Well I've ordered my tyres
My local HiQ dealer beat everyone else with a price of £255 all in for the four Sportrac 3s. Got to wait three days for them to come in from Holland.
The guy there said he had balanced lots of no through hole wheels without any problems. He reckoned it was down to the type of balancing machine - the correct adaptor and the skill of the operator.
He said the adaptor for his machine cost in excess of 2.5K so most companys couldn't justify the expense given how few wheels of that type they would get through the workshop.
Oh well - we will see
C.
Xantia Alloy Wheel Balancing & Tyres
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dnsey wrote:He said the adaptor for his machine cost in excess of 2.5K
But those I've seen are only a casting with bolts, adjustable to suit the pitch circle of the holes in the wheel, and a simple system for fixing to the balancing machine mandrel!
Yeah - that sounds like the system the KwikFit guys had - which failed to balance my previous Xantia Alloys
Incidentally the HiQ guy said that different branches of their chain had different balancing machines. Just so happened I struck lucky with the price and this particular branch having the correct equipment and hopefully a suitably skilled operative
He did say if for whatever reason they failed to balance a wheel they would refund me the cost.
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I hope you are happy with the sportrac3s, they are a superb tyre. They have won awards for a few years for being the best in a particular size - 195/65/15 actually, the same size the Xm uses, hence why we went for those.
Michelins do grip well, i cant say ive had any issues there, but the sidewalls are a little soft. Spirited cornerning often results in the tyre rolling onto the sidewall. Ive not had that problem with the sportracs on the xm though.
You can get tyres with too stiffer sidewall, which make for a horrible ride and harshness through the steering wheel. Sportracs seems a very good choice.
Goodyear Excellence is another tyre i would possibly consider.
Michelins do grip well, i cant say ive had any issues there, but the sidewalls are a little soft. Spirited cornerning often results in the tyre rolling onto the sidewall. Ive not had that problem with the sportracs on the xm though.
You can get tyres with too stiffer sidewall, which make for a horrible ride and harshness through the steering wheel. Sportracs seems a very good choice.
Goodyear Excellence is another tyre i would possibly consider.
Interesting to hear thoughts on Yokohamas. I had those on my last car, A539s, which were super in the dry, really sticky tyres. They didnt get along well with wet weather though, more of a summer use tyre maybe.addo wrote:I have recently changed over to Yoki C-Drives. Compared to the Toyo Transas, they seem slightly less grippy - although it may be partly due to extra tread block height on a newer tyre. They do grip better than previous Uniroyals on the same car, however.
What really stands out, is how differently tyre brands behave at similar pressures. People who doggedly follow the manufacturer's inflation guide are doing themselves a disservice if they don't experiment.
Chris
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OK - Four new Vredestein Sportrac 3s fitted today.
I drove around 15 miles home in the rain.
My first impressions are very favourable! I immediately noticed the car is way more compliant over potholes and general ridges / imperfections on the road surface. It's as if the suspension has softened up quite considerably which I just wasn't expecting
The car is more sure footed and I feel much safer throwing it around corners - whereas before I felt I had reached the envelope of cornering before something would give
Road noise is noticably attenuated and understeer feels like it has all but disappeared - I guess until I get used to things and push a little further. Which incidentally I doubt I will do as I'm a relaxed driver these days 8)
There is some minor vibration feedback at between 70 - 80mph but nothing to report either side. I'll have to investigate this further tomorrow on a longer fast run.
Altogether I pleased so far! It 'feels' like the tyres are well suited to the suspension.
C.
I drove around 15 miles home in the rain.
My first impressions are very favourable! I immediately noticed the car is way more compliant over potholes and general ridges / imperfections on the road surface. It's as if the suspension has softened up quite considerably which I just wasn't expecting
The car is more sure footed and I feel much safer throwing it around corners - whereas before I felt I had reached the envelope of cornering before something would give
Road noise is noticably attenuated and understeer feels like it has all but disappeared - I guess until I get used to things and push a little further. Which incidentally I doubt I will do as I'm a relaxed driver these days 8)
There is some minor vibration feedback at between 70 - 80mph but nothing to report either side. I'll have to investigate this further tomorrow on a longer fast run.
Altogether I pleased so far! It 'feels' like the tyres are well suited to the suspension.
C.
Currently:
2000 Xantia HDI 110 Exclusive Saloon (73k)
Previously:
BX 19 TZD Turbo
2000 Xantia HDI 110 Exclusive Saloon (73k)
Previously:
BX 19 TZD Turbo