smart
Part of things
Posts: 134
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Feb 24, 2020 13:18:06 GMT
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Chinese tyres, I have always been very pessimistic. I remember seeing them for the first time working in the motor trade 10-15 years ago. Quite a few MOT failures caused by oddly worn and misshapen tyres. Ive always been taught that its the only thing keeping you on the road therefore buy the 'best' you can afford. Ive bought cars in the past with Chinese tyres and normally replaced them very quickly due to weird wear or their performance on wet roads.
However I bought some wheels off ebay for my VW T5, I noticed in the ad the tyres were Landsail LS388 so I assumed I would need to replace these asap. Ive converted the van to a camper and me and the missus travel all over Europe in it from the heat of southern Spain to the Swiss alps, fully loaded up at well over 2 ton so tyres are very important. On purchasing the wheels I found the Landsails were nearly new tread in age and tread plus load rated for well over what I need so decided to give them the benefit of the doubt. (I'm not the average T5 camper conversion owner running around on car alloys with under rated tyres!)
Ive done a few thousand miles on them in all weathers and they've been weirdly good? Wearing evenly, not perishing anywhere, good grip in wet and dry, no noisier than premium brands before them. Ive got nothing but praise and looking online they are nearly half the price of a similarly load rated mid range tyre.
Should I still feel bad for running round on 'ditchfinders'? Or have I stumbled across the first of a much improved Chinese product?
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1998 Rover 400 Derv
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Feb 24, 2020 13:47:30 GMT
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Westlake and Achilles Tyres are another 'budget' brand that I speak highly of. They're also starting to be used a lot in the drifting scene.
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1994 S1 106 Rallyé 1996 Mini Cooper 1.3 MPI (Rust bucket, currently in for surgery/resto) 2003 Renaultsport Clio 172 (Daily beater)
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time
Part of things
Posts: 152
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Feb 24, 2020 14:38:08 GMT
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I had Riken Tyres on my old p38 Range Rover and they worked really well
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kabman
Part of things
Posts: 348
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Feb 24, 2020 15:53:03 GMT
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I had Riken Tyres on my old p38 Range Rover and they worked really well Riken are owned by Michelin and made in Serbia. A lot of the major tyre companies have factories in China, sometimes making stuff under their own name and sometimes under a budget brand name. In general, China can make whatever quality of stuff (whether it's tyres, iphones or Gucci handbags) you are willing to pay for.
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Feb 24, 2020 16:06:08 GMT
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Just fitted 4 Blacklion Cilerros to the Astravan, I want to change the wheels, and all the tyres fitted had tread and looked legal, but all were different and 1 of the 4 was load rated. It drives better and I’ve not locked a wheel since fitting them, they are a bit noisier, but they are all season, so that’s probably why rather than them being Chinese. And they were cheap, so it was an easy decision I suspect they’ll wear quicker (but then that’ll help me choose new wheels for it ) but in terms of grip and ride they are fine, I think I’d be happier with cheap tyres changed every 5 years than with older branded tyres (the ones on the van ranged between 7 and 16 years old, and spare was 25! )
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Feb 24, 2020 16:37:11 GMT
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There are a lot of Asian-made tyres now, including under the banner of the big-name brands.
I part-own a tyre import company which ships in tyres of all brands into Europe and into the UK and I'm very fussy when it comes to tyres on my vehicles. At the end of the day the tyres are the only part of any vehicle that should ever come into contact with the road, so they are VITALLY important.
I know people on the other hand, who only buy the cheapest possible tyres and their only requirements for a tyre are "black and round" and this makes me despair.
There are, however, a few budget and mid-range tyres which I would try and steer people into paying a few quid extra for than the real cheap nasties and Landsail is actually one of them. For a small, low-powered shopping car they are adequate.
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Specialist Bodyshop & Fabrication Classic, Retro, Prestige & Custom Small Repairs to Concours Restorations Mechanical Work Vintage to Modern
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Feb 24, 2020 17:33:22 GMT
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My mate (enthusiastic biker and classic mini guy) is very picky with tyres, he highly rated the landsail tyres as well. He was less enthusiastic about the Bridgestone potenza's he put on his Bini Cooper S. He isn't a slow driver lol.
I had matador winter tyres on my golf, they were brilliant tbh. I live in the highest point of Sheffield and never got stuck even on ice.
Ive had ling long (think it means die soon) and winali on a e36 and it was scary! Even at slow speeds you didn't know if it was going to understeer or oversteer.
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Last Edit: Feb 25, 2020 19:11:24 GMT by joem83
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stealthstylz
Club Retro Rides Member
Posts: 14,841
Club RR Member Number: 174
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Feb 24, 2020 18:10:32 GMT
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I had some Joyroad tyres on the Delica, they were mint, loads more grip and much better overall than the Goodyears they replaced. The did end up wearing a bit odd on the back (as if they were running at too high pressure but they weren't) but I got 30k miles out of them so was pleased. I've put a more off-road type tyre on now and it's a bit sketchy in the wet but every off road tyre I've driven on feels the same.
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Feb 24, 2020 18:32:51 GMT
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first thing I do with a new to me used car is bin any budgets for some premiums!
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Dez
Club Retro Rides Member
And I won't sit down. And I won't shut up. And most of all I will not grow up.
Posts: 11,714
Club RR Member Number: 34
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Feb 24, 2020 20:28:37 GMT
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Tbh the worst tyres I’ve had have been ‘premium’ brands. Uniroyal ‘the rain tyre’ and Bridgestone potenza RE 040 being the worst.
For years it was hard to go wrong with nankang but I don’t think they’re as good value as they used to be given how quick they wear.
I recently bought some comically named jinyu gallopro as they were cheap in the size I needed and had surprisingly good wet rating, and they are hands down better than the falkens they replaced.
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Feb 24, 2020 20:35:47 GMT
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I've used Jinyus and was pleasantly surprised at how good they were.
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1953 Minor (Long term project) PT Cruiser
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Feb 24, 2020 21:13:28 GMT
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I've got AutoGrips on the Mondeo as money was tight, but they're wearing well, and I've not had any slippy incidents, and don't like to spin the wheels if I leave a Junction vigorously. Think they were 46 a corner for 225/40/18s.
Had 15" Triangle tyres on the Astra that came on the Ronal Turbos i bought, they were like wheely bin wheels, absolutely solid, one was down to 5 or 6 psi when I bought them but didnt look flat on the car, they got binned.
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Last Edit: Feb 24, 2020 21:15:04 GMT by astranaut
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ovimor
North East
...It'll be ME!
Posts: 821
Member is Online
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Feb 24, 2020 21:58:34 GMT
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Chinese tyres... I bought some wheels off ebay for my VW T5, I noticed in the ad the tyres were Landsail LS388 so I assumed I would need to replace these asap. Ive converted the van to a camper and me and the missus travel all over Europe in it from the heat of southern Spain to the Swiss alps, fully loaded up at well over 2 ton so tyres are very important. On purchasing the wheels I found the Landsails were nearly new tread in age and tread plus load rated for well over what I need so decided to give them the benefit of the doubt. Ive done a few thousand miles on them in all weathers and they've been weirdly good? Wearing evenly, not perishing anywhere, good grip in wet and dry, no noisier than premium brands before them. Should I still feel bad for running round on 'ditchfinders'? Or have I stumbled across the first of a much improved Chinese product? Good enough for me, M8 *norecommendationlyke
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Knowledge is to know a Tomato is a 'fruit' - Wisdom, on the other hand, is knowing not to put it in a 'fruit salad'!
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Feb 24, 2020 22:47:01 GMT
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My wife and I run Hifly on our thirty year old dailies as our wof (mot) garage supplies them for a good price. We've been through a few sets over the years. They are not noticeably better or worse than anything else I've driven on.
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ChasR
RR Helper
motivation
Posts: 10,194
Club RR Member Number: 170
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I've found Landsail LS388s to be OK, but not great. they're comparable to a Kumho KU31, maybe slightly worse but LSs are predictable and work well. I have noticed the difference between those and a decent tyre like an Goodyear Eagle F1 or a Michelin Pilot Sport 4. Brand snob you say? My sister knows nothing about cars but trusts me (mostly). After this you'll say she shouldn't! But even she can tell the difference as a non-car person. Basically I gifted her my Mondeo 1.8 LX with 324k on the clock. I gave her that on Michelin Primacy 3s. Bar the pace, she liked the car and how predictable it was. I then sourced a mate's 2007 Saab 9-3 1.8t for her when it turned out the rear main was gone on the Mondeo and that I wasn't going to advise spending alot to change it. She immediately noticed that it didn't drive as well as the Mondeo. I said it was the fact that was a 'vert, but she noticed that it didn't feel as planted in the corners, or just roll as well as the Mondeo. That car went as follows: -Bought ; 16" ; Kumho KU31 SPTs up front, Toyo CF1s at the rear -Fitted later; 17: Landsail LS388s up front and Continental CS3s at the rear -Now ; Above but Goodyear Eagle F1s up front. When she fitted the Eagle F1s she gave me alot of curse word almost a month as to why the hell I let her drive with sh!t tyres for that long ; her words were 'if I knew they were only £150 for the pair, I'd have fitted them as soon as I got the car! Are you mad or stupid?" Despite me retorting with "well, they're on there and I'd like to let them live and wear out ; after all, it's a waste to use them despite the tyres being semi-useless", it took me a while to live down with her the fact that I let her go out with dodgy tyres. I've fitted all sorts and years ago used to avoid the big brands. I also sold cars because I didn't like how they drove after. These include: -Porsche 944 S2; a car change drove that (company car), but the KU31s were OK on that ; My Turbo on Michelin PS2s was a revelation in comparison ; it really was very (a little too!) confidence inspiring -Pug 306 GTi-6 ; Went from Courier drivers (not so bad in the dry to curse word in the wet) to Toyo T1-Rs ; it just lost that sharpness -Mondeo V6 ; Went and KH31s, convinced they were as good as Goodyear NCT-5s ; they weren't and after 10k were fit for the bin. -M3 ; I thought that was good on the Falken FK452/3s. If the fronts didn't wear unevenly and the rears last more than 8,000 miles with daily driving, I'd have bought them again. The Michelin PS4Ss were a semi-revelation on that car. That is partly reason I once made a late boat back on a wet day . They lasted almost twice as long as the Falkens but they weren't twice the money at all. (£130 vs. £180 a corner back then + less hassle with going to a tyre shop who can actually balance wheels and not torque the nuts tighter than Jordan after a few lines). I used to convince myself Uniroyals with chocolate sidewalls and other brands were half decent but I was only kidding myself. It's the R&D that the bigger brands put in. Not all of that gets passed down to their other partners. The exception here is Nexen. I really rate them but Jesus they don't last; A set of NBlues got 10k out the front of my W124 250D. Yes really! These days, I moan about tyres but don't skimp anymore partly due to a few too many close encounters. Maybe it's my driving or the traffic (or both) but I've had some pretty close encounters including: -Someone just stopping randomly on the M42 slip road because they wanted to rejoin the other part of the M42 going towards the M5 ; Going from 70 to 30MPH in a hurry is not fun! -Someone on the A46 deciding almost next to me to come into my lane with zero indicating. I almost became a friend with the central reservation that day. -Someone on the Fosse Way who overtook on a blind corner (near the WEC by the Solar farm for those wondering) and I slammed on the brakes in my Mondeo. Poo did almost come out as I realised I was 5 metres away from having a head-on until the guy went back in at the last second. Those are just over the last 4 months.
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I had TRIANGLE tyres on the van EFFING LETHAL IN THE WET worst ever chinese curse word now I roll on Bridgestones
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Last Edit: Feb 25, 2020 0:57:15 GMT by ruairi50
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Feb 25, 2020 17:29:03 GMT
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There are a lot of Asian-made tyres now, including under the banner of the big-name brands. I part-own a tyre import company which ships in tyres of all brands into Europe and into the UK and I'm very fussy when it comes to tyres on my vehicles. At the end of the day the tyres are the only part of any vehicle that should ever come into contact with the road, so they are VITALLY important. I know people on the other hand, who only buy the cheapest possible tyres and their only requirements for a tyre are "black and round" and this makes me despair. There are, however, a few budget and mid-range tyres which I would try and steer people into paying a few quid extra for than the real cheap nasties and Landsail is actually one of them. For a small, low-powered shopping car they are adequate. You don't import IRC by any chance? I fancy trying one of their Trials rear tyres on my bike 4.00x18 tubeless, might as well buy from someone on here.
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Feb 25, 2020 17:32:20 GMT
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Worst wearing tyres ever Trailermax, from new down to the wires in under 10k only got them as they were free as takeoffs from a caravan as the insurance company insisted the date code was less then 4 years.
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Darkspeed
Club Retro Rides Member
Posts: 4,706
Club RR Member Number: 39
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Feb 25, 2020 17:57:00 GMT
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I accept no advice or other peoples opinions on tyres unless I have faith in that persons ability to actually drive and not just commute from A to B.
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Feb 26, 2020 13:21:50 GMT
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I had TRIANGLE tyres on the van EFFING LETHAL IN THE WET worst ever chinese curse word now I roll on Bridgestones Thought the name was familiar... Just partaking of my first cold one of the evening and a truck has just gone past. "Triangle-Rated #14 in the worlds premium tires" It must be comforting to know that there were thirteen better choices than the one you made!
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