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標題: Need help on new tires [打印本頁]

作者: TheAnswera 時間: 2009-8-29 17:43 標題: Need help on new tires

My Acura 2003 RSX needs to replace its tires as they are almost wear-out...
any bro has suggestions on:
1. WHERE I should get them replaced (any reputable place? as I will most likely take their advice on which tire to buy)
2. How much I should expect to have all 4 tires replaced normally? (including labour, alignment, etc)

I did a search on tirerack.com and I'm thinking to get Dunlop SP Sport. Is that good?

Thanks for the helps!!

作者: Lik 時間: 2009-8-29 18:22

First of all, what kind of usage do you want those new tires to serve? Do you want something that is extra long lasting? Do you want something grippy and sporty, at the expense of more tire wear? Do you want something that'll be capable of doing winter duty? or do you want something that offers a lot of value (bang-for-the-buck) without blowing your wallet empty? Or do you have separate winter tires, meaning that you should only consider summer tires?

Assuming that you're buying tires locally and don't cheap out on any of the recommended things (which is what I prefer to do since there is less hassle and you get some extra freebies in additional services such as free tire rotations, free flat repairs, etc.), you can expect to spend at least $800 for the whole thing. ($125 for each tire, $100 for balancing, $100 for alignment, and tax). Naturally, if you go for "better" tires, the bill goes up as well.

-Lik

作者: TheAnswera 時間: 2009-8-29 20:46

I'm looking for the all-season tires that will preform fairly good on normal (sun/rain) conditions. I don't expect to take my car out on a snowy day. Also, I only only drive in the city (I don't need anything sporty) so I prefer something that will offer a great value. I heard there are some fuel-efficient tires, are they good? Any suggustions?

Are those chain auto shop good? e.g. Midas, Goodyear, etc... or they're going to rip you off?

Sorry for lots of questions, I have very little knowledge on cars...
Thanks

作者: tofu 時間: 2009-8-29 21:16

when i got my tires last time, i found costco & the one on clark & hastings have the lowest price in vancouver. costco has a quite good insurance program.

i brought my tires at tirerack, since can't find my size locally at that time. good about tirerack is you don't need to pay state tax. but don't choose goodyear for installation. even i phoned them ahead to confirm the fees, they still charge me some extra. i complained to tiretack but still not to able to get the money back.
my friend uses Dunlop SP Sport, really slippy during rain

作者: Lik 時間: 2009-8-29 21:45

I heard there are some fuel-efficient tires, are they good? Any suggustions?
TheAnswera 發表於 2009-8-29 20:46

[youtube]Xx_XBHSigv4[/youtube]

If you're looking for good value, I rather like the Falken ZE-912. The tire is cheap and has quite a lot of good reviews, making it an excellent value (although 字典哥 here doesn't really like the tire all that much). One weakness of the tire is its softer sidewall, which translates in less direct steering feedback, but it makes for a more comfy ride. Another weakness of the tire is its poorer performance in the snow. You really don't want to be driving these in the kind of snow we had last winter. Kal Tire carries Falkens, and I've been very happy with their service, freebies, and perks. If you do go there for tires, make sure you ask them *NOT* to do the alignment for you. Go to an alignment shop and get it down there. (Advance Automotive is an excellent shop for alignments among other things.)

I've also heard a lot of good things about the General Exclaim UHP. Again, it is not an expensive tires, and represents a good value. Owners are also extremely happy with the wet performance of the tire. But other than Crappy Tire, I don't really know which which shop carries these.

The Kumho Ecsta ASX is another pretty decent choice. Again, it is not an expensive tire, but the performance is there. 字典哥 also happens to like these quite a bit better than the Falken.

My mom's car runs on Pirelli P-Zero Nero M&S, and for the most part, I've been pretty happy with them as well. However, they're an older design, and is a little more expensive than the 3 I was telling you about earlier.

Two tires I would AVOID at all costs are Michelin Primacy MXV4 and Goodyear Eagle RS-A. The Primacy MXV4 is a thoroughly crappy tire with minimal grip. On my friend's Golf GTI VR6, those tires would lose grip so easily that it wasn't even funny. The Eagle RS-A is another thoroughly useless tire. It is slightly more grippy than the Primacy MXV4, but that really isn't saying much. Also, it is loud and sucks in the rain. Another bad thing with these 2 tires are that their treadlife is so good that they just refuse to die, thereby punishing you with their sub-par performance for eternity.

I'm sure others will chime in and give you some good recommendations as well.

-Lik

作者: pkphilip 時間: 2009-8-29 23:28

Bro Lik, The tires you hated are pretty much OE tires.. those who know... will get something better. :-)

For those who want some decent tires but afraid to be ripped off, Costco is a good place to start. At least they carry many typical tire sizes, and they have great service.

I bought my new Bridgestone Blizzak LM-25 at TireRack, Volco at Bridgeport charged me $160 for balance, mount and Re-and-Re. Since they have scratch-less mount, and 4 guys working on one car, I don't mind paying more.

Philip

作者: 字典仔 時間: 2009-8-30 08:21

Xx_XBHSigv4

If you're looking for good value, I rather like the Falken ZE-912. The tire is cheap and has quite a lot of good reviews, making it an excellent value (although 字典哥 here doesn't ...
Lik 發表於 2009/8/29 21:45

力哥, 我冇賣ASX好耐喇, 不過你比我擇我真係覺得kumho asx好過falken ZE512 or ZE912, 果條硬膠可以唔夠8000km仲跣過套65000km既米芝蓮....

for 2003 RSX (應該係205/55R16?), 我會建議Bridgestone RE960 / Michilin Pilot Exalto A/S (除非我個friend做果個warehouse bridgeston冇貨而又back order, 因為michilin都貴幾多), 之前用開Dunlop SP5000 (都唔錯) 不過Dunlop SP Sport Signature就好似唔係好吸引 (好似remodel左既SP5000 = old technology, 我七/八年前已經用緊啦)...

會建議咩tire都好睇你既budget, 我自己就冇stock tire所以只會recommend whatever is available for your budget or if there is an alternative route? pm me if you need help la

作者: shutterbug 時間: 2009-8-30 10:34

Bridgestone 019 grid is my choice.
Exalto a/s is good but expensive out of the bunch.
Putting Primacy on a GTI is nuts...totally wrong class of tire for thr car.

作者: Lik 時間: 2009-8-30 16:54

for 2003 RSX (應該係205/55R16?), 我會建議Bridgestone RE960 / Michilin Pilot Exalto A/S (除非我個friend做果個warehouse bridgeston冇貨而又back order, 因為michilin都貴幾多), 之前用開Dunlop SP5000 (都唔錯) 不過Dunlop SP Sport Signature就好似唔係好吸引 (好似remodel左既SP5000 = old technology, 我七/八年前已經用緊啦)...

會建議咩tire都好睇你既budget, 我自己就冇stock tire所以只會recommend whatever is available for your budget or if there is an alternative route? pm me if you need help la
字典仔發表於 2009-8-30 08:21

字典哥's recommendations are really solid here, although the tires he mentioned here are a little more expensive than the ones I suggested (by $20 to $50 per tire). Given that those 4 chunks of rubber are the only connection between your car and the road, and when you look at the price difference as a percentage of the overall tire replacement bill, it'll work out to be an extra 10% to 20%.

Are you willing to pay that extra amount? Will you be able to take advantage of the extra performance benefits in your driving? And what about emergency / sub-optimal situations? These are questions that only you can answer la.

-Lik

作者: pkphilip 時間: 2009-8-30 22:58

Since the tires are all 4 contacts to the ground, I would not be cheap on them (as your life may very well depend on them).

City driving, for everyday commute - then mid-grade should be ok. If you are agressive and needs more grip, of course aim for the higher price ones.

Philip

作者: 字典仔 時間: 2009-8-30 23:46

9# Lik

put it this way, say if you get a set of cheap 205/55R16, $600; if you get a nice set of 205/55R16, $900 (or less i think); with that extra $300 you pay, it's just like buying insurance, with the extra performance, you get better protection from skidding and with the extra money that you SAVED (from buying the cheaper tire), will that be enough for you to skid an inch and rear ended someone and only causing bumper damage (at least $300 per bumper?!), or if you slightly kiss a curb ($90 for alignment + possibility of blowing up a tire, bending a rim, screwing up the lower control arm or even strut / knuckle etc)?

it's just like braking power, who needs those fancy brembo or 4 pot or 2 pot or even disc brake? old school brakes will still slow down the car, or the cheapest pad / rotors can still take the car into a complete stop (it's just a matter of time / distance etc)....

and IF, say you drive 50 or 60k in a year, and you need tire replacement every year; with the mileage you put on the road, you know the chance for running into accident or whatever is higher than those who drives 7000km a year (car is probably park more than drive); so it's worth it ~ but even if you drive 7000km a year, that same amount is splitted into 8 years and $100 a year on tires ain't too bad isn't it? if one can't even afford maintaining the car properly (i have seen ppl who kept buying used tires for cheap), one shouldn't be driving?!

I have seen too many times people crashed their car simply because of bad tire traction / inflation or ****ty brakes (well even a perfect driver will make mistake)? that's why i learnt from working in a autobody shop for 5 years, and over 10 years in this trade....

作者: Lik 時間: 2009-8-31 01:07

字典哥, for the most part, I agree with what you are saying ga. If the price difference is small, why bother with the cheaper stuff, especially when safety is concerned, and the margin of error is small?

I generally don't like Michelin tires all that much not because they are bad tires (although a good number of them, esp in OE applications, are crap), but because they are vastly overpriced. Quite a few years ago when I was tire shopping, I was considering the Michelin Pilot Sport A/S because of its very positive review. The moment I started looking at prices, however, my jaw just dropped -- the Pilot Sport A/S in my size was around $240, while the Falken ZE-512 was a mere $125. Was the Michelin a better tire? Most probably. But was it almost 100% better? I wouldn't think so.

Another consideration I had at the time was, the Pilot Sport had a longer tread life than the ZE-512 did. However, since I don't usually drive that much, the longer tread life of the Pilot Sport probably means it'll last me more than 6 years' worth of driving. Given that rubber hardens and lose grip over time, I'd rather buy something with less tread life and replace it in the 4th or 5th year at most. So for me, one benefit of the more expensive Pilot Sport didn't really matter.

On the other hand, when I was winter tire shopping last year, I went ahead with the Michelin X-Ice Xi2 even though it was more expensive than many of the other models available. My rationale here is that in the dry (even in an emergency), the safety margin of an above average tire (as opposed to a higher end tire) is still sufficiently large. In poor road conditions -- and especially in the winter -- that margin becomes much smaller, so I'd rather pay more to maximize it.

We all know the benefits of multi-pot brakes la. As good as the massive single piston system I have on my car, I totally wish it was something more, even if it were only a dual piston setup in front!

-Lik

作者: TheAnswera 時間: 2009-9-2 17:59

Thank you all for you answers

作者: chocolatebean 時間: 2009-9-24 14:32

本帖最後由 chocolatebean 於 2009-9-24 15:35 編輯

I need some new tires for my mazda3 5dr, 205/50R/16...my fd recommended "sumitomo htr+", anyone know if they are any good?

作者: shutterbug 時間: 2009-9-25 22:54

you want summer or all season?

stock mazda3 should be:

15-inch:
Width - 6.0 inches
Offset - 52.5mm
Tire size - P195/65R15 H-rated

16-inch:
Width - 6.5 inches
Offset - 52.5mm
Tire size - P205/55R16 H-rated

17-inch:
Width - 6.5 inches
Offset - 52.5mm
Tire size - P205/50R17 V-rated

you're sure you have 16" or 17" wheels?

作者: chocolatebean 時間: 2009-9-27 08:23

15# shutterbug

I have 16", well i went to costco to get my new tires yesterday, hope they are good la...

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