Allan Westbury Posted August 25, 2008 Report Share Posted August 25, 2008 Hi, i have been running my 4A on Firestone 185/65 R15's fitted to minilite replica's. Generally no problem but I now have to replace the front tyres. Any advice please on whether to just replace like with like, go with cheaper Kumho tyres recommended by the local fitter as giving better performance & ride, or perhaps more modern Avons that I have been very happy with on more modern cars. The car is basically standard with a slightly worked engine. cheers Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Tr4Tony Posted August 25, 2008 Report Share Posted August 25, 2008 Id recommend the AVON CR6 ZZ Medium compound tyre. Cracking performance on a road (fast) car. Regards Tony Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Richard Crawley Posted August 26, 2008 Report Share Posted August 26, 2008 Depending on how much meat there is left on the rears I would prefer to go like with like & keep them the same all round, otherwise I’d go with Avon's. I, along with a few others on here, run them all round & they are a very good tyre at a very reasonable price; you need to shop around though. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Badfrog Posted August 26, 2008 Report Share Posted August 26, 2008 (edited) i have been running my 4A on Firestone 185/65 R15's fitted to minilite replica's. Generally no problem but I now have to replace the front tyres. Any advice please on whether to just replace like with like..... Hi, I've tried many brands over 35 years and definitely the ultimate choice for me is "Vredestein 86H sprint classic" (165.80.15). Amazing road handling at any speed. They have a website (google "Vredestein") and retailers all over Europe. A little addition following a PM from OllieTR4A : use 4.5" wheels with 165 tyres. Do not use larger tyres unless the frame has been worked over (Revington style). Edited August 30, 2008 by Badfrog Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Allan Westbury Posted September 3, 2008 Author Report Share Posted September 3, 2008 Hi Guys, Thanks for the advice, particularly Badfrog who added much more off forum. Finally went for the Vredestein as being well recommended by many. Originally opted for 165 R 15's as these had great reviews but changed to 185/70's after various discussions as I have 5 1/2" Minilite replicas & while TR6's orinally fitted 165's on a 5 1/2" wheel this is now generally not recommended. The purists seem to recommend 165's on 4 1/2" wheels as the optimum, but I didn't want to buy a new set of wheels as well as tyres! 185/70's seem to be the optimum for 5 1/2" rims. The Vredestein website lists loads of 'local' stockists but the two nearest me could not supply the "Classic" ranges and both referred me to North Hants Tyres as the only UK Stockist. They duly obliged & shipped them to me overnight. There are one or two other web based suppliers, but I dont know if they actually stock. Am off to Sweden on the European this weekend so will be interested to see how they perform. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Tr4Tony Posted September 3, 2008 Report Share Posted September 3, 2008 North Hants Tyres are just along the road from me ..... very good company to deal with. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
ChrisR-4A Posted September 4, 2008 Report Share Posted September 4, 2008 North Hants Tyres are just along the road from me ..... very good company to deal with. I can also recommend Mytyres, http://ssl.delti.com/cgi-bin/rshop.pl?dsco...7&s_p=index Their prices include delivery which for my Firestones was 2 days. I went for the 165xR15 as I have 4.5" wires and they suit the wheel size, I previously had the Vredestein 185s but they were really too wide for the rims and did not improve the handling. Chris Quote Link to post Share on other sites
lindatr4 Posted September 18, 2008 Report Share Posted September 18, 2008 I too am on the hunt for some new tyres and would just like to warn fellow TRers about my experience with online purchases. Mytyres.co.uk are an excellent company. I have bought many tyres for our "other" car from them and have always enjoyed total satisfaction with service and delivery. North Hants Tyres, although I have never bought from them, I found to be very helpful. If you ever should come across Agrityresdirect then avoid. They never answered any of my emails and the telephone number given on their website is "temporarily unavailable" Hmmm......Another one is Speedsportuk. Placed an order and despite them saying that they don't charge your card until the goods are despatched, not only did they charge my card immediately but after 12 days I am still waiting for delivery. Tried their Freephone number and its no longer in service. Think I'll go back to Mytyres... Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Alec Pringle Posted September 18, 2008 Report Share Posted September 18, 2008 There's a reasonable argument for sticking to online suppliers, or traditional retail suppliers for that matter, who have a particular interest in 'our' sort of cars. Personally I wouldn't look for 'classic' tyres from a supplier of agricultural tyres, or from a speed shop specialising in modern low-profiles. Apart from any other considerations, a supplier specialising in one type of tyres is unlikely to have a quite different type of tyre 'on the shelf', so the supplier is then going to have to order them in - quite possibly from a manufacturer or distributor who they don't often use. Hence delays result. At least by using a credit card rather than a debit card for online purchases, you have recourse to the card company if things go awry. Micheldever are one supplier I've found useful over many years for less common tyre requirements http://www.micheldever.co.uk/ Usually my local tyre man can come up with the goods, given a few days notice - if he knows what the online offers are for something fairly obscure, then he can nail down a distributor to a competitive price . . . But it's down to me to do the legwork (keyboard work !) first. Cheers, Alec Quote Link to post Share on other sites
4Mal Posted September 18, 2008 Report Share Posted September 18, 2008 I have to agree with tony on the CR6 ZZ Avons not cheap..... but Whoo Hoo!! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Edmond Posted October 5, 2008 Report Share Posted October 5, 2008 (edited) In addition to the Vredestein Sprint Classic's which Badfrog refers to, has anyone experience of Dunlop Roadspeed RS5 or Maxxis MA701 165/80R15 types? My local type fitters say that the Maxxis is as "good as anything" and are doing them for around £28 each. My car is an unmodified TR4A and is used for mainly gentle touring. Edited October 5, 2008 by Edmond Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Alec Pringle Posted October 5, 2008 Report Share Posted October 5, 2008 Hi Edmond, RS5s are traditional high-speed crossplies, a design that goes back to when TR4s were new . . . and nowadays seriously expensive tyres. You'd need a good reason to fit them. Maxxis are an American company, not well known in the UK but well enough reputed internationally. MA701 is a conventional radial design, nothing special about it, a decent average tyre. At £28 I'd have thought an absolute bargain, and ideal for gentle touring. Cheers, Alec Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Allan Westbury Posted October 6, 2008 Author Report Share Posted October 6, 2008 Have just started catching up after Sweden, so apologies for delay. I found the vredestein's superb.!The handling was the best I can remember in 27years of owning the car. The grip was fantastic & the car felt assured on the road. A real change from the Firestones I had on previously & I had only changed the rears! I also received a number of comments on how well the tyres looked on the car. Incidently there were a number of German cars in the same 'block' of the hotel & they all seemed to have vredesteins fitted as well. Highly recommended. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
tthomson Posted October 8, 2008 Report Share Posted October 8, 2008 Hi Ollie, Considering that the only things that keeps a car on the road are the tyres, it is false economy to look for cheap tyres. I don't know which are best for your purposes, but take time to get a good set. Grip is everything, but can be costly. Tyres with good grip tend to be made from softer material, wear faster and are more expensive. If you are not racing then you probably don't need fantastic grip, but given how twitchy TRs are compared to modern cars, better grip is an advatage. Good luck with whatever you decide. TT Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Alec Pringle Posted October 8, 2008 Report Share Posted October 8, 2008 Hi Tony, it sounds like Ollie has made a decision to stick with Vredestein ! For Edmond's benefit, it is worth bearing in mind that there tends to be at least some trade-off between grip and ride comfort. Grippier tyres with softer compounds usually feature stiffer sidewall construction in the interests of reduced slip angle, which tends to result in a slightly firmer ride. A characteristic which may or may not be preferable. Cheers, Alec Quote Link to post Share on other sites
tthomson Posted October 9, 2008 Report Share Posted October 9, 2008 Hi Tony, it sounds like Ollie has made a decision to stick with Vredestein ! For Edmond's benefit, it is worth bearing in mind that there tends to be at least some trade-off between grip and ride comfort. Grippier tyres with softer compounds usually feature stiffer sidewall construction in the interests of reduced slip angle, which tends to result in a slightly firmer ride. A characteristic which may or may not be preferable. Cheers, Alec Hi Alec, Thanks for that, I realised Edmond had already made his decision after I'd hit the post reply button, But you are right about the ride. TT Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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