Fortuna F2000 Tyres

If you've never heard of them before, don't fit them. That's my usual rule.

I'm about to go down the Colway remould road for my next set. They're well under half the cost of a new branded tyre, but have a very good reputation.

I'm afraid I've never heard of Fortuna - but quite a few budget brands are made by the big companies. I would ask the supplier where they are made, and if they know who makes them. If they can't tell you I would avoid them. They are usually delighted to tell you things like "They're great, made by xxxx and outlast everything!"

Budget tyres are often a gamble especially on higher performance cars. Whether they offer good value depends on how enthusiastic you are behind the wheel, how many miles you cover annually, and how long you intend to keep the car.

I find on my cars that budget tyres do not save me much money in the long run. However switching between suppliers does. IME the big companies have never quoted cheaper than independent companies.

And they're usually wrong.

ThickFit always try and sell me 'Ceat' tyres by telling me how they're 'made by Pirelli' - which is, of course, bollocks.

The Pirelli Group own a tyre trademark called 'Ceat' - sounds a recipe for confusion...

Lee

In message , Doctor D writes

Just bloody pointless on high performance cars. If you don't care about how good the tyres are, you may as well buy a Rover 75.

OTOH, the absolute price differential with non-performance orientated cars is so small, I can't see the point. I suppose it might make sense on a slow car fitted with aftermarket / optional big low profile tyres bought for purely cosmetic purposes, in as much as that combination makes any sense in the first place.

The message from snipped-for-privacy@italiancar.co.uk (SteveH) contains these words:

Down the bottom is a list of Pirelli trademarks - which includes Ceat.

Doesn't tie in with this, though:

The message from snipped-for-privacy@italiancar.co.uk (SteveH) contains these words:

Hmm. Wonder how they sort that out.

The message from snipped-for-privacy@italiancar.co.uk (SteveH) contains these words:

Ah - from their 2003 report...

"The Company pursued a strategic initiative of intensifying outsourcing to expand the product range and increase volumes. An agreement has been entered into with Pirelli of Italy for outsourcing radial tyres which are being marketed in the brand name, CEAT Spider Radials."

ThickFit in being right about something shocker......

That surprises me.

Pirelli, the Italian tyre manufacturer, is the sixth largest tyre manufacturer in the world with annual sales of $US 3005 million (1998). Pirelli can justifiably claim market leadership within Europe. The Pirelli brand is an out and out premium brand. However, the Pirelli Group owns a number of subsidiary brands including Courier, *Ceat*, Armstrong and the Metzeler brand of motorcycle tyres.

I was going to go that way, then I discovered Falken.

4 Colways onto my Escort = £100 4 Falkens onto my Escort = £110

The Falkens are made by Goodyear with Goodyear compound, to an old Dunlop pattern.

4 Michelins for an escort (185/60x14) are 170 quid, dearer, but I'll bet they last longer and grip better. How much is safety worth?

mrcheerful

I'm currently on Vredstein rear and Semperit front, all down to 2mm

New Falkens will be better than old mixtures, regardless.

I cannot drive the tyres off the car, since it's the 90bHp diesel, so I think Falkens will do, thanks.

I would agree, except that sometimes, in a genuine emergency (which can happen to any driver, no matter how good) you need that last little bit of grip, especially when stopping, a set of good tyres may prevent a crash or worse, running someone over. Unfortunately you may not understand/believe this until you have been in the situation.

mrcheerful

Ok, translate the price from a 185/60x14 to the OP's 225/45x17's (cheapest Michelin's on "blackcircles" = £111 for 17" and £41 for 14"), and ask the same question. Perhaps being able to afford to replace with "lesser" tyres is better than not being able to afford them, and running the old ones into the ground? Perhaps the OP's car is intrinsically safer, with a better braking system and significantly more rubber in contact with the ground?, maybe the answer to how much is safety worth has already been provided with the OP's choice of car?

(Sorry, rant over)

The message from "mrcheerful ." contains these words:

How long is a piece of string?

It ain't a black and white question - like everything else in life it's a balance. With finite resources driving comes down to a series of choices about what you're going to pay for - some people might consider that a car without ABS isn't safe enough for them, others are quite content without it. Just like tyres, this is a cost/benefit choice.

Clearly, some choices are easier to make than others - being to mean to maintain your steering and brakes or adequate tread is taking things too far in almost anyone's book, but choosing one brand of tyre over another is less clearcut. Most tyres give adequate performance - I've a set of cheapies on my Audi and have yet to catch them out even in very poor conditions like standing water or drizzle after weeks of no rain.

Experience has shown me the opposite. I once fitted a set of Courier (budget Pirelli) to an Escort. They had so little grip during firm braking, I replaced them after a month of scares.

I would rather have Michelin, Continental, et al, worn down to 2mm than new budget tyres.

The 90bHp doesn't influence the tyres' wear under heavy braking or cornering though.

Chris

AAh, but the person I was answering was not the OP.

Yes the 17 inch size is a lot more, probably nearer 120 quid each, but why have a car if you cannot afford to keep it properly maintained? Do the car manufacturers think that Falkens or Colways are a good choice? No, they don't, and I don't think any mainstream car manufacturer would fit a non major brand tyre, perhaps there is a very good reason for that? Car manufacturers will do anything to save even fractions of a penny per component, yet do not fit cheap tyres (on which, with their buying power they could save 10s of pounds per car). The reason is that by their very nature of construction and composition a cheap tyre is not as good as a top brand tyre in grip, handling or life expectancy(full stop)

My rant over.

Mrcheerful