Tyres?

[TonyHSD]

2 hours ago, citrys said:

Want to try CrossClimate tyres in Latvia, but I'm a bit worried about coldest season... will they be ok on snow or even on ice.

Yes these will be good for snow and ice but don’t expect exactly a dedicated winter tyre capabilities. They are also marked with snowflake in three peak mountain Icon so approved to use during winter in any European country. 
You may look Goodyear vector 4 seasons 3 these are as good as Michelin or even better in both hot and cold climates. 

[Hadrian1]

My preferred tyre used to be the Goodyear G800.

Those were the days    🙂

[Tim Bird]

On 5/10/2024 at 7:36 AM, fred88 said:

Since following this forum I've got confused about tyres. In the past I've always bought, well, tyres! I now learn that there are summer tyres, winter tyres and all season tyres. So what have I been buying in the past when I've just go to the local, or more recently mobile, tyre fitter and buy .... tyres?

I realise you can't actually answer that question without knowing what i actually purchased, but my point is when you just have a conversation with your fitter and choose a brand / price band with no mention of seasons, what are you likely to get?

I purchased winter tyres once, when my wife was expecting our first child in January and we were living in Scotland near Kircaldy (Fife) about ten years ago. I had a rear wheel drive BMW (now a Corolla Touring Sports) and I was not confident at all that it would make it through the snow and ice to the hospital 30 miles away. They were worth it for that one year and the following winter but after that they were a liability. Now living in Portsmouth I wouldn’t put anything but summers or multi-seasons (at most) on my Corolla which is front wheel drive anyway. Budget tyres? Kumho get the job done. Falken too. Upmarket I would look at Michelin but NOT Bridgestone and definitely NOT run flats like Potenzas. Hateful things. Get a space saver tyre or else use your breakdown cover. Say no to run flats! They ruin your ride.

[Talking Hoarse]

I did it.  At last I have replaced the OE 17" Falkens with Michelin CrossClimates, at approx 21k miles.  I retained a single Falken (in loft just in case) that has >4mm, the other that had similar tread depth had puncture repair so disposed.  I opted for tyres rated 94Y instead of 91W as this saved about £50 in total.   And I opted for Michelin in preference to Goodyear as I found them superior on a previous car.  I did also consider Bridgestone - but these were not obtainable at the time (maybe you can now tell I purchased @ Costco?!)

My observations having done several 00's of miles ....

Handling - it may be very slightly softer, less pointy but hardly noticeable (much less so than when I made silmilar change on a Fiesta).  High speed stability seems unaltered.

Grip - tbc but seems just as good so far in dry and wet - weather is hardly winter at present.

Noise - they sound different to the Falkens, sometimes quieter, other times faint road noise.

Ride - this is a bonus - my car seems to ride slightly better now.  In particular the tyres are more compliant (softer??) and quieter when driving over minor surface changes, cats eyes etc - this is very noticeable.  

Rim protect - sadly the new tyres do not have such a pronounced rim protect ridge - so kerbs beware.