iv only just been told this but always put best tred to the rear of the car so leave it as it is

Can you explain why?

iv only just been told this but always put best tred to the rear of the car so leave it as it is

?????????????????????

That isn't what I find with a FWD car. All the power, the steering and the majority of the braking force is all done with the front wheels. Therefore you need the best grip at the front.

Having less tread at the back may cause the car to oversteer under extreme cornering speed, but other than that will have no effect. Having nearly bald front tyres will cause understeer, greater stopping distances and aquaplaning of the front wheels in the wet. All very dangerous in a FWD car.

If you had a RWD car I could see the logic in this, but not with a FWD. Even on a RWD car most of the braking is done by the front wheels, as the weight transfers to the front axle under braking, and also the bias valve will limit the braking force to the rear wheels as the nose dips to prevent them locking up.

The only disadvantage with rotating tyres front to rear is you need to buy a full set when they eventually wear out, instead of renewing the fronts a couple of times before you need to replace the rears.

Yes this is what I understand as well

No - if you are changing tyres then the new ones should go on the rear of the vehicle (if you've fot a FWD vehicle),

The reason is that changing to brand new tyres on the driving and steering wheels can vastly change the overall dynamics of the car.

You are moving from something getting close to the limit with regards tread depth to something brand new - this can be dangerous.

Take an average FWD car that had 4 new tyes on when it was new.

The front tyres will wear down quicker.

When you need two new tyres you should move the rear tyes to the front and then have the two new tyres placed on the rear.

The difference from very worn to partly worn will not make a major change to the drive and steering dynamics and the overall result will be safer.

I do not know of any tyre manufacturer or garage that will recommend that the new tyres be placed on the front of a FWD vehicle.

It used to be the case - but we're talking 10+ years ago now, the recommendation has now changed by everyone.

^^what he said, and here's a video showing you why.

The reason they say you should put new tyres on the rear is because they are not at their best performance straight away. They take a few miles (100-200) to scrub in properly (a bit like brakes). Yes they will perform massively different to the ones you replace but they may not be up to your immediate expectation.

I can't see how they would make a change to drive and steering dynamics. At the most all you have done is add an extra 6.4mm of height to the car which for most normal people isn't going to make any difference whatsoever. Don't forget the car came from the factory with 8mm worth of tread so if anything it will make the car perform as the manufacturer intended.

I've also never heard of anyone crashing a car because they just put 2 new tyres on the front in a FWD car so can't see how it is dangerous. I've done it in the past and was perfectly fine. :wonder:

I have just replaced all 4 tyres on my vRS. I have 2 Dunlop SP Sport Maxx GT tyres with about 7mm of tread on them (so nearly new) that came off the rear of my car. They are what was fitted from the factory when i picked it up in June. I changed all 4 as i don't like having different tyres on the car. Not for any reason other than i'm OCD

Someone else has first refusal but if your adamant you want to change then if the other person backs out i'll let you know as it will save you a fair bit of money. They are off my 2011 2.0TSi vRS DSG Estate so are the same size as yours 225/40/18

^^what he said, and here's a video showing you why.

I find it extremely hard to believe she was doing 30mph in that second run!

The reason for new tyres going on the rear is that a car is more likely to understeer. Most normal members of the public can cope with that much better than oversteer which is more likely with new tyres on the front. This is in extreme circumstances however and in practice, I'm sure makes little difference either way.

No - if you are changing tyres then the new ones should go on the rear of the vehicle (if you've fot a FWD vehicle),

The reason is that changing to brand new tyres on the driving and steering wheels can vastly change the overall dynamics of the car.

You are moving from something getting close to the limit with regards tread depth to something brand new - this can be dangerous.

Take an average FWD car that had 4 new tyes on when it was new.

The front tyres will wear down quicker.

When you need two new tyres you should move the rear tyes to the front and then have the two new tyres placed on the rear.

The difference from very worn to partly worn will not make a major change to the drive and steering dynamics and the overall result will be safer.

I do not know of any tyre manufacturer or garage that will recommend that the new tyres be placed on the front of a FWD vehicle.

It used to be the case - but we're talking 10+ years ago now, the recommendation has now changed by everyone.

We weren't talking about new tyres - we were talking about swapping the hardly worn rears to the front, and putting the fronts which are near the end of their useful life grip-wise on the rear.

By the time the fronts have worn down you will be buying 4 tyres anyway so it will be new all round.

I personally wouldn't drive a FWD car with less than 3mm of tread on the front in the wet. The OP stated the fronts were at 3mm, so it is time to swap front to rear.

The reason for new tyres going on the rear is that a car is more likely to understeer. Most normal members of the public can cope with that much better than oversteer which is more likely with new tyres on the front. This is in extreme circumstances however and in practice, I'm sure makes little difference either way.

.... and if they are driving too fast for their ability and the conditions, tread depth and whether the new tyres went on the front or back is fairly irrelevant anyway.

It takes a lot to make FWD car oversteer regardless of tyres - in the old days of setting up suspension on Mini's we used to put negative camber on the front (usually by lowering them or lengthening the bottom arms for rally vehicles) and some negative camber and a bit of toe out on the rears. This made the rear wheels steer the back the opposite way slightly under hard cornering - i.e oversteer.

You could thrash a Mini into a sharp corner and as it settled on the bump stops as the weight transferred to the outside and the inside rear wheel lifted off the ground it started oversteering slightly. Quite a sight to see a bit of reverse lock on a FWD Mini as it raced round a track! They stuck to the road like glue when set up right and nothing could keep up with them in the twisty bits.

I totally agree with you, but the reasons I previously stated are why tyre fitters put new tyres on the rear. In the grand scheme of things, it makes little or no difference.

I guess people will have to make up their own minds.

However I challenge someone to find any tyre manufacturer or "proper" tyre fitting place that recommends that the two new tyes go on the front.

You also need to factor in that most people are idiots and have no idea about tyre tread depth and will run them until they fail an mot. As previously stated, below 3mm and tyre performance is lost. In my job, I see plenty of tyres that are literally smooth and have the metal from inside the tyre showing. Also, tyre pressures make a huge difference. I attended an accident once where the nearside rear tyre was around 70 psi. The young lad had gone into a right hand bend too quick and the high pressure caused him to loose the back end and go head first into a wall. Almost killed his mate!

So wrong pressure combined with lack of tread can really effect the handling in the corners.

Some interesting points here.

Trouble is im still no closer to deciding what to do. From re-reading through the last few points I should either

1. Buy two new tyres and put the new ones on the rear.

2. Swap now the fronts to the rears and then pay for 4 tyres in one go.

Whilst I enjoy a good sprint and the occasional fast corner I do not have the experience or confidence to actually hammer a corner like I see some people do I lesser than cars me. I guess this is a safety thing or me not knowing the vrs limits or not having the driving skills. I am also very sensible in the wet.

So based on my style I could swap the wheels round it would seem then in a few months buy 4 at once.

Thoughts on this?

Some interesting points here.

Trouble is im still no closer to deciding what to do. From re-reading through the last few points I should either

1. Buy two new tyres and put the new ones on the rear.

2. Swap now the fronts to the rears and then pay for 4 tyres in one go.

Whilst I enjoy a good sprint and the occasional fast corner I do not have the experience or confidence to actually hammer a corner like I see some people do I lesser than cars me. I guess this is a safety thing or me not knowing the vrs limits or not having the driving skills. I am also very sensible in the wet.

So based on my style I could swap the wheels round it would seem then in a few months buy 4 at once.

Thoughts on this?

+1

Buy 4 good tyres when you wear the fronts (which are currently on the rear) down to 3mm

I totally agree with you, but the reasons I previously stated are why tyre fitters put new tyres on the rear. In the grand scheme of things, it makes little or no difference.

I was agreeing with you as well!

I always rotate tyres and replace as a full set of 4 when all down to 3mm.

As do I.

Some interesting points here.

Trouble is im still no closer to deciding what to do. From re-reading through the last few points I should either

1. Buy two new tyres and put the new ones on the rear.

2. Swap now the fronts to the rears and then pay for 4 tyres in one go.

Whilst I enjoy a good sprint and the occasional fast corner I do not have the experience or confidence to actually hammer a corner like I see some people do I lesser than cars me. I guess this is a safety thing or me not knowing the vrs limits or not having the driving skills. I am also very sensible in the wet.

So based on my style I could swap the wheels round it would seem then in a few months buy 4 at once.

Thoughts on this?

I thought you were buying a new car next year? How many miles will you do in your Octavia before you sell it? If you're only planning on doing a couple of thousand then I'd swap the fronts for the rears and sell it with four matching worn tyres - just take care. If you do enough miles to warrant new tyres then I'd just get a new pair of decent tyres. Not much point in spending money on a car you are intending to sell if you don't have to - it will make very little difference to resale value.

Ok so it's decided. Swap the fronts and if I have to buy 4 then so be it. Based on my mileage I probably won't need to so il sell with 4 worn tyres. Thanks everyone for the help.

I totally agree with you, but the reasons I previously stated are why tyre fitters put new tyres on the rear. In the grand scheme of things, it makes little or no difference.

I was only told this recently, iv always put newest to the front, purly due the fact that new on the rear take longer to run in but if you think about it (keeping in mind this whole theory is down to control of the car in slippery conditions in a FWD) if you were to hit standing water with the rear tyres having less tred the back end is more likely to step out and fish tail, if you hit standing water when the best tred is to the rear then this risk is reduced. understeer is easier to control then oversteer

Also think about the weight distribution, the rears have very little weight over them so less grip will be achieved whereas the front has the engine to plant it to the road, thus less tred needed to get ultimate grip

Yes I might, will my single jack be enough to do this or will I need two? You can see my inexperience here!

You can use the spare (if you've got one) if the jack only lifts one wheel at a time.

(ie Jack up front, replace front wheel with spare, jack up back replace rear with front, jack up front replace spare with rear, then repeat on other side)

I guess people will have to make up their own minds.

However I challenge someone to find any tyre manufacturer or "proper" tyre fitting place that recommends that the two new tyes go on the front.

Would it be cynical to say that putting new tyres on the back of a FWD drive car probably reduces the time until some more new tyres are needed (and of course most cars are FWD these days)?

I'd love to see some research that shows braking distances are reduced by having the best tyres on the rear of any front engined car. It makes no sense to me.

I know the arguments about understeer v oversteer, but braking distance wins it for me. (Anyway I HATE understeer as do most enthusiastic drivers).

Have you seen the 5th gear video which shows what happens when new tyres are put on the front? When the rear steps out it is a lot harder to control than understeer

Would it be cynical to say that putting new tyres on the back of a FWD drive car probably reduces the time until some more new tyres are needed (and of course most cars are FWD these days)?

I'd love to see some research that shows braking distances are reduced by having the best tyres on the rear of any front engined car. It makes no sense to me.

I know the arguments about understeer v oversteer, but braking distance wins it for me. (Anyway I HATE understeer as do most enthusiastic drivers).

I think you will find that most drivers don't even know what Understeer / oversteer is, thats why they recommend new tyres to be put on the back.

I wouldn't like to be in a car with a novice who had new tyres on the front and only 2-3 mm on the back going round a greasy / icy bend.

Of course I'm sure that the more experienced drivers would cope, but these recommendations (& they are only recommendations) are there for the masses.

Have you seen the 5th gear video which shows what happens when new tyres are put on the front? When the rear steps out it is a lot harder to control than understeer

Yep seen it...but I say that experiencing emergency braking is far more likely than oversteer. Most people however inept drive within the cornering capability of their car. Emergency braking is forced upon us unfortunately by factors beyond our control.