Time for some tyres

[ric04vrs]

I need new tyres on my 1.8TSI estate, it's got 18" rims, with 225/40 tyres fitted, does anybody have any recommendations, experience of, or anything that'll help me decide what to get, thanks

P.S. Budget up to £120 a corner

[Polo6n1600i]

In that size I've had Falkens 512's & 452's, Nankang NS2's & I'm currently running Vredestein Sassanta's on my Jetta. I'd say these are currently the best all round tyre I've used, great in the rain, good pattern, road noise is ok too. And at £75 a corner they are good value.

[Chunk11]

I currently have Uniroyal Rainsport 3's on mine for the past year/10,000 miles. They are an excellent tyre and if a remember correctly about £85 a corner fitted.

[WaveyDavey]

Think I'd go with RS3 too. I have them on the rears and think I'll put them on the fronts when they are ready for replacing.

[Nathanio]

Goodyear F1 Assymetric 2 is the obvious choice here. Incredible grip and stability. I preferred them to the Michelin PS3 I had on there before. Currently £95.48 on TyreGiant (http://pistonheads.tyregiant.com/225-40-18?brand=goodyear) or £91 on F1 Autocentre.

 

On 14,000 miles now and still a couple of mm left to go. 1.8TSi in same fitment as you. PS3s got 12k before needing replacement and wet performance dropped off below 4mm which is why I changed

[andyP11]

Just had some Goodyear efficient grip pro fitted. Very quiet tyre and £84 each fitted from F1 autocentres including balancing. Not a bad price for a reasonable tyre.

[Shakey063]

I've just put 225x45 SR 17 Continentals on my 2013 Superb. Great tyre. Very quiet compared to originals Dunlops. 

[JakeBlade]

Goodyear Efficient Grip Performance here. Quiet tyre at 69dB, good feel, fuel efficient, good dry and wet performance.

Although, strangely, not as quiet as my winter tyres which are 68dB.

[Stupotpat]

I need new tyres on my 1.8TSI estate, it's got 18" rims, with 225/40 tyres fitted, does anybody have any recommendations, experience of, or anything that'll help me decide what to get, thanks

P.S. Budget up to £120 a corner

Well, you did ask...............here are my notes, compiled from other contributors reccommendations

 

TYRES

Something Thomasz (SkodaParts) mentioned - you MUST get tyres with 94W ratings! Mainly due to the WEIGHT of car (even though we never reach the v-speed rating)...Even my spare is 94v.

Mine came out the factory on 92Y.

BlackCircle came back with 92Y too..

I bought my 1st set of Nokian’s (WR G2’s) from mytyres and had no issues at all, this year I bought a set of Nokian WR A3’s (even better if thats possible) for SWMBO’s TT from oponeo (from £73 delivered, for a 205/55/16 WR A3)

(I cannot recommend the Nokian WR G2 and WR A3 tyres highly enough) I used them for 2 winters and still got £400 for them when I sold them with 6/7mm of tread left.

Just a pity the Bridgestone tyres are nowhere near as good as the Nokian’s

Pilot Sport 3 - Had them for about 8 months and think they are better than OEM conti sports contact 2, in terms of noise and grip.

Goodyear Eagle F1 also good

Conti Premium Contact and Goodyear efficient grip both suit cars like the Superb very well. I have done a about 150k on both in various cars and while the Goodyear get me marginally higher mileage they are both great tyres that grip and handle well (apart from in snow) and are very quiet. Pesmog

On my car the Conti 2's got a bit noisier as they wear down.  it seems Conti 2s, according to my local independent tyre specialist, do have a reputation for increased noise with wear. So probably the Michelins when replacement is needed. Mayor of Newark

I have Michelin Pilot Sport 3's on my combi, all at 35 p.s.i., and have to say, they are very quiet. jonnb

Goodyear Efficientgrip Performance tyres. The old worn Pirelli's made the car almost nosedive when I lifted off, after I changed to GYEGP it just keeps on going. I'm sure you sacrifice a bit of grip, but in my mind when you use some caution they are excellent. Same with Continental Premium  Contact 2E

I don't have a 4x4 but do have an auto 170. Front continentals lasted 10k miles and rears 18k. Replaced with Falkens all round and the fronts have done a further 19k and still have plenty of life in them. Rears are like new at 11k. Quiet and good grip and only 100 each fitted. iancjc

Just measured mine, Goodyear F1 AS2's after ~ 15,000 miles. Fronts are ~5.3 and rears ~6. Changed over from original Continentals at about 25-26,000 miles. Good tyres and wearing well so far. Stevehg

if you are running 18's or bigger I would recommend an XL rated tyre in them though, as it has a harder sidewall, and wont wallow

like the vred ultrac sessantas, and also quite recently uniroyal rainsport 3's - very similar from my experience - quiet, great wet grip, and very reasonable.

cannot go far wrong with the sessanta's. Quite a few fellow Briskies rave about them.

The above suggestions for the Good Years are missing a vital word: EfficientGrip "Performance" are the ones to have (since Good Year also make a tyre that is just called "EfficientGrip"). JakeBlade

I had a blow-out recently, so decided to shop around for two new fronts. I found a tyre which has an economy rating of 'B', a wet-weather braking performance of 'B' and a noise rating of 72dB. Go away and check how comparatively rare that combination is. ValueTyres has them listed as a "premium" tyre, yet I had them fitted at a local Halfords autocentre for £127 the pair. The manager told me that they perform on a par with Michelins for just over half the price; the only downside is that they might last for only 80-90% of the life of a Michelin. A Michelin that doesn't suffer a mid-term puncture or blow-out, that is! He laughs at all the brand-snobs and the suckers who insist that they "always go with one of the big names", and is insistent that the Big 6 are ripping off their customers due to misplaced "received wisdom" on the part of the market. I should add that no sales pitch was involved: I had ordered online from www.tyresavings.com who merely use Halfords as the fitters.

I'm quite sure that there will be people on this site who know better than the manager of the tyre company and who will rubbish the new system of tyre ratings, including the wet weather performance; I'm sure they'll make their opinions known. For what it's worth, I've done c.500 snowy/rainy/dry miles on the tyres now and - you guessed it - I can't tell any difference from the Michelins, the Pirellis, the Continentals...

Update from a month ago: Sailun Atrezzo Z4s every day.  I've been absolutely delighted with mine - great road-holding, comfort, noise; 20,000+ on the front with 3mm left (Contis were gone at 16,000) - I'll never buy another make of tyre; they're down to about £60 a corner fitted now from ValueTyres.  Got some new ones now to go on the rear, moving the Kumho KU37s to the front; they'll then wear quicker and I can have Sailuns all round.

I know I'll get some grief over this - "the only bit of your car which touches the road"; "only trust the Big 6"; "they're cheap for a reason"; "when a toddler walks out into the road", blah, blah, blah... But these tyres have felt every bit as safe and secure in all weathers and at all speeds as the premium brands I've owned many times in the past. The Don

10/09/2014     Update from 2 weeks ago: I also want to (again) pay tribute to the tyres: a brand new set of Sailun Atrezzo Z4s, which have provided extreme comfort and unassailable composure through everything the trip has thrown at them, including much standing water. £240 for all 4; you know where to come.

1822540WSAZ4ASXL - SAILUN ATREZZO Z4+AS 92W RF 225/40R18 £41.33 delivered £57 fitted

1822540WSAZSXL - SAILUN ATREZZO ZS+ 92W XL         £45 delivered £60.56 fitted    

Switched to Conti 3s. Brilliant and got close to 50000kms and now with Michelin Primacy (made in China incidentally) Michelins are very quite and give good grip although I drive within limits of speed signs and common sense. Sprightlybob

I changed the Continentals on the front after only 12,500 miles for Goodyear Eagle F1 Asymmetrics.  I'm pleased with them so far and they are quiet, but time will tell if they last longer (I hope they do as I've never had such short lived tyres as the Continentals before).

You should, I sold my superb with 23k miles on the F1 AS2's and the fronts still had 4.5mm and rear about 6mm iirc. I had a 4x4, so you'll get more wear on the fronts, but should still see a vast improvement over the previous Contis.

I am a big advocate of Vredesteins because they have premium tyre performance but not full whack pricing, they are generally some of the quieter tyres available regardless of size, cut water well and when I took my last car to a track day (Vredestein Ultrac Cento's) the compound held up very well, where cars with Uniroyal Rainsports found their compound was extremely soft and melted, RS' are fantastic wet weather tyres but the Vredesteins also perform admirably, the harder compound may aid steering response and possibly tyre wear.

For me nowadays it's all weathers, either Vredestein Quatrac/Quatrac Lite, or Goodyear 4 Seasons, quiet, good in the wet and sensibly priced.

Had goodyear efficientgrip performance on my car. The tyres were superb. The ride became softer and the tyres are very very quiet, the fuel consumption improved too. You have to be accurate because they can be damaged easily on pothole due to soft sides. Will definitely by these again.

 

 

I went for the SAILUN ATREZZO Z4. I phoned the guys at Value Tyres what the difference was between the 2 types (Z4 vs ZS) and he said it was just the tread pattern. Both are XL and the Z4s are RF : Run Flats. Very happy so far although they are a bit noisy - we just turn up the stereo !! Had someone pull out on me the other day and they stopped really quickly. £230 for all 4 fitted and balanced, I can put up with a bit of road noise.

[Stinker]

Goodyear F1 Assymetric 2 is the obvious choice here. Incredible grip and stability. I preferred them to the Michelin PS3 I had on there before. Currently £95.48 on TyreGiant (http://pistonheads.tyregiant.com/225-40-18?brand=goodyear) or £91 on F1 Autocentre.

 

On 14,000 miles now and still a couple of mm left to go. 1.8TSi in same fitment as you. PS3s got 12k before needing replacement and wet performance dropped off below 4mm which is why I changed

I have these in 17" and think they're great.

[james0james]

Had a long journey in a superb taxi last week,we were discussing the meaning of life and tyres, I was impressed with the quietness from the road noise.

 

He swears by  Dunlop Sportmax and running on RT92Y  XL 225/40 r18 AO (audi original). £90.00 each fully fitted at F1 autocenter. He had very good words for F1 autocentre  aswell  for general repairs to.

 

They have to order them in if you want 4 or 5  so this gives them a chance to do what we do, search for the cheapest tyres but they have the trade contacts.Takes them 2-3 days to get the tyres into stock.

 

Thinking of the above company when I wear out my rubber,wont be long.

 

James.

 

[Nathanio]

I had Dunlop SportMaxx (original ones not the RT) and they were darn scary on my Octavia PD140. Wheelspin in 4th gear under acceleration on a damp motorway..... Never had that before! Never had it since either!

 

Over the last few years I've tried F1A2, PS3, Ziex912 / 4, Hankook S1 Evo, V12 Evo, KU39 and vredestein ultrac sessanta on Octavia, Fabia and Superb. The F1A2 is my favourite followed by PS3 and the V12 Evo.  Tried some EfficientGrip Performance on a Kia Ceed but it went straight into understeer on any tyre so wasn't good to judge off! Nice and quiet mind you!

[JakeBlade]

Had a long journey in a superb taxi last week,we were discussing the meaning of life and tyres, I was impressed with the quietness from the road noise.

He swears by Dunlop Sportmax and running on RT92Y XL 225/40 r18 AO (audi original). £90.00 each fully fitted at F1 autocenter. He had very good words for F1 autocentre aswell for general repairs to.

They have to order them in if you want 4 or 5 so this gives them a chance to do what we do, search for the cheapest tyres but they have the trade contacts.Takes them 2-3 days to get the tyres into stock.

Thinking of the above company when I wear out my rubber,wont be long.

James.

There is also a 5% discount code generally knocking about for the above company.

My only other advice other than that above, is that there is no such thing as a perfect tyre, as it's a very subjective field. Bear in mind that the difference between a high-rating and a low-rating for fuel efficiency can be as little as one tank of fuel over the life of the tyre.

In the superb, tyre noise does seem to intrude into the cabin somewhat. So if you are after a quiet ride then go for something with low dB. The factory conti sport contacts generally have quite a high tyre noise (72-73dB from memory), and a drop to 68/69dB was the most noticeable step-change for me.

Edited 1 May, 2015 by JakeBlade

[james0james]

Funnily enough or a coincidence anyway I was in a very dull trading estate today,i got the smell of onions being fried,i spotted the burger van responsible and made my way there  only to find one of them F1 Autocentre next door.

 

After an excellent burger and even better fried onions,i went into the F1 and met a very helpful guy there,who took me through the tyres available for my car (just 3 different makes,bridgestone,dunlop and continoise) and the Dunlop sportmax 225 40 92y 18 xl (audi original)  were the quietest tyre,best grip in wet and not that good at fuel economy that don't matter to me anyway.

 

Price is also very good,better than internet price.

 

Well I don't need tyres yet but I know where I will buy them.The garage area was very clean and organised with the latest geometry equipment to ensure the tyres work as good as they can.

 

From onions to rubber.

[tifertwo]

Now I want a burger and onions... mmmm.... onions......

[Superb170]

I went from original Contis Sports to Bridgestone Potenza Adrenalin Re002. Huge difference in noise, from 72db to 68db. Bridgestone is more comfortable too with great grip. Wear is decent but hard to get more than 30k Kms on any 18" tyre! €500 (about £350) for the four including tracking.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[WaveyDavey]

Funnily enough or a coincidence anyway I was in a very dull trading estate today,i got the smell of onions being fried,i spotted the burger van responsible and made my way there  only to find one of them F1 Autocentre next door.

 

After an excellent burger and even better fried onions,i went into the F1 and met a very helpful guy there,who took me through the tyres available for my car (just 3 different makes,bridgestone,dunlop and continoise) and the Dunlop sportmax 225 40 92y 18 xl (audi original)  were the quietest tyre,best grip in wet and not that good at fuel economy that don't matter to me anyway.

 

Price is also very good,better than internet price.

 

Well I don't need tyres yet but I know where I will buy them.The garage area was very clean and organised with the latest geometry equipment to ensure the tyres work as good as they can.

 

From onions to rubber.

 

 

I take it you mean the only three that they had available in stock???? If not they aren't that good a tyre place if they can only do three kinds of tyres for a Superb!!!

[james0james]

They keep tyres in stock that are suitable for my car,same as most other tyre places but not the tyre make and quantity that I want,i will be needing 4 possibly 5 tyres (full size spare).

 

Getting tyres for a v6 is rather limited unless you want contis, company car drivers have no choice fortunately I am not so I can chose  and my choice will be based on best grip (safety),noise,wear rate, not bothered about fuel consumption and tyre cost.

 

What I have been quoted for 5 tyres (face to face chat with the manager,not internet prices) works out that effectively I will get 1 tyre free,compared to the other main tyre outlets,so I am happy for them to order them in,that is how they get discount trade prices.

 

Packing the boot now for a trip to Germany. :clap:

[Scott78]

I'm running pirelli p zero rossos on the front and Goodyear f1 as 2 on the rear. The Goodyears are excellent as others have said, but I'm pleasantly surprised with the pirellis. I needed them in a hurry and had concerns about previous horrible p6000s on my old octy, but all is well!

Cheers

[Eck45]

Just had some Goodyear efficient grip pro fitted. Very quiet tyre and £84 each fitted from F1 autocentres including balancing. Not a bad price for a reasonable tyre.

Just had my fronts replaced with these today(£89 a corner) following a lot of research they come highly recommended - by the way mine are 17" wheels and I am curious to know what others consider the best Psi on Fronts/Rear both fully loaded i.e. 4 plus luggage and just the Driver

[Mozza1358]

Had 4 Continental fitted in January. 13k later the fronts were xompletely scrubbed across centre & outer edge & the rears down to 2mm.

Had them done via blackcircles & wonder if they were faulty somehow.

Had full set of Yokohama 225/40 R18 92 W fitted. Run like a dream & deathly quiet.

Would recommend them to anyone.

[JakeBlade]

What Yokohama tread pattern did you go for Mozza?

They are doing some interesting stuff with orange oil at the moment.

[silver1011]

Where has the OP gone? Two weeks later I can only assume he is still deliberating over which tyre to choose!

[Richf]

On our Superb we had Goodyear Eagle F1's for many years , tried Bridgestones (Potenza poss) but last set was Falken ZE-914 , bought based on a recommendation , quite cheap at around £66 a corner plus fitting . valve and balance. Was very impressed , quite grippy in the dry not excellent but excelled in the wet and very quiet as well . Quieter than the Goodyears but very similar in performance , great VFM

[psycholist]

I got Dunlop Sportmaxx RT's fitted on 17" rims a couple of weeks ago. Rated A for wet braking, 67 dB noise, economy figure is meaningless unless you do lots of slow driving and may still be splitting hairs from what I can gather. These tyres are quiet - I can hear the engine and wind noise now (Still barely intrusive at motorway speeds, but they're not lost in tyre noise now) and realised the other day that since I changed tyres, I have the radio 1 or 2 volume levels lower for the same perceived speaker volume. This is going from 70 dB winter tyres (16" Avon Ice Touring) BTW, which were massively quieter than the 73 dB Kumhos the car came with. 

 

Grip is excellent at any (Mostly legal) speed I've been willing to take them to on wet or dry roads. The cornering grip is impressive too - even in places where I'm expecting it to fidget and drift based on previous cars and tyres it just keeps holding on. Watch the load rating on the tyres though - the Superb needs at least 92 (Only available on 18" from what I can see, you have to go to 94 if you're on 17") and most tyres are 91.

Edited 12 May, 2015 by psycholist