18" Tyre test

[mcmaddy]

Problem is I don't trust any tyre fitter to not mark, gouge or scratch my new wheels so I'll stick with them until I absolutely have to change them. They can't even balance them properly either

[mcmaddy]

I had the re050a on my old Jetta and they were fine. The thing is even when cold you can't just stamp on the go pedal and expect to get traction from the outset. Drive to the conditions and sensibly and you won't have any issues even on Bridgestones.

I'm beginning to think you work for Bridgestone.    Or alternatively, drive everywhere at 10mph and have never had to make an emergency manoeuvre/braking on the Bridgestones.

I'm not talking about stamping on the go pedal, nor driving in a manner not in tune with conditions.  Nor driving like a lair.  Just everyday driving with the traffic flow.

For example, I had one ~40kmh, constant speed, emergency swerve manoeuvre to avoid another driver who decided they wanted my lane almost put me in a pole on RE030s due to their lack of turning and braking grip.  Then there were the numerous take off's from a standstill uphill resulting in wheel tramp due to no traction.  Or the relatively sedate take offs on level surfaces which had the traction control cutting in.  In a variety of different cars  I could go on for ages listing why these tyres are sh!te, for everyday, cold weather driving, but why bother.  Bridgestones are fine.

And the funny thing is, the numerous different model Michelins and Conts I've used have not exhibited the Bridgestones' appalling cold weather performance.

But yeah, the Bridgestones are fine.

re030s are not re050s or S001s. I don't drive everywhere at 10mph either but I've never felt unsafe with them. Yes you'll have slightly more grip in the cold with a Michelin or Goodyear or conti tyre but driving to the conditions of the road and surroundings probably has way more weight than just saying oh these tyres are terrible. It's a good job we've got hundreds of tyres to choose really isn't it 👍

I know we all have different priorities for our money, but when you're prepared to spend £600 on a detail and ceramic coating but won't spend a few hundred quid on decent tyres, i'd do the tyres first, every single time.

£600 might get a bonnet and roof and nowt else 

[Jim_mk7.5]

Problem is I don't trust any tyre fitter to not mark, gouge or scratch my new wheels so I'll stick with them until I absolutely have to change them. They can't even balance them properly either

I had to use national tyres through my lease company. Thought they'd done a good job. Until over winter when I didn't clean the car for a while then found white worm where the lacquer had been caught on a 2 of the wheels. Hard to even see this at the time until its too late.

[monkeyhanger]

Problem is I don't trust any tyre fitter to not mark, gouge or scratch my new wheels so I'll stick with them until I absolutely have to change them. They can't even balance them properly either

You can't even trust the factory in that regard either.

When I swapped out the Bridgestones for PS4 on the 18" Brescias on the Polo GTI, Iwas helping the tyre fitter out as it was the last car of the day and I knew it'd be quicker if I helped. Got the wheel off took it over to him, he popped the tyre off in front of me and showed me a big scrape on the inside edge of the rim. No-one outside the factory (or potentially the delivery network/dealership) would've touched that wheel to put a tyre on. 3" long scrape as if the wheel had been dragged along the floor.

The inevitable has happened and I have whiteworm starting. Going to get all wheels powder coated I think. The car's coming up to 2 years old and past experiences are that whiteworm is inevitable between years 2 and 3. Every single VW I've had with diamond cut alloys that I've kept beyond 2 years has had whiteworm which have been replaced under warranty. Recent dealings with VW have been that they're knocking back more and more non-mechanical warranty work. If they pull the tyre off and see the scrape they'll say I or a tyre fitter caused it anyway.

Might hold out to Aug 1st when second service is due, ask then and be prepared to powder coat when denied.

[monkeyhanger]

£600 might get a bonnet and roof and nowt else 
[/quote]

Jeez, I'm in the wrong job. Got told to stick in at school to become a lowly paid Scientist, should've become a detailer instead!

[mcmaddy]

Problem is I don't trust any tyre fitter to not mark, gouge or scratch my new wheels so I'll stick with them until I absolutely have to change them. They can't even balance them properly either

You can't even trust the factory in that regard either.

When I swapped out the Bridgestones for PS4 on the 18" Brescias on the Polo GTI, Iwas helping the tyre fitter out as it was the last car of the day and I knew it'd be quicker if I helped. Got the wheel off took it over to him, he popped the tyre off in front of me and showed me a big scrape on the inside edge of the rim. No-one outside the factory (or potentially the delivery network/dealership) would've touched that wheel to put a tyre on. 3" long scrape as if the wheel had been dragged along the floor.

The inevitable has happened and I have whiteworm starting. Going to get all wheels powder coated I think. The car's coming up to 2 years old and past experiences are that whiteworm is inevitable between years 2 and 3. Every single VW I've had with diamond cut alloys that I've kept beyond 2 years has had whiteworm which have been replaced under warranty. Recent dealings with VW have been that they're knocking back more and more non-mechanical warranty work. If they pull the tyre off and see the scrape they'll say I or a tyre fitter caused it anyway.

Might hold out to Aug 1st when second service is due, ask then and be prepared to powder coat when denied.

would very much doubt it'll be from the factory. More likely to be transporter or at the dealer.

[monkeyhanger]

[ would very much doubt it'll be from the factory. More likely to be transporter or at the dealer.

I'd like to think so, but in the past I've had factory released defects that are obvious (like a mis-press of a front wing on a 2001 Polo that was perfectly painted).

It could've been anywhere prior to delivery, with the assumption "the customer will never know".  It could've been dropped or scraped at the factory prior to original tyre fitting or if the car required a new tyre in transit or at the dealership, they scraped it during tyre change.

Either way, unless Pulman get the whiteworm acknowledged and accepted as a warranty claim without the tyre coming off, I'll need a new wheel at my cost, then wait for the other 3 to go, or get them all powder coated at my cost.

It'll be impossible to disprove that the scrape was done in my care. The R had a stealth Pretoria refurb before delivery too.

[Splashalot]

I had the re050a on my old Jetta and they were fine. The thing is even when cold you can't just stamp on the go pedal and expect to get traction from the outset. Drive to the conditions and sensibly and you won't have any issues even on Bridgestones.

I'm beginning to think you work for Bridgestone.    Or alternatively, drive everywhere at 10mph and have never had to make an emergency manoeuvre/braking on the Bridgestones.

I'm not talking about stamping on the go pedal, nor driving in a manner not in tune with conditions.  Nor driving like a lair.  Just everyday driving with the traffic flow.

For example, I had one ~40kmh, constant speed, emergency swerve manoeuvre to avoid another driver who decided they wanted my lane almost put me in a pole on RE030s due to their lack of turning and braking grip.  Then there were the numerous take off's from a standstill uphill resulting in wheel tramp due to no traction.  Or the relatively sedate take offs on level surfaces which had the traction control cutting in.  In a variety of different cars  I could go on for ages listing why these tyres are sh!te, for everyday, cold weather driving, but why bother.  Bridgestones are fine.

And the funny thing is, the numerous different model Michelins and Conts I've used have not exhibited the Bridgestones' appalling cold weather performance.

But yeah, the Bridgestones are fine.

re030s are not re050s or S001s. I don't drive everywhere at 10mph either but I've never felt unsafe with them. Yes you'll have slightly more grip in the cold with a Michelin or Goodyear or conti tyre but driving to the conditions of the road and surroundings probably has way more weight than just saying oh these tyres are terrible. It's a good job we've got hundreds of tyres to choose really isn't it 👍

Never had REO30A, but it's a fair assumption to make that they'll be poor in normal UK driving conditions and climate when the rest are. I've personally experienced:-

Potenza S001
Potenza RE050A
Turanza T001
Turanza T005

They all suffer the same shortfall.

"Driving to the conditions of the road and surroundings" means having to treat the car differently if its got Bridgestones on vs Conti 5, Michelin PS4 etc. You shouldn't need to treat the car differently because it's got Bridgestones on. For me, that highlights the shortcomings of the tyre on UK roads vs its peers. If you can't get safe levels of grip on a GTI with Bridgestones when you put your foot down a little (not driving like a nutter) then what's the point of having a GTI apart from the badge and equipment?

For me, binning the Bridgestones and getting something better on is the best £320 you can spend in modding your GTI or R rather than nursing the car for 2 years on average miles and then realising how much better the car is on different rubber in the last few months of ownership before you chop it in.. I got £210 for my set of Bridgestones on ebay vs a £320 spend on a set of PS4s. So the difference neddn't hit you hard in the pocket.

I know we all have different priorities for our money, but when you're prepared to spend £600 on a detail and ceramic coating but won't spend a few hundred quid on decent tyres, i'd do the tyres first, every single time.

Driving on Bridgestones is like driving on decent summer tyres in snow when everyone else is on winter tyres - extreme caution needed.

If only VW would take on customer feedback and act on it appropriately. I can only think that they're getting these tyres for a song!

Spot-on, monkeyhanger.  This ^ exactly echos my thoughts and experiences. 

As previously stated, and I repeat, I've had basically the same traction and grip issues on:
RE030;
RE040;
S001 (briefly - ditched them after 1 week from new);
and an older Bridgestone model the name of which I can't recall. 

They all lacked traction and grip in the cold and wet. 

Now I think of it - all the above were OEM fitment on a variety of new cars.  It was once explained to me by someone in the tyre industry that Bridgestone dump tyres to manufacturers on the premise that a certain percentage of owners know no better and fit the same tyre again at inflated prices.  Whether this is correct I don't know, but it could explain VW's love affair with Bridgerocks.

I just cannot understand putting up with tyres which so obviously limit enjoyment of the GTI.  For what?  A few dollars/pounds saved over how many years?  Lunacy in my opinion.  And false economy in terms of safety.  Going from 1 week old S001 to PS4 cost me 2/3rds of stuff-all on change over for a large gain in safety and driving satisfaction.  I call that a small amount of money well spent. 

And I can now safely drive over 10 MPH. 

[fredgroves]

OEM tyre choices are almost certainly driven by cost and CO2 figures.

Someone bids with a design and a price and then the OEM uses them for an agreed contract period/volume.

The better tyres you find either aren't cheap enough or don't produce the desired CO2 figures.

That's it.

Exactly the same reason why a whole load of parts you might choose to fit to your car aren't fitted by the OEM.

[monkeyhanger]

OEM tyre choices are almost certainly driven by cost and CO2 figures.

Someone bids with a design and a price and then the OEM uses them for an agreed contract period/volume.

The better tyres you find either aren't cheap enough or don't produce the desired CO2 figures.

That's it.

Exactly the same reason why a whole load of parts you might choose to fit to your car aren't fitted by the OEM.

In this case it's got to be down to cost. Bridgestones aren't particularly economical, regardless of official ratings. I wonder whether one particular model of tyre has to be used in umbrella testing for official figures.

Can't see Bridgestones being used to derive the performance figures quoted as you get a lot more tramping than you'll get with other brands to affect the 0-62 times.

Whenever you see write-ups of a new VW model, VW always seem to send the press cars out on Michelins (whenever you can determine tyre brands from the pics)

Even if it is purely down to cost, VW could give you the option to pay extra for better tyres - Ford has been doing this for years with the Transit van. Performance Renaults come on specified tyres rather than a lucky dip.

Whenever you go on ebay.fr/.de/.it looking for OEM wheels to buy that someone is getting rid of, they're always on decent rubber. Makes me strongly believe that sometimes OEM tyre choice is market specific.