Does anyone know the official view on changing your tyre brand from the manufacturers recommendation? I'm sure I read somewhere that if you put a non-recommended tyre brand on and then had an accident, there was a risk the insurance company wouldn't pay out. Maybe this is more of an issue in America?
I ask because I've realised I can save about £50/tyre by buying Michelins from Costco instead of the supplied Pirelli's from somewhere local. The tyres are the same size and speed rating, etc, so I find it hard to believe the Pirellis are worth another £50 each.
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Same diameter, aspect ratio, speed and load rating and you will be fine. You can even vary some of these perameters if within the manufactures guidelines i.e. fit 215/45 instead of 205/50's however if you do go outside of the OEM spec then tell your insurer to be safe.
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I had a row about this at work when we leased cars and the leasing company were putting budget brands of tyres on the cars. I had a 406 Exec at the time and Peugeot recommended only one tyre. I called Peugeot and they said I could use any make, but they recommended one particular tyre because all their testing had been done with it. They said that if, in the event of an accident, a finger was pointed at some aspect of the car?s performance, then they would say that the car wasn?t fitted with the tyre they suggested. That was good enough to enable me to play the Health and Safety card and insist that we should err on the side of caution and use only the recommended tyre.
The somewhat ridiculous thing about this, is that tyres are quite frequently revamped, so it can be impossible to get exactly the same tyre anyway. People tend to think in terms of make (Pirelli / Michelin etc) but different models of tyre (P6, P6000 etc) can be totally different.
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I prefer Michelins over Pirelli's.The handbook for my mazda,like other manufacturers gives the reccomended tyre spec. not the actual make.If the tyre of any manufacturer matches that spec. ie.width,dia.,profile and speed rating then i cant see any problem.Obviously you get what you pay for, with many upmarket tyres using the latest silicon technology.Generally the more expensive a tyre the better grip or cornering or wet handling you will get.Tyre set up is about compromises,the better in the wet,the worse in the dry.I recommend you look at the Auto express tyre tests,as previously mentioned by Br's.
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So, further to the OP, where would I stand with an insurance company in the situation whereby my car's handbook specifically refers to Pirelli P Zeros alone, despite the fact that mytyres lists several other Z rated tyres - over a wide range of (mostly lesser) prices!- for the tyre specification in question?
Jack
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It doesn't matter what anyone says on here - your contract is with the insurance co. and only their view has any relevance.
I would recommend asking them. When I've done so in the past, my insurance company has said that any tyre meeting the same spec would be acceptable.
However, I was also told that a non-oem exhaust (eg from a fast-fit place) would count as a modification on that particular policy - this really was a surprise. I've also been told that fitting wheels/tyres from a different model in the range may affect the premium.
It costs nothing to ask the insurance company, though I would record the name an date/time of call.
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If you have something exotic I would check with the car maker and the insurer. N ratings might be an issue on Porsches for example.
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There was a story in last week's Auto Express, where a chap had noticed his new front tyres catching on the inside of the wheelarches. He hadn't used the recommended brand, and the one he used had a slightly different shoulder profile. Car was a Volvo V70, and experience of my S60 suggests that there isn't much room in the wheelarches to accommodate a wide variation of tolerances.
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> There was a story in last week's Auto Express
All S60s and V70s with the SE spec 225x45/17 tyres and especially so with the lowered sports suspension option are known to rub tyres on the inner wheelarch regardless of brand. The same is true where the optional 18" "Nebula" wheels are fitted.
Volvo fit longer steering stops to cars thus shod, but even when them fitted rubbing still occurs. This is because the steering lock is appalling to begin with so the longer stops for the wider tyre option are only *just* long enough in trying to keep any lock increase to a minimum.
My factory shod 225x45/17 V70 with lowered sports suspension rubs the inner arches on full lock at anything above crawling speed. My brother's factory shod 225x45/17 V70 with normal (higher) suspension rubs the inner arches at jogging speed on full lock.
Note that many Volvo owners buy 16" shod cars (which have shorter steering stops) and then fit the 17" (and in some case 18% Nebula) wheels without changing to the longer steering stops.
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Does anyone know the official view on changing your tyre brand from the manufacturers recommendation?
Some manufacturers use a number of tyre suppliers. If they only had one, a tyre supply problem would disrupt their vehicle production. Just stick to the original tyre size and rating. It's accepted that some owners change tyre brands from that originally fitted.
"I ask because I've realised I can save about £50/tyre by buying Michelins from Costco instead of the supplied Pirelli's from somewhere local. The tyres are the same size and speed rating, etc, so I find it hard to believe the Pirellis are worth another £50 each."
It's possible that "somewhere local" simply doesn't have the same "pile 'em high and sell 'em cheap" philosophy as Costco.
--
L\'escargot.
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>> "I ask because I've realised I can save about £50/tyre by buying Michelins from Costco instead of the supplied Pirelli's from somewhere local. The tyres are the same size and speed rating, etc, so I find it hard to believe the Pirellis are worth another £50 each." It's possible that "somewhere local" simply doesn't have the same "pile 'em high and sell 'em cheap" philosophy as Costco. --
Michelin's are normally amongst the most expensive of all brands, but Costco only sell Michelin so presumeably they get better prices from Michelin.
Suggest the OP shops around a bit - Pirelli's should be cheaper (than the equivalent Michelein tyre), and you can normally get pretty close to Costco's Michelin prices elsewhere. Try a couple of the online suppliers, at least for price comparisons.
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As I posted in the technical forum the cheapest michelins for my car (Megane 175-70-13) online fitted was £86 for the pair. First time I have used costco and I got the very same tyres for £62 fitted, a saving of £24 and the job was done to perfection.
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