Need softer tyres

[ahenners]

1 hour ago, Pilotguy said:

My car got the CITnow video report at the service in July. The front Continental Sport Contact 5s on my 220 Bhp vRS Combi had 4mm on one and 3-4mm on the other. Just over 3000 miles later at the MoT today they got an advisory as they’re at the legal limit. Just on Friday last, driving in heavy rain and standing water,  I had thought how well the car was handling on a local twisty A road. So unless you’re going on a long trip, I’d probably wait! 

I’ve ordered Continental Premium Contact 6’s in 225/40/18 to be fitted next week. Reports on Tyrereviews.co.uk have been very good for them, I’m hoping for comfort but with the possibility still for spirited handling this car cries out for (and they’re more affordable than Michelin PS4s).

The Continental  are also 71db I think I read http://www.tyrereviews.co.uk/Tyre/Continental/Premium-Contact-6.htm

 

Reviews do look great for the Premium Contact 6. Let us know how you get on, I'm wondering if the sidewalls will be a bit soft compared to the sport contact tyre.

[Pilotguy]

2 hours ago, ahenners said:

 

Reviews do look great for the Premium Contact 6. Let us know how you get on, I'm wondering if the sidewalls will be a bit soft compared to the sport contact tyre.

 

I’ll be happy if that is the case. Will see next month.

[Fr0d]

Uniroyal rs3 are the softest tyres I've ever had on an Octavia. I'm not sure if there are many road tyres much softer than that.

[thomas5265]

I have Uniroyal Rainsport 3’s on my VRS 19inch extreme alloys and the ride comfort is better than my 18’s on Bridgestones. The trade off is handling is not as precise. 

[brad1.8T]

On 10/28/2017 at 05:29, Johnjhs said:

Hi many thanks, I have just replaced the Bridgestone tyres on the front end with Goodyear Eagle Isometric 3 tyres. I can confirm that they have made a world if difference. The ride is much better and much softer. Cannot wait to get the Bridgestone tyres off the back end when I can afford it. My Octavia is a 2014 Black Edition as sold to me by a Skoda main dealer, 1.6  diesel with 225/40/18 black alloys fitted. 

It's asymmetric, not Isometric...

 

If you want to wear the Bridgestones out quicker, put them on the front.

[Pilotguy]

On 27/10/2017 at 20:09, ahenners said:

 

Reviews do look great for the Premium Contact 6. Let us know how you get on, I'm wondering if the sidewalls will be a bit soft compared to the sport contact tyre.

I thought I’d follow up the question. I haven’t felt that the PC6 is any way less capable than the SC5 over the range of driving I’ve experienced with them. Fairly refined ride, noise not too harsh, not crashy. Feel reassuringly grippy in the wet. There’s a fair bit less rim protection in the size I have though. Look more stretched across the wheel.  I’m probably going to be paying out for a wheel refurb x2   sometime before the winter. You pays your money, you takes your choice....

[ahenners]

Just now, Pilotguy said:

I thought I’d follow up the question. I haven’t felt that the PC6 is any way less capable than the SC5 over the range of driving I’ve experienced with them. Fairly refined ride, noise not too harsh, not crashy. Feel reassuringly grippy in the wet. There’s a fair bit less rim protection in the size I have though. Look more stretched across the wheel.  I’m probably going to be paying out for a wheel refurb x2   sometime before the winter. You pays your money, you takes your choice....

 

Thanks for updating. I had SC5 previously and found the rim protection to be almost non-existent. I had the MO (Mercedes Option) variant so not sure if this makes a difference compared to the standard SC5. Swapped for some Goodyear F1 AS3 which are better in every way; comfort, noise, and a much better rim protector.

[TDIum]

Both me and my better half now running Premium Contact 6. Mine on the VRS and hers on the mk3 TT. No complaints from either of us. 

[KenONeill]

7 hours ago, Pilotguy said:

I thought I’d follow up the question. I haven’t felt that the PC6 is any way less capable than the SC5 over the range of driving I’ve experienced with them. Fairly refined ride, noise not too harsh, not crashy. Feel reassuringly grippy in the wet. There’s a fair bit less rim protection in the size I have though. Look more stretched across the wheel.  I’m probably going to be paying out for a wheel refurb x2   sometime before the winter. You pays your money, you takes your choice....

 

7 hours ago, ahenners said:

 

Thanks for updating. I had SC5 previously and found the rim protection to be almost non-existent. I had the MO (Mercedes Option) variant so not sure if this makes a difference compared to the standard SC5. Swapped for some Goodyear F1 AS3 which are better in every way; comfort, noise, and a much better rim protector.

Have you tried just not hitting kerbs?

[ahenners]

1 hour ago, KenONeill said:

 

Have you tried just not hitting kerbs?

 

Absolutely, I've owned my VRS nearly 2 years and the alloys are still absolutely immaculate. 

 

I don't choose tyres based on how large the rim protector is, it was just a nice bonus when they were fitted and there was some protection I never had before.

Edited 22 May, 2018 by ahenners

[gregoir]

Lower tyre pressures = softer tyres. Perhaps I am just too old in my way of thinking about soft tyres. The deeper the tread the more imprecise and squirmy the handling will be. 'Softer' is difficult to define otherwise.

Edited 22 May, 2018 by gregoir

[TDIum]

9 hours ago, gregoir said:

Lower tyre pressures = softer tyres. Perhaps I am just too old in my way of thinking about soft tyres. The deeper the tread the more imprecise and squirmy the handling will be. 'Softer' is difficult to define otherwise.

 

So ... the tyre structure and in particular the sidewall design makes no difference you think? And the rubber compound? 

[logiclee]

1 hour ago, TDIum said:

 

So ... the tyre structure and in particular the sidewall design makes no difference you think? And the rubber compound? 

 

For me Sidewall stiffness makes a massive difference on initial impact of potholes and ridges etc. On some tires as much as the sidewall profile height.

 

On my Passat I swapped from one set of Conti's to another and the ride was significantly harsher for the same pressure. The difference I found was the tyre fitters had fitted XL's in place of the standard weight rating. 

[KenONeill]

@gregoir - I'd read "softer tyres" as referring to rubber compounds and hence grip and wear, rather than tyre pressures.

 

Miss-set pressures can make a difference to wall stiffness (and hence total spring rate) yes, but it's more to the point that as little as 2PSI off the "best pressure" for $tyre_type can cause excess edge or centre wear.

[gregoir]

I agree that an extremely stiff sidewalled tyre, such as a run flat, may be less sensitive to tyre pressures. But personal assertions about comparative softness, without hard data, are not provable. Unless there is actually  data somewhere about deflection of standard control tyres at a standard pressure? So I am dubious about claims of soft tyres, where the exact meaning of 'soft' is not clear. Some people above describe softness being to do with rubber compounds while other refer to sidewall construction. You could have a run flat with soft tread and stiff sidewalls.

[gman1967]

18 hours ago, gregoir said:

Lower tyre pressures = softer tyres. Perhaps I am just too old in my way of thinking about soft tyres. The deeper the tread the more imprecise and squirmy the handling will be. 'Softer' is difficult to define otherwise.

Well put. Tyres are a very (auto) emotive subject and one man's meat is another man's poison. I have week old VRS diesel on 225/40/18 Bridgestones and more than happy with precise handling and far more compliance than I had with short term lease Insignia on 18" wheels but ridiculously wide 245 section Hankook Ventus. That crashed through potholes that the Octavia smooths out better. There are far worse than the Octavia when it comes to potholes! Having had 6 Impreza STI's in various guises and states of tune over years, I will happily sacrifice a more compliant tyre for a stiffer and more responsive one any day of week. Like  I said at outset though, one man's ....... 

[TDIum]

Since when does being provable have anything to do with anyone's opinion? 

In my opinion my local curry house is the best for fifty miles around, but I'm ****ed if I'm going to try and prove it with hard data. 

[SWBoy]

2 hours ago, gman1967 said:

I have week old VRS diesel on 225/40/18 Bridgestones and more than happy with precise handling and far more compliance than I had with short term lease Insignia on 18" wheels but ridiculously wide 245 section Hankook Ventus. That crashed through potholes that the Octavia smooths out better.

Crashing through potholes isn't just about tyres, suspension stiffness and damping is a major factor also.

 

Near where I used to live was a stretch of road that I can best describe as a washboard (for those of you old enough to remember such things), on this stretch of road the ride in an Audi S4 I used to own was so hard it felt my teeth were being shaken out but in an Audi RS4 (with lower profile stiffer sidewall tyres) the ride was massively more compliant and more comfortable. Why? The RS4 had a mechanical version of DCC (called DRC) which meant the suspension was softer than the S4 when driving in a straight line but stiffer when cornering to provide both better handling and a better ride.

 

Tuning the suspension for both handling and comfort is an art not well understood by most car manufacturers.

Edited 23 May, 2018 by SWBoy

[gman1967]

3 hours ago, SWBoy said:

Crashing through potholes isn't just about tyres, suspension stiffness and damping is a major factor also.

 

Near where I used to live was a stretch of road that I can best describe as a washboard (for those of you old enough to remember such things), on this stretch of road the ride in an Audi S4 I used to own was so hard it felt my teeth were being shaken out but in an Audi RS4 (with lower profile stiffer sidewall tyres) the ride was massively more compliant and more comfortable. Why? The RS4 had a mechanical version of DCC (called DRC) which meant the suspension was softer than the S4 when driving in a straight line but stiffer when cornering to provide both better handling and a better ride.

 

Tuning the suspension for both handling and comfort is an art not well understood by most car manufacturers.

I take your point but its the combination of both tyres and suspension that ultimately makes or breaks the package. OP was asking about tyres, hence response.  And in many instances, the suspension and  wheel/tyre combination is tailored to suit "less sporty" models which invariably dictates a smaller diameter wheel, reduced tyre cross section and higher profile which with same brand and model of tyre, will be a more compliant ride. Take that package the other way and stiffer suspension, larger diameter wheels and wider and or lower profile tyres is never going to improve matters as far as ride comfort is concerned (but will sharpen handling, steering etc). 

[clutchtime]

I managed to get superior handling and a extremely smooth ride by fitting a stiffer sway bar and using Michelin Primacy ST3, its got a curved sidewall construction which is perfect for bumpy roads and potholes and it sticks too. I had the Goodyear eagle series tyres on from the dealership and the Michelin have a very noticeable difference as far as ride comfort is concerned. The IRS with 16inch rims also helps keep the ride supple.

[Gerrycan]

After 45K km and 4 years I've just replaced 17" tyres on my 1.4tsi from original Dunlop SportsMaxx to Michelin Primacy.

Dunlops do not generally get rated well in this forum but I found them quiet, ride was comfortable and handling/braking was pretty good in all conditions bearing in mind that I am not an aggressive driver. The thing with them that stood out for me was  the apparent low rolling resistance.

For the first year or so I ran at 36psi but near the end ran as high as 38psi and all tyres seemed to require more frequent checking and topping up than when new.

Might have been something to do with the  4 or 5 nail/screw punctures they suffered in that time.

 

The new Primacy are now scrubbed in and are also quiet (thankfully), with good handling characteristics. Definitely feel sharp bumps at lower urban speeds more than the previous tyres  and they do not seem to roll quite as well either. I am running them on 38psi and will try them at 36psi when I next fill up to see how that goes.

 

I'm certainly no expert on tyres since with my mileage I only change them every 4 years or so unless I have let the tracking get out of hand.

I can only compare with the previous fitment and then it is only my subjective opinion.

Edited 24 May, 2018 by Gerrycan