I have another tyre quandary...
Two months ago I bought a 2004 Mazda 3 (2 litre petrol) as my "to work and back" car - about 10k miles a year. It drove very nicely so I had it delivered to my house and put it in my garage and SORN'ed it while we waited for the Zafira to arrive and RAV4 to sell.
During this time one of the rear tyres went flat so I took the wheel to the dealer who changed the tyre (had a nail in it) for a Sunew YS618. The RAV sold and on Tuesday I used the Mazda for the first time and once the dust was blown off it was very good -except for a strange harmonic noise off the rear at speed and an occasional (once every 2 minutes for 10 seconds) shake through the steering wheel. I haven't yet worked out when the wheel shakes (as in angle of steer or road camber etc) but I guess it is one of the wheels balance being out - probably the new one... I think the harmonic is the other (pretty ropey) tyre on the rear axle having such a pattern mix as I experienced this similarly on my Saab many years ago. Does this sound right? Now the money question is if this is the case do I replace it with another Sunew (£70.70 fitted) or do I change both tyres for something a little less ditch finder but probably around £230 for both tyres - not exactly fitting the "keep my costs down at the moment" mantra for buying the car....
Any suggestions welcome.
|
Does the car have a decent spare in the boot?
Exchange this for each rear tyre until you find the problem, then make a decision based on that. If it was me I'd always put decent tyres on after problems with a dodgy part worn. The car may be budget but you still need good grip regardless.
|
Tyre size? And what state are the other tyres in?
Many times when I've bought an old car with a mix of tyres the difference in handling, noise, and comfort has been transformed by simply fitting a new set of rubber.
If the older rear tyre is very old it might not even be truly round (jack up the wheel and spin it round looking for the surface of the tyre to bob up and down beneath your palm - chock the fronts of course!)
|
Assuming that it wears 205/50 VR17 tyres, you'll struggle to get good tyres any less than you suggest (~£115 to £150 per tyre depending upon your preference).
Considering 10,000miles pa in a 2 litre Mazda 3 probably means around £1500-2000 in fuel costs alone, shelling out £500 for 3 years or so of premium tyre goodness is well worth it (compared to nearly £300 for some rubbish at each corner).
All in my opinion of course.
|
The Sunew is a rubbish tyre, gets very poor user ratings, and is bad in the wet according to the tests.
What can you find at black circles?
|
Like Lygo, I can't see why you'd put anything but proper tyres on a car you drive a serious mileage at sub-optimal times - winter mornings, evenings when you're tired and other drivers are below par too.
I'm sure there's the occasional bargain among no-brand tyres, just as the odd bottle of £3.49 red plonk tastes better than its price tag suggests, but they're the exceptions and you don't buy either expecting marvels, or even adequacy. That's what the proper stuff is there for.
The wine analogy isn't perfect, I accept. £15 wine is no less likely to put you in a ditch than Aldi Rotsigutsi.
|
I've never seen such bad reviews for a tyre as these ones.
Unsurprisingly the guy who writes "feels no different to the OEM Contis" drives a Vauxhall ;-)
|
|
Excessive wear in the steering system can give the symptoms you describe. It may be nothing to do with wheel balance or make of tyre.
Last edited by: L'escargot on Thu 20 Jun 13 at 07:21
|
Some extra info might help - guess that's what happens when you post in a hurry!
The spare is a space saver so no help.
The tyres are 205/50 R17 W.
The car is actually very quiet and the level of road noise coming from the tyres is far lower than the Michelins on the 59 plate Kia Ceed I owned until March. The entire car is actually much quieter and even with its rubbish tyres at 70 quieter than our new Zafira
The vibration is almost certainly tyre as it wasn't present when I test drove the car - on this mornings drive in both the noise and vibration seemed lower so I wonder if the tyre is bedding in or (as suggested) that the tyres have suffered mis-shaping from sitting around so long. The car was a part exchange (against a brand new car) last August and had a private plate that was transferred and it took until February to get the new registration number assigned. I bought the car in May and didn't start driving it until Tuesday. The front tyres are not great either - Wanli - from the history it seems that the previous owner had four decent (can't remember the name but a Continental brand) tyres fitted but at the 2012 MOT had to change these and bought something to get her through as (I guess) she knew she was going to sell it.
I now have three brands on four tyres - which goes against my best instincts - but I took a detour to a twisty bit this morning and in the dry everything seemed ok. I am leaning towards two "half decent" tyres on the back and to replace to fronts before the winter starts.
I am tempted to change or recondition the alloys too - they aren't in the best condition.
|
>> I am tempted to change or recondition the alloys too - they aren't in the
>> best condition.
This car is just a work hack, no?
So keep the tatty alloys and use the money you wanted to spend on them and buy a good set of tyres from an internet supplier.
You could have a flat spot on one of the tyres as it's been sitting for some time.
|
|
To update. I have bought a pair of Sava Intensa tyres. Made in France and part of Goodyear (or licensing the tech) and in all of the test they come bottom of the premium tyres but top of the budget, one entertaining in autobild was 5 metres behind the winner but 25 ahead of the last placed (Chinese made) tyre. They are very quiet, rated at 66 db, and while the noise is much lower from the rears it has, of course, shifted my attention to the front. The loud harmonic has gone and when I turn left the noise is no longer there but over 50 I now hear a constant gentle sound best described as a rubbing from the front. I don't think it is anything messy like driveshafts, sticking brakes or cv joints as it is consistent when I drop into neutral and coast at speed or if I hold the revs high in a lower gear. Will have to put up with it until I can get a few thousand miles of summer use out of these things and switch when the clocks go back...
|
Car tyre choice quandary - corax
