Car Tyres

[Bazile]

Need to replace my car tyres .

What's a good make of tyre ?

Mileage - 5000 / year
Journeys - Mainly around Town including dual carriageways.

Looking at Halfords site - loads of tyres and different prices - don't know which one to buy

[Zacs-Master]

Buy the best you can afford. Google reviews.

[tonyav]

What brand of tyre is on your car now and how long have they lasted ?.

[choux]

I agree with ZM. Why economise on tyres? They often are the only thing between your safety and disaster. I always go to a reputable and independent tyre specialist. I trust their judgement and they have never let me down.

[Baldric]

http://www.theanswerbank.co.uk/Motoring/Question1535630.html

[choux]

I believe all drivers should factor the cost of tyres when deciding to drive.

[chiaroscuro]

If I were buying new tyres I would dig deep and go for Michelin CrossClimate.

[chiaroscuro]

And I would swap them front to back every 5000 miles.

[Buenchico]

>>> Looking at Halfords site

Aaagh!! NO! NO! NO! A thousand times NO! Halfords are ruddy expensive! Try a local tyre-&-exhaust centre.

The much-maligned EU has imposed a really useful labelling system and, irrespective of where you're buying from (or the brands you're considering), it's those labels which you need to look at.

The most important one is the ability to stop quickly, particularly in wet conditions. Fuel economy will be important to many people as well though. If you're driving an old banger, road noise probably won't matter much to you but if you're driving an executive car you might regard it as important. The labels look like this and are self-explanatory:
http://tinyurl.com/k2vwcsz

[Bazile]

There are dunlops on at the moment , which are the ones on , when i bought car .
Don't know how many miles they had done before i bought car

[choux]

Have you checked your car's DVLA record on MOT's? This will show you if the car has ever failed the MOT for tyres not up to scratch. Just a thought, Bazile.

[choux]

https://www.check-mot.service.gov.uk/

[tonyav]

So they were on the car when you bought it then, Bazile. How long have you owned this car and how many miles have you done in it.
Are you replacing all four tyres or just a pair.

[choux]

If you have to replace all the tyres is the wear on them even? Have you had your wheels balanced and tracking checked?

[jno]

I just had one of mine done at the local garage where I get MOTs. They've always seemed honest, do the job and don't overcharge for things. I don't know that there's any advantage in going to a big dealer like Halfords unless they clearly offer the same product cheaper than anyone else.

[Baldric]

I always replace all 4 tyres together, have a liking for the handling characteristics of Bridgestone but that may vary with make and model, sorry know nothing about Ford.

[choux]

I prefer to use my local firm. I have called them out several times over the years for flat tyres when the wheel would not come off (even with encouragement from a sledge hammer) or totally flat battery. They don't even charge me! I 'pay' them via home cooking - current favour is a decent bread pudding - by popular demand :)

[Hopkirk]

Search on tyreshopper.co.uk, and go for any premium brand.

[Bazile]

Thanks all for your responses

tonyav / choux - to answer your questions
End of June , i'll have owned the car for 3 years - to date i've done approximately 13600 miles .

The front tyres looks to me to need replacing - i'm not sure about the rears ( well the MOT man will confirm either way - MOT test on tuesday coming )
The front tyres are wearing on the outsides more than in the centre .
I assume that is a tracking problem - is that correct ?

[Buenchico]

If your front tyres are wearing on both sides more than in the centre it means that they're under-inflated!

Try this website for your tyres. They've won several awards in the motoring press. You simply need to enter your registration number and your postcode to be offered a wide range of tyres, with the labelling information referred to in my previous post clearly shown:
http://www.blackcircles.com/

[bhg481]

Following Buenchico's post; I always buy my tyres from Blackcircles. Every tyre has a symbolic fuel efficiency / wet grip / noise rating, together with a user rating. Their prices are as good as any I've checked against and you can choose your fitting centre from a long list, including mobile fitters. I've used GoodYear Efficient Grip on my Volvo V70 for many years now and never been didappointed with them.