Hi all

 

Just wondering, what sort of life do Scout owners get from their tyres? I had a pair of Falken FK510s fitted to the front of my Scout in October 2017 ish. They've now done about 15,000 miles, and according to a garage I've just been to for another tyre, they only have about 1000 miles left in them. I think the garage is being a bit dramatic, they're not that bad, but even so, they've not done anything like as many miles as I was expecting / hoping. Wear is fairly even, so I don't think it's a tracking problem. I do drive on quite a few country roads, and live in Wales - so they're all quite bad! And to be fair, I've not rotated the wheels yet, but I was expecting better from Falken tyres. 20,000 miles at least, maybe 30,000? Am I expecting too much? What sort of mileage do you get from a set of tyres?

 

Thanks.

Measure the tread depth!

 

The initial wear is much faster than when they are scrubbed and performing properly.

 

For over a decade i drove on part worn tyres, those that had been removed when the garage said they should be replaced like yours, I always got 20+ K miles from a set with rotation and replacing when they reached the legal limit, longer than they had served for on the original vehicle.

 

I had no choice, my financial situation dictated it, I would pay £100 a set with fitting, I wont claim that the grip and braking performance in the wet will have been as good as the new tyres that they were replaced by.

 

you pays your money you takes your choice.

 

Editted, it was probably more than 20K miles because I took the car from 188 to 325000 miles on 3 sets of part worns plus whatever was left on the original tyres. There will have been one or two other part worn replacements after punctures etc.

Edited 19 June, 20197 yr by J.R.

Thanks JR. Sounds like you're getting very good mileage from part worn tyres! (Though I suppose 4wd on the Scout might be worse for tyre wear than your 2wd car...)

 

I've just measured with a 20p piece, and the tyres are quite worn near the middle, not so bad at the shoulders. So it seems the garage chap wasn't far off. Maybe I've got them a bit over inflated...

 

Anyway, it seems they are wearing quickly - the old Pirelli Centauro left on the back has a lot more tread and it's been on since before I bought the car. Shame, as I fitted a new Falken this morning - £99 for a single tyre!! (But probably better than the ditchfinder at £66...) When the new Falken has worn down a bit I'll roate the wheels front to back and hope to get a bit more life out of them. I'll also try a brand other than Falken next time.

 

Anyone else had quick wear with Falkens? Or quick wear generally on a Scout? I don't drive like a boy racer.

I swap over from 'summer' to 'winter' tyres in April/May and September/October. I also get a foyr wheel alignment carried out at the same time.

 

I replaced the OEM Dunlop SPO1's at around 50-55k, so 25-30k in actual use. They still had 3-4mm of tread on them, but I just wanted rid as they were a horrible tyre. 

 

The Goodyear Efficient Grip Performance that replaced them will be getting replaced next year as the tyre walls are showing slight signs of cracking, by that point the tyres would have approximately 30k of actual use. They also have 3-4mm of tread still on them. These tyres are approximately 5 or 6 years old. 

 

My Nokian WR A3's are getting replaced this year, due to cracks in the tyre sidewall. They would have required replacing regardless as they are at the minimum 4mm tread depth for Cold Weather Tyres to operate effectively. These tyres are approximately 7 or 8 years old. 

 

I'm not sure whether to replace the Goodyears with the same, or Michelin Cross Climates. 

 

The Nokians will be getting replaced with Nokian A4 or D3 tyres. 

Worn in the middle and not the edges sounds like an over inflation issue.

 

I've always got around 30k miles out of tyres on my Scout. (With 6 monthly rotation)

3 hours ago, sandspider said:

Hi all

 

Just wondering, what sort of life do Scout owners get from their tyres? I had a pair of Falken FK510s fitted to the front of my Scout in October 2017 ish. They've now done about 15,000 miles, and according to a garage I've just been to for another tyre, they only have about 1000 miles left in them. I think the garage is being a bit dramatic, they're not that bad, but even so, they've not done anything like as many miles as I was expecting / hoping. Wear is fairly even, so I don't think it's a tracking problem. I do drive on quite a few country roads, and live in Wales - so they're all quite bad! And to be fair, I've not rotated the wheels yet, but I was expecting better from Falken tyres. 20,000 miles at least, maybe 30,000? Am I expecting too much? What sort of mileage do you get from a set of tyres?

 

Thanks.

 

Sounds about right to me for the fronts compared to our Octy II 4x4.  TBH I'd be worried if I was getting 20k or more out of a set of tyres...

Edited 19 June, 20197 yr by skomaz

Thanks all. Quite a variation then...

We went through 2 full sets of the Dunlop SP01 tyres that it came on from the factory in 60,000 miles, great tyres.

 

No need to rotate them either, all four corners wore perfectly evenly.

 

Thanks Silver. Do you have regular wheel alignments or anything? And do you not find the grip and handling poor on the Dunlops?

13 hours ago, silver1011 said:

We went through 2 full sets of the Dunlop SP01 tyres that it came on from the factory in 60,000 miles, great tyres.

 

No need to rotate them either, all four corners wore perfectly evenly.

 

That's impressive, the best I ever had was 58k on a set of Contis on a mk1 Zafira, but that was with rotating at around 46k.

 

Fin69, +1 for the CrossClimates from Bibendum. Had a set on said Zaf, and merrily tootled past a slowly-sliding-backwards Audi A7 quattro in last year's snow on a local steep hill. They'll be my next set of winter tyres on my Scout too.

 

And Silver, how the hell are your wheels looking that good? Scabby is a kind description of mine...

Edited 20 June, 20197 yr by tintinandcharlie

That photo was immediately after a full refurb.

 

There isn't one single Proteus alloy wheel out there that hasn't suffered from the dreaded whiteworm.

 

The Proteus on the MkII Scout was one of the first alloy wheels that Skoda launched in the UK with a polished / diamond cut finish, so needless to say most, if not all, are looking a little worse for wear by now.

 

I had several alloys replaced under warranty, but as soon as the three year warranty expired I had them refurbed and painted, without the diamond cut / polished finish.

 

I really liked the shine from the original finish though, so my only instruction to the guy refurbing them was that I wanted the brightest silver paint you can get 

 

Loved my Scout. Arguably the last proper built Skoda. For those of you with one, that is thinking of upgrading, don't. Whilst the MkIII Scout has all the mod cons and is a great car, it isn't a patch on the MkII. The MkII had something about it, a solidity I've yet to experience in any of the more modern Skoda's I've owned!

 

Edited 20 June, 20197 yr by silver1011

3 hours ago, sandspider said:

Thanks Silver. Do you have regular wheel alignments or anything? And do you not find the grip and handling poor on the Dunlops?

 

Unfortunately, I've since moved on from my MkII Scout, having traded it in for a MkIII a few years ago.

 

My MkII never needed any alignment, the Dunlops wore evenly, were quiet, hit 30,000 miles, and served us well in many harsh winters. Don't get me wrong, the car was mainly driven by my wife, who has never tested a tyre to its limit, but I drove it most weekends and was impressed. The car had three full sets of the Dunlops on it during my ownership and I'm a Goodyear fan.

 

There were reports of them cracking, but this happens to most tyres under certain conditions and I never experienced it.

 

Now, bear with me here, you'll probably think I'm a little strange. The profile of the Dunlops is quite unique, the bulbous shape of the side profile is different to most other alternatives of the same size tyre, and I like it. It gives the car a certain appearance or stance, and does a great job of protecting the alloys. A bit nerdy but I can spot a Scout riding on non-Dunlop tyres or the wrong tyre size completely (quite common now on older Scouts) a mile away 

Any more for any more?! Does anyone else use Falken tyres?

I ditched the Dunlop SP01's on our 4x4 after about 8,000 miles as they were cracking in between the tread blocks - I'll not use Dunlops again!

 

After that I used Vredestein Sportrac 3's for a few years (the older ones with the V tread pattern) and they were excellent but, once they were replaced by the SPortrac 5 with a non-V pattern I switched to Cross Climates, just after they came out.  The latter have been great and the car has been pretty much unstoppable in the bad weather and heavy snow we get in the Pennines, and in the summer they've remained stable and very surefooted - and I don't hang about!

Well I cant say much about tyre wear on a Scout but on my previous Octavia's and Superb company car's I ran Goodyear NCTs and then Efficient grip as soon as the factory ones wore out.

Great value for money and very good grip in most weather conditions ( Ran winter tyres from Nov to March ).

I used to get around 15-18,000 out of a set and I drive my cars hard and do around 50,000 a year.

I have a non-scout MK2 FL Octavia so it'll be a little bit lighter but I'm getting super long life from Cross Climates.

 

I've used 8 tyres so far which have given me:

- 36k from one pair, early replacement due to the puncture

- 50k from one pair, still on the car

- 60k from one pair, worn out

- 74k from one pair, still on the car

 

The ones on the car still have 4mm+ on all four corners. I do about 30k a year and it's not unusual for me to use WOT as there are plenty of points in my journey where 0 to 70 mph acceleration is necessary

 

About the only negative point is that the rears can drone due to sawtoothing. It's only minor as I tend to rotate the tyres to balance the wear and could probably be fixed by alignment.

Thanks all

 

Quite a variation then. But it sounds like Cross Climates would be worth a look next time... They do seem to be fairly pricey, and possibly not immediately available in my normal tyre size, but worth it if they last such a long time and work well for all that time.

Gone for some Pirellis in the end - tyre place said they were a harder rubber and should last longer. We shall see!