when do you replace your tyres?

[Rob_benton]

Anyone else notice the inner edge wears quicker than the rest of the tyres on the rears, does the camber set up cause this ?

[Guzzle]

Still interesting to see on the forum that Michelins appear to be the most talked about tyre when the Goodyear Asy 5 is arguably a better tyre than the PS4 and the new Asy 6 is a better tyre than the PS5.

The Goodyear is the better tyre for performance purposes, but the forum represents real life owners. Most people don't want the best technically for that last 1% in comparison of performance, they want the tyre that does the 99% best, which is the Michelin.

It's the most comfortable and I know myself I get 30k miles out of a set of PS4Ss. Bridgestone, Goodyear, Pirelli they don't last and ride harder, which for getting milk or the commute isn't what's required.

The Bridgetones I had lasted yonks and I was keen to get rid of them.

I now have GY Asymmetric 5 and have been more than happy with them. I don't find they ride hard. They might ride harder than the PS4's, but they certainly aren't as hard as the Bridgestones they replaced. They were a good bit cheaper than the Michelins too, so worth considering. I wouldn't hesitate to buy them again.

[symonh2000]

Personally I have never had a good experience with Bridgstones. I hae had a couple of cars with them fitted and was always glad to get rid of them.

In general I have found them to offer poor grip, fast wear and a hard ride. In colder weather they have been especially bad.

The RE-050 runflats on my BMW 3 series were like driving on tyres filled with concrete.

The latest ones might well be good, but I think I will stick with my trusted Michelins or Goodyears.

[Exonian]

these cars are so safe in their handling characteristics, i’m not sure it really matters what you have on the rear. Might be quite fun to put some widow makers on the rear actually.

It’d be just like your 205 then!

Someone on here has to try the new Bridgestones... even if it a Mk8 owner, as used in the test?

https://www.evo.co.uk/tyre-reviews/18309/best-car-tyres-evo-performance-tyre-test

Count this mk8 driver out, the few sets of OEM Bridgestones I’ve had made more noise than my geriatric washing machine did last month on spin cycle when the drum bearings died!

[Snoopy]

Count this mk8 driver out, the few sets of OEM Bridgestones I’ve had made more noise than my geriatric washing machine did last month on spin cycle when the drum bearings died!

Mine did that in November so know what you mean.

[Yusee]

these cars are so safe in their handling characteristics, i’m not sure it really matters what you have on the rear. Might be quite fun to put some widow makers on the rear actually.

It’d be just like your 205 then!

That had crossed my mind!

I’ve heard of tyre fitters refusing to swap out worn front tyres and insisting on either moving the better tyres to the rear or changing those too (might even have read it on this forum).
Why would anyone want to give themselves less grip on the front wheels of a front driven car?
Far too cautious imo.

Has to be said, I barely get the 205 to move around these days, except at pretty low speeds.
Combination of the phenomenal grip modern tyres give and less testosterone as I’ve got older.

I’ve recently spent a bit of money on the 205, bringing it up to “ as new” condition mechanically.
It’s an absolute joy to drive.

[Exonian]

The old adage about new tyres going on the rear goes back to the good ol’ RWD days when worn rubber would mean understeer into a hedge.
I’d say toss a coin for it on FWD hatchbacks.

Here’s a prime example of the sort of thing you’d want the best tyres on the back of:




A friend of mine has just been given that little beauty to store for a friend of his who has emigrated. It’ll be removed from the draughty barn into a nice brick garage very soon!

He’s loving the simplicity of it having been out to get it started and up and running before moving it into his care.
Just like the 205 GTI it’s far more in tune with the road, only somewhat more pedestrian in speed and don’t even mention handling!

I was however contemplating getting a pair of PS5’s and swapping them to the rear not for handling finesse but in order to wear the current rear PS4S tyres down quicker as they’re hardly worn at all in 17k miles where the front PS4S are down to just over 3mm.

[sjw]

I believe the logic is that understeer is much more controllable than oversteer, and therefore you put the tyres with the most tread on the back to avoid that

[Exonian]

Yes, that’s the logic sjw but as in my post above, it’s not a hard and fast rule as there are so many variables, from different sized tyres fitted to different axles, geometry differences meaning different axles might have different wear characteristics and so on right through to FWD hatches having very little weight and stress bearing on the rear compared to the front in normal use so the rears wear down far more slowly than the fronts (reducing the chances of unexpected oversteer until they wear down a fair bit more).

A degree of common sense needs to be applied treating every car as an individual case.

As car enthusiasts we could get super anal and say PS4S on the front of a GTI for steering sharpness and better heat handling and PS5’s on the rear for a more compliant sidewall and better water clearing properties meaning less chance of oversteer…   Or is that a bad idea as the sidewalls don’t match? 

[P6GTD]

To go off topic slightly (again) , that looks like a lovely genuine original Beetle so better than cash in the bank. My first car in 1969 was a 1957 Beetle that nearly killed me thanks to a combination of rear engine and swing axles (yes!) for those old enough to know what they were.

Incidentally the only real road accident I ever had was in a Triumph Herald which had……..yes, you guessed, rear swing axles which simply tucked under and produced a much amplified and almost terminal tail slide.

Back to Beetles, in the late 60s/early 70s my dad bought two new Beetles, firstly a 1300 then a 1300S. The 1300 was a better driver’s car. Both came on Pirelli Cinturato radials at a time when most British cars were still being sold on dreadful cross ply tyres and crap suspension.

Returning to the topic of tyre choices, both these Beetles felt  better on the road than their bread and butter rivals both in build quality and driving quality.

Not sure where this rambling post is going other than the common factors of tyres and Beetles. I’ll stop now…..