Tyre woes

[Generallee]

Very interesting replies - thank you. Sadly, I'm not one of those 'brand name' kind of people... so prefer to buy from test results or even better my own experience, obviously this is fine if you can use the Consumer Act and get your money back if things aren't fit for purpose. Some of these name brands have changed hands and are part of different companies now, like Cooper own Avon etc. I also believe Michelin don't actually have any real rubber in their tyres anymore, all synthetic - they are good tyres though. The Khumos do what they do best and the Acceleras are fine on the Mustang - I just couldn't believe the difference when on the V70. I'm not sure there is any way to test them for wet grip out of a lab, but I do have photos that show the front tyres have been scrubbed understeering, where the rears are fine....they will probably blame the tracking, but that is fine. No, I don't think they will give me my money back if I send them back to test so I think I will wait for paypal to give me my money back as they are not fit for purpose. I've done probably 130K miles in my 850/V70 and it does get the beans ;-)

[XC90Mk1]

Originally Posted by Generallee

Very interesting replies - thank you. Sadly, I'm not one of those 'brand name' kind of people... so prefer to buy from test results or even better my own experience, obviously this is fine if you can use the Consumer Act and get your money back if things aren't fit for purpose. Some of these name brands have changed hands and are part of different companies now, like Cooper own Avon etc. I also believe Michelin don't actually have any real rubber in their tyres anymore, all synthetic - they are good tyres though. The Khumos do what they do best and the Acceleras are fine on the Mustang - I just couldn't believe the difference when on the V70. I'm not sure there is any way to test them for wet grip out of a lab, but I do have photos that show the front tyres have been scrubbed understeering, where the rears are fine....they will probably blame the tracking, but that is fine. No, I don't think they will give me my money back if I send them back to test so I think I will wait for paypal to give me my money back as they are not fit for purpose. I've done probably 130K miles in my 850/V70 and it does get the beans ;-)

So do I. Michelin and Goodyear are regular champs. I have really gotten on with Goodyear. My ford has just had 20k out of the front set and the tears are half left (not a small light car).

The el cheapos that you refer to I will go out on a limb and guess have never had a group test winner tag? Just buy good tyres and don’t scrimp. Mocking on half a million miles I have never had a blow out, defect, bulge etc etc but I only buy good stuff.

[Joe H]

Originally Posted by XC90Mk1

So do I. Michelin and Goodyear are regular champs. I have really gotten on with Goodyear.
...and don’t scrimp. Mocking on half a million miles I have never had a blow out, defect, bulge etc etc but I only buy good stuff.

Years ago I used tyre reviews and settled on Goodyear as good all-rounders and been very happy with multiple pairs on the V70.
Recently I changed just the fronts and the fitter called me over to look at the rears.
They are only half-worn and date coded 4415 so under 3 years old yet they both have a lot of cracking between the treads (none on the sidewalls). He said he is seeing that increasingly but doesn't know the reason.
Any ideas anyone?
Joe

[Clan]

Originally Posted by Joe H

Years ago I used tyre reviews and settled on Goodyear as good all-rounders and been very happy with multiple pairs on the V70.
Recently I changed just the fronts and the fitter called me over to look at the rears.
They are only half-worn and date coded 4415 so under 3 years old yet they both have a lot of cracking between the treads (none on the sidewalls). He said he is seeing that increasingly but doesn't know the reason.
Any ideas anyone?
Joe

I've seen a lot of that too in the last couple of years .. Rear tyres are wearing increasing faster than they used to these days , and if you have a white car and do not wash it often you rub your finger down the body behind the rear wheel you get very fine black dust on it .. They have designed the tyres/ suspension to wear much faster than they used to and rear suspension settings are negative camber , front and rear, which wear tyres ( and brakes ) equally now ..

[CJL]

Tyres can take a long time wear in. I fitted some BF Goodrich all terrains to my pickup and they were dreadful in the wet to begin with. Took well over a thousand miles, but now they grip much better in the wet.

[Joe H]

Originally Posted by Clan

I've seen a lot of that too in the last couple of years .. Rear tyres are wearing increasing faster than they used to these days , and if you have a white car and do not wash it often you rub your finger down the body behind the rear wheel you get very fine black dust on it .. They have designed the tyres/ suspension to wear much faster than they used to and rear suspension settings are negative camber , front and rear, which wear tyres ( and brakes ) equally now ..

I don't know if this has always been the case and I just picked up on it recently, but there are warnings about using ordinary summer tyres (which is what most of us use) below 7 C eg
https://www.uniroyal.co.uk/car/knowl...yres-in-winter

"Summer tyres have less natural rubber compound than winter tyres – so they’re not as soft. Their firmness helps the tyre to grip wet and dry roads in milder temperatures.
However, when temperatures fall below +7 degrees C, this extra rigidity can cause a problem. The colder the temperature gets, the stiffer summer tyres become. And this can lead to cracking."

Although I live now in a warm part of the country I often drive below that. I wonder if the compounds are changing and that is contributing to the problem. Or maybe I just drive less miles so am getting more years from the tyres than I used to.

Joe

[volvoid]

or simply buy them from your local indi, they have to match kwitfat prices or beat them to stay in business

[volvoid]

Im fortunate to have never had a problem with any tyre Ive had, even old old ones, but Ive never had a cheapy no name. Could this be a coincidence ? I doubt it.
Ive never bought a brand I havent heard of.
Im told that the cheapos are better than they were, the euro ratings have seen to that, but longevity is not measured, nor subjective matters like ride quality

[ASt85]

Originally Posted by Clan

if you have a white car and do not wash it often you rub your finger down the body behind the rear wheel you get very fine black dust on it ..

I had assumed that the black dust was coming from the brake pads. It hadn't occurred to me that it might be due to excessive tyre wear.
We live at the bottom of a hill just before a T junction with a main road and have noticed that the dust on our window sills during the summer months has become increasingly more black over the last few years when the windows tend to be open more often. I had thought it was due to both brake dust and the increased level of diesel soot; we live near to a school so also get quite high traffic density a couple of times a day with several hundred "coldish" stop/starts.

Oddly the black dust level doesn't seem to noticeably diminish during the summer holidays, similarly if the windows are left open during cooler months the dust level is unchanged- there again we are on the north side of the M2 around 300 feet lower than its highest point at Bluebell Hill - even though we are a mile from that interchange you can hear background motorway noise for the greater part of the day.

Given the prevailing wind in the area your tyre wear observations make a great deal of sense and would go a long way to explain other associated issues re air quality locally.

[Joe H]

Originally Posted by volvoid

Im fortunate to have never had a problem with any tyre Ive had, even old old ones, but Ive never had a cheapy no name. Could this be a coincidence ? I doubt it.Ive never bought a brand I havent heard of.

This is the cracking that the fitter pointed out on my Goodyears which made me post the question above. Fitted early 2016, manufactured 4415, never abused and always correct pressure. It's not obvious until you get your nose down close.
Joe