Tyres--Again

[mrfirepro 127 1 Cars]

Now in a position to boot my nicely refurbed alloys, not a problem I thought, must be lots of resources about this, which there are... unfortunatley most of the posts are now aged and I am having difficulty finding the suggested tyres.

 

So I thought I would ask a question asked many times before, but around the selection of tyres currently available. What tyres should I use on my resto project?

 

First there is the size, and I guess I should be going with 185/55/15 to be as faithful to original as possible, outside of this my only other two requirements are, rim protection and they must look good and if they happen to be made by any of the three specified (Pirelli, Michelin or Good Year)that would be a bonus.

 

Any suggestions or comments would be helpful

[stufarri 98 3 Cars]

My GTI has Continental Premium Contacts in 185/55/15 and they offer good dry/wet grip, wear rate appears OK and overall I'm very happy. So much so that I have bought another set (Contact 2s) for my Goodwood refurb.

[eddie bullit 37]

Have a look at "tyres on the drive" got a few in the correct size and they come to you. Just had new boots all around on the mx5 and they were the cheapest by a stretch.

[Tom Fenton 1,541]

I am very pleased with the Goodyear Efficient Grip Performance I fitted to my 205 in 14".

They are "A" rated for wet grip which has to be a good thing, even though I will never likely use my car in the rain!

Also available in 185/55/15.

[mrfirepro 127 1 Cars]

I am very pleased with the Goodyear Efficient Grip Performance I fitted to my 205 in 14".

They are "A" rated for wet grip which has to be a good thing, even though I will never likely use my car in the rain!

Also available in 185/55/15.

I've seen it being used in the rain... well sitting there anyway

 

Only kidding, thanks for info, that was one of the tyres I've looked at

[aldworth33 45 1 Cars]

I ran pilot sports for about 6k then been running exalto pe2's for the past 2 months and the exalto's are great in the dry I have complete confidence in them and when they start to lose grip I can feel it gradually letting go rather than some tyre that have grip then lose it before you know your in the hedge. In the wet I'm not a great fan so if it's dry summers days the exalto's are great but as a daily like mine they hit and miss. The pilot sports for me were slightly worse in the dry but great in the wet so a better compromise. I had them in 195/50 15

[Stu 18]

Interesting thread this..

 

I previously ran 195x50x50 Parada Spec 2's which came with the car, people generally say they're not great but i beg to differ, dry grip is great and they're certainly a lot better than most in the wet. Only criticism is the weak sidewall; they do tend to flex a bit when loaded.

 

I'll be looking to replace them soon though as, like you, ive got a set of refurbed wheels to go on. I was tempted to go to 185 purely to stop the wheels catching the arches with the 309 beam....

[mrfirepro 127 1 Cars]

it's not easy trying to navigate this minefield, but at least whatever I go with I know at least someone is happy with them.

 

I am leaning towards the Goodyear... and I know this is not gonna go down well but I think they look really good....Oh dear, there I said it.....buying tyres on looks....next I'll be buying a car based on MPG.....

Edited July 17, 2014 by mrfirepro

[Tom Fenton 1,541]

Personally I've used many Goodyear tyres over the years and never had a bad one. Pirelli P600 and P6000 however were utterly garbage.

Michelin are ok but I have found they perish before too long. Ok on something that does lots of miles and will wear out the tread in say 2 or 3 years but in a 205 that might only do a thousand or couple of thou a year, the tyres could perish to a dangerous state before you get the wear out of them.

[Justin 9]

Another vote for Goodyear here. Always got on very well with Eagle F1's and F1 GSD2's on the 205 back in the day. Now I have Yoko Parada Spec 2's on it, and whilst they're good in the dry and not bad in the wet, I wouldn't want them on my daily driver.

 

We also have a Fiat 500 Twinair which came from the factory on Goodyear Efficient Grips in 185/55/15. These have just been changed at 30k for Efficient Grip Performance which are a marked improvement, good in the wet, and work well on the Fiat, which is a similar weight to the 205.

 

 

Justin.

[Mac Crash 78 1 Cars]

Whatever you do, do not run tyres with soft sidewalls on the rear, 205's don't like it, all Goodyears I have used on various cars, no complaints, if you want to stay French then you already know the answer...

[unariciflocos 49 1 Cars]

Considering the standard of your build, just get Michelins, for the original feel. Great quality, but pricey.

[mrfirepro 127 1 Cars]

Considering the standard of your build, just get Michelins, for the original feel. Great quality, but pricey.

I'm not with my notes but dont think I could find the Michelins in 185/55/r15 82v

[welshpug 1,657]

you don't need a V rated tyre on a 205, technically a H rates tyre is sufficient at 130 mph, though afaik there aren't any 185 55 Michelin sporty tyres available anyway!

 

thankfully the pilot sport 3 is available in a195 50 15 at least, and the V rated variant is often a few pounds cheaper due to supply and demand!

[mrfirepro 127 1 Cars]

Thanks for all the advice have ordered the Goodyear Efficientgrip Performance 185/55R15 82 V about £64 ea.

 

Went for this one on the basis of it's ratings, user reviews and price.

[Tom Fenton 1,541]

I don't think you will be disappointed. I was happy enough with mine that I went berserk (for me!) and ordered a 5th new tyre to have a spare!

[mrfirepro 127 1 Cars]

Tom,

 

Wish I knew that before I ordered mine, would have only needed 3 then....

[Tom Fenton 1,541]

Only if you want a 14" spare? Touché!!!

[mrfirepro 127 1 Cars]

I wouldn't be the brightest thief then.......

 

Tyres should be arriving tomorrow, not sure I should admit being excited about tyres being delivered.

[unariciflocos 49 1 Cars]

 

The DHL man is my Santa. I was also more excited than I should have been a few days back when I got some new tools...

[mrfirepro 127 1 Cars]

Andrei, that really made me laugh...

 

Glad I'm not the only one, my DHL delivery driver is a car nut as well and he always asks me "what the part is that being delivered" and lately he started to guess before I tell him...now that's SAD

 

Anyway, update on the tyre received the tyres today..(well pleased they look really good) took said tyres with 5 speedline alloys (new from the refurbishes) to find, that one is buckled and two are a different grey, now how does that happen from the same place.

 

So gone from being elated because I'm going to get my car on new rubber and alloys, to derpressed because it all gone "Pete Tong" and who said restoring cars is stressful.......

Edited July 25, 2014 by mrfirepro

[Paul_13 212 1 Cars]

I've been running maxxis ma-z1's for ages in 14" and just bought myself another set.

 

Really grippy in the dry, only slightly less in the wet to be expected.

They wear really slowly and I can't fault them.

Would highly recommend them

[Tom Fenton 1,541]

and two are a different grey, now how does that happen from the same place...

It can somehow, I had 4 wheels done for my car at first, 1 was a duller grey compared to the other 3 sparkly silver. It wasn't until I put them the car that it became obvious. Went back to the powdercoaters and at first he wasn't really playing ball. Then I showed him the underside of my car and I think he then realised the effort that had gone into it and in his words "the wheels need to be right" so he did another wheel for me FOC and also said he'll do the one that came out the wrong shade again. In the end it became the spare which is fine with me really.