inexpensive rear tyres

hi for anyone running on 285 30 18 this may be of interest to you if you go on blackcircles.com and serch on this size you should be offered hankook ventus k104 at a price which seem far to cheep. Allthough not a n rated tyre they are off premium quality and the same tread pattern as pilot sports. I run a fleet of coaches and have used hankook tyres for a number of years now and they perform well I bought a pair last week delivered to the door for less than £120 and i was so impress i bought a spare pair i havent fitted them yet but at this money there worth buying to turn the traction control off and having some fun The price has to be an error so i hope they dont realise to soon good luck thanks peter

Good grief! There's an old saying "you get what you pay for". There is no way on earth I'd fit 2nd-grade tyres to a £20K+, 300bhp car. The tyres are your only contact with mother earth and if you lose grip at the rear at the wrong moment you could be in serious trouble. You don't mention the front tyres - I seriousl hope you're not intending to keep premium quality on the front and 2nd-grade on the rear - crikey. As for "they perform well" on your coaches - are you referring to life expectancy or road-holding - not sure there is much comparison between the needs of a coach and a 996? You should have saved this post for April 1st....

My brother has Hankook Ventus tyres on his Cayenne Turbo, and is very pleased with them. Just as grippy as the Continentals he had before, half the price, and last TWICE as long.

Take it back then... if Richard approves they must be fine ;-) I'd still be wary of mixing front to rear though..

would you fit them to your turbo Richard Paul

If they did them in 295/30/18's I would have seriously considered it. I would also like to have tried the Vredestein Sessantas, or Toyo Pro-X's but it is the same story. I contacted my insurers (as did my brother) and they weren't bothered about what make tyres were fitted, provided they were the same size, speed, and load rating. It rather limited my choices. I went for Yokohama Advan Sport V103s, and I'm very pleased I did, as it has transformed the car. I agree about mixing tyres front & rear though. Although it might be legally OK, I wouldn't do it.

in reply to diesel130 hi i have only posted this for people who may be interested it looks like your not one of them but just a few points the hankook is a premium tyre as i stated in my original post the only doubt i had about buying them was the non n rating i will not fit trash to my car and trust me you are getting far more than you are paying for coaches may not do porsche speed but they have different set of problems to deal with and you can tell the good from the bad i would be interested in anyones thoughts if you have purchaced some of the above thanks peter

what were you running previously Richard ? I've got bridgestones on mine currently, plenty left on them and they perform well. When they are ready to be replaced I'd be looking to go down the Michelin PS2 route as had them on my previous cars.

I have no idea about these tyres, but I think slick0007 is right about blackcircles.com having these priced incorrectly. By way of reference the exact same tyre is currently priced at €289.50 per tyre on eyretyres.com.

I see you point, but I still have issues with Hankook being a "premium tyre manufacturer". If I'm not mistaken, Hankook is a Korean manufacturer of tyre. And, like it or not, Korean manufacturers are not seen in the same league as other manufacturers and generally do not gain the "premium" status of other suppliers such as Pirelli, Bridgestone, Goodyear, Yohohama and Michelin. Extrapolating a bit... would anyone on this forum consider Kia, Daewoo, Ssanyong and Hyundia to be "premium" car manufacturers? I think not.

at least you get a 10 year warranty with Kia, something Porsche could learn from Diesel

When I bought the car it had P-Zeros on the front, and nearly new Contis on the rear. I wasn't happy with having different makes, so fitted a new pair of Contis on the front. The fronts were OK-ish for about 1000 miles but I had two issues with them. Firstly, the rears only lasted 4000 miles. It wasn't geometry, as they wore perfectly evenly - and I checked the alignment, just to be sure. I only got a second set of rears because the fronts had lots of life left in them. The main problem was that the car was dreadful on bad surfaces, and they are the norm in this area - a smooth road is a rare occurrence in East Berks or South Bucks! It used to kick off bumps, white lines, and any imperfection, and it felt really 'nervous' at the front end, especially under braking. I was beginning to think that I had a suspension or steering problem. As soon as I fitted the Yokos it was like having a brand new car. The difference was night and day. It tracked straight and true, the steering was lighter, and it went exactly where I pointed it - a new experience. I had considerd Michelins, as I had them on my C2, but I really wanted a change, and thought a more modern design might be worth trying. I'm delighted I did. They seem to be wearing much slower than the Contis - I have done about 2000 miles on them, and I am monitoring the wear. I reckon I should get 8000+ if they continue to wear at this rate. They weren't cheap, but they were about £30 a tyre less than Michelins. There is an N rated version for the 997 C4, by the way. Just my experience. As the Americans say, YMMV.

I know I'm about 100bhp down on you, Richard, but - for interest purposes - I got 15,000 from my Mich Pilot sports (rear) and the fronts are still going strong approaching 20K - and have no complaints on the pointyness and roadholding.

I had no such issues with the tyres on my C2. I got 12,000 miles each out of two sets of P-Zero Rossos on the rear, and 24000+ from the fronts. They did tramline more than I liked, but were very grippy, wet or dry. The Michelins were better though. Far more expensive, but I think it is worth the difference. My brother always had Contis on his C4, and he had no problems. The Turbo is quite different though. A lot more weight, as well as power. My personal feeling now is that the Contis don't suit the Turbo as well as the lighter Carreras. Most people seem to use Bridgestones or Michelins, and I've never heard of the troubles I was having. I don't know anyone else running Contis on a Turbo, and would be interested to hear someone else who has Contis on their Turbo.

Richard I think I've posted this before, but I ran Conti's on one of my 996Turbo and only ever got similar mileage to yourself on the rears- 3-4k The front I never once replaced!! I loved the handling and felt it was quiet on the road noise, however even after a geomoetry check it still only ever got 4K tops on a set of rear Contis.. garyw

Wow - that's surprising (and expensive). I would have thought that having 4wd would have evened it out more and your rears would have laster longer - obviously not.

Another 996 Turbo I had used to get 11K out of a set or rear Michelins and then Pirrelli's.. Similar mileage with my 997 on Bridgestones..[ ]- phew! garyw

reading the last few posts on this thread it seems Bridgestones are a viable option. Its my first experience of them on the current Turbo, I've always favoured Michelins but what you guys have said gives me confidence coupled with my own experience they may be the tyre of choice going forward, any idea what the ball park price difference is between Michelins and Bridgestones for a 996 Turbo Ash

For the 997 the Michelins were about £60 a set more expensive.. garyw

thanks Gary, I saw a new gen 2 997 Turbo in Newcastle OPC with them on as original equipment but they are not shown as an approved tyre for the 996 Turbo (S) No complaints from me though seem fine.

contis on my c4. Rears only done 4k miles and need replacement , might try another brand ! 75pno

Same as me on the 993C4S - 4500 miles absolute maximum for Contis and Michelins - front went twice that distance but were shagged by the end. Probably something to do with the weight of the car and the terrible liberties you can take with the 4WD

Good grief. 4500 miles! Think I'll stick with my C2.

Re Hankook's not being premium I think the are now standard fit on some VW's Audi's and others so they cant be that bad Though whether first chioce for a Porsche or indeed any car I drive I'll reserve judgement

hi hankooks fitted on saturday and i have no complaints in fact im quite impressed they have more grip wet and dry than the pilot sports that came off probably due to them being on the wear indicators noise levels are good to the car has not turned in to monster even though and i had better say this quietly i still have pilot sports on the front The only issue now is how long they last that should be interesting