Club 80-90 Forums

Hi,

Just been to Costco, they have Michelin Agilis 8 ply radial 185R14 van tyres for about £48 inc VAT, fitting, balancing, disposal etc.... Is this a good price?

They have "M&S" (Mud and Snow) written on the side.

The bloke said "yeah mate these are van tyres...." does it matter they are marked for mud and snow? (what difference does this make?)

I just want some decent quality tyres for my van, 8 ply, for driving on the road all year round.

Cheers,

Steve

Mud & snow might be a bit noisy for normal road use. go down your local tyre place and ask for economy ones. I pay £35 each fitted & balanced, plus my van runs heavy and fast, no problems so far.

Agilis tyres have had good reports in the Vanagon community in the states. I have a pair on the back of my camper and they seem good - quite a chunky tread - good for muddy campsites.

have just had 2 new agilis 81's on the front of my van,cost me £117 all in for them (ats quoted £129) you have a good price there! had two on the back last year and i am chuffed with them, not noisy at all really but i do like my music loud. had firestone cv3000's on before and the fronts covered 24,000 miles and to be honest they probably had another 1000 miles left in them,if these one's do as well i will be a happy bunny.

it is good to know it is a good price. I didn't know what to expect for branded tyres, I know that cheapy van tyres are about £25-30 quid each, but I would rather pay a few quid more and get something I can rely on.

Brakes and tyres. Don't skimp on either!

Steve

http://www.club80-90.co.uk/wiki/index.p ... nded_tyres
http://www.motorcaravanning.co.uk/vehi ... e_test.htm

take a look at these sites.

Hacksawbob wrote: http://www.motorcaravanning.co.uk/vehic ... e_test.htm

take a look at these sites.

Had a look at the german report, I think I won't be going for budget tyres or the michelin ones, due to the stopping distances:

"The tests in the wet were a different matter altogether. When braking from 80 kph (50 mph) the worst tyre took 53% more stopping distance than the best. To put that into perspective - if these two motorcaravans were side by side at 50 mph and both tried to stop, the vehicle with the worst tyres would still be travelling at almost 30 mph when the first one stopped! That's serious by anyone's standards, a 30 mph impact is very damaging, even lethal. Even the market leading Michelin XC Camping tyre took 25% more stopping distance than the best Conti under these test conditions. It was also the worst tyre for aquaplaning - by some margin, very worrying!"

I wonder how many people choose tyres due to price or longevity? I just imagine how I would feel (having a 2 year old daughter) if I had cheap tyres and a kid ran out in front of me, and I hit them. That would have been a worthwhile few £ saved.

My local tyre place in Bristol (protyre) does Conti vanco tyres at £52 each (inc everything - VAT, balancing etc....), and that was without phoning round. Michelin Agilis were £55 each.

Cheers,

Steve

Speak to Syncro&101 on here, Steve - there are some hardly worn tyres that might be available, currently littering up my back garden.

If you dont go for the Michelins (good price) I can recomend Continental Vanco's.. Great grip wet or dry.. last well too... I replaced with Toyo's.. they are good but not as good as the Conti's...

http://www.etyres.co.uk/car-tyres-uk/de ... oductId=45
conti vancos 8 ply fuly fitted £50.90 a corner

Also Aiden has good things to say about KUMHO 857 but I cant find it cheaper than the vanco at the moment
http://www.camskill.co.uk/products.php?show=6432
here for £40 a tyre inc vat and del but not fitting

Diamond Hell wrote:Speak to Syncro&101 on here, Steve - there are some hardly worn tyres that might be available, currently littering up my back garden.

are they road tyres or for off roading? If road tyres I may be interested (at the right price of course)

Mud & Snow tyres are fine at this time of year; they're a softer compound and have a more aggressive tread pattern than all-year tyres, so they provide extra grip when road conditions are poor. However, if you run heavy and fast on dry roads, they will heat-up and wear quickly. My experience suggests that they can be skittish when conditions are warm; it's not what they're designed for.

I've just got back from Sweden where M+S tyres are a legal requirement in the winter. Most folks seem to have a set of "winter wheels" fitted with M+S tyres - usually the factory steels - and a set of alloys with all-year tyres tucked away for use in the summer.

I can recommend Continentals; the Vanco has a great reputation for excellent grip, progressive handling and good tread life. I'll be fitting them when I've finished refurbishing my 14" alloys.

Louey wrote:

Diamond Hell wrote:Speak to Syncro&101 on here, Steve - there are some hardly worn tyres that might be available, currently littering up my back garden.

are they road tyres or for off roading? If road tyres I may be interested (at the right price of course)

Sorry Louey I have joined the queue at the front, going on Saturday. Will maybe have a set of wheels with Michelin XZX tyres on them. Free if you want them. Decent tread too. Only 6 ply, I want 8 ply for carrying heavy loads.

Cheers,
Steve