Replacement wheels

[Cbiggs]

Evening all, 

 

We have a 2010 Fabia 2 with 16" alloy wheels, living rurally with the state of the road the low profile tyres are not lasting long! Thinking of swapping out for some 14" or 15" steel wheels for a smoother ride and cheaper tyres, has anyone done this? is it worth it?

Anyone selling a set with tyres local to the South Coast?!

[sepulchrave]

I have a set of 14's near Brighton you can have.

[Cbiggs]

16 minutes ago, sepulchrave said:

I have a set of 14's near Brighton you can have.

PM sent

[Carlston]

14's are the way to go.

 

You will get twice the improvement in ride compared to going down just one inch to 15's.

 

I would go for 185/65R14 which is one of the standard sizes on the Roomster.

 

However, even the standard 185/60R14 is a big improvement over the 16's.

 

You can use either of the two standard Fabia MK2 14 inch rim sizes...5Jx14 ET35 or 6Jx14 ET37 with either of these 185 tyre sizes.

 

Take a look at available new tyres in both these sizes before making a final decision.

 

Good websites for new car tyres include mytyres, camskill, blackcircles, etc.

 

One other option for the 5Jx14 ET35 rims is 175/65R14. This is a particularly low priced tyre size, although the other two I mentioned aren't bad either.

 

Vredestein Quatrac 5 175/65R14 82T

https://www.camskill.co.uk/m137b0s7975p134030/Vredestein_Tyres_All_Season_Car_Vredestein_Quatrac5_Vredestein_Quatrac_5_-_175_65_R14_82T_TL_Fuel_Eff_%3A_C_Wet_Grip%3A_C_NoiseClass%3A_1_Noise%3A_68dB

 

Vredestein Quatrac 5 175/70R14 84T

https://www.camskill.co.uk/m137b0s7976p144831/Vredestein_Tyres_All_Season_Car_Vredestein_Quatrac5_Vredestein_Quatrac_5_-_175_70_R14_84T_TL_Fuel_Eff_%3A_C_Wet_Grip%3A_C_NoiseClass%3A_1_Noise%3A_68dB

 

Vredestein Quatrac 5 185/60R14 82T

https://www.camskill.co.uk/m137b0s7979p134034/Vredestein_Tyres_All_Season_Car_Vredestein_Quatrac5_Vredestein_Quatrac_5_-_185_60_R14_82T_TL_Fuel_Eff_%3A_E_Wet_Grip%3A_C_NoiseClass%3A_1_Noise%3A_68dB

 

Vredestein Quatrac 5 185/65R14 86T

https://www.camskill.co.uk/m137b0s7980p144832/Vredestein_Tyres_All_Season_Car_Vredestein_Quatrac5_Vredestein_Quatrac_5_-_185_65_R14_86T_TL_Fuel_Eff_%3A_E_Wet_Grip%3A_C_NoiseClass%3A_1_Noise%3A_68dB

 

Vredestein Quatrac 5 195/60R14 86H

https://www.camskill.co.uk/m137b0s7982p144833/Vredestein_Tyres_All_Season_Car_Vredestein_Quatrac5_Vredestein_Quatrac_5_-_195_60_R14_86H_TL_Fuel_Eff_%3A_C_Wet_Grip%3A_C_NoiseClass%3A_1_Noise%3A_69dB

 

I've also added 175/70R14 and 195/60R14 as options above. 175/70R14 could be used on the 5Jx14 ET35 rims, and 195/60R14 could be used on the 6Jx14 ET37 rims.

 

Edited 28 December, 2021 by Carlston

[UrbanPanzer]

I gather by your post you like Vredestien tyres or you work for em..................😁

Edited 28 December, 2021 by UrbanPanzer

[Carlston]

2 hours ago, UrbanPanzer said:

I gather by your post you like Vredestein tyres or you work for em..................😁

 

The Quatrac 5 is a very popular all-season tyre, and for good reason.

 

In the 185/65R14 size on camskill, there are only four top performing all-season tyres listed...Continental, Goodyear, Michelin, and Vredestein.

 

Out of those four brands, only the Vredestein all-season tyre is non-directional and has the lowest price.

 

It has a 45,000 mile tyre life as claimed in US adverts, and is quiet.

 

I'm not so keen on the latest Quatrac 6 as that is a directional tyre (like most all-season tyres) and is noisier than the previous generations (that can be one of the trade-offs you get from improving wet grip). However, this latest Quatrac 6 does have fantastic class leading handling in cold, wet conditions...much better than the Michelin CrossClimate 2, for example. In Southern England where it doesn't snow much, this is a good characteristic for a tyre to have that is used through the winter...and it will still give far superior snow performance compared to a summer tyre.

 

Here's a 2021 all-season tyre review. Take your pick from the winners. These will often be the big brand names in all-season tyres such as (in alphabetical order), Bridgestone, Continental, Dunlop, Goodyear, Hankook, Michelin, Pirelli, Vredestein, etc. Some big brand names in all-season tyres that work well in snow at the expense of summer performance include BF Goodrich, Kleber, and Nokian. These three are winter focused all-season tyres. They are not tyres I would want to fit, as their summer performance leaves a lot to be desired...and why they don't tend to do well in all-season tyre reviews.

 

2021 All-Season Tyre Review

https://www.tyrereviews.com/Article/2021-Tyre-Reviews-All-Season-Tyre-Test.htm

 

Next time I need to replace my all-season tyres I've got this new Dunlop all-season tyre on my shortlist...but being non-directional it probably won't win any tyre review tests...

 

Dunlop All-Season Tyre 185/65R14 86H

https://www.mytyres.co.uk/rshop/tyre/Dunlop/Sport-All-Season/185-65-R14-86H/R-435489

 

Edited 28 December, 2021 by Carlston

[26DIPP]

Also the 16" tyresize is a very odd one. Many manufacturers are not making the 205/45-16 at all.

[UrbanPanzer]

Michelin comes out top, no surprise there.............. it just shows you get what you pay for.

 

Not an all season tyre, but the Pilot sport 4's I have fitted knock the socks of both the Continentals and Goodyears I had previosuly fitted, don't regret spending the extra on the Michelins at all.

 

 

[Carlston]

11 minutes ago, UrbanPanzer said:

Michelin comes out top, no surprise there.............. it just shows you get what you pay for.

 

Not an all season tyre, but the Pilot sport 4's I have fitted knock the socks of both the Continentals and Goodyears I had previously fitted, don't regret spending the extra on the Michelins at all.

 

Just because the Michelin CrossClimate 2 came top, it doesn't mean that it will work best for everyone. It depends how you weight each individual test result.

 

For example, the South of England doesn't get much snow so the Vredestein Quatrac 6 could be a better choice due to its far superior cold, wet handling performance.

 

To be a better guide, the tyre reviews should give different overall results (ie. weight each individual test differently) for different climates.

 

The Michelin CrossClimate 2 isn't available in any sizes less than 15".

 

UHP (Ultra High Performance) summer tyres like the PS4's are not balanced tyres. Much below 7 degrees Centigrade and certainly in snow, they turn into ULP (Ultra Low Performance) tyres. UHP summer tyres also have stiffer sidewalls to maximise cornering performance at the expense of comfort and I doubt they last 45,000 miles. I'll stick to well rounded all-season tyres..comfortable, long lasting, and work well in all conditions.

[26DIPP]

1 hour ago, UrbanPanzer said:

Michelin comes out top, no surprise there.............. it just shows you get what you pay for.

 

Not an all season tyre, but the Pilot sport 4's I have fitted knock the socks of both the Continentals and Goodyears I had previosuly fitted, don't regret spending the extra on the Michelins at all.

 

 

Michelin has only just started to sell a 205/45-16 with the CC2. The previous CC was not available in that size.

[UrbanPanzer]

42 minutes ago, Carlston said:

 

Just because the Michelin CrossClimate 2 came top, it doesn't mean that it will work best for everyone. It depends how you weight each individual test result.

 

For example, the South of England doesn't get much snow so the Vredestein Quatrac 6 could be a better choice due to its far superior cold, wet handling performance.

 

To be a better guide, the tyre reviews should give different overall results (ie. weight each individual test differently) for different climates.

 

The Michelin CrossClimate 2 isn't available in any sizes less than 15".

 

UHP (Ultra High Performance) summer tyres like the PS4's are not balanced tyres. Much below 7 degrees Centigrade and certainly in snow, they turn into ULP (Ultra Low Performance) tyres. UHP summer tyres also have stiffer sidewalls to maximise cornering performance at the expense of comfort and I doubt they last 45,000 miles. I'll stick to well rounded all-season tyres..comfortable, long lasting, and work well in all conditions.

 

Exactly, it's like a review on anything, it's down to the reviewer on the day, the situation etc etc, lets face it ALL tyre tests are usually conducted on the same car, but some may be better on a different cars, It's all personal choice.

 

PS I have had 40k out of a set of michelin sports on a Vectra GSi many moons ago, tyre wear is down to rubber compound and in a nutshell how you drive it. I won't even do 45k in my car whilst I own it, so will have no idea how long they will last, all I can say is they are better than the continentals and Goodyears I did have.

 

 

[Carlston]

2 hours ago, UrbanPanzer said:

PS I have had 40k out of a set of michelin sports on a Vectra GSi many moons ago, tyre wear is down to rubber compound and in a nutshell how you drive it. I won't even do 45k in my car whilst I own it, so will have no idea how long they will last, all I can say is they are better than the continentals and Goodyears I did have.

 

All-season tyres work best with at least 3mm to 4mm of tread depth remaining. So that 45,000 miles might become 30,000 miles if you replace the tyres well before they reach the legal limit of 1.6mm tread depth. More tread depth also means a little extra puncture resistance.