[Cruzerman]

Hi guys, finally bought Michelin PLCs (225/55/16) for my Cruze from Tyrex. After some bargaining I got the PLCs for 11800 per tyre. They bought the 15000 kms old four JK Vectras for 8000 (2000 per tyre). This is the best I could get from them. Paid an extra 400 for wheel alignment. They did not charge for wheel balancing & Nitrogen filling. Total paid 39600 (11800x4 tyres +400-8000). Do you guys think it is a good deal? Your opinions are welcome.

I have driven the car only for 5 kms after the tyre change. So no comments on the ride quality & grip. I surely felt the ride was much softer. Will keep you updated on this later.

One more thing. They have filled nitrogen at 32psi as per the Chevy recommended tyre pressure for stock 205/60/16. Not sure whether this is a stupid question: As the tyres are now 225/55/16, should the tyre pressure be increased or is 32psi sufficient?

[Safari_Beast]

Hello Cruzeman

Just be cautious while driving on bad roads as these tyres have weak sidewalls . There are not too soft as well but a big impact can create a bulge in these tyres . I have these tyres on my swift , and they are running well . Till now i have covered 27000 kms on them without any issue .

Originally Posted by Cruzerman

Hi guys, finally bought Michelin PLCs (225/55/16) for my Cruze from Tyrex. After some bargaining I got the PLCs for 11800 per tyre. They bought the 15000 kms old four JK Vectras for 8000 (2000 per tyre). This is the best I could get from them. Paid an extra 400 for wheel alignment. They did not charge for wheel balancing & Nitrogen filling. Total paid 39600 (11800x4 tyres +400-8000). Do you guys think it is a good deal? Your opinions are welcome.

I have driven the car only for 5 kms after the tyre change. So no comments on the ride quality & grip. I surely felt the ride was much softer. Will keep you updated on this later.

One more thing. They have filled nitrogen at 32psi as per the Chevy recommended tyre pressure for stock 205/60/16. Not sure whether this is a stupid question: As the tyres are now 225/55/16, should the tyre pressure be increased or is 32psi sufficient?

[Cruzerman]

Originally Posted by Safari_Beast

Hello Cruzeman

Just be cautious while driving on bad roads as these tyres have weak sidewalls . There are not too soft as well but a big impact can create a bulge in these tyres . I have these tyres on my swift , and they are running well . Till now i have covered 27000 kms on them without any issue .

Thanks for the advice, mate. I will be extra cautious while driving on the bad roads of Kochi. Knowing that you have covered 27k kms without any problems gives me peace of mind.

[Cruzerman]

An update on Michelin PLC 225/55/16 on my Cruze. I did a 420km drive yesterday. My first long drive with PLCs. These are the first impressions:
1) Without any doubt, PLCs give much softer & comfortable ride compared to the stock JK Vectras.
2) I have read in many forums that broader tyres will give a stiffer/harder steering feel. For some unknown reason, I did not feel the steering to be stiffer.
3) The grip level is very good. Though I could only touch a maximum of 100kmph (you know how bad is NH 17 in Kerala ), I felt the grip level was awesome. I almost had a heart attack while going over some potholes at 80kmph.
4) About 35 kms before I reached home it stared pouring. Cruising at 70-80 kmph in rain, I felt the wet grip and the braking to be decent.

[sgiitk]

One question.My Civic came shod with Michelin Energy. I had sidewall damage so had to change one tyre. The only one available was Primacy. Now how bad will the situation be with one Primacy in the pack? I do like to rotate my wheels properly, and even got Honda to supply me with five alloys.

Why I am worried is that even though the tread pattern looks very similar, the Legacy has a high Silica content.

[karan561]

Originally Posted by Cruzerman

One more thing. They have filled nitrogen at 32psi as per the Chevy recommended tyre pressure for stock 205/60/16. Not sure whether this is a stupid question: As the tyres are now 225/55/16, should the tyre pressure be increased or is 32psi sufficient?

I had installed 215/55's Yokahama dB Series.

Done almost 20K kms on them.

I am filling air regularly @ 30 psi

Sometimes on solo drives @ 29 psi too

Performance has been nothing short of superb. It allows you to courageously enter corners with much higher speeds without loosing traction & the braking has become better too allowing you to brake later. Also not loosint traction when the Turbo spools in the first couple of gears.

Ride quality/comfort is very smooth at higher speeds and not so great at lower speeds though ( which was not better when STOCK too )

Had done 10k kms on Stock Vectras earlier & truly speaking the tyre upgrade has really made the car alive

[kranti]

Originally Posted by sgiitk

One question.My Civic came shod with Michelin Energy. I had sidewall damage so had to change one tyre. The only one available was Primacy. Now how bad will the situation be with one Primacy in the pack? I do like to rotate my wheels properly, and even got Honda to supply me with five alloys.

Why I am worried is that even though the tread pattern looks very similar, the Legacy has a high Silica content.

If I were in your place, I would refrain from using a single Primacy LC tyre with three Energy tyres, unless I was in a bind. Any reason you do not wish to keep the Primacy LC as a spare and keep rotating the remaining four Energy tyres, Professor?

[DieselDestiny]

I changed my worn out 40000km old Good Year NCT5s to stock 195/65/R15 Michelin Primacy LCs.
I have done about a 900km with them; while they are very comfortable and low noise, i did find the noise has increased from the first day to this day when it has done 900km.
Also, had the first puncture within 400km, though not the side wall.

Has made me less aggressive on bad patches of roads too, takes the fun away sometimes

[sgiitk]

Originally Posted by kranti

Any reason you do not wish to keep the Primacy LC as a spare and keep rotating the remaining four Energy tyres, Professor?

I like to rotate all five tyres, otherwise No.5 just ages for nothing. In any case a tyre is not so safe after 5-6 years.

[kranti]

Originally Posted by sgiitk

I like to rotate all five tyres, otherwise No.5 just ages for nothing. In any case a tyre is not so safe after 5-6 years.

That's usually my policy as well. It's just that in this case it appears that keeping it as a spare might be a better option.

[Chetanya Sharma]

Hi all,

Will be doing a tyre swap coming week for my brand new Jetta straight out of the showroom,

1. The tyre dealer said Primary LC is far better tyre compared to Energy, is it true?

2. The dealer also said PLC is a high end tyre compared to energy, true ?

3. Main reason for a tyre swap is road noise, will I regret upgrading to PLC?

Thanks in advance.

[R2D2]

Originally Posted by Chetanya Sharma

The tyre dealer said Primary LC is far better tyre compared to Energy, is it true?.

Not far better, just better.

Originally Posted by Chetanya Sharma

The dealer also said PLC is a high end tyre compared to energy, true ?.

He's hyping it. It is better than the Energy but can't be called high end. It all depends on what you are comparing the PLC to. There are better tyres in the Michelin range, but more expensive of course.

Originally Posted by Chetanya Sharma

Main reason for a tyre swap is road noise, will I regret upgrading to PLC?.

Been using it since March 2010 and it is the best tyre I've ever used. It's superb for low road noise and a soft ride. But it will compromise handling characteristics a bit. It also has soft sidewalls and can get damaged on rough roads. So be careful and make sure you ALWAYS maintain the correct tyre pressure.

[manjubp]

After 10K Kms, in my new Swift ZDI, yesterday I dumped OEM tyres (MRF ZVT?) and replaced PLC 195/60R15, manufactured in 14th week of 2012(APR'12).

Costed Rs 22,660 for 4 tyres.

My previous Swift ran on XM1 and XM1+, with no issues for nearly 80,000KMs, before selling. So just couldn't resist the comfort of Michelin.

Just for information, sold my OEM (4 of them, one stays as spare) for Rs.4,000(Rs.1,000) each, to some middleman on JC road.

[dezrskb]

If I opt to upgrade stock tires on the Skoda Laura Elegance MT 2.0 CR TDI which I have ordered and is on the way, I am told the best option would be Michelin Primacy LC. Now Elegance trim of Laura comes with 205/55 R16 Goodyear NCTs I believe. How bad are these? I have been asking various dealers in Mangalore who have quoted about 9.6K /tire for Michelin in this size. Buyback price for GY NCTs will be about 4.5K. Are both the prices fair? Am I getting a fair deal? Shelling out 5K / tire looks bit steep to me. Any of you know any dealer around who can give a better offer?

[Santoshbhat]

Originally Posted by dezrskb

If I opt to upgrade stock tires on the Skoda Laura Elegance MT 2.0 CR TDI which I have ordered and is on the way, I am told the best option would be Michelin Primacy LC. Now Elegance trim of Laura comes with 205/55 R16 Goodyear NCTs I believe. How bad are these? I have been asking various dealers in Mangalore who have quoted about 9.6K /tire for Michelin in this size. Buyback price for GY NCTs will be about 4.5K. Are both the prices fair? Am I getting a fair deal? Shelling out 5K / tire looks bit steep to me. Any of you know any dealer around who can give a better offer?

First of, congrats on your purchase.

The prices quoted seem fair enough. Primacy LC is one of the premium comfort tires from Michelin. I switched to 205/55/16 pricmacy LC on puchase of my Laura too. Infact mine is a TSI Ambiente, which came with 195/65/15 Goodyear tires. My switch required a change of alloys too. I ended up paying an extra 40K for the alloy swap apart from the 20K for the tire swap. Tire prices have been going up due to rubber price increases. When I bought these 16" PLCs in May 2011 the price was a round 8,800/- a piece.

In my view the tires are totally worth it. You are spending a huge sum on the car. The goodyear tires it comes with are strictly average. The michelins will certainly complement the brilliant ride and handling qualities of the Laura very well and you will enjoy the car that much more. The tires are very comfortable and silent and offer excellent wet and dry grip. Since you are from Udupi , you will certainly appreciate its wet weather performance.

Though I had one tire replaced under warranty, I am a satisfied user of this tire for the past 26,000 kms and am highly likely to buy the same tire when it is time to replace. I just came from a drive to Sirsi, Kumta, Honnavar etc... and drove over some pretty horrendous roads in very wet conditions and a fully loaded car. The tires performed admirably with no damage or bulge or anything.