[manish84]

Originally Posted by Turbohead

Michelin XM2 is in the range of Apollo Alnac etc. It's not at the level of Michelin Primacy.

I was just wondering that if the price difference between XM2 & Primacy is just 4% (6250 vs 6500), would it really mean a lot of difference between the two models? XM2 are available and I saw them myself (it was stupid that the tyre shop asked me to wait for 20 mins in which they fetched XM2 from warehouse when I had clearly asked for Primacy).

Not sure on the availability of Continental either. All the imports have been disrupted by Covid.

[Turbohead]

Originally Posted by manish84

I was just wondering that if the price difference between XM2 & Primacy is just 4% (6250 vs 6500), would it really mean a lot of difference between the two models? XM2 are available and I saw them myself (it was stupid that the tyre shop asked me to wait for 20 mins in which they fetched XM2 from warehouse when I had clearly asked for Primacy).

Not sure on the availability of Continental either. All the imports have been disrupted by Covid.

From what I've read on the forum, the is considerable difference.

The Continental MC5 is currently made in India.

[Thad E Ginathom]

Originally Posted by manish84

Could someone please suggest the second and third best options after Primacy? It could be any brand. I am looking at smooth city ride for 90% of my usage. I was really looking forward to this tyre upgrade but looks like it would be anything but Primacy. Please advise.

Originally Posted by Turbohead

Alternatives for Primacy are MRF Perfinza and Continental MC5.

Thank you, as this is more-or-less my question too. The PST3s on my GTI TD are looking pretty rough: plenty of tread, but cracking of the rubber at the edges. I don't feel safe with them any longer. Low mileage, but they are six years old.

Had been hoping to simply change to PST4. Have not asked local shops yet, but it is good to have alternatives in mind with the import/transport situation in mind.

[manish84]

Finally got MRF perfinza 195/60 R15 for my GT. Luckily got all four with June 2020 manufacturing in Jaipur at 5400/- a piece. They look pretty good and the immediate drive from Jaipur to Gurgaon was enjoyable. I guess a lot of improvement is due to 185 to 195 upgrade.

I asked the MRF technician after the installation on how good are perfinza and if they are a worthy alternate to Michelin. He said, "You won't like what I say - Michelin are the best and MRF will get v noisy after losing half of its life".

Started with the search of silence tuned tyres and finally got this. But given that the recommendation is coming from tbhp forum, I am confident that they will serve well. I haven't driven Michelin ever, so can't compare but I am loving the new MRFs

[Thad E Ginathom]

Of these three suggestions, Michelin, MRF, Continental, which would be the best compromise for a GT TDI that is occasionally accelerated hard off the mark, but mostly needs to carry two elder people around city streets quietly and in comfort.

It also gets driven over back roads which are in such bad condition one can almost call it off-roading*.

Did a bit of reading, here and elsewhere on the net yesterday, and formed preference list 1: Michelin PST4, 2: Continental MC5. Any comments?

(Reminder: car currently has had Michelin PST3, fitted by its first owner.)



*PS... Any way to increase ground clearance on same size wheels? That would mean a different number for profile, right? Currently tyres are 195/60/R15

[VWAllstar]

Had got a puncture on one of the tyres. Went to few good tyre shops but they were shut. Eventually was directed to a local shop who does internal patch work. He did not have a machine to remove the alloys, used manual tricks to separate them. Unfortunately he damaged my alloys at the corners and one hit on one of the spoke :

A pic attached for reference. Feel terrible on my decision to go to a road side shop to get this work done. Could not gather courage to take a pic of the damage on the spoke. Reminded me of GTO's post to avoid manual removal of alloys however it was too late. Can there be something done or paint is the only option?

[#ABTorquey]

Hello guys,
I was out looking for a good set of alloy wheels and tyres for my friend's polo. Looking online I came across some terms which I don't understand. It would be great if someone could explain what these are. I am a mere beginner with very little knowledge in this area so any help would be greatly appreciated.

My doubts are:
1. What actually is PCD? I know that PCD no. differs from each cars but don't know what it
indicates.
2. ET - 28 is shown for a particular alloy
3. Width - 7.5 shown

It would be great if someone could explain these.
Thank You.

[bharatbits]

Originally Posted by VWAllstar

Had got a puncture on one of the tyres. Went to few good tyre shops but they were shut. Eventually was directed to a local shop who does internal patch work. He did not have a machine to remove the alloys, used manual tricks to separate them. Unfortunately he damaged my alloys at the corners and one hit on one of the spoke :

A pic attached for reference. Feel terrible on my decision to go to a road side shop to get this work done. Could not gather courage to take a pic of the damage on the spoke. Reminded me of GTO's post to avoid manual removal of alloys however it was too late. Can there be something done or paint is the only option?

Yes, they are hopeless. I also recently went to a couple of roadside people in Mumbai for these things and their work quality was horrible. I vouched i will never go to them again. They are just used to fixing punctures on taxi cars whose drivers don't care about how they remove the wheel, how they remove the tyre from the wheel by brute force and the cheap valves they replace with citing the existing one is damaged. One of them wanted to mount the jack on the suspension arm. They just lean the removed wheel on the front bumper not knowing how much care we take to keep the car scratch free, put the wheel caps with front side facing down on the road, pulling them thus causing scratches. One of them mounted on the wrong point on the chassis closer to the running board causing a dent. And he coolly tells me as he is lifting the car it's getting dented here. That was for a tyre change i went there. I was wearing a white shirt that day so wanted to get it done by someone. I felt i would have done a much better job at it. In another instance, the way he was hammering the tyre out of the rim of a taxi i decided not to get it done there.

He asked me for Rs 200 for fixing a very evident puncture since a nail was lodged in. Didn't even need a soap water test to identify the leak. Barely 5 minute job. Moreover it was on the stepney. I asked him last time i came your father fixed a puncture and charged me Rs 100. He hesitatingly tells "Sir, lockdown na. Puncture strips shortage". Didn't know if i had to laugh at him.

I hope to stick to one reputed wheel care centre for all these things going forward. The MRF T&S has good wheel care packages and i am thinking of opting for a 1 year package. Just want to make sure if it's valid across any T&S centre across the country or just at the place i bought it as i am going to be a bit nomadic in the coming year.

In your case i think paint is the only option.

[swissknife]

Originally Posted by #ABTorquey

My doubts are:
1. What actually is PCD? I know that PCD no. differs from each cars but don't know what it
indicates.
2. ET - 28 is shown for a particular alloy
3. Width - 7.5 shown

It would be great if someone could explain these.
Thank You.

PCD is pitch circle diameter. It is the diameter of the circle that passes through the centre of all the bolts on the wheel.
ET - insertion depth (I don't know why this acronym - possibly a different language). It is the mounting offset. Positive is facing forwards and negative is facing the rear.

[Thad E Ginathom]

Originally Posted by swissknife

ET - insertion depth (I don't know why this acronym - possibly a different language).

Yes. Google knew...

Offset is usually stamped or engraved into the wheel and is measured in millimetres of 'ET' [ET is the short form of the German word 'Einpresstiefe' which literally translates as 'insertion depth']

Oh, and... abbreviation, not acronym (because "ET" is not a pronounceable word) although I admit this is a lost battle!

[guptavis]

Originally Posted by Thad E Ginathom

*PS... Any way to increase ground clearance on same size wheels? That would mean a different number for profile, right? Currently tyres are 195/60/R15

Yes, you got that right. Changing the profile with the same rim and width will cause increase or decrease in sidewall and therefore ground clearance.

195/60/R15, Sidewall = 195mm X 60% = 117mm

195/65/R15, Sidewall = 195mm X 65% = 126.75mm

So you will gain 9.75mm of sidewall and accordingly ground clearance will also increase by 9.75mm. The increase in sidewall should also make the ride more comfortable. Both the tyres you mentioned are available in 195/65/R15 size. But remember that you will also get a corresponding error on your speedometer and odometer.


You could also increase ground clearance by going for wider tyre in same profile. e.g. 205/60/R15 = 123mm sidewall

Increasing both the width and profile generally makes the tyre too big and unsuitable for the car. In general, a variation of 3% in the radius of the tyre (including the sidewall and the rim) is generally deemed to be acceptable.

[Thad E Ginathom]

Originally Posted by guptavis

... So you will gain 9.75mm of sidewall and accordingly ground clearance will also increase by 9.75mm. The increase in sidewall should also make the ride more comfortable. Both the tyres you mentioned are available in 195/65/R15 size. But remember that you will also get a corresponding error on your speedometer and odometer.

OK, thanks. Amazing how ignorant I am abut tyres: this is the first time I've ever changed a whole set, so the first time any of this has been relevant to me.

I'd be doing this because an extra 10mm could really save me some scrapes on the cut-up non-road roads around here. Is this course of action safe, sensible (and legal)?

Noted that indicated speed/distance is affected.

[guptavis]

Originally Posted by Thad E Ginathom

OK, thanks. Amazing how ignorant I am abut tyres: this is the first time I've ever changed a whole set, so the first time any of this has been relevant to me.

I'd be doing this because an extra 10mm could really save me some scrapes on the cut-up non-road roads around here. Is this course of action safe, sensible (and legal)?

Noted that indicated speed/distance is affected.

Since this is the first time you're changing the tyres it would be surprising if you weren't ignorant about it. There is so much knowledge/information in the world, there's no need filling one's brain with things that are not relevant to him.

Yes, the extra GC does come in handy, and makes the ride more cushioned (everything else remaining constant). I replaced my 2006 CITY ZXs 175/65R14 tyres with 175/70R14 ones and have enjoyed the increase in GC for more than 50K KMs Ive done on them. Wanted to replace the 145/80R12 on my Alto with 155/80R12 but since that tyre size was not in production i changed to 155/70R13, this was also good for the 10K i drove them. So as far as my personal experience is concerned, i would say its safe and sensible. I am no expert but i think a little variation in tyre sizes should not be illegal. Here are some threads with extensive information/discussion about tyre sizes.
https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/tyre-...-your-car.html (READ FIRST: Choosing The Right Set Of Tyres for your Car)

https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/tyre-...ge-wheels.html (Tall tyres & regular wheels versus low-profile tyres & large wheels)

Hope this helps.

[Thad E Ginathom]

Originally Posted by Thad E Ginathom

Did a bit of reading, here and elsewhere on the net yesterday, and formed preference list 1: Michelin PST4, 2: Continental MC5. Any comments?

Never start with "So..." But it seems appropriate here!

So... I did all that research, and ended up saying, whatever!

Had been to the local tyre shop and got the quote for Michelin PST4. Available. They just needed four hours. Phoned several weeks later, PST4 not available until March. I asked for the Continental MC5 and drove up the road to the shop.

"No MC5: have got UC6."

What to do? Back to square one, the forum and more research? Check other shops? No! My old Michelins were so badly cracked up around the wall that I was doubting their safety even for city driving. And given my ability to procrastinate, any delay would have turned into weeks delay. Whatever: go ahead!

So (again), I have no knowledge of this tyre. I don't know if it would suit the GT's performance capabilities, but hey, honestly, I probably only drive it at 10% anyway.

I know one thing: the short drive home was 1000% different to the drive out. It was like driving a brand-new luxury car. Road noise seemed to have disappeared. In its place came a new smoothness. Even the heavily-potholed and damaged road to my house was no longer tooth-jarring.

Probably, the car felt like this when I first bought it, car and tyres aged 2, four years ago. The decline with the ageing of the tyres, being slow, was not a noticeable change.

I've only ever changed tyres in singles before. Never had the need to change a whole set due to age. It's the best experience I've had since buying the car: a new dimension of comfort and relaxed driving.


NB: no criticism of the Michelins implied. They were well overdue for change. The tyre guy said the rubber was totally dried out.

[#ABTorquey]

Hello Everyone,

My Polo has done almost 40k on its stock tyres which was a boring J&K Electra. I am looking to upsize the tyres to 195. Currently it is running on 185/60/R15 so an upgrade to 195/60/R15. Currently I am looking at Apollo Alnac or Yokohama Earth 1. Which one would be the one to go with? Also I was thinking of upsizing to 65. Can anyone explain the downside of this if any.

Thanks