Just had my 500x serviced at 18000 miles and told my tyres were down to 3mm and Fiat recommend replacement. Service dept said would I like the front pair replaced at a cost of.....£352! Errrr no thanks.Continentals eco contact 5. I tried everywhere to get a pair but all places wanted around £130-£140 each and most didn't have them in stock. In the end I got a pair of Avon ZV7 which had the same specs as the contis but were £167 the pair. When the rears are shot Avons will be the replacements!

Replacing Original Fit tyres will always be a big issue AND potential cost.

Fiat do a deal for x million+ (yes million, n000000,+) tyres from their chosen supplier. Fiat will/have used any supplier with the best pricing for a specific tyre type/size/etc.

As an end user you have to step back a little and research the myriad of Premium, Normal, Budget tyre options in the aftermarket arena.

Personally I have found the top end of reputable Normal tyres makes that cost below or well below the <50% figure of OE fitments to be perfectly good and in some cases even better than the original manufacturing fit.

One has to do a little leg/web research and understand a little about tyre legal homologation requirements but once this is done then you can SAFELY save huge amounts of money without degrading performance. In fact you may find "that alternative" tyre better than the original OEM fit.

I have the 18" rims and the rears were still going strong last time I looked. Fronts needed replacing at about 15-16,000, sourced some Kumhos at £100 each balanced and fitted. Seem every bit as good as the originals.

Was browsing Ebay recently and was quite taken by a Volvo, looking good, but needing four new tyres for its next MOT.
Searched online for prices.
Cheap stuff from Far East, starting at £30 each, but mid-range cheapest was £60 each.
Went off the idea.

Replaced mine with Hankook, and well pleased with them. Good grip and quieter than the original Goodridge.
Ed

Red Ruby said:

Replaced mine with Hankook, and well pleased with them. Good grip and quieter than the original Goodridge.
Ed

Click to expand...

I've heard a lot of good reports of Hankook, but on the Fiesta Zetec they are horrible. Always felt like they were soft.
When BSM were using Corsas, replacement tyres were always a cheap brand. After all, when learners are bouncing off kerbs all day, an expensive brand is a silly extravagance. The Corsa C felt the cheap tyres, losing directional feel, and always feeling underinflated. The later Corsa D on same brand was fine, but these were a different size and profile.

The Panda seems to feel a lot better on Vredesteins than it did on Continental. With any brand, different sizes may feel quite different. Expensive to 'try it and see' though.

Sometimes it is a lottery.

Our Strada Abarth came with Pirelli P6/P600s. Made the mistake of trying Goodyear NCT 2s. Wife lost back end of car twice, and recovered it OK, on wet public roads.

A little research found that we were not the only ones to have a issue on other makes/models as well. They were referred to as "Torvill and Dean" by a motoring magazine back in the 80s.

I replaced all four tyres on my Alfa MiTo in December with Avon ZV7s - the car was transformed! So much quieter and absorbant over small bumps than on the previous factory-fit Dunlop's & replacement Firestone's I'd had on the front for the previous 16,000 miles.

Plus the Avon's say 'Made in England' on the tyre wall - I knew they produced some tyres in Wiltshire, but this was extra pleasing!

Just a word of warning.

Your own and your family's safety depends on those 4 little rubber things called tyres.

Consider the fact that each tyre "touches" the road surface at a single point of contact, that is as big as the palm of your hand.

I believe it is better to buy a cheaper mobile phone, than to buy cheaper tyres.

Just my opinion...

Cheaper tyres do not equate to budget/inferior tyres though....