Tyres, recommendations please

[SYNACK]

How do you know I'm not in a car behind you?

I still have a bumper

 

"more dangerous" seems like a strange way to think about it. If I get into a different car with slightly different limits do I suddenly become more dangerous? Are you today more dangerous than you were yesterday because your tyres are slightly more worn?

in some situations yes, the car just has less grip to use and less margin for the unexpected, you can only compensate so much while still obeying the Road rules

 

One of the things you (hope to) learn as a motorbike rider is that saying "it was their fault" is not a hugely satisfying thing to have written on your gravestone. You learn (hope to) to be entirely responsible for your own safety - whatever the condition of the road or the other drivers on it (damp oil, people pulling out on you etc). What always surprises me about debates on tyres and the claimed additional safety factor of "good tyres" is they seem to ignore any ability of the driver to compensate for the conditions and to take responsibility for their own safety. The biggest difference you can make to the safety of your vehicle is the way you drive it.

true of course but just because you can absail down a cliff with a bit of clothsline wire does not mean it's a good idea

If you were offered a drive in a vintage sports car with tyres typical for that vintage would you characterise yourself as more dangerous? Would you say "well I'm glad I'm not driving behind me" simply because that configuration has less traction than a modern car - or do you think you would find the comment slight offensive and think you were quite capable of taking charge of such a vehicle and being characterised as "more dangerous than someone who speeds moderately" was just ... hot air and rhetoric.

 

Not really into old cars and yes, of course it can be more dangerous, it probably has a better chassis and other things that also make a big difference but from a sheer physics prospective better traction is better traction. There are all sorts of factors but I have seen dirty little cars here slowed to a crawl in the rain thanks to cheap tires and still barely handling to stick round corners.

 

Maybe our roads are more dangerous, they are just a mix of speedbumps, potholes and broken chipseal in between so bad it may as well be gravel. Still good tires make a difference and most of that is not sledging around the Road while doing really low speeds in the wet.

[pcstru]

Not really into old cars and yes, of course it can be more dangerous, it probably has a better chassis and other things that also make a big difference but from a sheer physics prospective better traction is better traction. There are all sorts of factors but I have seen dirty little cars here slowed to a crawl in the rain thanks to cheap tires and still barely handling to stick round corners.

 

Maybe our roads are more dangerous, they are just a mix of speedbumps, potholes and broken chipseal in between so bad it may as well be gravel. Still good tires make a difference and most of that is not sledging around the Road while doing really low speeds in the wet.

 

Perhaps if they didn't slow down it would be "more dangerous"[1] - but as you see, most people seem to manage to adjust their driving for the capabilities of their car and the conditions. As for 'cheap', the part worns I buy are 'cheap' but they are a 'decent' tyre in good condition with good tread. There is no more danger of me running into the back of you than if I was sporting a brand new tyre (infact a brand new tyre is generally quite slippery for the first ~30 miles as you rid the tyre of the mould release agents).

 

[1] - I think "more dangerous" is more rhetoric and simply wrong. If we look at risk, we can see risk changing all the time as we drive. Environmental conditions change, the traffic changes, the roads change; all of which alter risk. But for any factor we can mitigate risk - most effectively by changing the way we drive. So if I have tyres with less grip and I drive more slowly to mitigate the risk, then I'm not (generally) "more dangerous".

 

Of course, people who can't drive very well are well advised to spend a lot of money on tyres to try and compensate, so I completely understand why you feel you need to do that.

[Sirbendy]

First thing I do when I get a new car, or indeed a new set of tyres is take them for a run to the parents...they live out in the middle of fields, and have a lovely long road with lots of twists, turns and sweeping corners. Wait for dusk so that other cars are visible via lights ahead, and go for a run to find the limits of the chassis/tyres. You usually get 6-7 cars a day on the road, literally. Also test the emergency stop ability, and usually at the same time I do a full road test of the autobox to make sure the shift points are spot on, listen/watch for any odd pump/converter noise or behaviour (excess slippage etc) and generally familiarise myself.

 

If I spanner it, it's my own lookout and I'll hit an earth bank. My first car (Renault 25) had a nasty habit of launching the rear end out under cornering..I found that out when I damn near wedged it between 2 hedges sideways. Tyres seemed to make little difference...I can't help wondering if the thing was a bit bent! It cost me £150 and lasted 2 years though, so it's not like I was overly bothered.

 

It's only really been this Astra and maybe the previous one that I've actually been giving much thought to the safety of the car as such..but then I have kids now.