Well after 23K(47-60K) miles I had to put two tyres on my Croma. After much debate and shopping I decided to take some risk and try a off brand from China. I went with Rockstone F105 225/45 R18 95W XL. They were crazy cheap(relative) and after a couple weeks with two of them on the front of my car im very pleased. I have absolutely nothing to complain about so far. They are quiet, smooth and look great. I have not had any issues with traction braking, cornering or accelerating.

John

2012 Autobild 50 Tyre Braking Test
In probably the largest tyre test of its type, the German magazine Auto Bild have tested 50 leading tyres in both dry and wet braking.
Designed to allow Autobild to take the best 15 tyres through to their 2012 max performance summer tyre test, the entire table makes for a very interesting overview of the tyre market.
Highlighting the difference in 225/45 R17 tyres, the best tyre (Nokian Z G2) stopped in just 44 meters in the wet from 100kph, while the worst tyre on test, the Rockstone F105, required nearly 28 metres further to stop at 71.7 metres! The Nokians wet braking distance was only a little longer than the worse dry braking score, at 42 metres for the Runway.
There were no real surprises in the top 15, other than Nexen beating brands such as Falken, Yokohama and Toyo, and a disappointing result for both Vredestein and Avon, in 22nd and 33rd respectively.
Unsurprisingly the table was rounded out exclusively by tyres from the far east, again showing at the budget end of the market you really do get what you pay for.

Source: http://www.tyrereviews.co.uk/Article/2012-Autobild-50-Tyre-Braking-Test.htm

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:yeahthat:

and check after a few k of miles if the inside walls of the tyre are not pealing away

i've seen that happen before on those cheepo wonders

I don't believe that you necessarily get what you pay for. Avon in 33rd? Surely that proves that in itself. Tyres are such a minefield, it depends on so many factors from what car they are on to type of driving etc. I've used tyres that cost £200 and ones that cost a quarter of that. It's personal preference and budget. You can pay a fortune and be unhappy with the tyre, yet take the budget option and be pleasantly surprised. Like the numerous discussions on oil brands, tyres of the spec and size that you are talking about have to be made to exacting standards to enable them to be sold in the UK, so I doubt they are going to fall apart any time soon!

Ah - the old tyres hot potato.

I switched from "normal" brands to Indonesian ones a couple of years ago and they are superb - absolutely zero complaints from me.

These are mine - Erlang Perdana Accelera Phi, from www.eptyres.com

I agree that the tyre tests should be taken with a pinch of salt. But that does look like a bad result.

It is a shame that there's so little reliable independent data about though - most buying seems to be based on brand-names, what-I've-always-bought and racism.

I'm not bothered by a single wet stopping distance test. For all I know the order could be solely based on how much money each manufacturer spent on advertising last year at that website?

I have been driving for almost twenty years (im sure some of you have done many more than that) in many different vehicle types from big heavy and slow to small light and fast and all types of tyres from very expensive to very cheap. I think overall i've been more disappointed with expensive tyres than with cheap ones.

This is my daily driver that goes to and from work and around town. In general I would be willing to bet that in those situations most accidents are caused by some sort of distraction (texting, rubber necking, etc.) where basically a driver is not paying attention. I dont think it matters how much your tires cost if your not paying attention! I am sure there are a few cases here and there where there is a small chance a different tyre could have helped. But im willing to take that risk.

In the end my intent was to mearly share my experience. Should someone else be making a tyre decision.

John

Well thank you for sharing your experience.

You are well on track and correct to go by your experience and not reports. Reports give a guide but every car will behave differently with every tyre. What counts is that you know, understand and feel what you have under your feet in your car.

As an example, the Goodyear NCT2 tyres (a long while ago) were reported, tested and classed as being top notch/best tyres. Sadly on our Strada Abarth they were the worst tyres we have ever driven on. Also in many circles/groups of user's they referred to them as Torvill & Dean tyres! skating, slip and sliding away in what ever direction they were pressed. A tyre to be well avoided at all costs.

In reality a good quality tyre (including cheaper/budget brands) built and tested to current international standards will work safely under all test criteria. Beyond this we get into like for like, tit for tat testing, views, opinions etc. etc.

To support the point often top make tyre manufacturers have refused to enter their top tyres into certain magazine/field tests because they know that, for example, on a Ferarri F40 their tyre is unbeatable but on a Porsch Carrera GT it is a heap of junk in comparrison to other makes.

In addition ultimate grip and traction can be beaten by progressive handling, feedback and zoned warnings (aka transition phases with adequate driver feedback).

F1 is a good place to view and understand how the same tyres can perform badly and excellently on even the same cars within the same team.

For me, Pirelli tyres have always for both road and track use ticked all my major boxes. I've also driven hard other makes from Semperit, ESSO own brand (80s tyres), Fulda, Goodyear, Michelin, Bridgestone, Yokohama, Toyo, Kumho to mention but a few. Non of these other tyres (except Goodyear NCT2) have disappointed me to the point of wanting my money back or putting me in danger of lack of security.

Everyone has been different, some better, some worse.

As with all things in life you mileage may vary.

The purchasing decision was not based on “experience” or reviewing the experience of others from the available literature – it was based on price. The significant word used was “risk” – it was a gamble. Later `experience’ was put forward to argue the bold gamble had paid-off & justify the decision.

It is a bold man who avoids (or ignores) the findings of leading authorities by arguing his experience negates anything they may have reported. Try getting through college or impressing senior management with that attitude.

The tests are open to corruption? The obvious counter to that is - the reviewer’s corrupt … for all I know he may have a stake in Cooper-Chengshan.

A tyre manufacturer can block a test (or supply a `special’)? Not from a leading test authority that would simulate an end-user purchase by buying from a random tyre shop.

The tyres you mention are Japanese or European or have been approved by european car manufacturers.

Tyres are measurable – just as (say) mpg etc, FF folk talk of getting 44 or 46 av.mpg. However we don’t seem to get anything `measured’ from the amateur tyre reviewer. Nobody states: `I fitted Rockstone F105 on my Croma & stopped in 7mm of standing water on asphalt in 51.7 metres.’

The measures are subject to variation? Walter A Shewhart would be impressed.

But we are aware of the problem. The Croma, a £20K exec jet in a spin towards 20 cents – & what tyre to buy?

Anybody tried a 225/45ZR18 Nexen N8000?

There are old pilots & bold pilots – but there are no old bold pilots.

--------
55 Prestigio 1.9/16v150 (225/45ZR18 XL95Y Falken FK452)
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I am inclined to agree with Caravadossi, I used to run excellent but expensive Continentals on my cars until a period of financial restraint forced me into budget or mid-range brands, I have had a couple of bad experiences and will never touch that brand again, totally lethal in the wet and very noisy (Butterly was the brand here, made in Russia). On the other hand I have been using Barum Bravarius 2 tyres recently and these have been excellent, I have this time tried a brand called Federal -Formoza 2, these have been on a couple of months now and are quiet and so far have experienced no grip or noise problems. As for tyre tests, amateurs can only ever give an account based on their personal experiences which is why the posts vary wildly from each reviewer, what one person thinks is good another might call differently, professional tests are not infallible either, we all know one car can behave differently on different brands of tyres due to suspension set up or weight distribution etc. that's why manufacturers spend so much on development, I remember when the original Freelander was launched, the Pirellis fitted as standard to some were very noisy but were o.k on other cars, Michelins were much quieter, I guess you pay your money and take your chances. My Avon ZZRs that were fitted to the car when I bought it were great until they were 3/4 worn and then they started droning badly so I changed to the Barums. For those who aren't bikers as well, think yourselves lucky you don't run a powerful motorbike, the rears only last up to 10k miles, cost an absolute fortune and you have to match the front to the rear!

Well I agree with Caravadssi and Boby but also stand by my original post.

Jantento took a punt. I did EXACTLY the same with Kumho tyres when my Croma was shredding expensive Bridgestone tyres faster the Fiat could reposnd to my enquiries/complaint/damage claims. Trash another £130 pound top brand tyre or sacrifice a £70 budget tyre.

As far as I can tell Rockstone tyres are fully Euro/Internationally approved and tested tyres. If this is the case then their is nothing wrong with them. If there is then we are all in deep sh*t because the approval mark on the side of your Pirelli PZero tyre means NOTHING!

I also see that Black Circle Tyres are happy to put their name and reputation behind Rockstone Tyres.

Now it could be well true that if I were to test Rockstone tyres on my Croma I would run as fast as I could in the opposite direction after the test. This could be true of any offically internationally approved tyre.

At the end of the day it comes down to preference, experience and price to performance ratio coupled with application and driving style.

Just one last thought from me on this thread.

I bought/own a Fiat Croma (like most of us in this forum), not a golf or an A4 or a Vectra or whatever. Not because of there popularity or staggering sales numbers! Why...value for dollar.

In "MY OPINION" for normal day to day driving these tyres also provide that for me. But I certainly agree there was some gamble up front.

John

Though I might stir the pot a little. Two months on from my last post. Obviously i'm still alive! More importantly...still zero issues with my cheapo tires. There still quiet and smooth. I have driven on them every day (pretty much) and put a couple thousand miles on them now. Still very happy! No physical problems either...well other than there dirty because of the hose pipe ban

Amazingly no one has been able to stop so much faster than me that I crashed into them! Maybe its just luck?

Anyhow, on another note (maybe should be another thread). My car is going strong and since the weather has warmed up, my MPG seems to be up! Averaging around 430 miles per tank now! Is that a normal number? ough yeah its a 1.9 jtd(150).

John

them Nokian Z G2 have strange tread, i assume all the reviews for braking are in a straight line? what are they like gripping the road on a wet bend?

Edit found it, it came 3rd

I think the tread pattern is more to do with marketing than engineering. As long as there are grooves between the lumps I don't think the pattern matters that much.

Has anyone tried winter tyres on their Croma?

I've had them on the Marea over winter and they're still on now. I usually go through a pair of tyres every 6 months. Almost 9 months on and i've hardly scuffed the rears, and still 6-7mm on the front.

My Croma came with winter tyres when I bought it 3 months ago and they are still on now; no issues to report with wear, noise, traction or handling

its still winter though isnt it? mrs dave put the heating on this morning

why does the 18" have to be 95Y but the 17" only 91W Found a set of yoyo t1r with only 2k miles on 18s that might go cheap but they are 225/40r18 92w

do i divide the cars maximum admitted load by 4 to work out tyre load index needed?

Mine had the wrong rating on 18" wheels when I bought it. It cornered like a sponge cake.

Perhaps they'll take the load, but you won't want to drive it.

W isnt the load index its speed, i dont know what load index is yet seller hasnt got back to me