Black Circle 'Own Brand' Tyres

[julian1969]

It seems like my new (to me) 2007 RX400h is going to be in need of new front tyres in the very near future - I'm getting occasional buttock clenching under steer on roundabouts unless i'm very gentle with steering and throttle inputs and a bit of steering shake around 30-40mph.

My usual go to place is black circles but I've not had to buy tyres for a number of years (various service plans etc. meant that it all got done at the dealers). I now notice that they are doing their own line of tyres for between 70 and 100 ukp per corner fitted. 

I was wondering if anyone here had used them or if people tend to stick to the big 'name' tyres. I've used budget tyres in the past and have generally had no issue with them apart from one set on a Peugeot that were very noisy. 

 

[rayaans]

Id stick with the usual brands tbh - no point trying something not many people tend to go for and then being disappointed. Especially for £20-30 a corner its not worth it.

[sorcerer]

Avons are very good - here's the text from a previous posting I made in these forums back in November:

I've just put 4 Avon ZX7s (235/55 R18 100V) on my RX300 and ordered them from http://www.tyreshopper.co.uk for £386 then used a Tyreshopper discount code to get 5% off, making it £366 and also got 3.15% cashback by going through http://www.topcashback.co.uk making the final, fully-fitted price £354. They were fitted at a local branch of National Tyres who, if I had bought the tyres directly from them, would have charged £421.

I'm VERY impressed with the tyres. They're 'A' rated for wet conditions and they certainly deserve it as the car is so sure-footed now, in both wet and dry conditions - I can highly recommend them.

[julian1969]

The ZX7's look good however on the BC site they are listed as SUV but NOT XL rated - given the hybrids extra weight I'm wondering if this is a consideration - I used to drive a Seat Alhambra (VW Sharran / Ford Galaxy) and the tyres for that had to be XL rated ( AFAIK XL means the tyres have a reinforced sidewall for heavy vehicles or those that are rated to carry heavy loads). 

Might be a complete non issue but cant find any definitive recommendation one way or the other so erring on the side of caution at the moment.

 

[Silversalmon]

I'm contemplating on a set of Michelin Cross Climates though at £800 it's a serious investment. I have no issues with ride quality or mpg, i just want them to last as long as possible. 34psi or higher for maximising tyre life Gentlemen?

Mind you, the Avons as described above are half the price????? Where do you get a discount code???

[julian1969]

I believe the discount is via gold membership.

 

[sorcerer]

53 minutes ago, Silversalmon said:

I'm contemplating on a set of Michelin Cross Climates though at £800 it's a serious investment. I have no issues with ride quality or mpg, i just want them to last as long as possible. 34psi or higher for maximising tyre life Gentlemen?

Mind you, the Avons as described above are half the price????? Where do you get a discount code???

Tyre Shopper discount codes are here: http://www.tyre-shopper.co.uk/deals

Regarding your question "34psi or higher for maximising tyre life gentlemen?" - here's the text I posted in a different topic somewhere on these forums:

It doesn't matter what you want to run your tyres at or what some guy in a newspaper says, it's what the manufacturer says.

I once worked with a guy who was involved in an accident and on investigation his tyres were found to have incorrect pressures. I (still) can't remember if his insurance company paid out a reduced sum or rejected the claim completely but they certainly did one or the other, as they deemed him to be partly to blame for the accident due to not running his tyres at the recommended pressures.

Does anyone really want to risk that for the sake of a few more MPG or a smoother ride or whatever?

So, it could be both dangerous and expensive to run your tyres at a pressure other than what the car manufacturer states in the owner's manual and/or cabin plate/label.

[sorcerer]

1 hour ago, julian1969 said:

The ZX7's look good however on the BC site they are listed as SUV but NOT XL rated - given the hybrids extra weight I'm wondering if this is a consideration - I used to drive a Seat Alhambra (VW Sharran / Ford Galaxy) and the tyres for that had to be XL rated ( AFAIK XL means the tyres have a reinforced sidewall for heavy vehicles or those that are rated to carry heavy loads). 

Might be a complete non issue but cant find any definitive recommendation one way or the other so erring on the side of caution at the moment.

Hmm, not sure, but this is from Avon's website:

Avon Tyres has added an all-new SUV tyre to their high performance range, the Avon ZX7. Designed for medium and large SUV fitments, the ZX7 – Avon’s first ultra-high performance SUV tyre – offers outstanding grip (‘A’ grade wet grip) and handling. Avon’s ZX7 has been developed with a unique asymmetric tread pattern, which is specifically designed to cope with the weight of large SUVs

More info here:

[sorcerer]

28 minutes ago, julian1969 said:

I believe the discount is via gold membership.

 

There may be something available via gold membership Julian but I'm not a gold member - this is a Tyre Shopper own deal https://www.tyre-shopper.co.uk/deals

[julian1969]

8 minutes ago, sorcerer said:

There may be something available via gold membership Julian but I'm not a gold member - this is a Tyre Shopper own deal https://www.tyre-shopper.co.uk/deals

Ahh didn't see that. Thanks!

[Silversalmon]

Sorcerer, the trouble with using the manufacturer specs is there are two settings, 33 (ECO, whatever that is) or 36? I'd choose the one to maximise tyre life. 

[rayaans]

3 hours ago, julian1969 said:

The ZX7's look good however on the BC site they are listed as SUV but NOT XL rated - given the hybrids extra weight I'm wondering if this is a consideration - I used to drive a Seat Alhambra (VW Sharran / Ford Galaxy) and the tyres for that had to be XL rated ( AFAIK XL means the tyres have a reinforced sidewall for heavy vehicles or those that are rated to carry heavy loads). 

Might be a complete non issue but cant find any definitive recommendation one way or the other so erring on the side of caution at the moment.

 

The tyres already have a load rating on them  and the standard RX400h tyres were not XL rated so you dont need them.

Essentially, all the XL rating allows for manufacturers to fit narrower tyres with a lower profile. Itll just make the RX ride rougher with no significant benefit to handling. 

2 hours ago, Silversalmon said:

I'm contemplating on a set of Michelin Cross Climates though at £800 it's a serious investment. I have no issues with ride quality or mpg, i just want them to last as long as possible. 34psi or higher for maximising tyre life Gentlemen?

Mind you, the Avons as described above are half the price????? Where do you get a discount code???

Probably not worth it at that price. 

Also you can stray away from the manufacturer tyre pressures. Demo vehicles are consistently pumped on 40+psi. And AFAIK, as long as you don't under-inflate a tyre significantly below manufacturer or go over the tyre wall maximum PSI (usually about 44-50psi) its not much of a problem

[Silversalmon]

Thanks everyone for the replies, a great forum. As much talk there is about Cross Climates the Avon deal looks a winner. Rayaan's a top contributor and seems well versed, an engineer? 

[stevlee]

Just to throw in the mix, I purchased the NEXEN N fera RU1 for £67.87 each excluding fitting 2 months ago. B rated for wet braking. So far been quieter than the Bridgestone oem wheels and no issue in the wet feels very planted

[sorcerer]

1 hour ago, rayaans said:

 And AFAIK, as long as you don't under-inflate a tyre significantly below manufacturer or go over the tyre wall maximum PSI (usually about 44-50psi) its not much of a problem

And therein lies the problem - so to speak. There won't be a 'problem' unless and until you have an accident and then, just as my colleague found, there could be a problem with insurance.

[julian1969]

Thanks for clearing up the XL question I wasn't sure and wanted to err on the side of caution knowing insurance companies can use any loophole to avoid paying. 

Mum not one to overinflate tyres preferring grip and my longevity to the tyres 😉

the avons are definitely on the list now. 

[rayaans]

4 hours ago, Silversalmon said:

Thanks everyone for the replies, a great forum. As much talk there is about Cross Climates the Avon deal looks a winner. Rayaan's a top contributor and seems well versed, an engineer? 

The Michelin Cross climates IMO are the best all season tyres bar none. They really do work, Ive had first hand experience on a Golf and they were very good in the snow. However, as with all things, there's a cost to benefit ratio worth thinking about and the price lets them down at this point in time. 

Nope not an engineer here, in the other end of the spectrum - NHS! 

3 hours ago, sorcerer said:

And therein lies the problem - so to speak. There won't be a 'problem' unless and until you have an accident and then, just as my colleague found, there could be a problem with insurance.

There shouldn't really be an issue unless its severely over or under inflated, we're talking 10psi each way from the manufacturer recommendations. Tyre pressure is highly variable. 32 psi on a normal day is 28psi on a cold day. 32psi on a motorway drive is going to be between 36-38 psi. 

There are too many variables to take into account and hence a tyre pressure check isn't accurate enough for an insurance company to bother about unless, as mentioned before, its up to 10psi in either direction. 

Im not saying they won't try to do it though..... they're notorious for making up things. Most policies say that the car has to be in roadworthy condition. I.e, it has to have tyres over 1.6mm and of the same type and ratings as the manufacturer standard. They don't specify anything about tyre pressures in policies.

[GSLV6]

The Avon ZX7s are available as XL rated.  At £108 fitted per corner, they seem something of a bargain for a premier tyre.  I'd be interested in feedback from anyone who's tried them RE noise, grip and economy (ie any difference in mpg?).  I guess that the grippier the tyre, the worse the economy as there's more friction to overcome.

Here's a link (they're the second ones on the list):   https://www.tyre-shopper.co.uk/search/235-55-19/V/101

Never have guessed that you were in the NHS Rayaans...I thought you might be an engineer too!  (For my sins, I am an engineer...)

[The-Acre]

I've got four 18" Avon's on my Volvo, bought from BC's and I highly recommend them. The previous tyres, although with good tread were Michelin and they tramlined really badly. The Avon's run dead straight and have excellent grip. And they're made in the UK.