It is time for me to change the Bridgestone Turanza ER300 205/45 R16 W (87) tyres on my Scout.

I have no complaint with their performance except a hard ride and also worry about the aluminium alloy wheels when hitting hidden potholes.

These tyres seem rather pricey. So is there a more economical replacement that gives a less firm ride? (I'm not going to change the wheels).

Continentals will be a softer ride but that's because they have less plies in the sidewall which makes them more prone to impact fracture (IMO).

 

Michelin PS3 usually give a reasonable ride.

 

There isn't much you can do about protecting your wheels except to run decent tyre pressures (34psi minimum) and buy a tyre with a decent rim protector.  Alternatively, if your speedometer allows it,  go up to either a 215/45r16 or a 205/50r16 for a bit more sidewall height except that might be naughty in the UK.

Albeit on 17" rims, I've run Toyo Proxes 4's for a number of years and they've been great.

They appear to be getting increasingly difficult to source, so may well have been superseded.

_{Tyres are not something to try and save money on, they after all what keep you on (or off) the road. Tyre performance in this one critical area, i.e. grip, should override all other considerations. Having said that in the end compromises have to be made and the usual compromise is how many miles can I get from the new ones. I have just changed my front tyres on my 62 Plate Diesel Scout after having done about 20000 on them. As usual I was given a choice at the Tyre fitter, cheap and 2 other possibilities at a higher cost. In my opinion cheap is never an option because a) they never hold the road so well and  b.) they tend to wear out quickly so it is inevitably a false economy.}

 

_{This time I went for Goodyear Eagle F1, expensive at £100 each but what a difference they have made, both to the ride, and more importantly, and something I would not have considered, how much quieter on the road they are. So it's a thumbs up for Goodyear here.}  

Edited 26 May, 201511 yr by greens_peace

Thanks everyone for your replies especially greens_peace.

The price of Goodyear Eagle F1 tyres I've found are pennies different from the manufactrer fitted Bridgestone Turanza ER300 tyres.

So I've ordered four Goodyear Eagle F1 tyres to be fitted (new valve, tyre balance and disposal of old tyres) at £333.

Edited 26 May, 201511 yr by welshmike

 

 

_{This time I went for Goodyear Eagle F1, expensive at £100 each but what a difference they have made, both to the ride, and more importantly, and something I would not have considered, how much quieter on the road they are. So it's a thumbs up for Goodyear here.}  

it might be helpful to say what you had before.

Brad1.8t

 

You are right, whilst I did say after 20,000 miles I didn't make it clear that I was changing the tyres that the manufacturer fitted. So I was changing the front Bridgestones fitted as standard by Skoda.

 £333.

Good price for 4 tyres, what I should have said in my earlier post was that I live on a Scottish Island and therefore we have to pay 'island rates' we get the same choice as mainland and if it is not in stock they'll always get it, but it is always at a price.

 

Sadly my tyres and many other things never wear out when I'm about to go to the mainland.

 

Another point I should have made in my earlier post was that I found the Bridgestones very easily aquaplaned, early indications are the Goodyear's are better in the wet, and we get a lot of wet out here!

Brad1.8t

 

You are right, whilst I did say after 20,000 miles I didn't make it clear that I was changing the tyres that the manufacturer fitted. So I was changing the front Bridgestones fitted as standard by Skoda.

They fit at least 4 different brands.  When I bought my Octy there were Dunlops & Bridgestone ER300 (both shockers IMO) and Continental CSC2 & some form of Michelin.  You don't get a chice but I had a sub-clause in my contract that I wouldn't accept the Bridgestone or Dunlop.  It came with CSC2 so it wasn't an issue.

 

Goodyear F1 Assymetric are a great tyre - far better than the ER300.  The directional f1 can be a bit variable depending on the country of manufacture (Germany = good; Thailand = not so good).

I see Goodyear Eagle NCT5 ASYM ROF *BMW (205/45 R18 86Y) at £155.74 each and the ones I ordered Goodyear Eagle F1 GSD3 FP (205/45 R16 83W) at £88.33 each.

What might the *BMW mean in the much more expensive tyre?

I see Goodyear Eagle NCT5 ASYM ROF *BMW (205/45 R18 86Y) at £155.74 each and the ones I ordered Goodyear Eagle F1 GSD3 FP (205/45 R16 83W) at £88.33 each.

What might the *BMW mean in the much more expensive tyre?

They are two totally different tyres & sizes and the pictures are wrong.

 

GSD3 is a really old directional design & has really variable performance depending where they are made.  I wouldn't fit them.  Being 16" they should be fairly cheap - certainly cheaper than 88 quid.

 

NCT5 looks like this.  18" adds dollars.  ROF = Run-flat which is an additional premium.

 

 

I hope you ordered the right tyres & not those ****e GSD3

brad1.8T

Ermm I ended up with these!!! Made in France. Slightly different from image in that they have rim protection.

They run more quietly and give a less bumpy ride than the original Bridgestone ER300s.

So far their road handling has been at least as good as the ER300s but I don't often drive like a boy racer.

Edited 16 June, 201510 yr by welshmike

Almost any new tyre is quieter than a worn out one.

 

You probably have these.  I know nothing about them...