V70 Tramlining - poll

[LPGjonderby]

Just swaped by P6000's to the back and new NCT'5s at the front. WOW. Drives in so much a straighter line.

[chris squires]

Bought my S60 D5 SE 163 in August 2005 with 9002 miles `on the clock` .
P6000 fitted and tramlining has been the only downside to an otherwise peach of a motor.
At 22341 the fronts were replaced with two KUMHO ECSTA SPT 225/45 ZR17 which totally eradicated the tramlining.
The rear P6000`s are, I`m told, good for another 5k which I`m happy with as my car will then have done 40300.
I don`t drive hard and haven`t noticed any difference in the handling nor do I notice any arch rubbing. Only downside is that the KUMHO`s seem to be wearing quicker than the original P6000`s and I think they`ll need replacing at around 19000 miles use - 3000 miles less than the P6000`s.
Can anyone advise of a non-tracking tyre that will give a similar (or better !) mileage than the P6000`s at a similar (or better !) price ?.

[ian_w]

Just thought I'd let you know my findings on tyre choice - my car is a 2000 C70 T5 Coupe with 225/45-17 tyres. My typical drive is 15 miles cross-country to and from work on bumpy and rutted 'B' & unclassified roads.

When I got the car it was fitted with virtually new cheapo 'Alpha Tornado' tyres on the front ( rear are Michelin Pilot Sports ). The tramlining was OKish, you had to fight it a bit on the worse of the bumps and ruts. I got about 10k miles out of the tyres before both the inside and outside edges wore out. This unusual wear was probably due to tired front wishbone bushes.

I replaced both front wishbones and fitted some Goodyear Eagle F1 GSD3s. I normally buy Goodyears as they tend to come out quite well on the car magazine's tests and they are typically also the cheapest 'premium' brand tyre. I'd had some GSD3s on my previous car ( Mondeo V6 ) and was very pleased with them, they also get favourable comments on this forum so they sounded like a good bet.

Anyway, new wishbones and new tyres didn't seem to give any reduction in the tramlining which suprised me a little. Over time, the tramlining seemed to get worse and ultimately the car became quite difficult to drive on rough surfaces. I had the car checked out and unfortunately the bushes in one of the front wishbones had failed prematurely. PFS supplied a replacement FOC and when this was fitted the car returned to as it was when I fitted the new tyres - OK but not great.

I'm not sure if it was due to the faulty wishbone but the GSD3s only lasted about 7000 miles before the centre was worn out whilst the edges still had 3-4mm left ( tyres always run at the Volvo recommended 2.3 bar ). I don't drive the car particularly hard so wasn't too happy about this mileage. Based on the wear from the 'Tornados' I was expecting about 12-14k with even wear across the tread.

Decision time now on what to fit. Was tempted by the new Asymmetric F1s which have just been launched ( got rave reviews in the motoring comics ) but then read about the Goodyears Excellences in 'Nuisances' posts. Checking out the Goodyear website they sounded like a good bet, aimed slightly more at comfort than a sports tyre like the F1. Despite having low profile tyres the Volvo can't really be considered a sports car!

Anyway, got a pair of Excellences fitted to the front this weekend - £85.83 each all in from my local tyre shop ( JAB Tyres in Daventry ). What a difference they have made - the car has been transformed. Even on the bumpiest and most rutted sections of road the car tracks straight and true. You can even deliberately drive right along the edges of ruts and joins in the tarmac without the car pulling in any way. I haven't had a chance to drive them in the wet but I imagine they will be good as wet performance was supposedely a major criteria in their development. Nuisance says they wear well too, so overall they sound like the ideal tyre for the car - they are exactly as the name suggests!

[zulu]

Originally Posted by Tinpusher

Just sifting thru some old threads; seems the Goodyears need bigger steering stops fitted to prevent rub at full lock. Any suggestions for tyres which will cure the tramlining but not need bigger stops? If not, how much will fitting bigger stops cost me?

Nothing wil cure Tramlining as long as you fit over sized wheels and tyres to a vehicle that is not supposed to have them.

[SNiP]

Forgive my ignorance, English is not my first language, what is "Tramlining" ?

//Jan

[SNiP]

Originally Posted by SNiP

Forgive my ignorance, English is not my first language, what is "Tramlining" ?

//Jan

Ah, just did what I should have done in the first place and looked it up on google.

I can't say I've had any problems with this as I have the original wheels, so this is something that people who upgrade to bigger "better" wheels experience?

I have comtemplated upgrading to 16" wheels in order to fit bigger brakes, would I then experience this "problem" ?

//Jan

[keithf]

Surely the best tyres you can have are what the manufacturer puts on the car in the first place? They are a compromise between ride quality and economy. So you must decide to go with the comromise or have better performance or economy! Imo michelin tyres are cr#p and pirreli's or goodyear are the way to go....... thats just my opinion, but I have experienced many michelin tyres that have mis-shaped tread (through normal use) and cause a noise that many confuse with a wheel bearing (you live and learn)

[xco]

Hi all

Just thought you'd like my two penneth.
I ran an s60 d5 for three years,which I've just got rid of and moved to a V70.
It came fitted with 225/ 45/ 17/ pirelli's on tethys alloys but 2 were nearly worn out and I had to replace them for the mot and was advised Dunlop sports .
Dont bother with these they are the noisyiest tyre I've ever run on and only managed 10k miles (bearly)before they needed replacing again!!!
I decided what ever I replaced them with I was gonna get four and see how they faired.
I spent a whole three evenings trawling the web for tyre specialists to see what was recommended and read what tyres were being given the best reviews.
I very nearly bought the eagle nct's spoken about earlier in this thread in favour of my first choice of the original p6000 volvo preferred running gear which seem to have problems with outer rim edge and tyre wall premature wear.
I came across a review for Pirelli 6000 POWERGY'S which pirelli claim has overcome the standard p6000 problems and decided at a fiver more per axle to give them a try.
£350 fitted balanced and new valves .Wow!!An excellent choice which I can highly recommend to you all.
They are very quiet ,very sure footed in the wet and very well behaved in the dry and wear very well .After 10k miles of mixed motorway and urban and rural driving my next mot told me they still had 6mm on the front and 8mm on the back!!!
And finally for all you speed freaks this is a "W" rated tyre (169mph I think)so it should even appease you T5' ers!!!
Get 'em they're good !!
No noticable tramlining in the 10kmiles I drove them .
I've just moved to a V70 now and it is fitted with michelin pilots which also seem very quiet and up to the job but I know are more expensive than the pirelli powergy's.When they wear out it's POWERGY'S again for me.

[Nightmare1971]

Had to replace my front tyres today as they were down to the markers nearly and was getting tired of seeing blue smoke coming off them when powering off islands, and after looking at this thread I have decided to go for the same as the ones on the T5 when I bought it 2 yrs back, and they were Pirelli P6000s.

I decided to go for these as they have served me well for the last 2 yrs, and may be its better the devil you know??

The only issue I have is the fronts are 55 profile and the rears are 50, not sure why some one had decided to have different size profiles on the motor, I can take a guess that it was down to price, as the 50 are about £30 more or it might be for the reason it is the V70 and they were trying to stop the arse end from being a bit sloppy?

So, £73 each fitted, valved and balanced and the chap came to my house and changed them while I was sitting down drinking tea. Took them for a spin, and feel okay, just need to stick some miles on them as you know all tyres feel strange at first.

So I am going to give them ago, and see how they feel, then I will be buying a strut brace to see it will help with the cornering as the V70 needs a little help in that area, but will read up on them first, as I know some of you like them, and some don't.

All the best...

Andy..

[xco]

Check out these sites guys and gals

www.mytyres.co.uk

www.etyres.co.uk

www.tirerack.com (GOOD TYRE REVIEW SITE)

Three very informative sites all giving very helpful information and reviews ( www.tirerack.com gives excellent user reviews so you can see exactly what's good /so so /and forget it.

It was thanks to etyres that I bought my powergy's.

I went through the fully fitted option but decided to check at the sites recommended local fitter the next day and they offered me the same deal for 4 for £120.00 less than the internet site's allegedly killer price.

Needless to say I ordered them from the local dealer and they were on and fitted the very next morning,valves and balancing included.