Vredestein

You could ask any questions of Vredestein Technical(above)

Look i run a garage, the Vredestien Quatrac 3 are better honestley.

I like mine and am a big fan of the brand in general.

some more info here Quatrac2 but not 3 I'm afraid.

NHTSA Tyre Ratings - Traction, Temperature & Wear - Vredestein

For anyone following this thread, the Quatrac 3 is rated 400, A, A. The Quatrac 2 is rated 200, A, A.

(Thanks Graham!)

I'm not 100% on this, but I'm pretty certain that you can't compare treadwear ratings on the sidewall of tyres from different manufacturers, as they use different reference tyres. I'm sure I read that somewhere.

Look i run a garage, the Vredestien Quatrac 3 are better honestley.

I'd love to see your facts on this. Do you work in a garage that sells Quatrac, what sort of garage is it, a tyre testing garage, a tyre fitter or a generic garage.

It's like saying person X works in tesco so says cheese y is by far the best cheese. Unless person X specialises in testing cheeses for Tesco, they are not the best person to sak.

For example the German Tyre tests show the Nokians clearly beating the Quatrac for winter performance.

The Quatrac was rated as somewhat recommended (eg they are ok) against the Nokians which were rated Recommended (eg they are good) in the winter test.

Now i'm sure both will be ok in the UK most of the time but it really comes down to what you want from your tyre as to which you get. In some areas the Quatrac 3 may have the edge, in other places the Nokian does.

I'm glad I got the Nokians and unless anything particularly bad comes to light in the life of the tyres I'll be looking to them when I need another set.

I'm not 100% on this, but I'm pretty certain that you can't compare treadwear ratings on the sidewall of tyres from different manufacturers, as they use different reference tyres. I'm sure I read that somewhere.

UTQG

The tyre is supposed to be industry standard rating of 100, the problem seems to come from some manufacturers doing the tests and rating themselves more highly.

UTQG

The tyre is supposed to be industry standard rating of 100, the problem seems to come from some manufacturers doing the tests and rating themselves more highly.

Ah I see. As the tests are not done by an independent tester they probably don't hold as much value as they might indicate then.

Ah I see. As the tests are not done by an independent tester they probably don't hold as much value as they might indicate then.

Does seem that way yes.

It's like saying person X works in tesco so says cheese y is by far the best cheese. Unless person X specialises in testing cheeses for Tesco, they are not the best person to sak.

Seems a bit extreme, wouldn't want to work for you

Look i run a garage, the Vredestien Quatrac 3 are better honestley.

In the other tyre thread, you didn't know why having a different tyre on each wheel was a bad idea, so I'm guessing your garage doesn't specialise in tyres?

I don't like being critical, but I think you're going to have to back up a statement like that with a bit more meat!

For example the German Tyre tests show the Nokians clearly beating the Quatrac for winter performance.

The Quatrac was rated as somewhat recommended (eg they are ok) against the Nokians which were rated Recommended (eg they are good) in the winter test.

Now i'm sure both will be ok in the UK most of the time but it really comes down to what you want from your tyre as to which you get. In some areas the Quatrac 3 may have the edge, in other places the Nokian does.

I'm glad I got the Nokians and unless anything particularly bad comes to light in the life of the tyres I'll be looking to them when I need another set.

I've looked at both tyres, I doubt I'd go far wrong with either. I think the Nokians are geared ever so slightly more towards winter, but they seem to be rated just as good as the Quatrac even in summer, going from user reviews.

So I don't think there's much in it really.

The Nokians seem to get better scores on tyretest.com, but these reviews are slightly subjective; if the reviewer hasn't tested both of the tyres in question, the results aren't really relative.

That said, the Nokians are probably edging it for me, but I would happily get either, from what I've read so far.

I'm certainly getting an all-season tyre next time I change...!

Seems a bit extreme, wouldn't want to work for you

Well you wouldn't want to ask them either

As for the which tyre, I agree don't think you'd be disappointed with either in the UK personally.

Right well 9 months on and the Nokians are proving to be great.

I took a chance and ran them through the summer and while I have to meaure the tread soon, there is still plenty left.

Noise is still lower than previous tyres and the grip in heavy rain has been astounding on recent days.

I'll post back with wear levels when I get a chance to measure them.

Welcome back

Well, I've actually had my Nokians on for all of a week or so now, those bloody Dunlops just wouldn't wear down quickly enough to justify making the swap!

Anyway, it's early days so I've not come to any firm conclusions yet. I did have to do some moderately heavy braking a few days ago and was half-expecting the ABS to start operating because the road was wet, but nothing, so it seemed the tyres were gripping the wet tarmac nicely.

MPG-wise, also not seen any pattern yet. At first I thought I was a mpg or two down compared to normal, but the last day or two I seem to be back to normal. We'll see how things go in the coming weeks...

cheezemonkai: could you just confirm which version of the nokians you've got? Coming to the end of my michelin's lives and will be needing a new set of tyre in the next month or so.

By searching I've found these two tyres labelled as Nokian WR:

or:

cheers

andrew

I'm 99% sure he has the top ones, the WR. The lower ones are the newer WR G2.

Yes it's the top ones, the WR as opposed to the WR-G2 which are the lower ones.

When worn I'll probably get the G2 as they are easier to get hold of.

FWIW Riph, run the tyres 1 to 2 PSI over the normal pressures as this seems optimal for these tyres

Edited 12 October, 200916 yr by cheezemonkhai

I finally got around to measuring the tread depth today and all 4 of the tyres are at about 6mm.

They have been rotated front to rear at about 6 months old, but that is it.

Since first fitted the car has probably covered 20'000 miles, so I think getting 30'000 miles from them should be doable as long as there are no stray nails etc. Here is hoping.

can somebody explain to me the wisom of fitting seasonal tyres? I've never seen fit to have specific poor weather tyres to be honest - if the weather is bad enough to need em, take a land rover or stay at home!

Sorry but I'm really struggling with this one and find it a bit strange thats all!

In the other tyre thread, you didn't know why having a different tyre on each wheel was a bad idea, so I'm guessing your garage doesn't specialise in tyres?

I don't like being critical, but I think you're going to have to back up a statement like that with a bit more meat!

I don't know what i said in the other thread exactly as i'm not on here often, It doesn't actually matter to have differant branded tyres on either wheels or front to back no, it does matter however in some cases where a tyre has a particularly more aggressive pattern or the design differance is such that it would matter ie a tyre which will wear much quicker than a branded tyre, but generally no....you try telling a customer to put a pair of tyres on for an MOT when one tyre is good and the other is out of shape and see what they say, they simply aren't interested the majority of the time. I do always run in pairs as my tyres always wear evenly.

We are a well established company with great knowledge of tyres, enough for me to know that there is little point in discussing this any further with you. I go with the Quatracs on an experience factor i have used sets of four on Nokians and the Vreds and i rate the Quatracs as better from experience not what a review tells me somewhere, That is why.

...Also just to add, in my experience most 2wd cars are useless in the snow unless they are narrow tyres which can cut through the snow.

It's good to see Cheeze is enjoying his tyres, critical part of the year now with the winter driving coming up! however i do expect them to be fine

can somebody explain to me the wisom of fitting seasonal tyres? I've never seen fit to have specific poor weather tyres to be honest - if the weather is bad enough to need em, take a land rover or stay at home!

Sorry but I'm really struggling with this one and find it a bit strange thats all!

The WR and the Quatrac 3 are more of an all-season tyre than a seasonal tyre (i.e. summer or winter), although the WR does lean a bit towards winter in it's design. That said, it's sold as all-season in the US, and it's how I view mine really.

As for your question re: seasonal tyres generally, most tyres used/sold in the UK are summer tyres, which means they are roughly designed to work above 7 degrees C. If the temperature goes much below that then the rubber isn't so effective which means stopping distances greatly increase and so do your odds of ploughing into something (and I don't mean because of ice or snow... the rubber would be less effective on any surface simply because of it's temperature).

I'm not sure about the Quatrac 3, but the WR has a M+S rating, which means it's a suitable design to use in fairly severe winter conditions.

can somebody explain to me the wisom of fitting seasonal tyres? I've never seen fit to have specific poor weather tyres to be honest - if the weather is bad enough to need em, take a land rover or stay at home!

Sorry but I'm really struggling with this one and find it a bit strange thats all!

Putting it very directly:

2WD car + normal (summer) tyres + snow/ice/cold tarmac = 2 Wheel slide

4WD car + normal (summer) tyres + snow/ice/cold tarmac = 4 Wheel slide

Basic principle being it doesn't matter what electronics you have or if you have 2WD/4WD, if the tyres have no grip you have no grip.

The nokian tyres are also handy in that they have a snowflake symbol so cover you for winter tyres when driving in parts of Europe.

The extra grip they have given in very heavy rain and on cold days (7 degree and below) really is noticeable too. No traction control light being the starter.

Having experienced quite how little grip normal tyres have on snow, ice or the slush we usually get in the UK, I'd rather spend a bit of money and have some tyres that can deal with that eventuality should it happen.

Certainly last year I saw an Audi A2 on winter tyres pull away and go up the hill just fine, then a 4x4 try and pull out and slide down the hill and into a car at the bottom.

That was enough to convince me I had done the right thing.

....

...Also just to add, in my experience most 2wd cars are useless in the snow unless they are narrow tyres which can cut through the snow.

It's good to see Cheeze is enjoying his tyres, critical part of the year now with the winter driving coming up! however i do expect them to be fine

Yep, it's annoying how so many cars have fat tyre only options and the narrow tyres are better in heavy rain too IMHO.

The tyres helped out at the tail of the cold patch last year, and I do have to say I'm very surprised at how well they held up through the summer months and the reasonable mileage put on them.

My main reason for posting back here is so that people have a reference to see how well they do wear and hopefully to see how they perform in the weather we get in the UK.

Edited 28 October, 200916 yr by cheezemonkhai

4WD car + normal (summer) tyres + snow/ice/cold tarmac = 4 Wheel slide

Basic principle being it doesn't matter what electronics you have or if you have 2WD/4WD, if the tyres have no grip you have no grip.

Certainly last year I saw an Audi A2 on winter tyres pull away and go up the hill just fine, then a 4x4 try and pull out and slide down the hill and into a car at the bottom.

Good point about 4WD... I've heard it said before that a 2WD car on winter tyres is better on snow/ice/cold tarmac than a 4WD on summer tyres.

That last paragraph made me laugh, you must have smirked when you saw that? Unless it was your car it hit at the bottom?!

The nokian tyres are also handy in that they have a snowflake symbol so cover you for winter tyres when driving in parts of Europe.

Another good point, I'd never actually considered the legal side of things in some European countries that require you to use winter tyres at certain times of year.