new tyres fitted WOW

[Alan_VRS]

bought my 51 vrs a few weeks ago, and shortly after found out i had 3 yes three slow punctures, now as one of them will soon need replacing, and the other two are cheap brand tyres, i thought i'd treat the vrs to some continental sport contact 2's.

all i can say is WOW, what a difference! likr a completly new car, and i thought the brakes were reasonable before, but now when slamming on the brakes i can really feel the blood rushing to the front of my head, its made such a difference.and it takes MUCH more to get the abs going...

i've fell into the 'cheap tyre' trap for a while now with previouse cars but from now on i'll be spending the extra on descent tyres!

the only problem is i looked through loads of posts recommending different tyres, and as soon as i bought some 205/50's, i read that 225/45's do a much better job?

oh well! is there anything wrong with putting 205/50's on the front and 225/45's on the rear? or am i wasting my time?

cheers.

Alan

[lordrobs]

bought my 51 vrs a few weeks ago, and shortly after found out i had 3 yes three slow punctures, now as one of them will soon need replacing, and the other two are cheap brand tyres, i thought i'd treat the vrs to some continental sport contact 2's.

all i can say is WOW, what a difference! likr a completly new car, and i thought the brakes were reasonable before, but now when slamming on the brakes i can really feel the blood rushing to the front of my head, its made such a difference.and it takes MUCH more to get the abs going...

i've fell into the 'cheap tyre' trap for a while now with previouse cars but from now on i'll be spending the extra on descent tyres!

the only problem is i looked through loads of posts recommending different tyres, and as soon as i bought some 205/50's, i read that 225/45's do a much better job?

oh well! is there anything wrong with putting 205/50's on the front and 225/45's on the rear? or am i wasting my time?

cheers.

Alan

I'd try and keep all 4 the same size.

There is nothing wrong with 205's there is just a larger selection of 225's and prices on most brands are a bit lower.

Need to treat mine to a couple of new boots in the next couple of weeks but I think I'm going to have to downgrade slightly from the Bridgestones that are on there :(

[David 8]

Tyres make all the difference imo

I was just discussing this last night with a mate and he has just fitted bridgestones after a few years of cheap tyres and he was raving about who he has an M3 again now. Although I don't think they will last that long as he has a tendancy to provoke oversteer quite often:rofl::rofl:

[Interphase]

I've curently got Dunlops on the back and Nankang NS2s on the front (car came with them) and the NS2s are bloody awful - it'll light up the tyres in first and second on a slightly damp road under only moderate acceleration. Roundabouts are definitely a no-no. I'm seriously thinking about swapping them for KU31s or similar, even though they've only got a few hundred miles on them..

[CazzaVR]

I've got Conti Sport Contact 2s on the front of mine too and totally agree- they're excellent!

[athol]

I've curently got Dunlops on the back and Nankang NS2s on the front (car came with them) and the NS2s are bloody awful - it'll light up the tyres in first and second on a slightly damp road under only moderate acceleration. Roundabouts are definitely a no-no. I'm seriously thinking about swapping them for KU31s or similar, even though they've only got a few hundred miles on them..

I had some chep branded 'Sunny SN3800's' on front of my car when I got it, garage put them on to get it through MOT. Road noise from them was awful, thought a wheel bearing had gone! Replaced all 4 with KU31's, so much better, braking much better as ABS cuts in lot later, traction from standstill better, better grip in a corner, especally when its wet....

First upgrade on any car should be decent tires IMO

[greg123]

It's not so much a budget tyre issue, as differnt brands have different amount of slip and rr. Having a matched set, of any brand, makes the car go as one and feel great.

Why go to 225's or 225's on the back, are you loosing grip or is the back end spinning out?

If not, why make wet weather grip, straight line steering stability and feel not to metion top speed and economy worse, the wider a tyre the worse for these areas.

I have 205 16's and it's always noticable how the steering has better feel, less effort and the ride over pot holes noticably smoother when I drive an octavia with the 195 15's.

Greg.

bought my 51 vrs a few weeks ago, and shortly after found out i had 3 yes three slow punctures, now as one of them will soon need replacing, and the other two are cheap brand tyres, i thought i'd treat the vrs to some continental sport contact 2's.

all i can say is WOW, what a difference! likr a completly new car, and i thought the brakes were reasonable before, but now when slamming on the brakes i can really feel the blood rushing to the front of my head, its made such a difference.and it takes MUCH more to get the abs going...

i've fell into the 'cheap tyre' trap for a while now with previouse cars but from now on i'll be spending the extra on descent tyres!

the only problem is i looked through loads of posts recommending different tyres, and as soon as i bought some 205/50's, i read that 225/45's do a much better job?

oh well! is there anything wrong with putting 205/50's on the front and 225/45's on the rear? or am i wasting my time?

cheers.

Alan

[Alan_VRS]

It's not so much a budget tyre issue, as differnt brands have different amount of slip and rr. Having a matched set, of any brand, makes the car go as one and feel great.

Why go to 225's or 225's on the back, are you loosing grip or is the back end spinning out?

If not, why make wet weather grip, straight line steering stability and feel not to metion top speed and economy worse, the wider a tyre the worse for these areas.

I have 205 16's and it's always noticable how the steering has better feel, less effort and the ride over pot holes noticably smoother when I drive an octavia with the 195 15's.

Greg.

thats why i was asking if it was worth it, ust because i read they were a better size really.

i've just came from a big engined 3 series coupe to the skoda, so with the bmw being rwd, it was better to have some nice wide tyres to get the traction.

so was just asking really, would make sence to have them all the same size on the skoda though as the spare can be used anywhere on the car then.

[KenONeill]

The 225s are usually cheaper for some reason; that said the 205s are wide enough to make aquaplaning possible in standing water, particularly power on, and I'd guess that 225s will be worse there for same brand and wear.

[Funkoid]

I'm due for some new rears and have been wondering what to get. Conti's are the obvious choice but I've heard the toyos are highly regarded for the money?

[Bodge]

I had some major aquaplaning issues last night on the M5 and M6!

Had the ASR light flashing like mad while cruising at 70+ over standing water, and the ABS kicked in while braking over water!

Making good progress required some serious concentration!

My KU31's (205/50R17) have just about reached the wear bar, so I'm definately getting some new boots sooner rather than later now!

It's all about the treat pattern though. Get some winter tyres and it'll be much better. For example, I have 205/70R15 tyres on my Suzuki SJ, and they will never aquaplane. I've hit floods at speed and never budged! But then again they are Colway C-Trax offroad tyres (80/20 Open tread pattern with go anywhere ability, Speed 100Q, Tread 14mm deep,similar to the BFG MT,, Colway) ! Not so good around corners but invincible through water and mud.

If I had some spare wheels, I'd have a winter and summer set of tyres on the vRS.

[skinnyman]

With hindsight, I wouldn't have gone to 225's. (Contis to Goodyear Eagles). Yes the grip is better, the car feels more planted, but overall I think that the 205's were a more suitable size. The economy is a bit worse (5mpg on average), and I think the car 'felt' more agile on the 205s. It is probably all in my head, but it's the only one I've got...

[KenONeill]

I'm due for some new rears and have been wondering what to get. Conti's are the obvious choice but I've heard the toyos are highly regarded for the money?

I'm entirely happy with the Toyos, so much so I've replaced a pair I'd worn out with more of them

[mark&lisa]

I,ve recently put Kumho KU31's on my Octy VRS - 225/45. They seem to grip better at higher speeds. They are also very quiet. I had to drop anchor from 70 quite hard last week for a deer on the A31 near Ringwood, I was kissing the windscreen, but the grip is so great the car stopped quickly with no ABS help. Fantastic tyres.