4th gen. Honda City : Tyre & wheel upgrade thread

[iVtec]

P3ST is the best bet. They provide marked improvement in grip. So much so that I feel that my car is more "planted". The best part is they are very silent. You will instantly recognise that the tyre noise is almost non-existent. Just ensure that you check with your dealer if the upsizing impacts Honda's warranty. It normally should not.

[manishkapadia]

Hello

Sorry if this is posted in the wrong thread.

I have a Third generation Honda City 2010 model . Its now over 5 years old and needs a tyre replacement . I was using the 175/65/R15 MRF stock tyres till now .

My consideration for change in tyre has to be improvement of ride quality . Bumps shouldn't be felt inside the vehicle . I like the ride that a corolla Altis gives .
Secondly i want to improve the ground clearance a bit . When loaded the car does touch on some speedbreakers despite being utmost careful.

Now with the car being over 5 years ( But just 20K Kms ) old should I go for
185/65/R15 OR i should go for 195/60/R15 .

My running is very low so am ok with a tyre that will last just 30,000 kms in the next 5 years. little drop in mileage is acceptable .

Confused between the Yokohoma A Drive and the Michelin XM2 .

Experts please advise . I did use the search but most recommendations are for swap on a new car . I want an honest experienced opinion about what to do on a car that's already old now . I intend to use the car for another 5 years.

[xistinchaos]

For my Honda City 2011 VMT, I changed the stock Goodyears to Pirellis - Cinturato P1. The Goodyears had done about 30,000 km in 4 years so the change. I did not want the same tyres again as I wanted less noisier tyres and my experience of pressure holding in Goodyears was not great. The P1 in contrast makes very low noise at high speeds or on concrete roads. I have found them to be great for handling in city as well as highway conditions. I typically don't exceed a speed of 90 kmph, rarely at 100 kmph, so I would not know performance for speed higher than these. The tyres also hold air pressure for quite sometime. I check it every week without fail and I have to top up once in 15 days or so. I have not noticed any drop in mileage either.

The dealer from whom I bought them recommended nitrogen filling but I don't have a petrol pump on my commute which has a nitrogen air stations, so I fill normal air.

[harsha.muvva]

Originally Posted by manishkapadia

Hello

Sorry if this is posted in the wrong thread.

I have a Third generation Honda City 2010 model . Its now over 5 years old and needs a tyre replacement . I was using the 175/65/R15 MRF stock tyres till now .


Now with the car being over 5 years ( But just 20K Kms ) old should I go for
185/65/R15 OR i should go for 195/60/R15 .

My running is very low so am ok with a tyre that will last just 30,000 kms in the next 5 years. little drop in mileage is acceptable .

Confused between the Yokohoma A Drive and the Michelin XM2 .

Experts please advise . I did use the search but most recommendations are for swap on a new car . I want an honest experienced opinion about what to do on a car that's already old now . I intend to use the car for another 5 years.

I have a 2010 honda city ivtec VMT, It came with michelin tyres(175/65).The tyres are good regarding the noise levels but they used to squeal even under moderate braking and I used to scrape the underbody very frequently.

At around 20k kms i have changed to yokohama ES100(195/60 R15) while the grip is excellent and it used to stick to ground but after 25k kms they used to make lot of noise and ride became very bumpy!
They lasted for 35k kms

Finally at 55k kms on odo, I have changed to michelin 3ST(195/60 r15) and after having done close to 6k kms, I am totally in love with these tyres.They are very silent and ride quality transformed too.I would recommend these tyres for anyone who is looking for comfort oriented tyres.On hard cornering they squeal, but they are good enough for highway speeds.

You will he having GC advantage with 195/60 over 175 section tyres

Hope this helps.

[themonster]

Originally Posted by Aston Singh

Hey "themonster"

Thanks for correcting me. I didn't realize that the stock rim size is 15". My bad !

Well if you are unhappy with the current set of tyres then you can change them right away. Safety comes first and tyres are the most crucial aspect of it.
195/60 is perfect for Honda city. Enough grip from the wider tyre and softness from the sidewall height. 205 is an overkill indeed !

Let me know if you need my help in finalizing the tyres.

Hello Aston Singh !!
I remembered that you had offered help whenever I needed help finalizing tyres.
Well, the time has come for my 2014 City. I have currently done about 29000kms on the current set of Goodyear GT3 175/65 R15. It still has enough thread left; for about 2000kms, 3000kms max. Since its been raining a lot the past couple of weeks, I realized that I am skidding in the rain even in low speeds like 20-30kmph and the car just aqua planes.
I have been considering an upgrade (to 195/60 R15) since the past week (ever since I found out that I am skidding) and in the current city where I am, the only good tyres available are Bridgestone, MRF and Apollo. I visited the Bridgestone select outlet, he had asked me what do I want and everything and finally suggested me Bridgestone Potenza G III. I visited many more tyre shops, most of them suggested the same G IIIs. I read a lot on the G IIIs and they are fairly old (>10years) in the market, but they still are one of the best all-round tyres. Since it is a matter of safety, I will most probably be upgrading the tyres in this week or the next. I would like to know if i should look into other tyres (like michellin XM2, etc) and hunt for them.
Thanks in advance !!

Also a question for BHPian ShreyasJain. You had upgraded your tyres to Michellin XM2 205/60 R15. Have you faced any wheel well touches or bumpy ride when the car is in full load (5 people + boot full with luggage) ?
I had asked about the above upsize to tyre dealers, and they were against it and said, it's fine if I am driving solo or with 3 people max but maybe I might have to modify the suspension so that in full load it doesn't cause problems (touching the wheel arches and the bumpy ride part). I have been very tempted to upsize to 205s after seeing that it gives a 10mm increase in ground clearance (vs the 3mm increase when upsizing to 195s)

[Aston Singh]

Originally Posted by themonster

Hello Aston Singh !!
I remembered that you had offered help whenever I needed help finalizing tyres.
Well, the time has come for my 2014 City. I have currently done about 29000kms on the current set of Goodyear GT3 175/65 R15. It still has enough thread left; for about 2000kms, 3000kms max. Since its been raining a lot the past couple of weeks, I realized that I am skidding in the rain even in low speeds like 20-30kmph and the car just aqua planes.
I have been considering an upgrade (to 195/60 R15) since the past week (ever since I found out that I am skidding) and in the current city where I am, the only good tyres available are Bridgestone, MRF and Apollo. I visited the Bridgestone select outlet, he had asked me what do I want and everything and finally suggested me Bridgestone Potenza G III. I visited many more tyre shops, most of them suggested the same G IIIs. I read a lot on the G IIIs and they are fairly old (>10years) in the market, but they still are one of the best all-round tyres. Since it is a matter of safety, I will most probably be upgrading the tyres in this week or the next. I would like to know if i should look into other tyres (like michellin XM2, etc) and hunt for them.
Thanks in advance !!

@themonster

Always happy to help

Apollo has Alnac 4G, they can be seen as OEM fitting on the elite i20 and Punto EVO as well. It's a new tyre so no reviews are available as of yet..

MRF offers the ZLO which is quite popular on our forum. People are quite happy with this particular model. Give that a look!

Bridgestone offering is an old model plus not exactly VFM, so you might want to leave that out.

Michelin has XM2 and P3ST. Both are good!

At the end of the day it comes down to the road conditions, your usage, your driving style. So take your pick!

Hit me back if my response didn't help much

[wolf_lone]

So my Dec 2009 Honda City VMT Tyres are now quite old & with visible hairline cracks on the side-wall.. These were OEM Michelin XM1 (175/67/R15). They seem to have completed their life expectancy & certainly need replacement. Even though the tread on the tyres is not gone completely since the car is mostly parked ever since my bother left for Dubai. I occasional take it out ~2-3 times a month at the most.

Last month one of the tyre went bust since I hit a pot hole in the early morning hrs & it was dark.. The speed must be ~70-80kmph at that time..


When I got the Honda City, Primacy LC were the new in thing with soft ride & reduce noise.. BUT now its noted that they have soft side-walls & much lower life.. Hence I guess they are not recommended..


Which ones should I get. The vehicle has only crossed 24k on ODO meter. Mostly parked....

[Aston Singh]

Originally Posted by wolf_lone

So my Dec 2009 Honda City VMT Tyres are now quite old & with visible hairline cracks on the side-wall.. These were OEM Michelin XM1 (175/67/R15). They seem to have completed their life expectancy & certainly need replacement. Even though the tread on the tyres is not gone completely since the car is mostly parked ever since my bother left for Dubai. I occasional take it out ~2-3 times a month at the most.

Last month one of the tyre went bust since I hit a pot hole in the early morning hrs & it was dark.. The speed must be ~70-80kmph at that time..


When I got the Honda City, Primacy LC were the new in thing with soft ride & reduce noise.. BUT now its noted that they have soft side-walls & much lower life.. Hence I guess they are not recommended..


Which ones should I get. The vehicle has only crossed 24k on ODO meter. Mostly parked....

Any preferences regarding quality, grip, noise levels, comfort, VFM?

[wolf_lone]

Originally Posted by Aston Singh

Any preferences regarding quality, grip, noise levels, comfort, VFM?

Can't I have all..

I guess longlife with resilience to cracking (side-wall) then grip then noise & comfort is needed.. VFM is also important since I hardly take the car out.

[Aston Singh]

Originally Posted by wolf_lone

Can't I have all..

I guess longlife with resilience to cracking (side-wall) then grip then noise & comfort is needed.. VFM is also important since I hardly take the car out.

You can check Goodyear and Apollo. They are pretty reasonable and suit our Indian conditions. If you can take VFM out of the picture, then Bridgestones would be ideal. They will last you for ages. I consider them to be a perfect match for our splendid road conditions

[themonster]

Originally Posted by Aston Singh

@themonster

Always happy to help

Apollo has Alnac 4G, they can be seen as OEM fitting on the elite i20 and Punto EVO as well. It's a new tyre so no reviews are available as of yet..

MRF offers the ZLO which is quite popular on our forum. People are quite happy with this particular model. Give that a look!

Bridgestone offering is an old model plus not exactly VFM, so you might want to leave that out.

Michelin has XM2 and P3ST. Both are good!

At the end of the day it comes down to the road conditions, your usage, your driving style. So take your pick!

Hit me back if my response didn't help much

Thanks for your quick reply !!
Actually that's the thing. I asked them for the MRF ZLO and the Apollo Alnac 4G. Both the shops went like, they are good tyres, but not as great as bridgestone potenza GIII; although the MRF dealer told he has MRF ZLX which is even better than ZLO but the size is not available for 15 inchers.

This had me confused. Why is everyone pointing the finger only at the potenza GIIIs?

I thought about Michellin XM2; but as you rightly pointed above, for OUR road conditions i felt it won't be the best (my daily driving has numerous road "surprises" not limited to DEEP potholes, uneven road, unpaved roads, loose stones on well done roads, mud, etc). And I was thinking of Michellins as my next set of tyres.

Originally Posted by Aston Singh

You can check Goodyear and Apollo. They are pretty reasonable and suit our Indian conditions. If you can take VFM out of the picture, then Bridgestones would be ideal. They will last you for ages. I consider them to be a perfect match for our splendid road conditions

I quoted this post cause you said Bridgestones are good. Any sugguestions?

[wolf_lone]

Originally Posted by Aston Singh

You can check Goodyear and Apollo. They are pretty reasonable and suit our Indian conditions. If you can take VFM out of the picture, then Bridgestones would be ideal. They will last you for ages. I consider them to be a perfect match for our splendid road conditions

Which Bridgestone model? . You have mentioned Michelin XM2 and P3ST earlier.. I'd XM1 as OEM.. Can't complain about them sincethey lasted a good 4-5 years though I didn't drove them much.. But they were puny..

[@Chaand]

Hello,

i am currently on 175/65/R15. Stock Tyres. Car has done 55k.
By upgrading to 195/60/R15 won't we reduce the GC further (albiet marginally). I have taken steps of installing spacers but i am in not too keen on reducing the GC.
Experts please comment.

[neel911]

Originally Posted by @Chaand

Hello,

i am currently on 175/65/R15. Stock Tyres. Car has done 55k.
By upgrading to 195/60/R15 won't we reduce the GC further (albiet marginally). I have taken steps of installing spacers but i am in not too keen on reducing the GC.
Experts please comment.

Its actually the other way around. The 195/60 will end up increasing the ground clearance

[saket77]

Originally Posted by @Chaand

Hello,

i am currently on 175/65/R15. Stock Tyres. Car has done 55k.
By upgrading to 195/60/R15 won't we reduce the GC further (albiet marginally). I have taken steps of installing spacers but i am in not too keen on reducing the GC.
Experts please comment.

Originally Posted by neel911

Its actually the other way around. The 195/60 will end up increasing the ground clearance

Neel is correct. The second set of numbers correspond to the percentage side profile in reference to the width of the tire. The first number is absolute width of the tire in terms of mm.

Hence, 175mm*65/100 = 113.75 mm of side profile. And similarly, 195*60/100= 117mm. So, you end up gaining about 3.25 mm of ground clearance. Increasing the side profile also cushions your ride and hence feels more comfortable, but remember that it affects handling the other way.

Regards.