What Tyre Brand Would You Choose?

[Lexus Owners Club]

Here are the results from the Survey

http://www.drivn.co.uk/tyre-brand-survey/

[colin79666]

Michelin due to the Cross Climates. I would have voted  Goodyear or Contis otherwise.

[Linas.P]

I am just wondering if the huge lead (18 votes that is..) for Michelins is just because of Cross Climates, or there are other reasons (tires I mean). 

Somehow I consider Cross Climates wasteful when living in mild weathered UK.

[wildpolish]

So many factors to consider when buying a new tire. Never went for a brand.

[J Henderson]

On 2/15/2017 at 1:51 PM, Linas.P said:

I am just wondering if the huge lead (18 votes that is..) for Michelins is just because of Cross Climates, or there are other reasons (tires I mean). 

Somehow I consider Cross Climates wasteful when living in mild weathered UK.

I voted Michelin because they make what many consider to be the best performance tyre in the World - the Pilot Super Sport, and at the time this poll appeared, I was giving serious consideration to buying a set of them for 19" alloys I've recently acquired.

After weighing up the pros and cons though. I came to my senses and decided on Goodyear Asymmetric 3's instead and saved £200. 

EDIT: Ended up shelling out for the Michelins after all. 

Something I find really Interesting is that there's not a single vote registered for Pirelli so far. All those millions spent on being the F1 tyre supplier and a major sponsor doesn't appear to be working out too well. Or, perhaps the fact their F1 tyres fall apart within a handful of laps has had an adverse effect in terms of marketing and made people more wary of them...

Edited March 10, 2017 by J Henderson

[capese21]

I like Uniroyal Rainsport 3 tyres as they suit the GS very well. Very comfortable being fairly soft walled  but still rated XL and grip well dry or wet.

Next choice Goodyear Asymmetric 3.  Much depends on the type of car.

 

Ed

[rayaans]

Generally I just compare the premium brands on ratings and choose the one with the best rating that's also relatively cheap.

[Linas.P]

On 2/16/2017 at 0:12 PM, rayaans said:

Generally I just compare the premium brands on ratings and choose the one with the best rating that's also relatively cheap.

Which in my case always comes up as Dunlop, not because I am some kind of fan, but because RT's and RT2's costs £30/tires cheaper then similar Michelins and claims to offer AA or AB rating for front and BB/BC for rear and 67/68dB noise (which is lowest in market). I do avoid XLs or any kind of additionally reinforced wall tires, because they tend to be harder.

One thing is that all those ratings are on paper and I am sure Pirelli, Michelin, Continental are equal on road, but the difference is that Dunlops are simply cheaper. I would as well consider like Avon, Toyo, Yokohama, Falken etc. if they would be substantially cheaper. But I am finding them maybe £3/tire cheaper whereas I consider Dunlops being more premium.

Pirelli's are actually lovely tires (as far as my little experience goes with P Zero), quiet and comfortable. Don't know if they actually lasts... but one way or another they seems to come always as the most expensive option, maybe that is just a case of R17 225/245 45 set-up, but again they do not offer anything substantially superior to other tires except of being significantly more expensive.

Equally, I would never fit budget tire or if none of manufacturers use the brand... That is not because manufacturers really care about the quality, but because they only fit the cheapest tires with which they can get away with.. So in this case either brand is not fit for purpose or it is simply not good value.

Finally, I do think that where comes all-season tires Michelin Cross climates are the best, but as mentioned previously I see no reason to have such tires in England or Wales .

[Big Rat]

As I have mentioned in some previous threads on tyres, I did development work for Michelin for what was then the suitability of there tyres for Police Pursuit type vehicles, all the way down to general purpose vehicles.

Vehicles used for high speed instructional work driver training etc.

They are a very good quality brand, who spend vast sums of money on R&D without going into boring detail I believe the best advice on tyres is buy the best you can possibly afford and drive accordingly.

Dont exceed the limits of your ability or that of the vehicle and you cannot go far wrong.

The most important thing you can do is maintain the correct pressure this paramount, check them frequently you look after them and they will look after you and your family and other road users for that matter.

Big Rat

[Britprius]

The problem is that buying the best you can afford implies that the more money you pay the better the tyre. However this is definitely not true. Some tyres are just over priced. I am not a tyre snob, and I am prepared to try other so called non branded tyres.

Dunlop and Goodyear are made by the same company in the same factory.

I was offered a free trial of a set of tyres a little while ago, and while they have not been on the car for many miles I can only say I'm impressed. How well they ware is to early to say, but when they have a few thousand miles on them I will report back with a name, and "good or bad". If I were to name them many would probably deride them, but I'll keep an open mined.

In the past I have had Goodyear, and Dunlop tyres, and been disappointed with the high ware rates "less than 18,000 miles". On the same car running Hankook's I got over 40,000 miles with much the same levels of grip and noise. 

When I was working I used to cover 55,000 miles a year driving so most tyres lasted less than 6 months. Doing this sort of millage in all whether conditions soon shows the weaknesses of any tyres. Some brands get very noisy as they ware. I found Bridgestones particularly susceptible to this.

Michelin do "now" make some good tyres, but at a very heavy premium. Before the labeling system came out they claimed there tyres were fuel efficient, but the labeling system proved otherwise until they raised there game.

John

[Verbout]

Whatever is on offer at my local indy....medium to premium tyres only.

Avon for the past few years...

[derkins]

On 16/02/2017 at 10:18 AM, capese21 said:

I like Uniroyal Rainsport 3 tyres as they suit the GS very well. Very comfortable being fairly soft walled  but still rated XL and grip well dry or wet.

Next choice Goodyear Asymmetric 3.  Much depends on the type of car.

 

Ed

Also a fan of the Uniroyal RS3. Used to put Pirelli P-Zero on everything but tried the RainSport 3 on my last Jag and was well impressed. Going on the GS as soon as the ones it came with wear enough to make the spend worthwhile. The no-name things that the dealership put on for me are dire, "Sh"tGrip 3000" or whatever slide all over the place when pushed.

I believe Uniroyal are owned and manufactured by Continental.

[Yorkie740]

I always go with nankang! They are made in the yokohama factory with the same compound just older tread patterns they are great tyres usually £20/30 cheaper then a yokohama branded tyre

[First_Lexus]

Falkens for me based on previous experience. I've had most brands over the years, always mid-range or premium, and I've found Falken to be the best balance between price and performance. I've turned family members and friends onto them and they've been equally impressed.

[Bluesman]

Falkens for me to. Quiet, and you get a fair mileage before they need replacing.

[GEN]

Have just acquired an LS430 which came with Pirelli Zero ( 8 so practically brand new) and will be happy to report back on them.  On my LS400 which I'm sadly having to part with (transmission failure at 228893 miles) I have run Vredestein Wintrac Extreme for years: they wear well, are quiet and the grip in the dry, wet and snow is very good. Once the Pirelli are gone will probably go back to Vredestein.  By the way, the prices on Vredestein are good also. 

[Legionaru]

Hello!

I use on my GS 450h F Sport Michelin Pilot Sport 4S and in the cold season Michelin Pilot Alpin 5.

[Las Palmas]

After always Continental, maybe CC when the Pirelly P7 needs to be retired.

Maybe not.

[Malc]

As this Survey was created some 5 years ago nearly perhaps, with changing opinions and types of tyres around now, a fresh Survey could be undertaken ?

Malc

[GEN]

Vredstein: have now used this brand on my Ls400, Ls430 and now on the Ls600hl and they are excellent and long lasting ( and reasonably priced).

[superatticman]

Am due to replace both rear tyres soon. Bridgestone are the recommended brand and have them on the front. 

Was pondering Avon as they seem a reasonable mid range tyre. Does appear some prefer Toyo over them though.

[LenT]

1 hour ago, superatticman said:

Am due to replace both rear tyres soon. Bridgestone are the recommended brand and have them on the front. 

Was pondering Avon as they seem a reasonable mid range tyre. Does appear some prefer Toyo over them though.

It’s generally not considered a good idea to mix different brands of tyre.  They will have different performance characteristics and may behave in an unpredictable way.

The other relevant recommendation, just to mention it, is that if you’re only replacing two tyres, the newest should go on the rear - which would be the case for you anyway.

So it would either be two new Bridgestones - or four new what ever you fancy!

[JamesIS220]

Only had Avon 7V7's for a few months on a 2006 Lexus IS220D before I scrapped it with HG failure.

Seemed ok and were cheapish as I remember 205/55/r16 if I remember correctly. Got a bit twitchy when I did a right and then a left at a double roundabout. Was driving a little bit too fast from the lights with a BMW behind. Felt the rear twitch and then felt the traction control kick in. 

Current Auris hybrid fitted goodyear efficient grip performance 2. A nice tyre, replaced worn/perished Continental eco contact which were 5 years old and done 26k. 

Volvo 940 use Michelin energy savers. 2 bought used, used as a spare tyre. £20 and £25 each off eBay 5 years ago and fronts bought new around 3 years ago. Never any issues. Used Michelins on my Volvo for 15 years.

For the last 5 Winters use goodyear ultra grip 9's. Fantastic winter tyre. Sadly recently had one punctured on the sidewall/curve. Scrap and bought last new old stock one to replace. Discontinued, now 9 +

Hopefully get a bit longer out of them and swap to the 9+ 

[GEN]

Have used Vredstein on my Ls400, Ls430 and now Ls600hl.  They are quiet, good handling and long lasting and only £149 per tyre for the all season version.

[Barry14UK]

Although interesting, the reason for preferring a particular brand can be subjective and vary for a number of reasons, ambient temperatures, and degree of severe weather experienced, along with terrain, the type of driver you are the type of vehicle you (and maybe share with another person). Also, as all weather tyres are a compromise, do conditions and annual mileage justify changing from summer to winter tyres as some do.  Are you prepared to compromise some performance for for longer tyre life and less rolling resistance for more MPG.  Alternatively, are you prepared to pay more for greater performance.  Members are more likely to fit at greater cost tyres proving greater overall grip and handling to their more sporting models regardless of cost. So a member driving a sporting model may opt for a different  brand for their SUV if they also drive one of these.

What I am saying is that to be rather more nuanced, you really need to allot votes to the  collective type of car you are driving to improve comparisons.

As regards my RX, (which is the only type of Lexus I have driven, I have only driven it with the Dunlops as were one of the original brands fitted.  Although only about 40% worn I found these unacceptable. I asked Lexus what they thought and was told the Michelin Cross Climates were very popular and so had these fitted.  I found these greatly improved the ride and handling if not the MPG.  However, there may well be another brand that if tried would have been just as satisfactory,  one doesn't get the chance to sample many brands/models so have to consider opinions of other drivers and published comparative test. 

Finally, in considering the most popular tyre  brands/models, results in a general survey could be skewed by a preponderance of submissions by say SUV drivers, perhaps going some way to explain why the Cross Climates received so many votes.