[Kosfactor]

As many of you would know that shoe sizes can differ under the nominal '43' or size 8 etc with different brands. You sure cannot wear two shoes from different brands just because they are size 7 and says non-marking. Consider the same here.

All 185/75/R14 are not the same in size, even the section width.

Their traction, handling , ability to remove water etc etc, everything changes from model to model, variant to variant , brand to brand. The contact patch is different as well. When all these things are different , The loading on tires will be unequal, leading to uneven traction , uneven wear, that's not a good situation to be in.

[Hayek]

As everybody has already said, DO NOT mix tyres of different brands on a single axle. However, I do understand that tyres are in short supply right now. When I was looking to replace tyres, one of the dealers managed to procure just 3 of one brand and 1 of another - kept calling different tyre dealers up until I found someone with 4 tyres of the same brand and similar age. Think that is what you should look to do - keep trying for a 4th tyre of the same brand (call tyre dealers from outside your city too), and buy two tyres of the alternate brand if that is the only choice you are left with.

[honeybee]

Originally Posted by Jeroen

...
We are talking about somebody willingly trading safety for money. A very small amount of money for somebody that can afford these sort of cars. What would you call such a person.

Other terms do come to mind, but cheap is probably the least offending.

...

How much safety is compromised if only one tyre is replaced?

Exactly how big is that risk? What's the probability of the car meeting with an accident because one tyre out of four is new?

Are we talking F1 here or regular commuter driving on roads?

[avdhesh15]

Originally Posted by Jeroen

We are talking about somebody willingly trading safety for money. A very small amount of money for somebody that can afford these sort of cars. What would you call such a person.

Agreed - it's like wearing Nike on right leg and Reebok on the left. And then justifying it!

I'm having a feeling though that something was wrong with the tyre and it was replaced under warranty and OP couldn't do anything about it.

[Cessna182]

A guide from Continental. https://www.continentaltire.com/news...tires-question

Summary- if you have to mix brands, place 2 identical tires at the rear of the vehicle. Select a tread pattern that's closest to the original.

[AMG Power]

The amount of ill informed advice put out on forums can sometimes be downright dangerous. The cherry on top is the incorrect justifications followed by debate.

One wonders whether it is better to let folks learn it the hard way rather than waste time trying to correct them.

Fortunately, OP seems to have followed the right counsel.

[el lobo 6061]

Originally Posted by milin

How would you rate the performance of the Bridgestone Turanza over the Pirellis?

Bridgestone Turanza T001I RFT are more durable & abuse friendly compared to Pirelli Cinturato P7 RFT.

Other than that no difference in driving dynamics. I would prefer Bridgestone over Pirelli any day.

Originally Posted by milin

I am due for a change on my M Sport and contemplating between Bridgestone and Continental, subject to availability of course considering the supply situation.

Haven't used Continental, so cannot comment. But they are also good. Do check the load index and speed rating be same or higher to one you get.

225 55 R17 RFT have
Load Index: 97
Speed Rating: W

Originally Posted by COMMUTER

I think that it's more a problem of discarding a good tire which holds good value than spending more on the car.

That's the main reason. Can't just chuck out a tyre having a usable tread depth of 6 mm. A new RFT costs Rs. 25,000 and additional Rs. 3,000 for fitting and balancing at BMW.

In BMW safety terms, a tyre with puncture is unsafe. You can claim a new tyre in BMW Secure program for even a puncture after paying respective depreciation amount. But we do drive cars with puncture repaired tyres and don't buy a new tyre at every puncture.

One has to be practical & judicious.

X1 tyres are having an equal wear & tear and no abnormalities observed.

[Jeroen]

This is what Continental states as an opening:

In order to achieve optimal driving characteristics Continental recommends that the same tyres are fitted on all wheel positions of your vehicle.

Everything else comes under caveats of being exception and or a consideration. But the default position is to stick to same tyres all around! And you will find that same position on the websites of probably most if not all tyre manufacturers too, such as the Michelin I showed.

You will also find it embedded in national legislation the world around. Some countries simply not allowing any deviation from having four identical tyres. Some stipulating the same/identical tyres per axle.

Originally Posted by COMMUTER

I think that it's more a problem of discarding a good tire which holds good value than spending more on the car.

Our forum has dozens and dozens of threads where our members are appalled, outraged when manufactures or other parties seem to comprise on safety by cost cutting. We got dozens of threads on the lack of safety features, lack of safety in construction of cars plying the Indian roads. We have dozen of similar threads on different topics, from aviation (remember how everybody was outraged when we found out Boeing did some cost cutting and installed only 2 sensors instead of 3?), we have a thread on home appliances where members are appalled on some of the unsafe practices they have experienced with their home appliances.

Here we are discussing safety and what you, as an individual can do to ensure maximum safety. A BMW X1 weighs in at some 1,5 tonnes of thereabouts. There are four small patches of rubber between you and road. Four small patches of rubber that make the difference in braking and road holding. A little more stopping power or lateral grip can literally, be the difference between life and death.

This is where you as an individual can contribute by enhancing the overal safety for yourself, the loved ones you are carrying and the public at large. No finger pointing to large faceless multinationals. This is about how you preach and practice safety. As the saying goes, this is where the Buck Stops!

So not sticking to the same tyres for me a sense of false economy. Yes, you will save yourself some rupees. But the cost if anything goes wrong could be horrendous. If you ever find yourself in an accident where people sustained real bodily harm or worse got killed, you will be asking yourself for the rest of your life whether you could have done more or differently. Even if you were not at fault.

It is all very well taking a stab at Boeing, or certain cars being made to another standard in India, compared to the rest of the wold.
This is one of those situation where you, as an individual can make the difference by choosing the safest option over the economic option. Although your privilege, your choice could affect others too. Choose wisely in such a manner that you can keep your head high. Safety of rupees?

Jeroen

[AMG Power]

From the Mercedes website:

[Lobogris]

Originally Posted by honeybee

How much safety is compromised if only one tyre is replaced?

Exactly how big is that risk? What's the probability of the car meeting with an accident because one tyre out of four is new?

Are we talking F1 here or regular commuter driving on roads?

It makes no difference whatsoever. It is just a phobia in some folks mind just like some people claiming that tyres must be changed at 4 or 5 years old regardless of how much tread is left on them. Having lived in the US for 20 years and driven all kinds of cars, I can tell you from the experience of myself and friends that no one cares about this. If one tyre goes out, people simply buy one and not necessarily of the same brand. If you are picky, you can place it on the rear axle. I have worked at car repair shops in the US in my younger days and no one ever made an issue out of this. People drive a lot in the US at high speeds and a commute of over 100 kms each day is not unusual. Car ownership in the US is different from India as even the very poor have cars as they need them to get to work. in India only the elite have cars and thus are able to fuss over them. Compare the cars in the US to the poor labourers in India who buy very old sccoters and bikes. They obviously don’t have the money and knowledge to worry about the vehicle. Similarly, millions of working class folks in the US have cheap cars and have to make do with minimal cost. There is no way they would waste money on replacing all 4 tyres if one goes bad. That gives us a lot of real world examples. Any impact would be minuscule and would only be felt under test conditions. That is why even Continental is ok with using a different brand if needed. Here in India, last year my VW Passat had a bad tyre and I simply bought the best value brand the tyre shop had and replaced it. No issues whatsoever. If you are a very spirited and reckless driver who pushes the car at every corner to the limit then you might be worried. For ordinary driving, it would make no noticeable difference.

[AMG Power]

35% of vehicle related accidents in the US were due to faulty tires - US Department of Transportation / NHTSA :

https://crashstats.nhtsa.dot.gov/Api...ication/812115

[honeybee]

Originally Posted by AMG Power

35% of vehicle related accidents in the US were due to faulty tires - US Department of Transportation / NHTSA :

https://crashstats.nhtsa.dot.gov/Api...ication/812115

Looking at the headline, I really believed that argument! But a casual reading revealed this:

This 35% is actually 35% of the 2% that was attributed to vehicle errors.

And nowhere it mentions what kind of faults.

Over inflated tyres, under inflated tyres, tyres out of shape, tyres out of alignment, tyres worn out, mismatched sizes or mismatched brands?

Without knowing these details, this becomes a classic case of statistics which is useless. The report itself states this:

The critical reason was assigned to vehicles in an estimated 44,000 crashes comprising about 2 percent of the NMVCCS crashes, though none of these reasons implied a vehicle causing the crash. There were no detailed inspections of vehicles during the NMVCCS on-scene crash investigation; the vehicle-related critical reasons were mainly inferred through external
visual inspection of the vehicle components. This resulted in only mostly external, easily visible factors (tires, brakes, steering column, etc.) that were cited as the few vehicle-related critical reasons. The related statistics may not, therefore, be representative of the role of other internal vehicle related problems that might have led to the crash. Of the small percentage (2%) of the crashes in which the critical reason was assigned to the vehicle,
the tire problem accounted for about 35 percent (±11.4%) of the crashes. Brake related problems as critical reasons accounted for about 22 percent (±15.4%) of such crashes. Steering/suspension/transmission/engine-related problems were assigned as critical reasons in 3 percent (±3.3%) of such crashes. Other vehicle-related problems coded as critical reasons were assigned in
about 40 percent (±24.0%) percent of such crashes.

So now the study itself clarifies that these numbers do not necessarily point to the role of a specific component failing and leading to an accident.

This now becomes similar to an exercise of looking at the picture of a crash and being able to tell with 100% accuracy exactly how the crash occurred and dissing anyone who doesn't agree with the opinion.

Let's assume for a moment that having the same size but different brands or years of tyres on the same axle is a huge safety risk. Are the car manufacturers mentioning that in the owner's manual? If not, should we conclude that the manufacturers don't care about the safety of people, or should we conclude this is just a hype by the tyre manufacturers to increase their sales?

Just like oil companies which keep pushing for better and better grades of oil, and some people swear by them and others simply get by merely following the car manufacturer's specifications for oil grade and change intervals.

An urban myth, nothing else.

[AMG Power]

Originally Posted by honeybee

Are the car manufacturers mentioning that in the owner's manual?

Check earlier post - in manuals too.

[honeybee]

Originally Posted by AMG Power

Check earlier post - in manuals too.

The Mercedes one?

Same type and same make?

So that does mean if I am running all season tyres, and if i have to replace one, it must be an all season one. But it doesn't say anything about the age.

So I still don't see any substance to the argument that one should always replace two tyres even if one only just needs to replace one. Sure, there will be instances where it makes sense, but there will be instances where it doesn't.

[Kosfactor]

Yes manufacturers do mention it in the manuals despite the obvious need to make sure that all 4 tires are the same.

These are from Polo's user manual.





From Verna.






I do not own these vehicles.

Cars and smartphones have touch screens these days, I guess one of them needs an owner's manual for sure.