New tyres for A6 Avant 2.5TDi sport quattro

[SiliconS]

I thought you had to be very careful with tyres on a Quattro - I was (perhaps mistakenly) under the impression that you should replace all tyres at once, and rotate them around the car so they wear evenly. If one axle set is worn and the other is new then you get too much relative speed difference between the axles, and it causes premature wear to the Quattro system.

I thought I'd read this in the handbook, but I might be imagining it.

Anyway, I've got Continental Sport Contacts on my A6 Quattro and my wife has them on her Saab. I've always been impressed with the level of grip in the wet and their life seems to be substantial, but it's an interesting comment about the higher noise levels, Martin.

I've always fitted cheapo tyres to my old Mercedes E Class, and the difference in grip level between the Merc and the Audi is shocking. I drove the Merc this week for the first time in 9 months, and it understeered on a roundabout really easily compared with the Audi. Decent tyres are definitely worth the difference.

Again Martin, thanks for the updates. Your story threads are very useful!

 

[fjtwelve]

Its that time again. I thought the tread was getting low and the outer edges of the fronts are definitely worn. Just as we pay for the tax the MOT the insurance we find at the MOT that we are down to 2mm on the tread and all 4 tyres need replacing shortly. They have all worn very evenly with the exception of the front outer edges. The Contis have lasted just on 20,000 miles so far, the highest mileage of anything i've used so far (the Goodyears F1 were completely shagged at 20k). I think this is due to a combination of a much higher proportion of motorway running and a harder compound. The ride and handling has gone off significantly in the last 1000-1500 miles, especially when cold and also very sensitive to wheel ruts in the road surface. No sign of the splits suffered by rickquattro.The sensation in the cold is like having a flat tyre, i even stopped to check the pressures the other day, and you need to be alert to the road surface for the rutting taking you on a different line. As a biker this is nothing new but can catch you off guard.

Value? Well the Contis were £371.60 from mytyres and Star charged £42 to put them on, and will have done 22k by the time they get replaced i suspect. 1.88p/mile. The Goodyears were £314 from blackcircles plus £47 to CLCM to fit, and are good for 17500 miles. 2.06p/mile. Sounds feck all, but with the mileage i'm doing in 18 months i'd use 3 sets of Contis to 4 sets of F1s. The pair of Dunlop Sportmaxxes cost £205 fitted by Kwikfit and were good for 17000, as a set of 4 that would be 2.41p/mile.

 

[audii]

hi mate reading with intrest i use avon zz3 and omly get about 7000 mles one thing i wanted to know was where did you get koni fsd dampers for a a4 b5 i looked in the summer last year but they was only availbe for the b6

 

[fjtwelve]

FSDs came from Awesome, i highly recommend them for service. They also sell a lot of Konis so their prices are generally better. I had them fitted to my A6 though, not sure what is available for the A4, but call Awesome they'll advise you.

 

[fjtwelve]

Time flies when you're busy, still to get those new tyres on as the outer front edges are decidedly worn. After a bit of shopping around i have bought 4 Continental Sport Contact 3 235/45 R17 94Y fitted locally for £460 from Black Circles. I could have bought Contact 2 for the same price if i'd gone for the 97W rating but the car is supposed to be on 94, and the Contact 2 were £539 for the 94W rating. Originally i asked for W speed rating but they weren't readily available in the Contact 3. I noticed that the Goodyear Eagle F1 and Dunlop Sport Maxx are going for a lower price (see below), and nearly went back to them. However as most of my driving is now on twisty lanes in the drier South, and i destroyed the last set of F1s on the A701, i decided to go for longer life.
Mytyres offered the Goodyears at £334, the Contact 2 97W at £410, the Contact 2 94W at £442, the Contact 3 94W at £433, all plus at least £45 fitting but the nearest fitting station was miles away. The Goodyears look so much cheaper but run the numbers, that extra life wins every time. Healthy bit of inflation there too, compare with the prices i paid previously!!
Audi Truro offered to match the £539 i was quoted for the Sport 2 94W after initially quoting something like £570.

Continental Sport Contact 3 235/45 R17 Y 4 @114.99 459.96
Interstate IS Sport IXT (Extra Load)* 235/45 R17 W 4@ 91.94 367.76
Dunlop SP9000 235/45 R17 Z 4@ 97.00 388.00
Dunlop SP2000 E 235/45 R17 Y 4 @99.98 399.92
Goodyear Eagle F1 GSD3 235/45R17 Z 4@ 102.49 409.96
Nexen N 3000 235/45 R17 W 4 @69.92 279.68
Blackcircles.com VALUE CHOICE 235/45 R17 Z 4 @72.56 290.24
Falken ZE 512 235/45 R17 W 4 @81.76 327.04
Kumho Ecsta Sport KU 31 235/45 R17 W 4@ 84.09 336.36
Falken GRB FK 452 235/45 R17 Y 4@ 84.45 337.80
Dunlop SP3000 235/45 R17 W 4 @92.23 368.92
Dunlop SP9090 235/45 R17 Y 4 @94.99 379.96
Dunlop Sport Maxx 235/45 R17 Y 4 @97.45 389.80
Toyo Proxes T1-R (Reinforced) 235/45 R17 Y 4@ 102.81 411.24
Pirelli P7 235/45 R17 W 4@ 105.74 422.96
Bridgestone RE050A 235/45 R17 Y 4 @107.94 431.76
Bridgestone RE050A XL 235/45 R17 W 4@ 113.38 453.52
Continental Sport Contact 2 XL 235/45 R17 W 4@ 114.50 458.00
Michelin Primacy HP 235/45 R17 W 4 @121.87 487.48
Toyo Proxes T1-S 235/45 R17 Y 4@ 122.66 490.64
Michelin Pilot Sport 2 235/45 R17 Y 4 @122.99 491.96
Pirelli Pzero Rosso (Extra Load) 235/45 R17 Y 4@ 129.26 517.04
Yokohama A-048 235/45 R17 W 4 @153.04 612.16​

 

[fjtwelve]

New tyres on, immediately you can feel the difference between worn out old ones and nicely balanced new ones. The ride feels more supple and no more clonking over manholes and bumps in the road. The old tyres managed 23,938 miles in exactly one year to the day by coincidence, thats what taking the car off the road due to it blowing up does to the annual mileage, the FJ took the rest of the year on. All the tyres were very evenly worn to 2mil across the tread except one of the rears which was down to about 1mil in the centre. This probably explains the handling going off that i mentioned above. The tyre fitter said this indicated a very well balanced car, he also made a less complimentary comment about my cornering style and the corners of the front tyres that we won't go into here. So at 1.73p a mile (or 1.92 for the new set if they last as long) and good handling in all weathers they were a good buy and I highly recommend them.

 

[fjtwelve]

Bought a set of the same tyres for my wifes A4, 10 days later she gets a puncture which the tyre garage says can't be fixed due to the location of the hole! Going up the M5 last fridaythe front end on the A6 went into a major wobble, don't believe it another one I thought. Not so lucky, no flat tyre. Trundled to next junction along hard shoulder with horrendous wobble, turned into layby to park up, nasty knocking noise from front nearside. Aye aye thats the CV joint gone i thought. Hello mr AA man. Garage now agrees with me, and also pointed out my brake discs are also knacked and i need new pads. Never rains but it pours eh? Still the CV joint has done 71k, the rear pads have done 65k and the fronts 43k, and the discs have done 83k since i bought it, i've never replaced them, can't complain too much.

 

[fjtwelve]

Have to say that these Sport 3s are not as good as the sport 2s. The front tyres appear to be wearing unevenly and the car does not feel as planted as with the Sport 2s. Have had the balance and tracking done but still not quite right. Maybe as my speeds are slower down here they are taking longer to warm up because they seem to slide around more too, especially in the wet. Could be different road surfaces, more asphalt and less top dressing grit.

 

[fjtwelve]

After a surprisingly short time those Sport 3s have worn out. We're only into the 198000s and all 4 tyres are down to the wear blocks verging on illegal, so thats only about 13000 miles. Have the same wear on the outer edges of the fronts. Probably all the slow speed manouvering around town and a large proportion of that with cold tyres. Now looking again at the F1s as my mileage is now the lowest its ever been. So a bit of on line shopping around coming up.

 

[fjtwelve]

The Sport 3s have been replaced with Sport Contact 2 235/45R17W(94) at 198778 miles, so we only got 15449 miles out of that set. Paid £499.28 supplied and fitted. I found them on http://www.tyretraders.com/ and my local garage then bought them and supplied them to me for the same price. If you are in the area I am using Goldmartin Garage at Mawnan Smith 01326 250 007. They did the same for me on the last 2 sets via Black Circles. I save a bit and they make a bit.

 

[JimC64]

Hey fjt....been reading your tyre stories with interest.
I used to be major high miler doing 50k - 70k a year mostly motorways with plenty of twisty country roads and spirited driving style. I've used most of the makes you mention and probably a few you haven't and always kept on coming back to Pirelli P zero's...couldn't see past it for grip in the wet or dry and a good wear rate too.
Dunlop sports - never have them on another car I own....nuff said!
Had some great results over the last 3 -4 years with Conti Sport 2's and also Bridgestone Potenza's

Let me give you some free advice that I think you may find interesting.
you said - "The Sport 3s have been replaced with Sport Contact 2 235/45R17W(94) at 198778 miles, so we only got 15449 miles out of that set. Paid £499.28 supplied and fitted."

I needed two new front tyres as the old conti's were gettin low, the rears probably had 3-4mm and woulda been fine for a while but I like to change all round if feasible I needed 225/50/R17's and went for 98Y.
I checked Ebay and got a brand new set ( 30 miles on them ) of the new 17" TTmk2 Trapeze alloys....beautiful rims - fitted with Conti Sport 2's delivered to my door for £435. A £20 backhander at the local Kwik fit saw them on the car. I then sold my "old" immaculate rims with done in tyres on Ebay for £220....total cost for 4 new tyres c/w 4 new rims £235


I've now done this twice on my A6, maybe you should check it out?

Hope you find the tip useful mate

All the best

Jim

 

[fjtwelve]

Ah now thats my problem, lack of lateral thinking, i never thought that buying a new set of wheels with the tyres fitted would be less than half the price of the tyres on their own ....should've been obvious. Feck me that's a bargain, respect!
Well after 199k the original alloys are marked to say the least so i'll definitely look out for this next time. either that or i'll be on the phone to you get me a set...

 

[JimC64]

Hey fjt good buddy....check out the link below. These are the axact same specification as I have upgraded mine to...
Check it out and maybe grab yourself a REAL bargain....to give you an idea as I said I paid around £435 delivered and I'be be surprised if they go much higher than that.

genuine-17"-audi-alloys-with-tyres

Anythin else I can do to help mate, just email me or let me know
All the best


Jim

 

[starion]

The Sport 3s have been replaced with Sport Contact 2 235/45R17W(94) at 198778 miles, so we only got 15449 miles out of that set. Paid £499.28 supplied and fitted. I found them on http://www.tyretraders.com/ and my local garage then bought them and supplied them to me for the same price. If you are in the area I am using Goldmartin Garage at Mawnan Smith 01326 250 007. They did the same for me on the last 2 sets via Black Circles. I save a bit and they make a bit.

Have you ever tried xpress tyres in falmouth? They will guarantee to beat anyones price and they really do a first class service.

 

[fjtwelve]

Slightly vague feeling from the steering resolved itself into the now familiar "I'm worn out" noise from the front offside wheel bearing, but not to be left out the rear nearside was found to be on the way too so its into the garage for them to be replaced this weekend. 199660 miles, the rate things are going just now the car is trying to replace itself in time for the big 200k.

 

[fjtwelve]

The rear bearing proved to be a more complex job to replace than the front, not got the full gory story but appears that it arrives in pieces and has to be pressed together and theres lots more to take apart and reassemble than with the front. Car handling has noticeably improved, but it definitely needs the balance and tracking doing now. That'll probably tell me the suspension arm bushes need doing too....

 

[fjtwelve]

So now balanced and tracked at the front, rear appears to be seized, they (Falmouth Tyres) couldn't release it anyway, with the nearside rear slightly out. Vibration at 60 or so now gone but theres a slight buzz throughout. Have increased the tyre pressures from what they were, i think i may have a dodgy pressure gauge, maybe a result of a slightly harder ride now. Front tyres were just starting to wear on the outsides, maybe the buzz will go when they wear flat again.

 

[fjtwelve]

Must have caught a kerb somewhere, the MOT tester found a deep cut in the front nearside sidewall that you could see the cords in and rated it a MOT failure. So replacing both the fronnt, offside going in the boot as a spare to replace the dodgy Goodyear thats still in there. Bit of a pisser as the tyre only has around 5000 miles on it. £146 each for Conti Sport Contact 2 235 45 17 97W.
What only 5000 miles in 7 months??? Yes my mileage has dropped to bug all as all i do is drive to the airport and back every week. I have never done such a low annual mileage since i started driving. Doing my bit for the carbon footprint, well I would be if it wasn't for the smoke and abysmal mpg as i boot it everywhere enjoying the power

 

[fjtwelve]

Popped the 2 new fronts on at 205,525 miles. My plan to stick the offside front in as the spare was fine until we pulled the bent rim out of the boot, i should read my own posts - April 2007 above records bending it, i have just never looked at it since. Anyone got a 5 spoke 17" alloy rim they want to sell? Mind you as they are all a long way from JimC64's "immaculate" rims may be i should be looking for a complete new set.

 

[fjtwelve]

And MOT tester no 3 found a cut in the rear nearside tyre too, so out with the matchworn ex front tyre and on with it. So MOT tester no 1 at ATS found no tyres problems but both the other non-tyre centre guys did. Sure there's a moral in there somewhere.

 

[fjtwelve]

Good grief nothing posted for a year! Well you'll all be relieved to know that tyre prices are still going up. no news there then. Have just had a browse for a new set of Contis and we are looking at about £525 for 4. Thats up 27% in 5 years. This is getting ridiculous. Up to 220,500 now and i'm on the top of the wear block so thats 15k miles in the year since that marathon how many tyres can i change at MOT exercise last year. Thats 3.5p a mile fer crissakes! And if at 31mpg that i'm getting just now at £6.23 a gallon thats another 20p and £245 for the tax thats another 1.6p then theres the insurance £450 another 3p and lets not talk about the servicing costs. However as i have trashed 1 alloy by grinding up the road with the nose in the hedge last week and the bent one is still in the boot i may need to follow JimC64 and go for an alloy and tyre set for maybe £600, and just live with the tyres they give me for a bit. Its all a bit on hold right now until the insurance company finish doodling and decide what they are going to do with the car. Suspect it won't be a year before i'm back this time if they suppply some cheap tyres, I 'm back to knocking out about 550 miles a week up and down to Heathrow now.

 

[fjtwelve]

Have just told Penzance Crash Repair Centre to go ahead with supplying and fitting 4 Contis for £480, and recondition the alloys for £70 each, except the really badly ground one that needs welding and reprofiling for £100.

 

[fjtwelve]

But their supplier fell through so bought 4 Continental SportContact 2 235/45 R17 94W from mytyres.co.uk for £448 and had them delivered to Penzance for fitting. Will probably buy an Audi 5 spoke lookalike for the badly bent spare, vwdiesels.co.uk do some replicas.

 

[fjtwelve]

Took the car in to Falmouth Tyres get the wheels balanced on Saturday. "Did you know your rear tyres were worn to the thread on the inside sir?" Well i do now. The rear tracking is ******** so we binned the rears and put the fronts on the back and theres 2 new Continental Sport Contact 3 on the front as they didn't have any 2's in stock. £266 fitted and the guys stayed late to do it, thankyou. And i've ordered 2 more for the rear for next weekend and asked them to get ready to try and free off the rear alignment for adjusting.
They've done 14900 miles, within a 100 or so of the last set. I might have squeezed another 1000 out of them if it hadn't been for the alignment problem, the fronts are just above the wear blocks but wearing in the middle. I have been running 34psi as nearly all my mileage is motorway or dual carriageway at present, but looks like it was a smidgeon too much. Back to 32psi now then. Just clicked over 236000 today so this set will take the old girl to the quarter million mark

 

[fjtwelve]

Got the Contact 3s on the back now, another £266 plus 60 something for the 4 wheel alignment and they managed to sort out the tracking mostly, i think when i had my excursion into the hedge in January and ended up grinding the rim on the rear nearside i must have knocked it out of line. Drove back to London last night and car feels different, better on the straight but a bit squirrely around the corners. Not sure if thats just scrubbing them in but not just as secure as the Contact 2s. Have noticed i said the same thing when i tried them before. Had a look at the shocks while the wheels were off, they are looking a bit sorry for themselves, beginning to wonder if they are up for replacement now - 4 years and a 100k miles....