I've always found T1Rs to be crap in the wet, TBH (this is on the Mk2). Best all-rounders I always stuck to were Goodyear Eagle F1 GSD3s. Phenomenal in any condition, and very long lasting too. I too have heard some rumblings about Chinese-made examples being inferior though. Apparently you can determine where they were made by the batch numbers, but that would a PITA to do. The other half recently bought some wheels for the VR, that came on T1Rs; dry handling was passable, but in the wet they were dire...chronic understeer and would spin up in the first three gears with minimal throttle. They've lasted just three months, and have been swapped for some cheap "Acclera" crap, that are marginally better (but not much!) in the wet, and miles better in the dry.
Interesting thread that, cheers This could be why my Goodyears are not as good in the wet, possibly ?
Like Stu Iv never found a better tyre than the Eagle F1 GSD3, Iv also now heard iffy reports and seen a de-lamd one thou so don't think I would splash the cash now. Iv driven on a fair few different recommended tyres and this is my opinion of them: I wouldn't use nankangs if I was paid to, not even to burn up drifting, Toyo T1Rs are good if they are cheap overwise they just are not good value with the wear Yoko Paradas suck donkey balls in the wet Loved the Dunlop SPs, alot like the good F1's but hate the price Uniroyals are amazing, there are better dry tyres but wear, wet grip and price put them as such a winner Latest one that comes highly recommend are Hankook V12's, had multiple reports of been everybit as good as Eagle F1s when they where amazing but not yet driven on any so this isn't my opinion and I have no idea about wear rate.
ive got hankook s1 evo's currently on my 24v mk2 and i cant fault them impeccable performance in the wet and dry
I have thrashed F1 GSD3's around the nurburgring and they were fantastic (on my Mk5) - in the dry on a very hot day.........but they did bobble - probably a good thing. In the wet they were fantastic too. Downsides were that they didnt suit the rear of the car and wore lumpy on the inner shoulder - probably more about the car setup than the tyre, however the tread pattern seems to be susceptible to this unusual wear. I'm not the only person to find this. Scrapped a set of these in no time due to the "wheel bearing failure" sound they made when worn.
T1 sports, 35 miles on them so far, on way home, boost through standing water - nothing, sticks like glue in this rain and not even scrubbed in yet, so far a big recommendation...
I've read this a lot about Paradas, but as my mk2's not my daily I'm not too worried but will use the car in the rain. How bad are they for normal pace driving in the wet? Not pushing on, just taking it easy... is braking in the wet scary? Are they as bad on just 'damp' ?roads?
i've been using toyo t1r's and yoko s-drives. im not overly impressed with the toyos to be honest. they have such a good rep, but really dont seem that great., the s-drives grip much further although seem a little less predictable as to when they are going to go. the one thing i like with the toyos is that they do have a very good amount of feedback and let you know how far you can push them, a very progressive feeling tyre. the toyos are also very comfy on the road, so in all fairness i would use them again as a daily/fun tyre, but not for anything more serious than that i dont think. i've used nankangs before when i needed a budget tyre. never again. the car lost all of its playfulness because it couldnt corner with even mild aggression, really lost confidence in the car.
Im stuck now lol Not sure which tyre to go for ? Cheers for all the replys though, much appreciated Its good to hear some real reviews from the members, comapred to some unknown tyre review website. Will let you know what i go for in the end ? Cheers
Compared to some of the insanely dangerous budget tyres that should be banned they are just fine for normal driving, they just break away very quickly when pushed past there abilities. I ran them on my Cabby and Mk2 (same wheels) for like 4years, got about 8k out of them and then the new owner of the car finished them off at Llandow. Very soft tyre walls on them aswell which is the downside of them in the dry but atleast adds some comfort to the ride.
TBH with you, I would go for all round tyres yes. Square one's or triangle shapes just give a harsh ride.
Have had Toyo Proxies and Uniroyal Rainsport's on my Mk2. As many have said the Toyo's wear pretty quick but I found them a hoot when it's dry, stuck like the proverbial to a shovel and weren't too bad in the wet. The rainsports have worn a lot less in around 5k miles but I don't find them as predictable in the dry, can never quite gauge them but maybe that's me. In the wet they are good (as you'd expect from the name!) but to be fair it's not worth pushing it in the rain. Rainsport probably a better all rounder though regardless.
Just to mix things up, i wanted to mention the Falken ZE912 tyres i put on my white ibiza lasted ages & stood up pretty well to my abuse. Not as grippy as the rainsports in the dry, or wet but not a bad tyre for a daily driver
Not a bad price for the Uniroyal Rainsports on Ebay http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/195-50-15...pect+Ratio:50|Diameter:15&hash=item53e8c3a93d
