I'd stay with 235 all round.

 

[DanH]

You can't go mixing and matching tyre sizes from front to back unless the car came from the factory like that.

The width and profile change together and you will end up with different rolling circumferences. The profile is a percentage of the width.

Some cars control systems don't like different sizes as they detect the change in circumferences as flat tyres or slipping of tyres and put up a warning light, limp mode or improperly function ABS, electronic stability controll.

You might get lucky and it works or you might get unlucky and it doesn't.

 

[sand_man]

I can second that.
I put a set of Toyo Proxes T1 Sports on my Cerato (215/50 R17) and they grip very well including in the wet.
I have 52000km on them now and I recon they'll last another 20000km.
About half the price of Conti's, Michellins, Hankooks, etc.

Yip, very competitively priced. 235/40/R18... R7570 (4) all inclusive... But wait, there's a catch. I don't see a Minty's branch in the Cape...??

http://www.tyrereviews.co.uk/Tyre/Toyo/Proxes-T1-Sport.htm

 

[PostmanPot]

What is your reason for wanting 245s on the rear? It's a front wheel drive car, and the braking, steering and acceleration are all done by the front wheels. I had wider rears on my C class, and eventually changed them for the same as the fronts, because it made life so much simpler. Allows you to rotate the tyres if you need, you aren't hassling for stock (often the tyre places will have different tyres in the different sizes, but not the same tyre in the two sizes).

The general principle is that wider tyres are softer, and you'll get slightly less life out of them. Personally, I'd stay with 235 all round.

Won't be just the rear as I'd like to rotate to maximise longevity, but I do prefer the wider look and idea of more grip.

It's going to be either 235 or 245 all round.

 

[PostmanPot]

You can't go mixing and matching tyre sizes from front to back unless the car came from the factory like that.

The width and profile change together and you will end up with different rolling circumferences. The profile is a percentage of the width.

Some cars control systems don't like different sizes as they detect the change in circumferences as flat tyres or slipping of tyres and put up a warning light, limp mode or improperly function ABS, electronic stability controll.

You might get lucky and it works or you might get unlucky and it doesn't.

Why not? Wheels allow one width above or below. The size is not increasing in a way that it would affect the speedometer. Wheel size is 235 so no problem doing 225 or 245. Profile remains 40 so no effect on speedo. You'd have read that my current rears are 225.

 

[DanH]

Why not? Wheels allow one width above or below. The size is not increasing in a way that it would affect the speedometer. Wheel size is 235 so no problem doing 225 or 245. Profile remains 40 so no effect on speedo. You'd have read that my current rears are 225.

Tyres are labeled as follows

Tread Width(mm) / Tyre Wall height as a % of Tread Width(%) / Rim diameter(inches)

Eg:

225/40/18
Width = 225mm
Tyre wall height = 225x40% = 90mm


245/40/18
Width = 245mm
Tyre wall height = 245x40% = 98mm

So changing the width affects the tyre wall thickness and you need to change the profile % aswell to compensate. But you you will only get close. Not 100%.

The rim itself will also have a width, measured in inches which sets limits to the width of the tyre in can accept.

For example an 8 inch wide tyre has an ideal tyre width of 225 to 235, but will accept a tyre from 215 to 245 at a push.

 

[Colin62]

Profile remains 40 so no effect on speedo. You'd have read that my current rears are 225.

You're wrong there. The profile of 40 is a percentage of the width. A 245/40 has a bigger diameter than a 225/40.

225/40R18 has a diameter of 637.2mm
235/40R18 has a diameter of 645.2mm (or 1.26% larger than the 225)
245/40R18 has a diameter of 653.2mm (or 2.51% larger than the 225)

The 8mm increase per size is more than the difference between brand new and worn out tyres, but probably not enough to cause a problem with most ABS or traction control.

 

[PostmanPot]

Okay, thanks guys, makes sense. Have enquired about the Bridgestone Potenza Adrenaline RE002s in 235 then. Still really wide so I'm not too phased about 245.

They're in XL, so extra load which I don't need. Is this a big problem? I guess they'll be a bit more reinforced than non XL tyres.

 

[Colin62]

They're in XL, so extra load which I don't need. Is this a big problem? I guess they'll be a bit more reinforced than non XL tyres.

As long as the speed rating is sufficient. An extra load tyre may well be less flexible than standard, and may generate a bit more heat.

 

[PostmanPot]

As long as the speed rating is sufficient. An extra load tyre may well be less flexible than standard, and may generate a bit more heat.

Cool, definitely will be, performance passenger tyre. I can't see any differing XL/non XL models on the site/online, so assume that all the 235/40/R18s are XLs.

http://www.bridgestone.co.za/products/passenger_tyres/potenza/potenza_adrenalin_re002

 

[PostmanPot]

Argh, no stock of the Bridgestone Potenza Adrenaline RE002s.

 

[PostmanPot]

Still looking. Running out of time too.

 

[SauRoNZA]

Achilles 2233.

Seconded. Again.

 

[PostmanPot]

Seconded. Again.

The more I get into tyres, the more self justification I see of one's purchases. Not doubting you guys but it makes it extremely difficult hearing one thing and then seeing another elsewhere.

The Falkens just seem like a better tyre. They are not an economy brand. More reviews.

http://www.tyrereviews.co.uk/Tyre/Achilles/2233.htm

http://www.tyrereviews.co.uk/Tyre/Falken/ZE912.htm

Especially if I can get the ZE914s, which I'm enquiring about.

http://www.tyrereviews.co.uk/Tyre/Falken/ZE914.htm

I will enquire about the Achilles.

 

[presh63]

Hey

I would also recommend the hankook ventus v12 evos. They are a pretty good tyre for the money. They grip well in the dry and wet. At 162kw which is around the same as the car i had them on they were pretty good. In durban they are a very popular tyre among the VW GTI community.

The pirelli p zero is an excellent tyre in the dry but they are to soft and have lasted approximately 5000km on a 300kw rwd car. The grip in the wet was good as well.

Any dunlop tyre i would stay away from personally. Had a set on the front of the car and they got bubbles on the tyre after a week. Retured them under warranty and got another set but had the same problem. Returned them for a refund.

Currently have Bridgestone potenze s001 on my current car. Tyre seems good after 500km in a 240kw car. Grips well in the dry but havent tested it in the wet yet.

Hope my review of tyres i have used helped in anyway possible. Having good tyres can really change your car and the decision is always a tough one.

Presh

 

[PostmanPot]

Hey

I would also recommend the hankook ventus v12 evos. They are a pretty good tyre for the money. They grip well in the dry and wet. At 162kw which is around the same as the car i had them on they were pretty good. In durban they are a very popular tyre among the VW GTI community.

The pirelli p zero is an excellent tyre in the dry but they are to soft and have lasted approximately 5000km on a 300kw rwd car. The grip in the wet was good as well.

Any dunlop tyre i would stay away from personally. Had a set on the front of the car and they got bubbles on the tyre after a week. Retured them under warranty and got another set but had the same problem. Returned them for a refund.

Currently have Bridgestone potenze s001 on my current car. Tyre seems good after 500km in a 240kw car. Grips well in the dry but havent tested it in the wet yet.

Hope my review of tyres i have used helped in anyway possible. Having good tyres can really change your car and the decision is always a tough one.

Presh

Thank you. I've seen the Hankooks on GTIs down here. I'll look into them considering my A4 is very similar to the GTI, same engine really, just longitudinal vs transverse.

 

[Colin62]

The more I get into tyres, the more self justification I see of one's purchases.

I suspect a lot of the advice given is quite genuine, but advice on tyres is always tempered for me by the fact that people don't actually use a lot of tyres. Most people get three years or more out of a set, and when you come to buy again, often the same model isn't available, and if it is, the compound may well have changed anyway.

Additionally, most people get through two, maybe three sets of tyres on a car before the car is swapped out. Other factors such as the wear on the car's suspension also mean that even on the same car, you can't directly compare your first and second set of tyres. The good thing is that whatever your choice, you'll always be able to back it up with some glowing recommendations from others. Of course you'll equally be able to find others who think it's total crap.

Genuine knowledgeable and objective advice on tyres is thin on the ground. And if you find it, half the tyres compared in the review won't be available in this country, or the spec will be slightly different anyway.

I eventually just gave up and started buying on price.

 

[PostmanPot]

I suspect a lot of the advice given is quite genuine, but advice on tyres is always tempered for me by the fact that people don't actually use a lot of tyres. Most people get three years or more out of a set, and when you come to buy again, often the same model isn't available, and if it is, the compound may well have changed anyway.

Additionally, most people get through two, maybe three sets of tyres on a car before the car is swapped out. Other factors such as the wear on the car's suspension also mean that even on the same car, you can't directly compare your first and second set of tyres. The good thing is that whatever your choice, you'll always be able to back it up with some glowing recommendations from others. Of course you'll equally be able to find others who think it's total crap.

Genuine knowledgeable and objective advice on tyres is thin on the ground. And if you find it, half the tyres compared in the review won't be available in this country, or the spec will be slightly different anyway.

I eventually just gave up and started buying on price.

Thank you for this, it resonates well with me. I agree, if I can't get what I want in a more expensive tyre, I will rather look at cheaper well-rated ones.

I'm struggling to justify Michelins, though I know I would be happy with them.

I've enquired about Nokian and Vredenstein tyres.

As well as Falken and Achilles.

May just end up with Falken or Achilles. The problem with the Toyos is that they're from another fitment centre, and my one has always given me fantastic service so I am loyal to them.

 

[Rouxenator]

Replaced the two front Firestones on my Corsa with ContiSportContact™ 3, big improvement.