Passat tyres 235/45/17

[vanDub]

I am investigating touring type tyres that give a quiet and comfortable ride with an expected better wear than performance tyres without actually ruling out performance tyres as a replacement. I am quite happy with my current setup with Conti Sport Contact 2s but how much is car and how much is tyres I can't tell except that it is way better than any combo I have driven before.
Threads on other VW types are of little use to me as they seem to put emphasis on performance at all cost.
Outright performance is not an issue for me as I expect almost any tyre to be good enough for my style of driving. I bought the Passat as a luxury tourer (although I love the grunt) so what is a big issue for me is road noise and comfort, well as much as can be expected from a 45 series tyre.

To date I have found:
Yokohama db decibel V550 - @$337 may price themselves out of contention
Toyo Teo Plus - @$215 priced well, reputedly quiet but still with a tread pattern similar to performance types.
Michelin Preceda PP2 - @$250 well priced and quietest of the Michelins (which are all quieter than competitors anyway) yet still performs well. Not happy when I noticed that example shown was made in China.
Sumitomo HTR Z111 - not sourced locally yet but good reviews on quietness, performance and wear on Tyre Rack (all scores 4.5 out of 5).
Bridgestone Turanza E300 - running 65 series on my Camry and consider them no better than the previous RE92s or Yokohama S760s. Bridgestone seems to have a reputation for being noisy across the range.
Goodyear, Dunlop, Kuhmo, Hankook, Federals etc all seem to have their fans for performance but none seem to stand out for quiet ride and wear issues.

Any views on these or others, remember quiet ride is more important than outright performance.

[brad]

The noise from a tyre is very dependant on the road surface.

On some road surfaces there is no such thing as a quiet tyre.

Personally, I think the ContiSport2 is noisy.

I find large tread blocks or joined strips (like the ContiSport) to be very noisy. I think this is because the tread can't conform to to the road surface. Small tread blocks are generally much quieter BUT there is a corresponding loss of traction/grip.

This tyre test included noise output. Some aren't available here but look at the tread patterns & it might give you a guide. Quietest was 69dBa - Loudest 71.7dBa. That's about 50% more perceived noise between best & worst isn't it?

Personally, i like Pirelli & Michelin tyres. They always seem reasonably quiet (the ones I've used).

[blackb6]

I have changed mine to a continental contiprocontact
Rated as a grand season all touring tyre..
Not as much grip as the CSC2, though far cheaper and very comfortable and quiet.

Got my changed in Brisbane - $150 a corner
QTR Tyre Professionals - located in salisbury

Guess that doesnt help your cause since your in Townsville.

[gerhard]

The biggest problem you have with "non-sport" tyres for the Passat, is that the OEM speed and load rating have to be maintained with any replacement tyre.

When the OEM speed rating is 270k (GTI is 91W, Passat likely to be at least W as well) the replacement tyre also has to be 270k, which automatically puts you into the sport tyre category. Add to that the width of them and you will always struggle to get a quiet tyre.

My CCS2s were incredibly noisy when new, but are now a lot less so at ~8000ks, and will probably become noisier towards end of life.

Maybe I have learned to blot out the noise so that's why they seem quieter

[Lance B]

I have a set of Pirelli PZero Rosso's 235/45 x 17 which have done about 8,000Kms on original rims with tyre pressure monitors on them if you're interested.

[brad]

The biggest problem you have with "non-sport" tyres for the Passat, is that the OEM speed and load rating have to be maintained with any replacement tyre.

I'm not sure about the other states but in NSW the LOAD RATING must be maintained but the SPEED RATING can be reduced right down to an N rating 140kmh (I don't think I've ever seen an N rated tyre - snow tyres maybe?) providing a warning sticker is affixed to the windscreen.

I'm not sure how this sits with the insurance companies but generally, if it's legal/road worthy then insurance is OK.

Personally, I wouldn't like a 140kmh rated tyre on my car but I'd have no qualms running V rated (240kmh) or above if all I'm doing is driving around on public roads. A speed rating of more than double the legal limit should be fine for most of us.

What's on the Jetta? W/270kmh or Y/300kmh?

RTA info near the end.

LanceB: Any photos? How much? PM me.

[tryingavw]

I am investigating touring type tyres that give a quiet and comfortable ride with an expected better wear than performance ce.

from my experience changing tyres can be a drama. on the old bmw 528i wagon we changed from a dunlop sport to a toyo which was highly recommended and the car changed 100% -noisier and felt terrible . but i was another excuse to get rid of it !

So, i reckon if your reasonably satisfied with the current setup dont change unless you can try before you buy.

also dont forget changing to a new set of the same tyres always is a big improvement.

how many k's have you done?

[Cro]

I wouldn't be put off by the PP2's being made in China...
They are fantastic tyres, and will grip better than other manufacturers A grade tyres. I used to run them on my Falcon XR Turbo.

I wish I got them instead of these crappy good year f1's I run now...

[BeigeJet]

Goodyear, Dunlop, Kuhmo, Hankook, Federals etc all seem to have their fans for performance but none seem to stand out for quiet ride and wear issues.

Any views on these or others, remember quiet ride is more important than outright performance.

Hi vanDub,

I replaced the CSC2's on my Jetta 48k. Probably could have got another 5k easy but was going interstate and wanted piece of mind.

Replaced them with Dunlop Sport3000A. Even though thy are 205/55/16 the tread pattern is the same as the 235/45/17 that was fitted as OEM on BA XR6 and 8. Also are 'W' speed rating (which happened to be higher than the Conti's 'V').
I like you wanted some performance but good ride, handling and touring. The big thing compared to the Conti's is they are quiet over all road surfaces. The GLW even said "oh, the car has sneakers on"

Some work colleagues were getting 55,000 to 60,00km out of a set on XR8's so I figure that the Jetta being a little lighter I may do fairly well. They've done almost 20k so far with one rotate and appear to have little wear compared to the Conti's over a similar distance.

Good luck with your tyre choice.

Cheers,

Neil.

[vanDub]

The biggest problem you have with "non-sport" tyres for the Passat, is that the OEM speed and load rating have to be maintained with any replacement tyre.

Minimum approved by VW ratings and OEM are not neccessarily the same. OEM CSC2s ex factory are 97W. Placard on the fuel panel lists various tyre sizes with ratings primarily for tyre pressure reasons.
205/55/R16 91V
215/55/R16 93W
235/45/R17 94W
235/40/R18 95Y

As the car weight and max speed is basically constant, I believe that this represents common tyre ratings for various diameters, not minimum ratings. I read this to indicate that the Passat can go down to a 91 load rating (its 60KG lighter than the Jetta, which is unkindly called a Golf with a boot, so must weigh similar to the 91 rated GTI??). I believe that the speed rating must exceed the max speed for the vehicle (220Kph) so a V,Z W or Y rating is needed.

I am still waiting for a response from VWA about minimum VW approved rating as per Manual 3.3 page 63 "The use of wheels or tyres which have not been approved by Volkswagen for use with your vehicle may invalidate the vehicles registration for use on public roads" (and presumably your insurance).

From the fuel panel placard I know that 94W is OK, but until VW tell me they approve a lower weight rating, I'm afraid the 93W rated Dunlop SP Sport3000A is out of contention. I expected Contis to cost an arm and a leg but at $150 a corner or thereabouts the ProContact is on my list as there is one rated at 94V.

[gerhard]

http://www.bridgestone.com.au/media/articles/adrenalin_test.aspx

The Adrenalins are $249 each, I think, but Bridgestone often has a "buy 3 get one free" offer which would make them $187 each.

They are 94W so meet all requirements, but not sure of how noisy they are.

Made in Australia too, apparently.

[blackb6]

Minimum approved by VW ratings and OEM are not neccessarily the same. OEM CSC2s ex factory are 97W. Placard on the fuel panel lists various tyre sizes with ratings primarily for tyre pressure reasons.
205/55/R16 91V
215/55/R16 93W
235/45/R17 94W
235/40/R18 95Y

As the car weight and max speed is basically constant, I believe that this represents common tyre ratings for various diameters, not minimum ratings. I read this to indicate that the Passat can go down to a 91 load rating (its 60KG lighter than the Jetta, which is unkindly called a Golf with a boot, so must weigh similar to the 91 rated GTI??). I believe that the speed rating must exceed the max speed for the vehicle (220Kph) so a V,Z W or Y rating is needed.

I am still waiting for a response from VWA about minimum VW approved rating as per Manual 3.3 page 63 "The use of wheels or tyres which have not been approved by Volkswagen for use with your vehicle may invalidate the vehicles registration for use on public roads" (and presumably your insurance).

From the fuel panel placard I know that 94W is OK, but until VW tell me they approve a lower weight rating, I'm afraid the 93W rated Dunlop SP Sport3000A is out of contention. I expected Contis to cost an arm and a leg but at $150 a corner or thereabouts the ProContact is on my list as there is one rated at 94V.

Yes they are 94V on the tyres i have fitted.

So far 15K on them and they look very good still..

[vanDub]

VWA reply

VWA reply:

"Thank you for your enquiry regarding tyre ratings for your Volkswagen Passat.

Please accept our sincere apology as regrettably, we do not hold this type of technical information here at the Volkswagen Customer Care Centre. That said, we do have this type of information readily available by speaking with the highly trained service personnel at your local authorised Volkswagen retailer. Alternatively you should be able to obtain this information from your tyre retailer.

You can obtain all the relevant contact details of your local Volkswagen retailer by visiting our website www.volkswagen.com.au and by clicking on the ‘locate a dealership’ tab.

Should you find for any reason that you have been unable to locate the information you have requested then please don't hesitate to contact us on the number below, Monday to Friday, 08:30 till 17:30 (EST) and you can be assured we will endeavour to obtain the information on your behalf in a timely manner.

Thank you for your enquiry and we wish you many years of happy and safe motoring."

Not very helpful

[vanDub]

Answers

VWA can't explain why the load / speed ratings increase with increasing wheel size but right or wrong the fuel panel placard is what it is and must be adhered to.

My local dealer chipped in with the QLD Transport roadworthy guidelines that they must follow. (Sorry too big to upload here)
Page 26: Tyres, reason for rejection: "Tyre load ratings are less than the minimum ratings specified originally by the vehicle manufacturer".
Page 26: Tyres, reason for rejection: "The speed rating of all tyres, when first manufactured, is not at least 180 km/h unless a lower rating has been specified in legislation".

That means that any tyre speed rated S, T, H are OK if you can find any but the more common V, W, Y or Z rated are fine. Unfortunately you need a 94 load rating in 17", so the 93W rated Dunlop Sport 3000A makes the Passat fail a roadworthy test if fitted (as opposed to being unroadworthy).

This applies in QLD but I cannot see other states being any different especially regarding load ratings.

[JIEG]

I replaced all 4 original equipped Conti Sportcontact2 with Kumho KU37 ECSTA XT about 5 month ago. My choice for Kumho was purely due to the budget reason and the price of Continental was rip-off (cheapest quote that I got was $360 for Conti).
Well, to say the truth, I was a bit worried at the beginning with Kumho but now I am totally happy with them.
It is obvious that Conti offers better handling and grip however you only feel it if you drive your Passat to the limit. However, Kumho offers softer and quieter riding for me (note that one of my last Conti was little warped though).
Overall, I have no doubt that Conti Sportcontact 2 is better tyre however for value for money, Kumho wasn't that bad idea for me.