Help needed – Dangerous tyres (Possible 2x sets of left tyres installed

Associate
Joined
10 Aug 2006
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783
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Northampton
They would say 'rotation' on the sidewall quite prominently. If they don't, then it doesn't matter.

Bung them in eBay and move on to better rubber which won't throw you off if you're doing 10mph around a bend.
 
Soldato
Joined
19 Jan 2003
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17,542
Location
Bristol, UK
Asymmetric tyres have a notably different tread pattern on the inside edge from the outside. One optimised for wet traction and the other dry.

Your tyres are pretty much symmetrical.

Asymmetric tyres will always clearly display which side is the outside.

Directional tyres usually have a distinctive tread pattern, think of the famous classic Goodyear Eagle F1s arrow-shaped tread or a tractor tyre.
 
Soldato
Joined
6 Oct 2004
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18,325
Location
Birmingham
I never understood why people exaggerate this point, because of financial situation for the past 3 years I've been driving on all 4 different tyres, I always get them 1 a piece used from the scrappy..

Yes the car might understeer a bit quicker, and might not brake as hard as in a perfect situation with matched and good tyres, but you can simply drive more calmly, ( as opposed to driving like a hooligan when the car is 100%), the cars I have have bigger issues ( which I don't have money for) than their tyres :o.

Until I'm rich, I'm not going to spend more than 2 tenners per tyre (tyre+ fitted + balanced) ( I do try to pick the best tyres from the bunch though, atm I do have 2 matched Conti's on the front, one Goodyear summer on the back, and 1 Dunlop winter on the back).

I mean cars function with space savers too ( and thus even worse mismatched with original tyres)... The ''skimp on tyres = child killer'' mentality is absurd... Not everybody can afford 60+ per tyre.

The point is, what's going to cost more, an extra £20/tyre over several years, or your excess and increased premiums for 5 years following a crash which could have been avoided if you'd had better tyres?

It depends on the car and your driving style IMO.

If you have a high performance car then it would be madness to have anything other than high quality tyres, but if you drive a 1.0 Micra and drive sensibly then I don't think its so important

Rubbish. If someone pulls out on you on an NSL road then it doesn't matter whether you're driving "sensibly" or not, unless you're implying that driving "sensibly" involves slowing to 20mph every time you pass a junction where someone is waiting?

Good tyres don't matter so much in normal day-to-day driving, it's when you need to emergency stop, or control the car when you suddenly hit a patch of standing water that you realise the difference. The problem is the only time you'll usually notice your tyres are **** is when it's too late ;)
 
Soldato
Joined
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13,702
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Netherlands
The point is, what's going to cost more, an extra £20/tyre over several years, or your excess and increased premiums for 5 years following a crash which could have been avoided if you'd had better tyres?
I'll take my chances :o, it's not 20 quid per tyre more ( it's 50-60 euros more per tyre, as those 2 tenners get me a tyre + fitting + balancing...), including fitting it's about 200-250 euros ( depending on which car) per car per year-ish ( 50-60.000 km's pj, bout 35k miles).

I know my tyres are rubbish, this is very obvious when pulling away sometimes in the wet, but I'm used to it...
 
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Soldato
Joined
26 Jun 2011
Posts
4,902
Jesus, so it isn't even down to not being able to afford decent tyres, it's purely down to just being a cheapskate?

That's even worse imo.
 
Soldato
Joined
6 Oct 2004
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18,325
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Birmingham
I'll take my chances :o, it's not 20 quid per tyre more ( it's 50-60 euros more per tyre, as those 2 tenners get me a tyre + fitting + balancing...), including fitting it's about 200-250 euros ( depending on which car) per car per year-ish ( 50-60.000 km's pj, bout 35k miles).

I know my tyres are rubbish, this is very obvious when pulling away sometimes in the wet, but I'm used to it...

Haha, well if you're still driving the car in your sig, I doubt it makes much difference since the brakes on them are shockingly bad anyway :p

Fingers crossed we don't have a "wrote my car off in the wet" thread from you soon...
 
Soldato
Joined
27 Oct 2005
Posts
13,702
Location
Netherlands
Haha, well if you're still driving the car in your sig, I doubt it makes much difference since the brakes on them are shockingly bad anyway :p

Nah, I drive a '93 Rolla or one of our 2 2002 C5's on LPG privately and whatever repmobile my boss has over during work...

The Rolla has far worse brakes than my Galant ever had, not to mention the lack of ABS, I actually recently locked up on the motorway ( emergency brake from 100 ish mph :o, cloud of smoke) and had to replace the 2 fronts as they had ''flat'' spots. I generally drive calmly these days and won't be wasting my cash on cars I'm not hooning about with anyhow.
Fingers crossed we don't have a "wrote my car off in the wet" thread from you soon...
The Rolla has been written off already in the past year, bloody truck did a PIT maneuver on me: cashed the money I could get for it, and left the damage ( dent rear left, bumper paint damage and small crack in rear left light).

It's an A to B car, don't really care, not spending money on it unless essential to keep it driving.
 
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Associate
Joined
9 Jun 2011
Posts
438
Location
UK
Asymmetric tyres have a notably different tread pattern on the inside edge from the outside. One optimised for wet traction and the other dry.

Your tyres are pretty much symmetrical.

Asymmetric tyres will always clearly display which side is the outside.

Directional tyres usually have a distinctive tread pattern, think of the famous classic Goodyear Eagle F1s arrow-shaped tread or a tractor tyre.

also you forgot to mention as above some also show an arrow on the side skirt of the tyre
 
Associate
Joined
9 Jun 2011
Posts
438
Location
UK
Asymmetric tyres have a notably different tread pattern on the inside edge from the outside. One optimised for wet traction and the other dry.

Your tyres are pretty much symmetrical.

Asymmetric tyres will always clearly display which side is the outside.

Directional tyres usually have a distinctive tread pattern, think of the famous classic Goodyear Eagle F1s arrow-shaped tread or a tractor tyre.
 
Soldato
Joined
14 Dec 2013
Posts
2,589
Rubbish. If someone pulls out on you on an NSL road then it doesn't matter whether you're driving "sensibly" or not, unless you're implying that driving "sensibly" involves slowing to 20mph every time you pass a junction where someone is waiting?

Good tyres don't matter so much in normal day-to-day driving, it's when you need to emergency stop, or control the car when you suddenly hit a patch of standing water that you realise the difference. The problem is the only time you'll usually notice your tyres are **** is when it's too late ;)

By driving sensibly I meant driving according to road and weather conditions, anticipating what other drivers might do (even if its something stupid) and keeping a reasonable distance from the car in front, you know things that you should be doing anyway regards if you have an old banger with Chinese tyres and crap brakes or if you have 6 pot calipers and top quality tyres.

And like I said its my opinion and you are welcome to disagree as I am sure many others would disagree too. :)
 
Soldato
Joined
22 Dec 2002
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10,165
Location
Minehead
Can't stand the cheap tyre mentality myself. I don't drive fast cars, only thing I had that was semi quick was my 220T (which had F1's) and on my current diesel blunderbus I have F1AS2's.

As others have said, its when you need the tyres in an emergency you find out just how good/bad they are. For the sake of very little extra money - in the OP's case at £37 for lingdongditchfinder 1980 le sports he could have had goodyear efficientgrip performance for only £20 more a corner.

A decent tyre, with good stopping ability, low noise and all the other stuff that goes with it.
 
Soldato
Joined
1 Jun 2013
Posts
9,315
You always hear the "I don't have the money" from people who spend £50 a night, several nights a week with their mates in the pub. Or they are buying cigarettes or flash clothes, or anything but whatever they don't want to spend their money on. Then the excuse is always "I'm a great driver, don't see why anyone needs decent tyres, I always get mine out of a skip, etc".

Instead of buying some of the useless crap we all buy, that little bit of extra money could be put to getting better, safer tyres. You'll probably get most of that money back in better fuel mileage with your decent tyres working properly and at the correct pressure.
 
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Associate
Joined
19 May 2009
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1,509
Location
Nottingham
The simple issue many people have with cheap, rubbish, or second hand tires is that no matter how you justify it to yourself you are essentially putting other peoples lives at risk as well as your own. You may be happy in the knowledge that your car is just a tool and you are driving to what you think are those tires limits. But if you did cause a major accident, (for example, resulting in the serious injury of say a young family in the third parties car), that could have been avoided on decent tires, would you still be happy with your choice?

The truth is that crap tires will be fine 99% of the time. But unfortunately that 1% of the time they aren't cant have life changing consequences, not just for you, but for an innocent party as well.
 
Soldato
Joined
6 Oct 2004
Posts
18,325
Location
Birmingham
The simple issue many people have with cheap, rubbish, or second hand tires is that no matter how you justify it to yourself you are essentially putting other peoples lives at risk as well as your own. You may be happy in the knowledge that your car is just a tool and you are driving to what you think are those tires limits. But if you did cause a major accident, (for example, resulting in the serious injury of say a young family in the third parties car), that could have been avoided on decent tires, would you still be happy with your choice?

The truth is that crap tires will be fine 99% of the time. But unfortunately that 1% of the time they aren't cant have life changing consequences, not just for you, but for an innocent party as well.

They're probably the same people who moan about "non-fault" accidents increasing their premiums :p
 
Caporegime
Joined
19 Apr 2008
Posts
26,266
Location
Essex
They're not directional, stop trying to delude yourself otherwise.

Asymmetric have very different tread patterns on the inside and outside edge, the pattern is the same on each side on the tyres you bought.

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