Tyres - the best of the worst

Well it outta happen to the best of us.

Need new tyres and your budget goes krupt.
So you outta decide getting some cheap tyres to run, it's that or no/bald tyre.
Or you got new rims and you run outta money.

There's a sea of cheap no name tyres out there, and the matter becomes one of.. "out of all those rubbish which one is less of a rubbish".


Disclaimer:
none of those will perform like your Michelin Pilot Sports, so curb your enthusiasm.


The Yard Stick
all the cheap tyres i'm going to mention in this thread will be looked at around this well known and popular tyre, which happens to be at the entry range of "mid range" tyres, compared to your budget.
In otherwords, we're looking at tyres that will more or less give similar or better performance than the crappies mid range tyre:

Kumho KU31
http://www.macctyresltd.co.uk/produc...KU31%20Med.gif
Everyone knows of this tyre and probably used it.

Decent in the dry, mediocre in the wet, cheap-ish, wears fairly quickly.


Contenders - about as good as KU31
Achilles ATR Sport 2
http://www.tyrereviews.co.uk/public/...TR-Sport-2.jpg
It's Indonesian
You probably dont want anything cheaper than this (ie: this is about as crap as i'd go)... wet performance of this will probably match the KU31 if not better given the thread pattern, and will last longer being a hard tyre, wont win you any hill runs, ATR sport 2 is supposed to be an improvement on the ATR sport, with improvement focused on wet performance.

HIfly HF805
https://www.asdatyres.co.uk/assets/t...ifly/hf805.jpg
A Chinese tyre
I only included this because it was locally tested in 2016, by MOTOR magazine, it was unsurprisingly ranked toward the bottom of the pile. HOWEVER, it's not last, it's actually ranked 8 out of 10, ranked AHEAD of NITTO INVO and NEXEN N FERA SU1.
Imagine that... and consider the prices... hmm...
https://www.motormag.com.au/events/t...16-the-verdict

Acclera Phi (get the new Phi-R version tho)
http://www.tyrereviews.co.uk/images/...elera-PHI.jpeg
Also Indonesian
Somewhat more of a roadgoing and rarer than ATR Sport, it's more of an old ContiSportContact tread pattern, obviously not as good. HOWEVER, this was tested a couple years ago and it had better dry performance than the Kumho KU39, which was Supposed to be an upgrade of the KU31, so it can't be that bad, wet performance is not that great in the old version, so get the new "Phi-R" version, which claimed to have improved wet performance (much like the ATR vs ATR 2).
This tyre in test done by German magazine Autobild in 2014 had shown the old Phi version was far better then Federal SS595 and slightly better than Hi fly HF805.

Contenders - better KU31?
Tyre pricing is a prickly thing, sometimes some tyres are priced so awkwardly they counted them selves out (eg: Federal 595EVO, got quoted as much as a RE003 for 245/45/17, no thanks)

Then there are some surprising pricing, which are full blown mid-range performance tyres with a very keen price point:

Pirelli DragonSport
http://nevec-img.zenfs.com/prod/tw_e...c697cc789a.jpg
Yes, a Pirelli, Like the ContiMaxContact MC5, this is a Asian Market entry-level performance tyre, only released last year and the pricing at the moment, matches the KU31/KU39, which is quite nice
If your budget can stretch, definitely look at this instead of the 2 above.

Falken FK453
The pricing for this one varies quite a bit, but you shouldnt pay for this more than you would a KU31/KU39, decent mid range performance tyre, but I wouldnt get one over Dragons port. Ps: this Tyre is rubbish in wet braking
https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon....1lNZjxja-L.jpg

Apollo Aspire 4G
http://www.laneks.lv/media/images/te...spire_4G_1.jpg
This one is Indian.
It used to be available locally 3 to 4 years ago. Hardly see them now.
This is an interesting one. It's quite well tested in Europe and the results are... Surprisingly good.
This tyre is really good in the dry according to the European Tyre tests over the years. It's dry braking performances almost matches the newest Goodyear Eagle F1 A3 in the most recent German Tyre test. Wet performance is a bit so so given the tread pattern. It's ranked better than Nexen N Fera SU1. Which is Nexen flagship Tyre. Bascially this Tyre matches Kumho KU39 performance.

Contenders - MUCH better than KU31
like I said above, price is a prickly thing. every now and then you'll get some what of a bargain of the century.

Sumitomo HTR ZIII
https://www.tirerack.com/images/tire...ziii_ci2_l.jpg
JDM, well, Made in Japan anyway. You probably havent heard of the name, but Falken is a brand of Sumitomo. Much like Nitto is a brand of Toyo.
This is not a mid range tyre, this is a top tier tyre, old design but it used to trade blows with Michelin Pilot Sports/Super Sports, hell of a tyre, and due to it's unknown name in Australia, it's surprisingly cheap.
Like, cheap than Korean Cheap. If you ever had the choice between Kumho's and this at this about the same price? get this without a thought.

Nice write up Freddo however can I add my 2cents on the HTR ZIII. Being made in Japan also sucked me in but the results not so great

They're middle of the road in the dry but scary in the wet in my experience. Noisy too,tyre roar above 80kph.

Haven't tried the others listed to compare.

*this was on a S14 rwd

If you arent to worried about road noise but want amazing grip wet and dry Federal rsrr are pretty damn good and are about 100 a corner depending on size

Learn to drive properly before putting too much emphasis on the tyre,in the dry that is.I understand where U are coming from,I too was there.

What I'm saying is we are quick to blame the tyre.My best mate is an old school v8 head,he's 56 years old and believe me,he can drive,he can drive real good.

He always said,learn ya lines,get ya lines right,because when your lines are correct,it really dosen't matter the tyre,I know that now from experience.I used too put $$$ and energy into the choice of tyre.Cause I was on a budget for ages,I only used 2nd hand tyres.No friggin' problem.$60 a pop fitted!

It's all about the lines,get ya lines down and you will never have to worry about breaking traction.

I run re003's now cause the timing was right to purchase 4 for the price of 3 deal but the last time I ran performance tyres was when the re001 was out.I do like the look of the tyre and the extra grip for peeling out through the gears,so I'm not spinning tyres with the b18c7,also can be used for a trackday.I have complete confidence in my driving lines now though,so running these tyres feels like EXTRA grip in the twisty's.That is a good place to be.

The point is to learn how to drive properly.Need a couple of track days minimum to learn the limit of your car and for those who haven't done it,U will be suprised how hard you can go before U come off and also it can be suprising how easy U can come off too! It's all about the lines because it's the weight and shift of momentum.

The most spirited drives I ever had were coming home from a trackday because the limit of the car is so fresh that I know how hard I can push.

You as the driver is only half the problem.

The the half are the other idiots on the road, which your own limits won't have much to do with it

Updated, added hifly HF805 after reading the motor 2016 tyre test.

IMO All tires are rubbish once you drive on AD08Rs.


Don;t believe the internet on their wet grip. For a tire that provides that much dry grip its very good in the wet.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by amant02

IMO All tires are rubbish once you drive on AD08Rs.


Don;t believe the internet on their wet grip. For a tire that provides that much dry grip its very good in the wet.

---

Totally different segment..

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by amant02

IMO All tires are rubbish once you drive on AD08Rs.


Don;t believe the internet on their wet grip. For a tire that provides that much dry grip its very good in the wet.

---

1. If you bothered to read the post you'd see it's not the same segment I'm talking about.

2. Ad08r isn't that great. http://www.tyrereviews.co.uk/Article...-Tyre-Test.htm

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Fredoops

1. If you bothered to read the post you'd see it's not the same segment I'm talking about.

2. Ad08r isn't that great. http://www.tyrereviews.co.uk/Article...-Tyre-Test.htm

---

1. I did read, once I tasted AD08r's the rest just became rubbish and not worth considering, hence your segment of rubbish tires. I have had KU31's and FK453's these were rubbish.

2. So according this review I have to try to Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2. Ill let you guys know how this goes, Ill be due for a tire change soon. Sad thing about AD08rs they only last me 1 year ish. I have to change em around rego time to pass.

OH gg lolol the Cup Sport 2 dont come in 245/40/18 ?? or even 265s. They start at 19inch rims only.

LMAO tires listed better then AD08Rs either dont come in size or not sold in Australia.

So back to square one AD08R's are the best, rest are rubbish.