StrikE Posted October 18, 2011 Share Posted October 18, 2011 Well as you can imagine that time of year is almost upon us once again, Indian summer gone with winter lurking in the shadows. After having the misfortune of getting badly marooned in the artic snow drifts I thought mibbies now would be a clever time to approach that old 'change the rubber' on the rims. I can remember looking at the price of Nokian WR G2 tyres in our normal size of 235 40 18 last year, varied price from website to the next with the majority being in and around £75 - £90 max. What a pleasant surprise I received after opening the page for Nokians this year...... only £213.10 per tyre. Havin' a laugh Think they are on the take or what? So any other recommended places for decent tyre kicking around? What's been your own personal experience? Are you even going to bother as it aint gonna snow this year? Del Link to comment
scouk Posted October 18, 2011 Share Posted October 18, 2011 (edited) Sounds liek it's peak time... There's been lots of advertising across europe the past couple of weeks and in teh UK for peopelt o buy Winter tyres, so stock levels are running out FAST! I bought a set of nokians a couple months back - But sadly oponeo don't seem to have them in 17" or 18" anymore (edit: yes they do.. Just not in standard subaru sizes) But were cheaper there than anywhere the UK could provide! http://www.oponeo.co.uk/ Is it gonna snow? The more peopel who buy winter tyres the less likey.... Like you I checked out the prices last year and under £100/corner seemed decent. Doens't seem to be the case this year.. Havent seen Pirelli's under the £150 mark at all. Was monitoring prices all year to see when the best time to buy was. Seems the recent winters have buggered up the consumer prices a bit... Edited October 18, 2011 by ScoUK Link to comment
Midnight21 Posted October 18, 2011 Share Posted October 18, 2011 (edited) I'm thinking about getting a set of 4 for my spare 16" wheels (For the Fozzie)...but at that price I reckon Sox will have to learn to pull a sled....MUSH Edited October 18, 2011 by Midnight21 Link to comment
salsa-king Posted October 18, 2011 Share Posted October 18, 2011 well pleased with my std STi Alloys and dunlope tyres... off ebay... brand new... £339.. all FOUR.. not per corner! now being sprayed SIGNAL GREEN Link to comment
little vodka goblin Posted October 19, 2011 Share Posted October 19, 2011 Can't help you with prices but would REALLY recommend getting some winter tyres, even with our "softie southern" winters they made a hell of a difference to my scoob last year, gave me so much more confidence when driving in the snow and ice. Link to comment
thebigfelly Posted October 19, 2011 Share Posted October 19, 2011 hey strike try just chuck in your car reg and they'l list the tyres, they seemed to have best price on tyres ive found for normal ones and were also selling winter tyres but i didnt check the price of them ,cheaper if you book online or if you print of the discount voucher and take it into them , found them cheapest for brand name, regular and economy tyres , not sure if they do price match aswel, was in today geting the tyre i had the valve ripped out , http://www.farmerautocare.com/ Link to comment
BalliSTIc Posted October 19, 2011 Share Posted October 19, 2011 Other option is something like Uniroyal Rainsport 2... use 'em all year round. Have had several independent recommendations including John at ProGrip as to their quality... just a thought. Link to comment
MarkJHarris Posted October 23, 2011 Share Posted October 23, 2011 oponeo.co.uk still have some accelera snow tyres cheap. mind you, even they've nearly doubled in price in the last few weeks. If you wait till November to buy.... I always buy mine in late September. Learned the hard way a couple of years ago. No help to you, sorry. Link to comment
StrikE Posted October 23, 2011 Author Share Posted October 23, 2011 Prices are just plain crazy TBH. Same link to same tyres now costing £284.80. 5 days later £70 more! Havin' a laugh Thanks for all the input folks, going to up date this weekly out of pure curiosity Link to comment
scouk Posted October 24, 2011 Share Posted October 24, 2011 (edited) Yep.. peak time.. peak prices... I spent 2 years saving for winter tyres! An was constantly checking the prices during that time to see when tyres were available and what prices they were through the year.. Certainly November through to Feb definitely highest prices! Although did notice that every few days the price of certain tyres would jump significantly then step back down a few days later.. But definitely paying a premium if buying now.. Local radio station currently has ads from local garages advertising winter tyres.. If you want them at this time of year, gonna have to pay for it I origonally was looking to pay about £80/tyre couple years back but overall prices this year have been much higher than before! Even at their cheapest! Pirelli Sottozero's were about £112 last year.. I couldn't find them for less than £152 this year! Which I why I ended up going for the Nokians. Definitely worth keeping a record of prices... Edited October 24, 2011 by ScoUK Link to comment
StrikE Posted October 25, 2011 Author Share Posted October 25, 2011 £304.40 come on! LOL Link to comment
scouk Posted October 25, 2011 Share Posted October 25, 2011 (edited) Their having a giggle! Oponeo for slightly wider 245/40/18 - £161 THat's nearly 1/2 the price!! Edited October 25, 2011 by ScoUK Link to comment
scouk Posted October 25, 2011 Share Posted October 25, 2011 (edited) Couple of on-topic links for people while they grab their popcorn: AutoExpress 2010 Winter tyre test: http://www.tyrereviews.co.uk/Article/2010-Auto-Express-Winter-Tyre-Test.htm AutoExpress 2011 Winter tyre test: http://www.tyrereviews.co.uk/Article/2011-Auto-Express-Winter-Tyre-Test.htm Might be worth considering some of the more expensive yet somewhat cheaper alternatives Edited October 25, 2011 by ScoUK Link to comment
Chris-turbo Posted October 27, 2011 Share Posted October 27, 2011 I used these guys a lot for my giant 4x4 tyres. Cheapest prices I could ever find. As far as I can see the biggest winter tyres they have on the site is 17's. Maybe give them a call though? Prices are good! http://www.tyresdirectuk.co.uk/xcart/home.php?cat=250 Link to comment
scouk Posted October 27, 2011 Share Posted October 27, 2011 He hee.. Thought i'd get in there before ya today.. Nokia WR G2 not avaialable in that size from mytyres today. But the replacement WR A2 is listed for £200.50! http://ssl.delti.com/cgi-bin/rshop.pl?details=Ordern&cart_id=69664695.110.23357&Cookie=tyrepricebuster&typ=D-117096&ranzahl=4&Breite=235&Quer=40&Felge=18&weiter=20&kategorie=6&Ang_pro_Seite=20&sort_by=preis&Transport=P&dsco=110&sowigan=Wi Link to comment
lewisscoob Posted October 27, 2011 Share Posted October 27, 2011 So glad I put 4 winters on the punto 2 years ago. I went with Vredstein Snowtrac 3's and they've been phenomenal. Done 2 winters and a trackday in them and they still look like new. Bring on the snow! Oh and they were £60 each... Link to comment
buttons Posted October 27, 2011 Share Posted October 27, 2011 (edited) I put my winter wheels on last week and went for a Monster green look with some part worn (but loads of tred left on them) winter Continentals that only cost me £90 delivered for all 4. Edited October 27, 2011 by buttons Link to comment
bmwhere? Posted November 9, 2011 Share Posted November 9, 2011 Good to see there is finally some positive commitment to winter tyres in the UK. I've been using them for over 10 years now and wouldn't dream of not fitting them, wherever you live in the UK! I was actually amazed to see an advert for winter tyres on the telly the other night. Never seen them advertised on UK TV before. Think it was for Goodyears. It really does seem the UK is starting to wake up to their advantages. It seems Nokians have always been really popular in the UK (although virtually unheard of over here in Germany). My guess is they are now starting to cash in on their popularity. Personally, I've been running 235/45R17 Pirelli Sottozero's since getting the 08 STi. They were one of the few manufacturers that actually make a winter tyre big enough to fit the 08 - in Germany I'm restricted to using only officially approved tyre sizes and that is the smallest I'm allowed to fit Still, I'm not too disappointed by that as their performance is absolutely unbelievable!!! Way better than the 215's I had fitted on the 03 STi despite 20mm extra width. Normally the thinner tyres give better performance in the wet and snow, but the Pirelli's really kick ass! Its always difficult to recommend winter tyres of different sizes than you want as different manufacturers perform better in different sizes. So if you read a review or take advice, always consider the tyre size reviewed and the size you want. I can only really recommend the Pirelli's in 235/45R17 profile as I never used them in any other size. In 215 or 225 width on 17" rims on the 03 STi, I used both Michelin and Goodyear, I really wasn't impressed with the Michelin's but the Goodyears were great, although I heard that the newer Michelins are a big improvement. Back in my classic days, I only ever had one set of Vredsteins in 205 on 16" rims and was very impressed, but that is going back a long time and things have moved on a lot since those days Link to comment
scouk Posted November 9, 2011 Share Posted November 9, 2011 Friend of mine just bought a set of Pirelli's for his SEAT Leon after a reccomendation from me (or shoudl I say you after all the comments you've made on here ) My wheels are in getting refurbed at the moment, hopefully returned in one piece with the Nokians attached Quite curious to see how well winter tyres perform compared to summer tyres in normal/wet conditions... Need to take it easy for a while methinks, especially on fresh rubber Link to comment
davey l wrx Posted November 9, 2011 Share Posted November 9, 2011 I'm thinking about getting some on one of the scoobs.... Probably need them on the trips back and forward to elgin to see the kids in the coming months. Link to comment
j wrx tonkins Posted November 9, 2011 Share Posted November 9, 2011 Looking at the above prices i think i will stick with my falcon summer tyres used these last year and they were fine. Link to comment
bmwhere? Posted November 9, 2011 Share Posted November 9, 2011 Friend of mine just bought a set of Pirelli's for his SEAT Leon after a reccomendation from me (or shoudl I say you after all the comments you've made on here ) You're welcome Need to take it easy for a while methinks, especially on fresh rubber Very good point! As with any new tyres, Winter tyres require a little running in before they start performing well, so when you first fit them, they could feel worse than the summer tyres until they're fully run-in! Once they're going though, in normal conditions, you may notice a fraction more understeer due to the larger tread blocks, and they can get a little soft on warmer days (>15 degrees). Generally though, they have massively better grip than summer tyres, they don't need to be warmed up before they start to work and in the wet the grip is unbelievable! Link to comment
StrikE Posted December 11, 2011 Author Share Posted December 11, 2011 After a check this morning the tyres are down to £172, a wee bit better than the £300!! Anti slide black stuff Link to comment
scouk Posted December 11, 2011 Share Posted December 11, 2011 That's quite a bit better than it was!! Havign used them last week int eh snow/slushy stuff they get a big thumbsup from me! Between those and the summer tyres, it's quite simply the difference between having grip and not having grip.. A drive out is no longer a continual slide with wheelspin. While I'm starting work at 7am before the gritters are out, driving on rural roads, I'm definately sticking with winter tyres! Initial outlay is a bit steep but tyre wear across the two sets should even out running costs. That and the car seems to have only done 3,000miles this year Link to comment
StrikE Posted December 11, 2011 Author Share Posted December 11, 2011 it's quite simply the difference between having grip and not having grip.. Oh yeah Link to comment
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