Tyres - what did you get?

[TonyTA]

Good grief that's a bit OTT isn't it,

Normally, you'd be 100% to say that and I'd agree that my statement would be completely OTT - but when I'm trying to walk out the door of a dealership and the sales guy sticks 2 magazines under my nose and...let's ALL just get real. Sales teams and drivers.

And I'd at least like someone to tell me why VWA changed the rubber from one that received specific mention in a well regarded review such as COTY. There may well be good reason, just let us know what it is.

[clip]

And I'd at least like someone to tell me why VWA changed the rubber from one that received specific mention in a well regarded review such as COTY. There may well be good reason, just let us know what it is.

my bet's on price cutting. Then again, if brenno's is a one off??

....then again, just read phaeton's post about Hankook backing VW, that might be the answer Tony. And brenno, you might have an a Tig that was destined for the UK before you-know-what happened!

[TonyTA]

my bet's on price cutting. Then again, if brenno's is a one off??

Na, breno does not seem to be a one off. I just picked up my 09 Tig and it's got Hancooks. Dealer said this is what was on it when it was supplied to him.

Now to be honest I don't know a thing about tyres: I need to rely on expert opinion and WOM from trusted sources as to what's good and what's not.
I read in 4x4 mag that it's hard to find a tyre dealer you can trust - I think their last 4x4 tyre review had 6 of 7 random calls to tyre dealers give different recommendations. So when VWA select a tyre and COTY back it up as much as they did, I listen.

Now that VWA have changed the rubber, I'd like to know why so I can add to my understanding and try to pick the right tyre for my Tiguan (or, even decide to keep the ones that are on it).

[NZTiguan]

The great thing for me is that mine came with Michelin Latitude Diamaris rubber which was specifically developed for the Porsche Cayenne. Looks fantastic, performs really well, isn't too noisy and does the job admirably. I sincerely doubt that I could tell the difference between tyres while driving except possibly at the extreme ends of the scale unless I had the car on a race track where I could compare on individual corners etc. I suspect that the biggest "difference" people will experience will be wear rates. I had a Mazda Astina V6 (my daughter still has it) that had Z (I think, not positive of the rating but it was a high speed tyre) rated rubber on it as new that were FANTASTIC, stuck like the proverbial to a blanket BUT they lasted less than 20,000k and that was with forward/back rotation and care !!! Had Khumos (or however it's spelt) on my Kia Sorento and they were fine on road but absolutely useless in anything slippery, so, "horses for courses" I guess.

Cheers

[brenno]

Oops, forgot I posted this thread

I popped in to the local VW dealer at Mascot and asked if I could have a poke around their storage area, where they had around 30 Tiguans in a pre-delivery state. It looked like they came straight off the boat with all the protective cladding they had on.

The vast majority of them had the Bridgestones on, about 75% I reckon. They rest had a mix of Hankooks, Michelin and Dunlop. There was no rhyme or reason with size of wheels or engine/transmission derivatives etc. It looked very random.

With that in mind, I guess I can rule out the dealer doing a dodgy swap. It is disappointing to have a lesser tyre on, but we'll add it to the list of woes we have when it comes to tyres and buying Volkswagens in Australia.

The first Mk5 in the family had a puncture on the way home from picking the car up at the dealership, and we found that the tyre on the car was not available to buy in Australia. So we had to fork out for two tyres so that they matched on that axle. Not impressed.

The next Mk5 in the family had a set of Goodyears fitted, which I think are pretty ordinary compared to the Michelin Energy's fitted to the first one.

Now this problem with the Tiguan

[TonyTA]

That's interesting?

FWIW, I've found out that Bridestone AU don't sell anything aftermarket in the standard TDI tyre size (215/65 R16). See for example: http://www.bridgestone.com.au/tyrese...mid=0&type=PSR

You said no "engine/transmission derivatives etc.", did you by chance look inside to see if there was any pattern around OR pack / button?
I'm wondering if there might be a split on those lines at all <reaches for straws>?

[mulga1]

They do actually. The Dueler HP Sport, which is delivered as OE on some cars.

http://www.bridgestone.com.au/tyres/treads/duelerhpsport.aspx

Regards
mulga1

[TonyTA]

They do actually.

Doh!
Right you are.

[mcdonn]

Tyres

Brenno, Seems the tyre issue is very haphazard. My TDI has Pirelli's on it and was part of the 1100 that arrived in January. I've driven the 125 petrol with Hankooks and they were ok. Quiet and good in the dry but not sure about wet weather performance. The Pirellis on my car are very firm riding and not anywhere near as comfy as the Hankooks. It will be interesting to see how they wear. I've also driven Tigs with the Bridgestones... again smooth riding and quiet.

[TonyTA]

Brenno, Seems the tyre issue is very haphazard. My TDI has Pirelli's on it and was part of the 1100 that arrived in January. I've driven the 125 petrol with Hankooks and they were ok. Quiet and good in the dry but not sure about wet weather performance. The Pirellis on my car are very firm riding and not anywhere near as comfy as the Hankooks. It will be interesting to see how they wear. I've also driven Tigs with the Bridgestones... again smooth riding and quiet.

Hey McDonn, Welcome to the forum!

How do you find the Pirellis? Which ones are they exactly?

[Philbie]

Ours came with the hancooks too....and to be honest it's been all over the place and we liked the tyres so much we will be putting them on our Rav4. very quiet and they stick very well to the road.

My dealer told us that as long as they meet the VWA specs and qualify they can put any brand on them.

[mostro900]

Another set of Hankook's

Just got my TDI and it also has Hankook tyres(had never heard of them before). They seem to handle road driving fairly well and Korean manufacturing is right up there.
Personally, I'm more concerned about tyres on my bike than on the car though!

[Arctra]

If the Tiguan now comes with different tyres to those supplied in the review cars, then surely these reviews are no longer truly valid as a sales tool are they?
As you say, the car will have different dynamics with different tyres, all be it subtly different, but different non the less.

Um, I just checked the article and the vehicle Wheels tested with was fitted with Hankook Dyna Pro HP 215/65R16 98H tyres. So it seems the article is a valid sales tool.

[deepspace]

My MY09 TDI tig with 18' wheel got Dunlop SP Sport 01 ( 235/50R18 ) fitted. http://www.dunloptires.com/dunlop/di...00000&zipCode=

Don't know much about the rubber, but I feel that this performance tyre doesn't compromise the ride quality. And it IS ultra quiet. Very satisfied.

also it is made in Germany.

[Arctra]

Just collected my Tig TDI yesterday and it's got Bridgestones fitted. I'm happy, even if it "invalidates" the Wheels article. Road noise is low IMO.