New tyres or Part worn?

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Post by daviemck2006 »

I have no problem with secondhand tyres, the tyres on my c5 are vredestiens bought secondhand from a mate whose car, another c5 had died. Admidettely I knew the history but got the whole car for £300 and swapped wheels and tyres with my own, then sold it for £300 for spares with dead engine. Tyres were only 3 months old at the time and have now done 20000 on mu c5 and still about 3ml left on them. I also run them slightly higher pressure and they are wearing level right across the tread. If I were chewing tyres every 14000 I would be checking balljoints and alignement, or modifying my driving style!
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Post by Citroenmad »

Jeff, what sized tyres does your C5 have? Is it an earlier car with 15" alloys (195/65/15 or 205/65/15) or a later one with 16" (215/55/16)?

Im guessing with only £40 per tyre for budgets, they must be the smallest size, 195/65/15?

Just be thankful you dont have the larger wheels if so, as even budget tyres are around £90 each, while Michelins are now £140 each!

Yes, C5s do wear the outer edges first usually, my last set of fronts were bald on the outer edges, particularly the N/S front despite the middle tread being ok.

They do wear heavily in general, I got 11K miles from my last pair of front tyres on my C5 HDi. Tracking is spot on, as is camber and no suspension parts are worn. Though I do press on.

One of our C5s, the 52reg SX, has the smaller wheels with 195/15 tyres, its spec says they should be 33psi front and 30psi rear. With this tyre pressure the tyres seem to last well on this car, and dont scrub the edges too badly. Its now on Goodyears, it was on Michelin Energysavers.

However the other C5s with the larger 16" wheels and wider tyres scrub the edges off easily. They should have a higher pressure, at 36 front.

Keeping a close eye on pressure is key to long lasting tyres, where and how you drive too, and the cars geometry.

I think there is some truth in that, the C5s corner reasonable well and flat, so you feel you can push on more than you would in an older car with more body roll.

If your tyres are wearing more on the edges, and the middles are still good, then you should increase tyre pressure by a few PSI, not not a lot. Every tyre requires a different pressure really, as tyre carcases are of different thicknesses and strength. SOme tyres have a very stiff wall and give a poor ride, even with soft pressures. Others, such as Michelins, have a softer sidewall and give a better ride, they run more comfortably at higher pressure.

One of our C5s has Goodyear Excellence tyres on 16" rims, despite running them at 32PSI instead of the stated 36PSi the middles are more worn than the edges, though they still have many miles left. A family member has just got a 2007 C5 Exclusive, it has the same tyres fitted and they are about smooth in the middle, past the markers, but the outer edges are fine.

Tyres have a lot to do with wear and how they wear, not just tyre pressure or tracking & camber settings.

Tyre increasing from 32 to 35 and see how you get on, you will be amased at how such a small increase can effect things.

As for part-worn vs budget tyres im not so sure, as I dont buy either. However if its value for money and long life your after then surely buying a new tyre is better than a part-worn? Some budget tyres will last less miles than a premium brand, but it doesnt always work like that. Some last longer and others similar mileages. So buying a pair of new tyres with 6-7mm of tread is going to last you longer than buying part-worn tyres with 4-5mm left.

True, you buy a second hand car with tyres, but id still rather buy new tyres over part-worns.

Though grip has to be taken into account, some budget tyres are truley shocking and in my opinion a little dangerous, as even at normal speeds ive had grip problems with C5s on budget tyres in the wet. With premium tyres, like my favoured Michelins, grip is excellent in the same conditions.

However, good grip doesnt always mean big money, as some cheaper brands offer good tyres, such as Kumho, Toyo, even Maxxis and Marangoni are not too bad. Though things like Linglongs, Heros and Triangles (i ask you!) sound horrendous, and the grip is equally interesting.
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Post by birksy »

I would buy quality re-run over budget.

You, your kids and your car depend upon the tyre you drive on.

My C5 has one Wanli tyre at the front near side, it spins at any speed, has no grip and has the hardness of diamonds, I put a rerun dunlop sport on the off side in May, it had 5mm on it. The Wanli has not worn at all but the Dunlop has worn to the legal minimum.

The effect is that at roundabouts the front washes wide except on exit you get a big dose of grip ad the weight shifts to the dunlop side.

I cannot believe that the Wanli tyre meets the DOT type approval. Frankly the markings on the tyre are bollards. Independent eviews have listed them as dangerous.

I've put Kumho's on the rear in Nov and I've ordered the same for the front from Camskill. £135 delivered. Need to find fitting at reasonable cost tho.
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Post by Citroenmad »

Its never good practice to mix tyres across the axle, grip differs obviously. If I had mixed tyres they would go on the back, where grip is usually needed less, especially under emergency braking or wet cornering.

True some budget brands are shocking, but do some research and you can often find reasonably priced tyres which offer good grip too.

Though i often wonder how many accidents could have been avoided had good quality tyres of been fitted. So at least if you get premium branded part-worns then grip should be reasonable.
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Post by Jeff »

Yes Citroenmad - tyres sizes are 195/65/15

By the way I ended up putting 2 part worns on, one a budget and the other a Goodyear. Both with 5mm of tread.

I was in two minds but new tyres I believe are 8mm tread so for £30 the pair I thought it was not a bad deal.
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Post by birksy »

I am absolutely in agreement.

I had two wanli's at the front when I purchased. Rears had worn Kumho.

I went to get both fronts changed but the nearside locking nut would not come off.

So did one on the idea of getting the other done once I'd got a wheelnut remover.

Anyways laziness ensues with the expectation that the wan_li (insert appropriate letter) would eventually wear down but lo....

It looks cheap, its a hard compound and made driving in the snow fun.

I'm sure on full lock the tyre side wall deforms as I get a clunk noise on that side. The drop link is ok visually.

Can't wait for it to go.
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Post by Citroenmad »

One thing to watch out for with part worn tyres is the year of manufacture. There are various part worn tyres on ebay which are donkeys years old, some Michelins which were originally fitted at the time of Xms, in around 1994. Our Xm came with its original rear tyres, they were soon replaced. I didnt want them on the car then, I certainly wouldn't want 15 year old tyres on now!

Knowing where to look for tyres is how you find cheap ones. Camskill is among the cheapest for sourcing tyres, but then you have to get them fitted. I usually go by blackcircls for fitted tyres prices, but they seem to be getting more expensive.

I recently picked up a set of 4 brand new Michelin Primacy HPs in the larger C5 size of 215.55.16 for only £200 delivered. To buy those new from most tyre places and online would cost me (and did as I bought a set from a local tyre place a few months back) £530+. So i now have a full set of very good Michelins on one of the C5s and a full set of brand new ones in stock, ready for when my current C5s original Michelins need replacing.

If I see an unmissable deal, it would be silly to not take it!
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Post by birksy »

Tyres are worth shopping around for and price matching.

We had a quote off Blackcircles for Conti sport 2 on the Mrs A4. She smiled at the national concern and they provided all four tyres fitted for £300.

I tried it and they offered me Bravarius for the Mondeo I had then

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Post by wotwot »

Some good points made from both sides,I am in agreement with part worns over new,as said earlier you buy a car its got part worn on it already unles you keep buying new cars :wink: .2 part worn goodyears and tracking lazered on my xantia £75.And the tyres are guaranteed ??,
So if I get a puncture or blow out or a bulge appears in the side wall it gets replaced free of charge not bad I think.Yes even if I were to kerb it and take a lump out of the side wall it gets replaced free of charge.I have just taken 1 back with a puncture and it was replaced,although i do have to go back as its a michelin and I dont want to put it on with the goodyear thats already on there.
needless to say you have to pick the right time to go there as its busy busy busy.
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Post by jgra1 »

a timely post as I have just brought 6 tyres today... !

2 (406 coupe) are 5000-mile part worn, but with known provenance, the owner brought a new set of 4 tyres and alloys from a dealer a few months after buying these . I am paying £40 for the pair delivered, and hoping for almost new tread depth.

4 are for the Xant, a TD, but with exclusive wheels (205 60 15) I went to black circles .com and ended up with Kumbo's (£45 each) add delivery and £40 to fit, it's still cehaper than the local fitter supplying and fitting 'primewell' tyres.. I could only choose H speed rating probably because of the size of the tyres, but the xant is a fair way off reaching 130mph :D

I remeber once buying a new set of tyres for a previous xantia.. they were budget, but the oversteer spins on the tiniest of curves really scared me.. so, sometimes older and known make is preferable over new and cheap.. as alluded to by others..

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Post by birksy »

Good choice the Kumho. I don't get the prices tho. 205/50 15 £47 vs 215/55 R16 being £65 (and thats cheapest.)

I can only presume that the smaller tyre is more common which reduces costs due to economies of scale?
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Post by Citroenmad »

Bigger tyres, rim size, tyre width and lower profile jump the price up. Large section tyres with narrow tread and a smaller size are usually always cheapest.

Then there is how many cars use that size, common sized like the 195/65/15 which until a few years ago were fitted to a lot of mid sized and large cars are very cheap. Other sizes which might be a bit more unusual tend to cost more.

£65 cant be a fitted price for 215.55.16W tyres? I think they are a very expensive size considering. £140 for a Michelin, still sounds a lot to me.
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Post by Citroenmad »

wotwot wrote:Some good points made from both sides,I am in agreement with part worns over new,as said earlier you buy a car its got part worn on it already unles you keep buying new cars :wink: .2 part worn goodyears and tracking lazered on my Xantia £75.And the tyres are guaranteed ??,
So if I get a puncture or blow out or a bulge appears in the side wall it gets replaced free of charge not bad I think.Yes even if I were to kerb it and take a lump out of the side wall it gets replaced free of charge.I have just taken 1 back with a puncture and it was replaced,although i do have to go back as its a michelin and I dont want to put it on with the goodyear thats already on there.
needless to say you have to pick the right time to go there as its busy busy busy.
That is quite a good deal, very cheap.

Though its a problem matching a tyre with another of the same make and wear rate if you do have to use the warranty?

Ive never really considered part-worn tyres, I dont even know where I would get them, my usual tyre places dont seem to bother with them.

Though i dont get on well with most budget tyres, id possibly choose good quality part-worns with a good brand if I wanted a cheaper option.

Has anyone actually any good reports of decent budget branded tyres? What was the make if so?

I find most budget tyres have stiff sidewalls, a plasticy looking rubber and extremely rubbish grip, especially in the wet. Though some are better than others.

One C5 we got had a new set of Hero tyres fitted, it was like driving on licorice, id say they were dangerous. A set of premium tyres transformed the car.
Last edited by Citroenmad on 18 Jan 2011, 21:41, edited 1 time in total.
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Post by Citroenmad »

birksy wrote:Good choice the Kumho. I don't get the prices tho. 205/50 15 £47 vs 215/55 R16 being £65 (and thats cheapest.)

I can only presume that the smaller tyre is more common which reduces costs due to economies of scale?
A lot of the 215.55.16 tyre options are XL rated, have you avoided them?
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Post by birksy »

They are XL/reinforced. Is that a problem with the C5?

http://www.tyrereviews.co.uk/Tyre/Kumho/Ecsta-KU31.htm

The car had Kumho on the rear when I bought which although low had lots of grip (although what with the fronts being a bit poor they may have been exaggerating the effect of the rears.)

The reviews are reasonable I thought. I'll lewt you know when they're fitted.

The rears were done thru blackcircles but the price had shot up from £156 fitted last time to £190 last week but I've just looked and they've dropped the price today to £165 :-(

There's a couple of independents I can get fitting done with so if I save a tenner I got a nice Pizza n bottle of vino.

http://www.tyrereviews.co.uk/Tyres_For/Citro%EBn/C5.htm
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